The Million Tree Challenge

London, Ontario has a moniker that most of its residents are quite proud of: The Forest City. The name conjures up wide swathes of trees covering vast areas of land, which was once in fact a reality. London can still boast over 120 species of trees on city-owned property, but the sad reality is that the face of the Forest City is changing. Urban development, insect infestations (like the Emerald Ash Borer that is threatening upwards of 400,000 publicly owned ash trees, not to mention the myriad of trees on private property), vandalism and the general aging of our trees is causing that canopy to shrink. That is why ReForest London has developed its newest initiative to help reclaim our proud title of the Forest City.

MILLION TREE CHALLENGE

Enter the Million Tree Challenge. The brain-child of ReForest London and the City of London, the Million Tree Challenge has set a goal of planting one million trees in London, Ontario over the next ten years. While that sounds like a mighty feat, the project has set a micro-goal of planting one tree for every Londoner in the next three years. That breaks down to approximately 100,000 trees this year alone. And I think that we can do it!

For every tree planted, Londoners get the benefit of increased oxygen, cleaner water, less pollution, reduced stress and an overall better quality of life. Not a bad deal at all! For those of you who fear they might not be up to the challenge, Trees Ontario is offering a little help in the form of a Tree Planting Workshop on March 14th, 2012 from 7-9pm. While learning how to plant a tree, you might even discover that you are eligible for a subsidy or other financial incentive. Many individuals, small, medium and large businesses, community groups and schools have already pledged their support and started London on the way to reaching its goal of planting one million trees. It is a worthy cause and one close to the heart of the folks at CLC Tree Services. We support the Million Tree Challenge and encourage you to do the same today.

If you need a few more reasons to participate in the Million Tree Challenge, check out the video below, then add your name to the list and keep the Forest City alive and well for generations to come.