Category:

1. AWF Donates Land to Rwanda to Protect Mountain Gorilla Habitat

   Posted on 9:00pm Thursday 18th Jan 2018

   The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) lists mountain gorillas as critically endangered.    Mountain gorillas are only found in the Virunga Massive and in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in Uganda.  They are one of the four great apes living in Africa and are the only great age which is increasing in population.  ©  Craig Sholley The Government of Rwanda, says the African Wildlife Foundation, has distinguished itself as a leader in conservation after the amazing recovery of the ape numbers. The 2010 cenuses of mountain gorillas in the Virunga Massife showed there were about 880 individuals - 480 in the Virunga Massive and 400 in Bwindi.  This means they had increased about 26% over the previous 7 years.  Visit the African Wildlife Foundation's website for more info This success led to a key challenge:  enough habitat for the mountain gorillas. In 2017, the African Wildlife Foundation bought a 27.8 hectare property right next to the park.   However, the increase in mountain gorillas has led to a key challenge: adequate habitat. So in 2017, the African Wildlife Foundation bought a 27.8-hectare property next to the park.   In January, the Rwanda Development Board received a property that will help increase the size of Volcanoes National Park, vital habitat for the mountain gorillas.  The park was established in 1925 and it's home to mountain gorillas.  It is sited in the north of Rwanda bordering the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda and it hoped that the handover of land from the African Wildlife Foundation to the Rwanda Development Board will help address the issue of adequate habitat. Visitor numbers have risen 82% since 2007, showing that more and more people want to see mountain gorillas.  Visitor numbers will help ensure their long term survival, provided that the gorillas are treated with respect and given the right habitat they need to survive and thrive. Responsible Travel is an ethical travel directory and it lists a number of gorilla safaris - click here for more information.

2. New Northern Forest to be planted in the UK

   Posted on 9:00pm Monday 8th Jan 2018

   In January 2018, the UK Government kicked off the year by backing a project to create a new Northern Forest.   The Government will provide £5.7 million to increase tree cover in this area.  The project will cost £500m over 25 years, and the balance will be raised by charity.  The Woodland Trust is leading the scheme with local Community Forests.  The project will see 50 million trees over 25 years.  They will stretch from Liverpool right over to Hull, embracing the major cities of Liverpool, Manchester, Sheffield, Leeds, Chester and Hull alongside other major towns along the M62 corridor.  Shared from New World 360 According to the Woodland Trust, benefits of this new forest include: Improving air quality in towns and cities Mitigating flood risk in key catchments Supporting the rural economy through tourism, recreation and timber production Connecting people with nature Helping to delivery better health and wellbeing for people by providing access to green spaces Providing a rich habitat for wildlife to thrive Woodland cover is at just 7.6% there, below the UK average of 13%.  The EU has an average of 44%.  Tree planting rates are very low with there being only 700 hectares against the Government’s target of 5,000 hectares a year, so this project should help. However, while it is one thing to create new forest, it is another to destroy ancient woodland which the Government is hell bent on, in part to create room for this ridiculous and incredibly expensive HS2 railway.   If this Government really cared about forests and woodlands, it would stop destroying ancient woodland and stop routing the high-speed train route through them.   Five Community Forests that sit within the proposed areas for the Northern Forest – you can find out more about the Community Forests here.

    

