HomeMy WebLinkAbout2018-10 Press Release - Arbor Day
Contact: Parks, Recreation, and Community Services Department
Name: Alex Wisniewski, Parks, Recreation, and Community Services Director
Phone: 360-379-5081
Email: awisniewski@cityofpt.us
For Immediate Release – 10/3/2018
Port Townsend Autumnal Arbor Day celebration 2018
What steps can individuals take to address climate change? One of the simplest steps is to plant
trees since trees provide a substantial and long-lived sink for anthropogenic carbon. When we
celebrate Arbor Day, we celebrate the importance of trees, which produce oxygen, sequester
carbon dioxide, provide shade and wildlife habitat.
Although Arbor Day is traditionally recognized in April each year, it is a celebration that arose in
the US midwest where planting is always a springtime ritual. In climates like ours, it is more
beneficial to celebrate Arbor Day and tree planting heading into our wet, mild autumn and
winter rather than in our late spring and typically very dry summer. Governor Inslee has
declared the month of October to be our Urban and Community Forestry month in Washington
State.
To recognize Arbor Day 2018, Port Townsend Mayor Deborah Stinson read a proclamation into
the official record on Monday, October 1 at a meeting of the City Council to declare October 21
as our official Arbor Day 2018 celebration. The proclamation was accepted by Roarke Jennings,
the Chair of the Port Townsend Parks, Recreation and Tree Advisory Board. Port Townsend is a
17-year Tree City, a status conferred by Tree City USA, an Arbor Day Foundation program
administered in Washington state by the Department of Natural Resources (DNR).
Our Arbor Day celebration for 2018 will take place on October 21 from 9 am to noon at Kah Tai
Lagoon Nature Park. Admiralty Audubon is the Adopt A Park sponsor for Kah Tai Lagoon Nature
Park. The chapter has planted and maintained hundreds of native trees, shrubs and understory
plants in the southern uplands of the park and holds monthly work parties to improve the
park's habitat. Admiralty Audubon will lead the planting of Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii),
shore pine (Pinus contorta var. contorta) and other native species in the park's southern
uplands. Volunteers will also work to remove any new invasive Scot's broom plants and wrestle
with Himalayan blackberries.
For more information, contact Port Townsend Parks, Recreation and Community Services
Director Alex Wisniewski at 360-379-5081 or awisniewski@cityofpt.us or email
admiraudub@gmail.com. Please dress for the weather, bring a shovel and a bucket for soil
while you're planting, and be prepared for uneven ground.
Photo: Arbor Day planting of Garry oaks and shore pines in the Decatur right of way on the
northeast perimeter of Kah Tai, October 2017 (l-r): Rosemary Sikes, Brian Vervynck, Doug Van
Allen, Rick Jahnke, Paul Schutt, Brenda McMillan, Debbie Jahnke, Barb Stone, Bob Tyer, Bob
Gray, Ron Sikes. Not shown: Craig Wester, Margaret Lee. Photo courtesy Craig Wester.
For more information please contact:
Alex Wisniewski, Parks, Recreation, and Community Services Director
awisniewski@cityofpt.us or 360-379-5081