Conservation organisations launch ambitious tree planting campaign

Conservation organisations - Aussie Ark, WildArk and re:wild in partnership with the Australian Reptile Park - have today launched an ambitious campaign to help plant 100,000 trees throughout their Mongo Valley and Barrington Wildlife Sanctuaries.  The trees will be planted as part of the organisations broad scale plan to rehabilitate and rewild the east coast of New South Wales.

The organisations are calling on Australians to consider their environmental footprint and ‘purchase’ enough trees to neutralise their carbon footprint. It is estimated that the average Australian has a carbon footprint of about 15 tonnes of CO2 per year, trees remove or ‘sequester’ carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and convert it into organic carbon as they grow – storing it in their trunks, stems, leaves and roots. Approximately half the dry weight of a tree’s biomass is carbon. 

Australia has the worst extinction rate on earth and is one of the worst developed countries in the world for broadscale deforestation. We have cleared nearly 50% our forests in just 200 years. Broadscale deforestation is just one of the many threats facing our wildlife, and why projects like Aussie Ark’s are critical to the long-term survival of Australia’s unique wildlife.

Aussie Ark director, Liz Gabriel notes “Australia is one of the most important nations on Earth for biodiversity. It is one of only 17 ‘megadiverse’ nations and is home to more species than any other developed country on earth. Most of Australia’s wildlife is found nowhere else in the world.

“Yet it is disappearing. We must rebuild their habitats and address the threats facing them to ensure our children, and their children have a world full of wildlife to enjoy and protect.”

Kirstin Scholtz General Manager of WildArk advises “Ecosystems globally are being degraded at an alarming rate, including in Australia. Native wildlife has suffered enormously through ongoing habitat destruction and the catastrophic bushfires. It is up to all of us to take action and start rebuilding habitat so that our precious wildlife have somewhere to call home.”

For just $5, Aussie’s can purchase a tree to be planted, helping to rebuild the habitats of our endangered wildlife to be released to. For an additional $3.50 per tree, you can provide 12 months of maintenance support for the tree, allowing for the management of weeds and undergrowth.

Donate today and help Aussie Ark achieve their goal of 100,000 trees in the ground! Do it for our wildlife and our planet.