Australia has lost 25 per cent rainforest, 45 per cent of open forest, 32 per cent woodland forest and 30 per cent of mallee forest in 200 years according to the Wilderness Society.
Australia is the only developed country to make the World Wildlife Fund’s (WWF) global list of deforestation hotspots according to the ABC. This loss is compounded by the fact that we seem to be speeding up the rate of clearing land with ‘around 5,000 square kilometres of virgin bushland and advanced regrowth are destroyed annually.’
Landcare groups in the Northern Rivers are coming up with new ways to get trees planted and protect the environment we live in. They have now partnered with Summerland Credit Union as part of their annual Sustainability Month of September to have a tree planted every time someone opens an account with the credit union.
The aim is to plant 1,000 trees in the region over the next year with the help of the Border Ranges Richmond Valley Landcare Network, the Clarence Landcare Network, and the Tweed Landcare Network.
‘Securing a sustainable future for ourselves, the community and the planet is one of our strategic objectives and has been a focus of ours, as a financial institution, since 2008,’ said Summerland CEO, John Williams.
‘We care about where we live and this campaign in partnership with Landcare, gives us the opportunity to make a difference to the environment in the region; and further demonstrate our commitment to sustainability.’
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