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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