Humber Forest plants ‘millionth tree’ at Goole park
It happened at a ceremony in West Park
The Humber Forest has planted its millionth tree, at a ceremony in West Park, in Goole.
The event was attended by Goole Councillors Anne Handley and Nick Coultish, as well as His Majesty's Lord-Lieutenant of the East Riding of Yorkshire, Mr. Jim Dick, OBE and Goole Town Mayor James Coopers.
Mr Jim Dick OBE, the Crown’s representative in the county, attended to commemorate the planting of an oak tree in the park in 1933, by Prince George, Duke of Kent.
Humber Forest works with farmers, landowners, businesses and communities and provides grants to cover up to 100% of funding for planting and associated costs, as well as for at least five years of establishment. Larger sites may be eligible for 15 years of establishment and ecosystem service payments.
These trees can play a vital role in creating habitats for wildlife, improving community spaces, reducing soil erosion and flooding, and improving air quality.
Since its launch in 2022, the Humber Forest has planted trees at 515 sites across Hull, East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire. This includes over 200 schemes on sites with full or partial public access, including schools, parks sports pitches and amenity grasslands.
An estimated 6,000 volunteers have been involved with planting the trees, across the region, from local businesses, community groups and schools. Together they have planted 375 hectares of tree, including almost 137km (85 miles) of hedgerow – the equivalent distance from Bridlington to Sheffield!
Humber Forest is supported by Defra, as the community forest for Hull, East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire. It is one of 15 community forests across England and is part of the larger Northern Forest that stretches from Liverpool to the Yorkshire Coast. East Riding of Yorkshire Council is the accountable body for the Humber Forest.
The planting in Goole also aligns with the bicentennial celebrations, with the town marking its 200th anniversary through a series of public events.
East Riding of Yorkshire Council cabinet member for environment and transport, Councillor Paul West, said: “This is a great achievement and we’re proud to support the Humber Forest to reach a fantastic million trees planted. These trees play a key role in improving biodiversity, mitigating flooding and reducing air pollution for residents. We highly encourage interested landowners to get in touch with the Humber Forest team to see how they can become involved.”
Humber Forest Partnership Manager, Leah Cave, said: “We’re proud to support communities across Hull, East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire, and it’s great to reach this milestone. We look forward to expanding the Humber Forest in years to come, and spreading the benefits it provides to the environment and local communities”.
The Humber Forest funds both large and small projects and is eager to hear from any landowners who are interested in planting trees or hedgerow on their land. It can be contacted at [email protected] or visit here
Tree and hedgerow planting in the Humber Forest is supported with funding from the Trees for Climate and Northern Forest Grow Back Greener funds, supported by Defra and provide landowners with grants to cover up to 100% of all woodland creation project costs.
More information about the Goole bicentenary can be found here