THE new Community Climate Action Group for Wotton and the surrounding area is launching a tree planting programme and is looking for volunteers.

Tree planting and land use has been a priority for the Climate Action Group since they first met in June, as they believe it is one of the main ways that communities can take action to tackle climate change.

A lively celebration event on Saturday, October 12, at Wotton Community Orchard, saw the launch of the ‘Adopt a Tree’ Programme, with a call to action for “a new generation of tree planters – of all ages”.

Katie MacNamara, who is the volunteer coordinator for the programme, would love to hear from anyone who would like to plant and look after local trees.

She said: “There are lots of ways that people can take part.

“At the moment, I’m looking for volunteers who will help with planting around 100 trees on November 30 at the Matara site in Kingscote.

“We’re doing this as part of the Woodland Trust’s ‘Every Tree Counts’ initiative, and we’ll be looking after the trees until they’re fully established.

“The new volunteer group will also get involved in future tree planting projects in the local area.”

Another way people can get involved is by planting trees in their own garden.

Katie can also help with this – and can supply people with free trees for collection on November 30.

For more information or to request a free tree - contact Katie by November 15 (ccagwotton@gmail.com).

The Community Climate Action Group also has international connections – as they are helping to fundraise for tree planting projects in Africa.

This link, through Rory’s Well charity, will support inga alley cropping in Sierra Leone, which has been shown to have huge benefits for the environment and local people: reducing carbon, halting deforestation and supporting sustainable agriculture.

If you’d like to get involved in tree planting or other local climate action projects, contact ccagwotton@gmail.com