BC Moving Towards Removing Single-Use Plastics From Tree Planting Industry

The province is doing away with single-use plastic tree seedling wraps.

"The common thinking within tree planting has been that plastic is needed to support, grow and manage this many successful seedlings, but this project proves definitively that there is a better way," said Bruce Ralston, Minister of Forests.

"Work like this is fundamental in moving BC toward a low-carbon future that does not rely on plastics and makes us leaders in the global fight against climate change.”

It’s meant to keep plastics out of landfills - three million of the wraps, which support 45 million seedlings, are being taken out of the tree-planting process in 2024.

The move follows a successful trial of plastic removal for the growth of pine and spruce seedlings within the Cariboo region.

By 2030, it is estimated that as many as 18 million single-use plastic seedling wraps will be eliminated within B.C. by the wider forestry sector.

The removal of single-use plastic is part of the Province’s CleanBC goals to reduce plastic waste and create a sustainable, circular economy that fights climate change.