We're match funding the Forestry Commission's Treescapes Fund
Monday, 18 October 2021
We've secured £300,000 in funding over the next four years for tree planting from the Forestry Commission as part of its Treescapes Fund and our Executive agreed to match fund this.
The Local Authority Treescapes Fund (LATF) aims to increase tree planting and natural regeneration in communities.
The funding will enable us to plant trees this year, with three years of maintenance thereafter and is aimed at establishing more trees in non-woodland settings such as riverbanks, hedgerows and footpaths.
Planting will focus on the following urban areas in Central Bedfordshire:
- Dunstable
- Leighton-Linslade
- Sandy
- Biggleswade
- Barton-le-Clay
Our Executive Member for Sustainability and Transformation, Councillor Steve Dixon said:
We are thrilled to have been successful in our bid for tree planting funding. We have also decided to match fund this tree planting grant as we know how valuable trees in more urban settings are for carbon absorption, flood protection and supporting biodiversity. Trees not only make areas more attractive but also improve local air quality, thereby improving people's health.
Increasing tree planting across Central Bedfordshire is one of many projects we are undertaking to help achieve our sustainability targets.
In 2019 we adopted our Sustainability Plan, which outlines steps we will take to become carbon neutral by 2030, such as investing in a tree planting programme to promote both community-led tree planting and tree planting on our land.
The tree planting will be completed by the end of March 2022.