Landowners attend tree planting workshop in Strathroy

Landowners attend tree planting workshop in Strathroy to learn about incentives in place to help reach tree planting goals

Strathroy, ON - March 4, 2009 - Ontarians are enthusiastically stepping up to help the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources meet its 2009 goal to plant 50 million trees by 2020 - the largest single commitment to the United Nations Billion Tree Program.

Last night, over twenty local landowners attended a community workshop hosted by Trees Ontario, the Ontario Forestry Association and the St. Clair Region Conservation Authority to learn about tree planting techniques, financial incentives like the Managed Forest Tax Incentive Program (MFTIP) that can help reduce property taxes by up to 75%, along with ways to reduce their environmental footprint and how to participate in the 50 Million Tree Program.

The 50 Million Tree Program, announced in August 2007 by Premier McGuinty, is the single largest commitment to the United Nations Billion Tree Campaign.

"Landowners see the value in the Ontario government's tree planting incentives and are working with us to green up the province and reduce the effects of climate change while saving a significant amount of money," said the Honourable Donna Cansfield, Minister of Natural Resources. "With this growing interest, we should be well on our way to meeting our 50 Million Tree Program goal."

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The painting is by Byun Shi Ji