New Program Allows Property Owners and Managers who Purchase Tree Removal Services to Designate Locations for Tree Replanting
Program also Includes Launch of Custom Satellite Map to Locate and Track Replanted Trees
ATLANTA – April 29, 2022 – Peachtree Arborists today announced a replanting initiative created through new partnerships forged with Trees Atlanta and the Arbor Day Foundation.
Known as the only regional arboriculture firm that plants a tree for every tree it removes, Peachtree Arborists will now empower property owners and managers to designate the location and size of each replacement tree.
After each tree is planted, a public online satellite map tracks the program’s replanting activities, allowing anyone to pinpoint their newly planted tree’s location and learn details about the size and species of each plant. The digital map was donated to the program by Clearion, an Atlanta-based geospatial workforce infrastructure management software provider.
Peachtree Arborists Founder and CEO Michael Orme said the partnership and program was in the works for more than two years.
“In order to honor sustainability while reinvesting in Atlanta’s vast tree canopy, in the summer of 2019 our Peachtree Arborists team brainstormed new ways to connect clients to nonprofits with proven arboriculture expertise,” said Orme. “In anticipation of approaching Trees Atlanta and the Arbor Day Foundation with conservation ideas, we recognized the potential synergies to engage more people with their mission.”
“We all collaborated to achieve launch in time for this month’s 150th anniversary of the first Arbor Day in the U.S. and to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Arbor Day Foundation,” added Orme.
Known as the nation’s largest “City in the Forest,” Atlanta has the highest percentage of urban tree canopy for a metropolitan area in the U.S., with 46.5% coverage as of 2018, down from 47.9% coverage reported in 2008. Atlanta’s rapid growth and development is eroding its canopy, underscoring the need for creative approaches to tree restoration.
How The Tree Replanting Program Works
After Peachtree Arborists removes a tree from their property, clients in Metro Atlanta may choose an option for the matching tree replacement.
Since Trees Atlanta actively works year-round on a rotation of neighborhood planting locations such as parks, museums or other green spaces for municipalities around Greater Atlanta, clients first may opt for the planting to take place in one of these areas. Peachtree Arborists and Trees Atlanta then plant the trees, and work with Clearion on the live map and share it with the donor.
Clients may alternatively opt to replant a tree on their own property by purchasing an upgraded, larger tree available through a special subsidized pricing structure. For Peachtree Arborist clients in Metro Atlanta, Trees Atlanta will provide a two-year warranty for each new tree, and will provide regular maintenance for trees planted on public lands. Peachtree Arborists and the Arbor Day Foundation’s affiliates in other cities will work out similar arrangements. These planted trees will also be added to the satellite map.
“Initiatives to replant trees are necessary to help restore Atlanta’s lost canopy,” said Mike Vinciquerra, business development director of Trees Atlanta. “We appreciate the investment Peachtree Arborists is making to plant a new tree whenever a tree is removed on behalf of their clients.”
Moving toward launch of the program, Peachtree Arborists had an initial assemblage of over 300 trees designated for assigned replanting. Trees Atlanta designated Fernbank Museum and its WildWoods and Fernbank Forest for the installation of the first 50 trees during the most recent October-to-March planting season.
“Fernbank Forest has been undergoing a massive ecological restoration effort over the past decade,” said Eli Dickerson, ecologist for Fernbank Museum. “While invasive species removal is the most important part of this process, we are thrilled to be able to partner with Peachtree Arborists and Trees Atlanta to replant dozens of native trees, as well. We hope these trees will grow to be as magnificent as the old growth trees that surround them.”
Trees Atlanta will select locations for the other 250+ trees in time for the fall planting season.
About the Arbor Day Foundation Partnership
Over the past 10 years, Peachtree Arborists acted as a first responder to over 15 named storm events. After seeing destruction on such a massive scale, Orme felt a responsibility to replenish the canopy in the respective municipalities where trees were lost. This is especially important after hurricanes or tropical storms where the largest canopy damage occurs.
This lead Orme to the Arbor Day Foundation’s Alliance for Community Trees (ACT) program.
Matt Spitsen, program lead of the Arbor Day Foundation’s Alliance for Community Trees program, shared a passion about how the partnership establishes new opportunities for its ACT partners. Alliance for Community Trees is a network of 200 tree planting nonprofits similar to Trees Atlanta across North America.
