PHS, Partners Announce “Plant One Million,” Extraordinary, Multi-State Tree-Planting Campaign

U.S. Forest Service reveals plan for Urban Field Station

PHILADELPHIA (March 10, 2011) – The Pennsylvania Horticultural Society (PHS) and its partners in three states today announced the groundwork for “Plant One Million,” the nation’s largest, multi-state tree-planting campaign. This new initiative to plant one million trees will focus on the 13 counties in the Greater Philadelphia region, southern New Jersey, and Delaware.

The announcement was made at the Philadelphia International Flower Show, which benefits PHS and is on view through March 13 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. Several hundred representatives of the tree care industry, tree advocates, and local, state and federal government representatives were present at the announcement.

“Trees are vital to the environmental and economic well-being of the region, and this program will have a major impact on the health of our communities,” said PHS President Drew Becher, who in his prior position as director of the New York Restoration Project led Million Trees NYC, a program that has planted 400,000 trees to date in New York City.

In addition to the Plant One Million announcement, PHS hosted a visit by Chief Tom Tidwell, the leader of the U.S. Forest Service, who, along with Michael Rains, Director of the Northern Research Station located in Newtown Square, Pa., revealed plans for the creation of the first Urban Field Station in the Philadelphia area. The station, which will promote adaptive management, technology transfer, and science to improve the environment in the Philadelphia area, will be located at PHS headquarters at 20th and Arch Sts.

“This public/private initiative to increase tree canopy cover in the Greater Philadelphia region will improve the environment, create jobs, strengthen communities, and improve air and water quality,” Tidwell said. “The Forest Service is pleased to be a partner in this venture.”

The Greater Philadelphia region has lost millions of trees in recent decades due to development. Several years ago the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) responded with TreeVitalize, a public/private partnership led in Southeastern Pennsylvania by PHS that has added 235,000  trees statewide. PHS will now lead the expanded campaign, Plant One Million, in partnership with local governments, corporate sponsors, organizations, schools, civic groups and residents to add one million trees in the 13 counties. It will educate and mobilize volunteers throughout the region to “plant, count and tend” trees. The goal is to restore the region’s “tree canopy cover” – the area of land shaded by trees — to 30 percent.

“This is the first century in our history that the majority of humans live in urban areas. Thus, trees and urban natural resources shall play a critical role in improving equity in neighborhood quality and becoming the linchpin of environmental health with community well-being,” said Rains.

“TreeVitalize is more than just putting trees in the ground. We’ve seen great success in educating citizens, building regional collaboration and capacity to promote stewardship of our natural resources,” PA DCNR Acting Secretary Cindy Dunn said.  “If properly maintained, trees return environmental, economic and social benefits to a community far in excess of the costs of maintaining them.”

From the start of his administration, Philadelphia’s Mayor Michael Nutter declared his strong support for increasing the city’s tree canopy and it has a central place in his shared vision of Philadelphia becoming America’s greenest city and in Greenworks Philadelphia, the city’s sustainability plan. The Greenworks target is 300,000 new trees by 2015, in order to help increase the city’s tree cover to 30 percent by 2025.

PHS will support the city’s goal by collaborating with private and institutional land owners through direct action and incentive programs.

“Having our long-standing partner PHS working with us to achieve this very ambitious target in the city demonstrates our collaborative new model for planting trees, in which everyone has a role to play to help make Philadelphia the greenest city in America. This model includes citizens, neighborhoods, institutions, partners like PHS, and the city government all coming together in innovative ways,” said Michael DiBerardinis, Deputy Mayor for Environmental & Community Resources/Parks and Recreation Commissioner.

Outside the city, PHS will work with communities and partners across state lines to plant 700,000 trees.

In New Jersey, the non-profit partner is the New Jersey Tree Foundation. “Plant One Million will benefit our tree-planting efforts in New Jersey, generating greater awareness and interest,” said Lisa Simms, Executive Director. “We are pleased to be a part of this broader regional approach.”

The Delaware Center for Horticulture will lead the tree planting in the First State, continuing its “20,000 by 2020” campaign, which offers free trees and planting within the city of Wilmington. The center also seeks to expand tree planting efforts in the Chesapeake Bay watershed in partnership with Delaware’s Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, reforesting areas to improve water quality. “By partnering with the Delaware Center for Horticulture, we have planted trees to protect several hundred acres of forest buffers that reduce erosion and pollutants – all in an effort to clean up our waterways,” said DNREC Secretary Collin P. O’Mara. “By joining the Plant One Million initiative, we accelerate our efforts to improve Delaware’s environmental health and ensure clean water for current and future generations.”

  Fundraising and marketing campaigns, including corporate volunteer opportunities and outreach to government agencies, foundations, businesses and individuals, will build support for Plant One Million and raise awareness about the importance of trees. PHS hopes the partnerships created through this initiative will lay the groundwork for greater investment in green spaces long into the future.

“That’s the beauty of this program,” said Becher. “It will continue to build on itself for years to come.”

The 2011 Philadelphia International Flower Show benefits PHS and is presented by PNC. This year’s presentation, “Springtime in Paris,” continues through March 13 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. PHS has 17,000 members throughout the country, offers hundreds of educational programs year-round, and is considered the nation’s leading authority on transforming communities through greening.

For more information about PHS and contributing online to Plant One Million, please visit www.plantonemillion.org.

 

For more information Contact:
Alan Jaffe at 215-988-8833