NEWS RELEASE 3 June 2008

Arbor Day planting to be a dual celebration this year

Wellington City Council's Arbor Day planting on Thursday 5 June will be a dual celebration this year, marking World Environment Day 2008 and Arbor Day.

Some 260 school children will help Mayor Kerry Prendergast, Wellington Central MP Marian Hobbs, City Councillors, Council staff and others to plant 5000 native plants on the slope above Macalister Park in Vogeltown.

The plants will restore bush to a 1.4 hectare site that was cleared of ageing pines last year as part of the city's ongoing hazardous tree removal programme. Planting will happen between 1pm and 3pm after a brief ceremony at noon and refreshments.

The plants, provided by the Council's Berhampore Nursery, include pittosporums, coprosmas, cabbage trees and flax and are just a fraction of the 90,000 grown at the nursery and planted around the city each year. Five hundred northern rata will also be planted at the site in partnership with Project Crimson. The schools taking part this year include Ridgway, St Anne's, South Wellington Intermediate, Thorndon, Ngaio, and Moriah and St Catherine's colleges.

World Environment Day is a United Nations event that is observed annually on 5 June in more than 100 countries. Its aim is to focus public attention on the state of the environment, and to encourage people to take better care of the environment. For the first time, Wellington is the international host of World Environment Day. The 2008 theme is climate change with a focus on moving towards a low-carbon economy and lifestyle. 'Kick the CO2 habit' is the international slogan.

The Council's Environment Portfolio Leader, Councillor Celia Wade-Brown, says planting trees is a small but practical thing that almost anyone can do to help in the global effort to halt climate change and helps build our biodiversity.

"Wellington has unique fauna and flora, which I'll be proud to showcase when we're hosting World Environment Day," she says. "This local planting is one small step towards Wellington becoming a carbon-neutral city."

Last year, the Council agreed to a vision for Wellington to be carbon neutral by 2012, which puts the city on the road to becoming the world's first 'green capital'.

Wellingtonians can help with the planting and should bring a spade and gardening gloves if they can. Macalister Park can be accessed from Finnimore Terrace, or Liardet or Travers streets. Catch the Vogeltown No. 21 bus or park at the Liardet Street pavilion.

ENDS

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