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PRESS
RELEASE
2010 tree seedling scarce across environmentally precious Oak Ridges Moraine
KING CITY, ON,
November 22, 2010...This past year proved poor for seed collection on the Oak
Ridges Moraine (ORM), one of southern Ontario’s largest and most ecologically
important landscapes.
The ORM is one of many regions that Trees Ontario, the largest
not-for-profit tree planting partnership in North America, is dedicated to
restoring. It stretches 160 kilometres from the Trent River to the Niagara
Escarpment and crosses 32 different municipalities. Thirty-two per cent of the
ORM is covered in forests that provide many benefits to our local communities:
they replenish our oxygen, filter pollution from our air and provide housing to
many different species of plants, birds and wildlife.
In recognition of the importance of the ORM’s forests to our
local environment, the Oak Ridges Moraine Foundation (ORMF) partnered with Trees
Ontario in 2006 to ensure a plentiful supply of seedling would be available each
year for planting across the ORM. Together the organizations have focused on
seed supply forecasting and seed collection efforts to reforest and restore the
ORM’s forest cover.
“Thanks in part to the ORMF’s initial support of Trees
Ontario’s seed forecasting project four years ago, 382,000 appropriate seedlings
have been planted on the Moraine since 2006 and a seed forecasting website has
been developed for use across southern Ontario,” says said Robert H. Keen, RPF,
Trees Ontario CEO. “The website allows Trees Ontario partners and the general
public to provide seed information to the organization, a significant
contribution in assisting our target of supporting the planting of 10 million
seedlings by 2015.”
A major obstacle to protecting and
restoring the ORM continues to be the limited supply of locally grown native
tree sources. It is important that seeds continue to be collected from native,
healthy trees to ensure sufficient, locally-sourced seedlings will be available
to preserve and enhance the ORM’s forests. When non-native seeds are used, it is
possible that they will develop into poor quality trees and disease-susceptible
forests.
Seed forecasting and collection are
central to the well-being of the ORM. If you are a property owner on the area
and have trees that produce a healthy amount of seed, please contact Trees
Ontario.
ABOUT THE ORMF
The Oak Ridges Moraine Foundation was
founded in 2002 as a governing body dedicated to thee enhancement and
preservation of the Moraine as a healthy and vibrant ecosystem. Comprised of an
independent board of directors, the ORMF has diligently distributed in excess of
$14 million in grants to 177 projects since 2002. Working closely with Moraine
partners, the ORMF leveraged an additional $35.8 million in funding for land
securement; stewardship; education and public understanding; the Oak Ridges
Moraine Trail; and research projects. For more information about the ORMF, visit http://moraineforlife.org/.
About Trees Ontario
Trees Ontario,
working with its partners, is the largest, not-for-profit tree planting
partnership in North America. It is committed to the re-greening of Ontario
through a range of tree planting activities. The goal of Trees Ontario is to
restore the province's tree planting capacity, especially throughout southern
Ontario on private lands, by providing funding and planning support for its tree
planting partners including local Conservation Authorities, Ontario Stewardship
Councils, municipal governments and community volunteer groups. To learn more,
support and participate, visit the Trees Ontario website at ww.treesontario.ca.
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