Sustainable Forestry Initiative Sponsors ‘World Record’ Attempt for Tree Planting
On Wednesday, May 20, 2015, people of all ages and backgrounds from across the U.S. and Canada came together to break the Guinness World Record for the most trees planted in one hour by small teams.
WASHINGTON—June 9, 2015—Almost 30 teams came together to plant over 200,000 trees in one hour across North America. This diverse group of committed people including youth, community groups and industry recognize that forests are critical to our health and the sustainability of our communities.
In the U.S. alone, forests are part of a vast green infrastructure that creates 2.4 million jobs, generates $87 billion in payroll, $223 billion in sales and adds $102 billion to GDP. This includes harvesting trees for paper and timber products, and using forests for sport and recreation.
Their environmental impact is also immense. Forests offset CO2 emissions by 12 percent and are the source of more than half of our drinking water supply. They also provide critical wildlife habitat.
This world record attempt was sponsored by the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI). SFI works to bring environmental, social and economic interest together to conserve healthy forests for future generations while supporting the people and communities who depend on them today. Forestland certified to the SFI Standard covers a quarter-billion acres across North America.
The Facts
- People of all ages and backgrounds from across the U.S. and Canada came together on Wednesday, May 20, 2015, to break the Guinness World Record for the most trees planted in one hour by small teams.
- Organized by the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI), more than 200,000 trees were planted simultaneously in 28 different communities.
- The record attempt involved more than 1,100 participants, across four time zones, including industry representatives, community organizations, youth groups, conservation groups and SFI Implementation Committees.
- Each team of 25 to 100 people planted trees simultaneously from 1 to 2 p.m., Eastern Standard Time, in locations ranging from New York City to Vancouver Island in British Columbia.
- One team of 100 people, led by SFI program participant J.D. Irving Limited even exceeded the existing record by planting 52,598 trees.
- Official confirmation from Guinness World Records is expected in 6-8 weeks from the May 20th world record attempt.
The Teams
Teams participating in the world record attempt included:
- American Forests
- Atco Wood Products
- Baltimore City Recreation and Parks’ TreeBaltimore
- City of Sumner, Washington
- Coopérative Forestière des Hautes-Laurentides
- Domtar
- Fornebu Lumber
- Interfor
- Island Timberlands
- J.D. Irving Limited
- Massey-Vanier High School
- Minnesota SFI Implementation Committee
- Norbord Barwick (in conjunction with local schools)
- Norbord (Groupement forestier cooperatif Abitibi, Sylviculture La Vérendrye, Forêt d’enseignement et de recherche Harricana)
- New York Restoration Project
- Parks & People Foundation
- Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
- Pennsylvania SFI Implementation Committee
- ReEnergy Holdings
- Resolute Forest Products (the Haveman Team—Dog River Matawin Forest, the Outland Team—Black Spruce Forest, the Brinkman Team—Crossroute Forest)
- St. Louis County’s Land & Minerals Department
- The Sugar Pine Foundation
- TD Bank
- Forests Ontario (with partners Michael’s Hair Body Mind and Credit Valley Conservation)
- UPM Blandin
- Williams Lake Plywood—West Fraser
The Fun
Great videos, photos and stories have been collected and continue to stream in. Here are a few samples. If you participated in this fun event, and would like to share your photos, please email Monika Gurzenski.