“An innovative aspect of this program is it provides intrinsic value to property owners who suffered storm tree damage by returning trees to their local community,” said Spitsen. “What really intrigues us about this partnership with Peachtree Arborists and Trees Atlanta is that we can work to replicate this model, aiding in the tree recovery efforts in other cities and towns impacted by natural disasters around the country.”
The interactive map that details and tracks the program progress was built on the world’s gold standard for maps, the Esri ArcGIS database. Created and maintained by Clearion, an Esri partner, the live map was donated in good faith to support the partnership’s restorative efforts for Atlanta’s tree canopy. The map is available online at PeachtreeArborists.com/Trees-Atlanta, and will be updated after each replanting project.
“At Clearion, we believe that being good is inherently good business. We need to celebrate and support leaders like Michael, Matt, and Mike when they find imaginative ways to make sustainable programs that benefit their business and their communities in meaningful ways. We are delighted to help them by creating the digital proof of their good works,” said Chris Kelly, CEO of Clearion.
“Today’s announcement is the first in a series of developments providing answers to some of our industry’s most challenging problems,” said Orme. “We will continue to take a blue ocean approach and trail blaze, keeping environmental, economic and social sustainability at the forefront.”
About Peachtree Arborists
Peachtree Arborists is a regional, contractor-model arboricultural firm practicing municipal arboriculture, disaster recovery, and urban forestry. From apartment and office complexes to golf courses, Peachtree Arborists offer custom fixed price plans and the latest technology to ensure proper upkeep of trees and consistency in budget while helping communities and the environment in big ways. Peachtree Arborists plants one tree for every tree removed, with trimmings repurposed for sustainability and nonprofit partner use. For more about how we grow visit PeachtreeArborists.com.
About the Arbor Day Foundation
Founded in 1972, the Arbor Day Foundation has grown to become the largest nonprofit membership organization dedicated to planting trees, with more than 1 million members, supporters and valued partners. Since 1972, almost 500 million Arbor Day Foundation trees have been planted in neighborhoods, communities, cities and forests throughout the world. Our vision is to lead toward a world where trees are used to solve issues critical to survival. As one of the world’s largest operating conservation foundations, the Arbor Day Foundation, through its members, partners and programs, educates and engages stakeholders and communities across the globe to involve themselves in its mission of planting, nurturing and celebrating trees. More information is available at ArborDay.org.
About Trees Atlanta
Trees Atlanta is a nonprofit community group that protects and improves Atlanta’s urban forest by planting, conserving, and educating. Since its founding in 1985, Trees Atlanta has planted over 150,000 trees throughout metro Atlanta with volunteers and partners to ensure environmental, social, and economic benefits of trees are available and abundant for the health and well-being of all communities. Trees Atlanta plants over 7,000 trees every year, including helping to design, install, and maintain the Atlanta BeltLine Arboretum; educates youth and adults through classroom lessons and hand-on training; and improves forested land by removing invasive species and restoring the native plant ecology of the area. Trees Atlanta is a trusted leader in organizing and demonstrating stewardship of our urban tree canopy. To volunteer and to learn more about the organization, please visit www.TreesAtlanta.org.
About Clearion
Clearion is a leader in mobile technology for planners, arborists, inspectors, engineers, auditors, and line clearance and maintenance crews. Working with leading utility and infrastructure companies across the globe to solve complex operational challenges, Clearion delivers solutions for managing multi-year maintenance programs, large scale damage assessment incidents, and infrastructure design and construction projects. Clearion is a Gold Tier member of the Esri Partner Network. For more information visit Clearion.com.
About Fernbank
Among the city’s most popular and iconic cultural destinations and known as Atlanta’s Science and Nature Experience, Fernbank invites guests to discover a World of Wow through an expansive natural history museum, four-story giant screen theater, and 75 acres of nature adventures in WildWoods and Fernbank Forest. One of the nation’s oldest not-for-profit conservation organizations, Fernbank was founded in 1939 to preserve Fernbank Forest, the largest urban, old growth Piedmont forest in the U.S. The museum and giant screen theater opened as “a school in the woods for nature studies” on Oct. 5, 1992, and is today known for giant dinosaurs, hands-on science, tech, engineering, arts and mathematics (STEAM) programming, immersive experiences, and year-round nature exploration. Visit FernbankMuseum.org for more information.
