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We’ll use the money, from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) Woodland Creation Accelerator Fund, to plant 31,000 more trees across the area by December 2025, in addition to trees for privately-owned woodland.
Trees make our local areas healthier and more pleasant places to be, helping to moderate temperatures, reduce pollution, decrease flood risk and improve people’s quality of life.
In the last couple of years, we’ve planted 30,000 new young trees across North Somerset as part of our commitment to rewilding and tackling the climate emergency.
We want to increase canopy cover to help mitigate the effects of climate change, as well as address some of the expected loss of trees due to Ash Dieback disease.
This additional funding means we can create two new tree officer roles, dedicated to increasing tree planting capacity.
Planting will include:
• 20,000 new trees on public land,
• 10,000 additional trees to aid natural flood management, and
• 1,000 additional new trees alongside urban roads.
We’ll also be working with private landowners to encourage them to plant trees on their own land, which could make an additional 40-60 hectares of woodland.
Tackling the climate and ecological emergencies is a key priority for us.
Increasing the number of trees will help North Somerset be more resilient by purifying air, cooling our towns and combatting flooding, while enhancing the wellbeing of residents and visitors.
Find out more about our Green Infrastructure Strategy on our website.
Covid memorial trees planted
More than 500 trees have been planted in public open spaces across North Somerset as memorial spaces for those who died from Covid.
Three years on from the start of the pandemic, the trees have been planted in seven locations in Clevedon, Nailsea, Portishead, and Weston-super-Mare.
Each space has more than 70 trees and signs are being installed to signify those who were lost during the pandemic.
The pandemic was an incredibly challenging time for all our communities for many different reasons.
As well as those we lost, people were isolated from friends and family, some worked under very difficult conditions, and others were unable to work at all.
Everyone was touched by it and we saw the power of community spirit at its best.
We hope people will use these spaces to remember and benefit from the restorative power of nature.
As the years go on and the trees mature, they will become part of the local landscape and a living memory to those we’ve lost.
Every tree is a young native UK specimen, including birch, oak, hornbeam, field maple, rowan, hazel, dogwood, crab apple and alder.
The seven locations are:
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Clevedon - Home Ground
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Nailsea – Blackthorn Way
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Portishead - Battery Point
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Weston-super-Mare - Castle Batch, Plumley Park South, Maltlands and Verbena Way.
Next week the third annual National Day of Reflection, run by Marie Curie UK, takes place.
Everyone is invited to come together next Thursday (23 March) to remember loved ones who’ve died, support people who are grieving, and connect with each other.
New trees to line Weston-super-Mare's High Street
Beautiful trees will soon line Weston-super-Mare’s High Street to provide shade and improve air quality for shoppers and visitors.
Planting of 10 trees started this morning (Friday) and is set to be completed by the end of this month.
The tree variety is called the Ginkgo biloba, which is commonly known as the ‘maidenhair tree’, and has been carefully selected for its shape and suitability to the coastal location.
Work will take place between 6.30am and 10.30am each day to limit disruption so if you’re walking through the High Street at that time, please follow the signs and any safety barriers.
This is the latest project by Weston Tree and Plant Group, which includes us, Weston-super-Mare Town Council, Weston-super-Mare Civic Society, working together with other organisations, businesses and community groups.
North Somerset’s natural beauty on screen
Natural beauty and fascinating wildlife are right here in North Somerset – and the area has been captured on screen for the world to see.
David Attenborough’s new series Wild Isles began last weekend on BBC1 and BBC iPlayer.
It investigates how our grassland, woodlands, freshwater and ocean habitats support wildlife of all kinds, but also how nature is in crisis.
Footage filmed in North Somerset includes Tyntesfield in Wraxall, Priors Wood in Portbury, Leigh Woods in Abbots Leigh and Winscombe.
We announced a climate and natural emergency four years ago and as part of our rewilding project we’ve planted tens of thousands of young trees and let grass grow longer in an area of about 400,000m2.
Our project with Avon Wildlife Trust to recruit local volunteer ‘rewilding champions’ has also proved successful.
As a result of the rewilding champions programme, funded by £100,000 from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, there has been an increase in the number of insects, more flower diversity and more varieties of plant species in the rewilding areas.
Avon Wildlife Trust has produced a video to celebrate the project, which can be seen on YouTube.