Minister congratulates Project Crimson

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry has congratulated Project Crimson for their achievements over the past 25 years in saving pohutukawa and rata trees and helping them flourish.

“Under the outstanding leadership of Devon McLean, the Project Crimson trust has proved a successful model of partnership between businesses, central and local government and community groups. It also emphasizes the importance of partners working together with DOC,” says Ms Barry.

Project Crimson was established in 1990 as a partnership between the Department of Conservation and NZ Forest Products after it was discovered that in some parts of the country up to 90% of the coastal stands of pohutukawa were being wiped out.

Last year, volunteers across the country planted more than 10,000 pohutukawa and rata trees. The total number of native trees planted in the past 25 years is in the hundreds of thousands.

“Volunteers and communities have been able to totally turn around the terminal decline of New Zealand’s Christmas tree. The education and restoration activities of this trust and its partners were essential in supporting this,” says Ms Barry.

Project Crimson coordinates a variety of work including supporting possum control programmes, public education and scientific research. The organisation also works with schools to ensure that future generations grow up to treasure native plant species.

Current projects include the Living Legends planting programme with the Tindall Foundation and Meridian, the Treemendous school planting programme with Mazda, national cycleways planting projects with local government and support for community restoration projects.