A new program involving the Moose Jaw River Watershed Stewards (MJRWS) is looking to distribute and plant 24,000 free trees throughout Saskatchewan, as a lead-in to a discussion about climate change education.
In partnership with the Saskatchewan Association of Watersheds and Climate Change Canada, the MJWRS is one of eight watershed regions participating in the new Tree For Life program.
The program is entirely new this year and aims to make contact with residents in Saskatchewan watersheds to gauge and increase public awareness about climate change and its environmental impact.
“We’re trying to understand where the gaps are in understanding climate change and then maybe where some of the needs are for education,” said MJRWS executive director Carmen Kaweski.
The MJRWS has a total of 3,000 trees available to distribute within their watershed region, which includes Moose Jaw. The trees will be going out in mid to late May, and the MJWRS has poplars, spruces and willows available.
In order to receive one of those trees, residents are to contact the MJRWS and express interest in receiving their trees, and then complete a survey about their knowledge of climate change.
“This is our first year doing this, and we’re excited about it,” said Kaweski. “And we’re hoping that people will be excited about it too.”
Those who take part will also be entered to win one of 10 gift cards valued at $500 if they choose to take part in the accompanying photo contest, where tree recipients are asked to photos of their new trees on social media using the hashtag #SKTreeForLife.
Kaweski said the benefits of the new program are two-fold, as it serves to open up the conversation and improve public knowledge about climate change while also adding beneficial trees to the local ecology.
Trees help mitigate climate change by sequestering anywhere between 13 and 48 pounds of carbon dioxide per year, depending on age. They also provide wildlife and pollinator habitat, reduce erosion, and limit nutrient loading along shorelines to improve water quality in bodies of water.
She said that with the Moose Jaw area being so dry, it's important for local residents to understand that climate change, as a factor, may take conditions to the extreme.
“We’re going to have more extreme droughts. We’re going to have more extreme rain events. And people need to realize they might need to make some changes with their land management, or how they approach water conservation,” said Kaweski. “We want them to understand what the implications of climate change could be.”
If alll goes well this spring, Kaweski said the idea is to see the program return annually, with new trees and a new opportunity to improve carbon sequestration in the area happening each year.
For more information on Tree For Life, visit mjriver.ca/projects/trees-for-life.
