$238m on table for tree planting

The Government is offering $238 million in grants to encourage new tree planting, especially of natives, as it tries to get one billion new trees in the ground by 2028.

Cabinet ministers Shane Jones and Damien O’Connor announced the opening of two grants, funded through the Provincial Growth Fund and allocated by the Ministry for Primary Industries’ forest unit.

The first scheme will offer direct grants to landowners to help cover the cost of planting and establishing trees and indigenous regeneration, with $118m available over three years. Indigenous trees will get preferential treatment, with the scheme supporting the planting of 60 million trees in that time.

A second scheme will offer $120m to cofund projects that reduce barriers to planting. The new grants account for more than half the $480m available to support the one billion trees programme.