The SECC
has awarded its next coveted ‘Champion’ accolade to Trees for Life in
acknowledgement of the 68,000+ trees the award-winning conservation charity has
planted on behalf of the venue in Scotland’s
CaledonianForest.
The SECC
has worked with Trees for Life for the past three years and is committed to the
planting of a number of groves for events booked at the venue. Alan Watson
Featherstone, Executive Director & Founder, Trees for Life accepted the accolade
from Ben Goedegebuure, Sales Director of the SECC, at the charity’s Dundreggan
Estate where the trees have been planted.
“Corporate
and Social Responsibility continues to grow in importance amongst our clients,
visitors and staff,” comments Ben Goedegebuure. “We’re really proud of our
green credentials; it gives us the chance to balance any negative effects our
events have on the environment. Everyone at the SECC is incredibly proud of the
massive contribution our venue has made to Trees for Life.”
“The
SECC’s contribution to the restoration of the Caledonian Forest is vast; their
support has enabled us to plant 68,000 trees and makes them one of the biggest
of our valued supporters,” comments Alan Watson Featherstone. “We’re delighted
to accept this award on behalf of the SECC and its clients.”
The SECC
is announcing 25 Champions throughout its 25 Year celebrations covering people
and organisations that have contributed to the sustained success of the
venue.
INNOVATIVE WILD BOAR RESTORATION PROJECT LAUNCHES IN THE HIGHLANDS
Award-winning conservation charity Trees for Life will today
(Thursday November 26th 2009) launch an innovative forest restoration project with the arrival of wild boar in a special woodland enclosure on its Dundreggan Estate in Glen Moriston, Inverness-shire.
Six wild boar – donated by the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland’s Highland WildlifePark at Kincraig near Kingussie – will be used to reduce bracken in an area of ancient birchwood on the estate, restoring a missing ecological process and facilitating the regeneration of native trees and woodland flowering plants.
Alan Watson Featherstone, Executive Director of Trees for Life, said: “Wild boar are an integral part of the CaledonianForest, and their presence is crucial to the ecological health and balance of a natural woodland. We are very excited to be bringing them to Dundreggan, as they will play a key role in the restoration of the forest there.”
Trees for Life will build on the experience of the 2004-2007 Guisachan Wild Boar Project based on the edge of the Glen Affric National Nature Reserve. That project, in which the charity was a partner, demonstrated the importance of wild boar in forest ecosystems.
Ecologist Liz Balharry, who coordinated the Guisachan Wild Boar Project and is advising Trees for Life, said: “Wild boar are outstanding ecological engineers. Their return to Dundreggan will utilise the knowledge gained by my project and is exciting news for forest restoration in Scotland.”
The ancient birchwood on Dundreggan, like many woodlands in the Highlands, contains an excessive growth of bracken, which shades out flowering plants, inhibiting the regeneration of trees and creating a dense and impenetrable understorey.
Bracken grows rapidly through underground runners called rhizomes. Because its fronds are toxic to most animals, it is often ungrazed and so spreads unchecked. Boar provide a natural control by eating both the rhizomes and fronds. By rooting and exposing the soil, they also create an excellent seedbed for the germination of trees and other woodland plants.
The project will focus on a 12.3 hectare (30.4 acre) area, with the boar confined inside a secure enclosure. Volunteers on Trees for Life’s Conservation Volunteer Weeks will help to monitor the boar’s effectiveness in reducing bracken, and the project will form part of an educational experience for visitors, including school groups.
People can support Trees for Life’s restoration of the CaledonianForest – of which only 1% survives – by purchasing dedicated trees and groves or by joining its Conservation Volunteer Weeks. For details, see www.treesforlife.org.uk or call 0845 458 3505.
Background – about wild boar
The wild boar is the ancestor of domestic pigs and is a surprisingly shy and gentle animal, which generally avoids humans. Its fierce reputation is largely undeserved, although like many animals it can be formidable if cornered. The wild boar has come to symbolise courage in many cultures.
Formerly native to the UK, it was hunted to extinction, probably by the 13th century. Unsuccessful attempts at reintroduction were made in the 17th century.
Escapes of captive wild boar have occurred since the 1970s. As a result there are now free living populations of wild boar in Kent, Sussex and Devon.
