A mega day of action saw more than 3,000 trees planted at a site which is set to become the UK’s biggest continuous new native woodland.

Ethical-minded business The Premier Paper Group has a novel way of putting back what it takes out of the environment – planting thousands of trees.

And at the Woodland Trust-owned Heartwood Forest in Hertfordshire it did just that with customers and staff getting their hands dirty and planting a whopping 3,000 trees in a day.

Chris Stanyon, Director of environmental sales for Premier Paper Group said: “Premier’s Carbon Capture programme has been a phenomenal success. We offer customers the option of capturing the CO2 emissions from the production and distribution of the paper that they buy and use by planting trees with the Woodland Trust. This demonstrates a clear strategy of environmental responsibility that really can help win business. The attraction of the Carbon Capture programme is that it produces very clear and tangible results; new woodland creation right here in the UK that not only benefits wildlife and the environment but also creates green space for everyone to enjoy. And of course on the tree planting days such as this, the organisations that engage with the programme can join in and actually plant the trees providing much needed manpower for the Woodland Trust.”   

Clare Allen, Head of Partnerships at the Woodland Trust said: “Heartwood Forest is a really special site for the Woodland Trust. It is our largest site in England at 857 acres. It is our biggest woodland creation site and as well as this it is also has  several areas of much treasured irreplaceable ancient woodland dating back hundreds of years.

“We are delighted at Premier Paper’s remarkable day of tree planting. The business is clearly determined to help us create new woodland for people and wildlife as well as having an ethical mind-set to mitigate carbon emissions through our Woodland Carbon scheme.” 

The Premier Paper Group, which is the UK’s largest independent paper merchant, recognises that planting trees helps soak up unwanted carbon dioxide which pollutes the atmosphere, a process known as Carbon Capture.

Held on 27 November, the Tree Planting Day involved around 170 staff and customers from across the country. They were then taught about the importance of Britain’s native tree species which include oak, alder, willow, wild cherry, rowan, holly, beech, hazel and got to work in planting them. 

Heartwood Forest:

Heartwood Forest, located just north of St Albans in Hertfordshire, is an 857 acre site and is the largest of The Woodland Trust’s woods in England and also the largest continuous new native woodland in the country. It consists of ancient woodland dating back to at least 1600AD as well as newly planted woodland.

The Woodland Trust

The Woodland Trust works tirelessly to create a UK rich in woodlands which can benefit our environment and be enjoyed and valued by everyone. Woodland not only provides a rich, bio diverse environment for wildlife but also provides us all with green, open space for rest and recreation. More than 1,200 woodlands throughout the UK are owned or managed by the Woodland Trust, covering in excess of 60,000 acres throughout the UK, with free and easy year round access for us all to enjoy. Trees improve our quality of life, making our local communities and neighbourhoods greener and more pleasant places to live.

The Woodland Trust has nearly 350 sites which contain ancient woodland of which 70% is semi-natural ancient woodland – land which has been under tree cover since at least 1600.  It also manages over 110 Sites of Special Scientific Interest, and has created over 32 km² (12 sq. mi) of new woodland including 250 new community woods in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. 

The Woodland Trust is a charity registered in England and Wales (No 294344) and in Scotland (No SC038885): To find out more go to www.woodlandtrust.org.uk

Carbon Capture®

Premier Paper is offering its customers the opportunity to capture the CO₂ emissions from their paper purchases by planting and conserving native woodland right here in the UK. As a corporate partner of the Woodland Trust, Premier Paper signed up to its UK Woodland Carbon Code. This programme sets a new standard for Carbon Capture, removing it from the atmosphere through the creation of native woodland across the country. 

The scheme operates under the Government’s Woodland Carbon Code, a voluntary standard for woodland creation projects in the UK. The independent certification to this standard provides assurance and clarity about the carbon benefits of these sustainably managed woodlands. It is calculated that 25m² of native UK woodland will capture and store one tonne of CO₂ and creating large areas of new native woodland, will, over time, remove hundreds of thousands of tonnes of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

www.paper.co.uk/environment/carbon-capture/

The Premier Paper Group is the UK’s leading independent paper merchant and through its business divisions and nationwide branch network, offers a great choice of products and services.

Equipped with specialist knowledge and extensive experience, the Premier business divisions offer a high level of guidance and advice, specifically tailored to each market sector.

Premier Paper has 24,000 tonnes of paper held throughout its branch network, offering some 5,500 different product items, from many of the world’s leading paper manufacturers, including the UK market’s widest selection of media for digital printing.

The Premier Paper Group endeavours to be an integral and valuable part of its customers’ business providing first class services, sharing its extensive knowledge and information, offering advice and a choice of quality products.

For further information about the product ranges available from The Premier Paper Group, Email [email protected] or Visit www.paper.co.uk