The community has come together to plant 2021 trees in the Nidd Gorge area of Harrogate, specifically the fields on the side of the Bilton Green Way, and just before the viaduct.
The Society of the Holy Child Jesus have kindly donated the tree saplings, but there has been wide support in helping to plant.
Keith Wilkinson, Bilton Conservation Group said:
The Society of the Holy Child Jesus celebrated its 75th anniversary last year, and ideally they were going to plant 2021 trees in 2021, but Covid stopped that.
The council has made this space available, and we haven’t planted here for 20-years, but we have a pattern to work to from the field next door.
The nuns agreed to pay for the trees, and will also help with the planting.
Today though we have Belzona helping with the planting, as they came forward to help.
The Bilton Conservation Group is coordinating it all, and we have Belzona, individuals, and some Duke of Endinburgh Award students, they also helped lay it out.
We have scouts coming tomorrow, and some less-abled volunteers.
The Bilton Conservation Group will have been around 40-years this coming May. We are all volunteers, but not a charity as it is too small.
There are about 250 members and 20 or 30 that are move active with things the tree planting today. We plant trees, put in bird boxes, all things related to conservation.
Lily Alexander-Pike, Corporate Development Assistant at Belzona said:
We are here as a team building exercise and hope to plant 1,000 trees this morning ( 25 February 2022).
We are down near to the Bilton Greenway path, near the viaduct, it’s not far from our offices. A group of about 25 of us walked down here and got stuck in straight away.
Volunteering time is given to us by the company, full time staff can use 3-days of time to go out into the community and do their bit.
Jeremie Maillard, Export Sales Director at Belzona said:
We are a manufacturer of protective coatings and repair composites – we manufacture products in Harrogate that are sold around the world.
This is part of the business being part of the local community and helping minimise our impact on the planet.
I believe it was the Nuns’175th anniversary. A great way to celebrate it.
Chris,
I’ve posted a cri de coeur on Longlands Facebook page about the tsunami of tree planting this week on Bilton Fields. Please do look at it..the page and the fields. I am concerned that there seems to have been little public consultation or thought to balance, environmentally or recreationally? But I may be wrong. I’m asking Bilton Conservation Group the same question. Upwards of 20, 000 trees I reckon.
You don’t need ‘Chris’ in my comments box…I copied an email!