3. Good news from Mexico - 10,000 acres saved thanks to Buy an Acre scheme

   Posted on 7:00pm Tuesday 5th Dec 2017

   There's good news for 10,000 acres in Mexico.  They've been saved by supporters of the World Land Trust. Acre by acre, the supporters and Buy an Acre donors have saved the forest in Sierra Gorda Biosphere Reserve. The World Land Trust and Grupo Ecologico Sierra Gorda have worked together for 10 years to protect the range of forest habitatws in Sierra Gorda. The area is home to 100 mammal species, including Black Bear, Jaguar, Neotropical Otter and Puma.  It's also home to 339 speices of birds such as Military Macaws and Great Curassow. Protecting the world's forests mean that we will have water, oxygen, climate regulation and beautiful landscapes to enjoy.  We are giving land back to the species who live there. "Walking through the reserves we have made is like travelling back in time, back to when Mexican forests were ruled by the jaguar and filled with species we consider rare today." Roberto Pedraza Rulz, GESG This success is increasing the amount of land within the Sierra Gorda Biosphere Reserve that is actually under private proteciton and management by conservationists.  GESG has focused their attention on the most important and threatened areas to create a network of privately protected areas in the eastern part of the reserve. The success is thanks to the suppoters of Buy an Acre, and grand funding and generous corporate supporters such as Puro Fairtrade Coffee.  And work continues to protect the area.   Sierra Gorda's habitats include Cloud Forests, Conifer Forests, Oak Forests, Tropical Forests and Riparian Forests.  Click here to visit the World Land Trust

    

4. More woodland in England in Northumberland

   Posted on 9:00pm Saturday 2nd Dec 2017

   So over 600,000 trees are to be planted at Doddington North Moor in Northumberland in the UK. The scheme will be the largest woodland creation scheme in England in the last 30 years.  The Forestry Commission gave it a thumbs up, and it expects it to generate jobs. The trees will include broadleaf and conifer trees and they should cover 350 hectares (i.e. the same space as 650 football pitches would take up). Environmentally, it should: Boost red squirrel numbers, currently estimated to be 140,000 (compared with 2.5 million grey squirrels) Store 120,000 tonnes of carbon Manage flood risks The scheme has been developed with the help of Government funding.  It will receie grants for planting.  Environment minister Therese Coffey said: "Our forests and woodlands are some of our most vital and cherished natural assets, and planting more trees is at the heart of our ambition to protect the environment for future generations. "Doddington North Moor will make a significant contribution to our drive to plant 11 million trees across the nation and is a fantastic example of the kind of tree-planting schemes we want to see more of. The Conservatives pledged to plant 11 million trees in five years, a pledge upheld in their 2015.  Unfortunately, what they propose to plant with one hand, they will destroy in the name of "progress" with the other - the HS2 railway being an example. The scheme is expected to begin in March 2018 and take two to three years to complete. Meantime in India, 66 million saplings were planted by volunteers in just 12 hours in a record-breaking environmental drive. School report?  England could and must do better.

    

5. The Tree Charter launches to build a future for trees and people to stand together

   Posted on 5:00pm Wednesday 1st Nov 2017

   The 6th November 2017 sees the 800th anniversary of the 1217 Charter of the Forest. King Henry III became king after King John died in 1216.   With the guidance of William Marshall (a famous Medieval knight), King Henry III put his seal to the Charter of the Forest in 1217. The charter complemented Magna Carta’s clauses with special reference to the forest of the land.  It re-established the rights of the people using them.  In 1225, minor adjustments were made and the Charter was issued in its definitive form. Two copies of the original 1217 Charter survive and one is in Lincoln – alongside the 1215 Magna Carta. 800 years later, on 6th November 2017, the Charter for Trees, Woods and People will be launched.   The Woodland Trust is leading it, with 70 organisations working to build a future in which people and trees stand stronger together.  The Charter believes the people of the UK have the right to the benefit brought by trees and woods and it will recognise, celebrate and protect this right. In the last year, 50,000 tree stories have been submitted and the themes from these have informed the principles which underpin the charter.    The Tree Charter Principles are (and I quote): Thriving habitats for diverse species Planting for the future Celebrating the cultural impact of trees A thriving forestry sector that delivers for the UK Better protection for important trees and woods Enhancing new developments with trees Understanding and using the natural health benefits of trees Access to trees for everyone Addressing threats to woods and trees through good management Strengthening landscapes with woods and trees We all need to stand up for trees because there are plenty of threats facing them, as the Tree Charter points out.   Amongst these are human development such as roads, railways and homes;  pollution, a lack of awareness of forest jobs in young people, big trees dying of old age but not being replaced, pests and diseases and lack of protection for ancient woodland in planning policy. Here's how you can join in: Give your support to this Tree Charter today – put your name to it and the Charter will plant a tree. Get involved in your local Tree Charter branch - or start one up! Go to events - or create your own! Visit its website and find out more