Locking up carbon emissions through UK tree planting has never been so attractive for businesses thanks to a partnership between Defence Estates and the Woodland Trust.
The national charity and government land owner have agreed to plant new native woodland on 160 hectares of Defence Estates' land at Warcop in Cumbria, which will provide a free enhancement of the military training there.
In turn, the Woodland Trust will be able to offer businesses the opportunity to lock up their residual carbon emissions for as little as £10 a tonne. 
Nick Atkinson, Woodland Trust Carbon Manager, said: "The price of carbon sequestration has previously been an obstacle to many companies in the UK because of the high cost of land here. However, our partnership with Defence Estates has enabled us to remove land costs from the equation and so reduce the cost to our corporate partners who are so keen to buy into the many environmental benefits which woodland creation brings.
"Carbon sequestration with the Woodland Trust will further enable companies to promote a unique environmental message which resonates really well with customers based in the UK. Businesses which would like further information should contact 01476 581 112."
Waitrose and Eurocamp are the first businesses to benefit from these new prices.
Waitrose has committed to plant trees every time customers use their on-line home delivery service
Quentin Clark, head of sustainability and ethical sourcing at Waitrose said: “This unique partnership is the first of its kind and is a direct result of our environmental policies and the opportunities presented to us by the growth of Waitrose.com.
“We are delighted to be able to plant 35,000 trees this year and I am looking forward to this number growing every year, as our online business goes from strength to strength
Eurocamp have committed to funding 5 hectares of native woodland at Warcop. The Woodland Trust calculates this planting will capture and store 2,000 tonnes of CO2 over time. Funding is generated by Eurocamp customers who choose to capture the carbon from their holiday travel emissions.
Martin Lewis from Eurocamp said: “We are delighted to be working with the Woodland Trust, and to be the first to benefit from the reduction in price of capturing carbon due to the planting on Defence Estates.
“As a business we are very keen to make sure we are doing our bit to mitigate the carbon from our holidays and this opportunity has enabled Eurocamp to do this and leave a lasting and positive impact on the UK landscape at the same time.”
Training provided at Warcop and other DTE sites across the UK is vital in preparing troops for operational deployment. The partnership enables the Ministry of Defence to improve training facilities without extra costs
Defence Estates Deputy Chief Executive David Olney said: “Supporting our Armed Forces is the top priority for Defence Estates. We are delighted to join forces with the Woodland Trust and respond to military training needs in providing woodland cover which will benefit soldiers preparing for operations.
“We believe in actively looking after the Defence estate. This excellent initiative allows us to improve training facilities, whilst securing significant conservation and environmental benefits at no extra cost to the Ministry of Defence.”
Major Tam Campbell, Range Officer Warcop and Chairman of the Warcop Conservation Group, said: “Conservation activity is vital to us. It allows us to run a large estate and retain its natural beauty. We are fortunate to have a very active conservation group and a vast amount of volunteers who we can work with on projects such as this.
“We strike a careful balance between providing training facilities which our soldiers need and taking care of this beautiful landscape – both for the community which lives here now and for future generations.”
Our partners in the Warcop scheme, the North Pennines AONB Partnership have played a pivotal role here in making this scheme work with a cash and officer time contribution worth over £100,000.
Contact us
For more information on working with the Trust email our experienced team at corporatepartnerships@woodlandtrust.org.uk or call 01476 581 112