Local community groups and organisations were among those who came to pick up their free trees for planting this month as part of Chichester District Council’s free tree scheme.
More than 60 of those who successfully applied to the scheme, which was funded by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, came to collect their trees from Cattle Market car park in Chichester on 2 December.
Darren Norris picked up ten bundles of trees for planting on the Goodwood Estate. Darren says: “The trees kindly supplied by Chichester District Council will become part of the greater Goodwood project to create continuous wildlife corridors for wildlife across the full length of the estate.
“These trees will fill in the gaps in the hedge-line through Westerton village and become part of the later joint project with the council to improve wildlife potential along footpaths and hedgerows for all to enjoy.”
Others, including residents such as Tracey Savage from the Sandpiper Walk estate in West Wittering and Simon Holman from Fishbourne Roman Palace, also collected their trees. People were given guidance on how to plant and look after their trees along with plastic-free biodegradable guards to protect the trees as they grow.
Councillor Penny Plant, Cabinet Member for the Environment and Chichester Contract Services at Chichester District Council, says: “It was fantastic to see so many people collecting their free trees and looking forward to planting them this winter. We’re excited to see their tree planting projects get underway across the district and we know this will make such a difference to our local environment.”
The council received more than 100 applications for free trees from residents, community groups, schools, parish councils, charities, businesses, landowners, and tenant farmers this summer. A total of more than 8,000 trees are being given out to successful applicants to be planted across the Chichester District. Additional tree collection days are due to be held next year on 12 January and 17 February.
This is all part of the council’s Tree Chichester District scheme, which was launched in January and funded by The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. The council is one of five local authorities in England taking part in the £2.5m tree planting pilot, testing ways to increase tree cover in rural and urban areas.
Penny adds: “In addition to offering free trees for planting across the district, our Tree Project Officer has also been working on a number of smaller projects which form part of the wider scheme. These include plans to plant three mini urban forests in our district; funding planting of community orchards; and funding tree planting within the farmed landscape.
“The combination of these different projects will have a positive impact on our communities and help us combat climate change in our area. Trees are a precious natural asset and, as a natural carbon sink, are a vital part of the fight against climate change. Trees also create habitats for wildlife, improve biodiversity, and aid wildlife corridors.
“This is just one of the ways in which we are working to protect and enhance our local environment. Last year, the council produced a Climate Emergency Action Plan, which sets out a carbon reduction target of 10% year-on-year until 2025 for the Chichester District. This target was set for both the council and for the whole of the district.
“A huge amount of work has already been done and we’re working closely with West Sussex County Council and other district and borough councils to engage with residents, businesses and organisations about the ways in which we can all play our part in the fight against climate change. As part of this, we have been developing a behavioural change campaign to let residents know about the various energy efficiency measures that they can make to their own homes to save money and reduce their carbon footprint — some of these steps are small and simple, but when we all act together, they make a big difference.
“We’ll be sharing more about this campaign very soon, but in the meantime, you can find out more about all the work we are doing at: www.chichester.gov.uk/climatechange.”
People can find more information about the council’s Tree Chichester District scheme and how they can access funding for trees, at www.chichester.gov.uk/treescheme, or by emailing our Tree Project Officer at [email protected]
