The Lord Mayor of Belfast has been offering a helping hand in the planting of saplings at a new tree nursery at Groveland’s Park and Cavehill Primary School.
The tree-planting activity is part of the Belfast City Council’s One Million Trees campaign, a joint pledge, between public, private and voluntary sector partners to plant one million native trees across the city by 2035.
Lord Mayor Councillor Kate Nicholl said: “The progress being made with the One Million Trees initiative is inspiring and I am delighted to learn that over 54,000 trees have already been planted in the city and city regions since the project began back in 2020.
“Our plans to plant one million trees in Belfast by 2035 is very ambitious- but it is achievable. It was really inspiring to see the children at Cavehill Primary School participate in the planting of the saplings with such enthusiasm and I was equally impressed at their level of knowledge regarding how the trees were going to help improve air quality, reduce emissions, and create a habitat for wildlife.
“I am also delighted that Council’s tree nursery at Groveland’s Park will have educational benefits, with opportunities for school workshops and volunteering on site which will be fantastic for children and young people.”
The One Million Trees project is one of Council’s programmes to support climate adaptation across Belfast and forms a major part of the city’s Resilience Strategy which aims to transition Belfast to an inclusive zero emissions, climate-resilient economy within a generation.
Councillor Nicholl added: “The One Million Trees project is a practical example of how we can do one wee thing to help tackle the climate crisis together- schools, businesses and communities from across Belfast can all be a part of this and the recent planting activities at both Groveland’s Park and Cavehill Primary School will continue to build momentum, boost the planting figure even further and create a more sustainable future for Belfast.”
The planting at Cavehill Primary School is part of a wider school programme with Belfast One Million Trees project and the Education Authority.
The project’s key partners include the Woodland Trust who provided part funding for the tree nursery, the Conservation Volunteers and Belfast Hills Partnership.
For more information on One Million Trees, visit www.belfastcity.gov.uk/onemilliontrees