Time for a tree-change By Lyn Cox
We live and build our houses on plots or blocks of different sizes – from less than 300 square metres, to half an acre, to hectares. Fortunately, Mother Nature has got this covered. She gives us trees of all different shapes and sizes. Trees have a positive impact on the environment and have a role to play around our homes when planted safely and suitably. Strategically planted trees in a neighbourhood or just around a home can absorb and muffle noise, especially in urban areas. They filter sewage and chemicals, reduce the effects of animal waste and ultimately improve the water quality of run-off. One of the first things I remember learning in primary school science was that trees absorb carbon dioxide, locking it away in their wood, roots and leaves as they grow; and that they produce oxygen and improve the quality of the air we breathe. Trees are referred to as ‘the lungs of the earth’. Trees provide shade plus have a cooling effect as they release water vapour into the air through their leaves.
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They help to limit soil erosion. They can reduce wind speeds. Their canopy breaks the force of wind and rain on the earth while their roots bind the soil. Tree planting projects work to conserve rainwater and reduce sediment deposit during and after storms and flooding events. Trees, which are said to be the longest living species on earth, provide shelter and food for hundreds of other species of animals and plants. Trees make me feel better!
In Australia, National Tree Day was co-founded in 1996 by Planet Ark and Olivia Newton-John and has grown into the country’s largest community tree planting and nature protection event. Schools Tree Day will be on Friday 31st July and National Tree Day on Sunday 2nd August this year. The New Zealand government launched the One Billion Trees Programme in December 2019, to increase tree planting across New Zealand. The goal is to double the current planting rate to reach one billion trees planted by 2028. I vividly remember Arbor Day as a child and have since been told that the first Arbor Day happened in Spain in 1805. It’s a day to raise awareness of trees and the important role that they play and is celebrated on different dates around the world.
