08 / INSIGHT © KKHOON LAY GAN/123RF.COM
HOW GREEN IS
YOUR BUSINESS?
John Murphy, respected nurseryman and owner of Annaveigh Plants, reflects on his business practices in light of growing climate change concerns
H
aving sat watching the Climate Change Strike on the news last week and being impressed by the numbers turning out here in Ireland and all over the world, I began to contemplate how green we really are. I have always been under the illusion that growing 100 acres of trees offsets the non-green elements of my business, but does it really? Looking at a few facts and figures, my nursery offsets the carbon emissions of 6.1 return flights from Dublin to Schiphol, Amsterdam every year. A typical return trip from Dublin to Tipperary with an HGV emits approximately 250kg of Co2. Looking at these figures, our poor 100 acres of trees would have to work hard just to cover our transport and that excludes all the machinery we operate on the nursery. Climate change has certainly had an impact on nurseries in Europe and this was clear to see in the last five years. Freezing temperatures, flooding and shoring temperatures have been a recent feature for Dutch and German producers. Twenty years ago, we would never have contemplated irrigating the trees on the nursery, but now we lay irrigation at the time of planting. Rainfall in Ireland is predicted to fall by 5-15% and there is the unpredictability of extreme weather events, which it is suggested will increase in frequency. It has been very noticeable that certain tree varieties have performed better in the changing climate, Liquidamber and Acer rubrum varieties now thrive in Tipperary, while in the past they struggled. But look around and you will see old Fagus trees in trouble this season due to last year’s drought and this year's soil moisture deficits of up to 40mm.
As a member of the green industry, I am sure you comfort yourself with the belief that: ‘I am planting enough trees and shrubs to offset my carbon footprint’. But I think if you analyse your business you will discover that you are not as green as you thought. A quick look at ourselves here in Annaveigh shows we are dispatching a lot of non-recyclable plastic yearly. In the form of pots, bags and plastic wrap. Demand has dictated that most wholesale Irish nurseries import plants from Europe, and we are no different. Once you go down this path you must include container shipping, road haulage and the associated unloading and loading operations and adding all the machinery operated on the nursery, and it doesn’t paint a good picture. While altogether combating Climate Change seems impossible for a small business, there are many changes we can implement immediately. It may not be as dramatic as replacing container ships with electric ships but let’s consider a few options. Immediately we should look at getting rid of all single-use plastic products. Last Christmas we bought all employees Chilly Bottles and asked staff to stop using single-use water bottles. Another change we implement is the investment in electric alternatives to the traditionally used petrol-powered handheld machinery. Small beginnings. At present we are looking at ways of replacing the thousands of black plastic bags used on bare-root plants, to date we have not found a suitable replacement. Maybe nurseries who bag their bare-root plants should be asking their customers if this extra packaging is really necessary.
Autumn/Winter 2019 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED
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