Sequestering CO2 – Plant Trees!
Last Saturday afternoon, a beautiful Fall day, 5 climate stewards gathered for a tree planting event in the southerly end of Wyman Park.
Organized by Memorial Episcopal and initiated by its Creation Care team members Guy Hollyday and Dick Williams, a Red Maple, an American Beech and a Dogwood were planted, mulched, staked against high winds, then watered.
As the planting was sponsored by a church on public lands, we qualified for all-in funding by the MD/DE Lutheran Synod’s “Reformation 500 Tree Project”. The opportunity was made known to Dick by Bernadette Roche, MEEP (Maryland Episcopal Environmental Partners) co-lead.
The 3 trees and supplies were donated by the Synod under its challenge to plant 500 trees, enabled by grant funding. Over a two-year stretch, the program has afforded the planting of nearly 600 trees in the two states.
Other planting party members were Kristen McDaniel, Graham Eschbacher and Tom McGilloway, a landscape architect with Mahan Rykiel Associates.
Wonder how much carbon a single tree might sequester? The U.S. Energy Administration offers this: “Plant, say, one silver maple today, and in 25 years—assuming it survives—it will have sequestered about 400 pounds of carbon dioxide.” Driving a small car that gets 40 mpg 1,400 miles/mo. will emit about 5 pounds of CO2 per year . Do the math! Then plant a tree.
