Thursday, September 27, 2012

Free trees available thru Reforest Rolla pilot program


If you are a Rolla resident, and you haven’t yet placed an order for a free tree through the Reforest Rolla program, now is the time to do so. After a mailing of 9,200 Reforest Rolla brochures to all Rolla households that includes an entry form to order a free tree, time is running out before the first order is placed.
“We received a great response so far from residents requesting a free tree,” said Anne McClay, Project Coordinator in the City’s Public Works Department. “But we still have a few trees available, and we want to get the word out that we will place our final order for the year in about a week.”
The Reforest Rolla program offers free trees to homeowners within the corporate limits of Rolla. An individual may request more than one tree, however due to the popularity of the program, only one will be planted per year. Three types of trees are offered with three varieties of each; flowering trees, shade trees and “fall color” trees. The trees must be placed on public right-of-way unless a waiver is provided. The City of Rolla will provide and plant the trees twice a year, in the fall and spring, following an inspection of the desired planting location. The property owner will then agree to adopt the tree for the first two years of its life, providing water, maintenance and required pruning.
Spearheaded by the City of Rolla’s Engineering Division in the Public Works Department, the Reforest Rolla program will eventually lead to a comprehensive management plan to preserve and care for our tree resources, and will reduce the amount of storm water runoff and erosion by “recycling” rainfall through absorption and evaporation.
To order your free tree, please contact Anne McClay at 426-6955. For tree specific information, please visit www.rollacity.org/reforest

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