Feds, province provide money to plant trees in Sudbury

Nickel Belt MP Marc Serré announced on Thursday in Greater Sudbury that the federal government is investing in planting trees and strengthening ecosystems in the region.

The announcement was hosted by Maple Hill Farm in the city’s Hanmer community. 45,000 were planted at the farm under a similar program that funded planting on private land through Forests Ontario and Conservation Sudbury.

“You want to plant drier species in drier areas wetter species in lowland areas,” said Jaimee Bergeron, a water resources and stewardship specialist with the local conservation authority.

“They is what we did and we have seen a lot of return on that practice. So red pines are doing very well in the uplands and our tamaracks are doing very well in the lowlands and yes it is a very successful one of our projects.”

The federal and provincial governments are making a joint investment to plant trees on crown land through 2026.

“This is a program that will look at $61 million – 50/50 contribution between the federal government and the province and is looking at planting 50 million tress on crown land,” said Serré.

“Learning from what the Sudbury Conservation Authority has learned on the private sector side over the last five years.”

Officials in attendance said the 2 Billion Trees Program is part of the federal government’s broader approach to climate solutions.