Improving health and wellbeing
By working closely with health agencies in the north west, the Mersey Forest Partnership is showing how forestry can help tackle rising coronary disease and obesity by encouraging people to take up walking, jogging and cycling. At least 20 per cent of the local
population now visits the woodlands created by the project.

Climate-change adaptation and mitigation
The Mersey Forest’s massive planting of native trees and woodlands provides for carbon sequestration, which can help mitigate further climate change by absorbing and storing carbon. The trees can also assist in climate-change adaptation by intercepting and allowing rainwater to infiltrate the ground. This helps to reduce the risk of flooding on agricultural land and in urban areas. In addition, the trees reduce air temperatures through shading and evapotranspiration.

Enhancing biodiversity
More than 2,900ha of new woodland and 800ha of wildflower meadow, wetlands and other habitats have been created to date. On top of this, more than 90km of hedgerows have been repaired or planted, and 110 ponds created. All of this is helping to restore the natural diversity of the region’s wildlife and reach national biodiversity targets.