The Horticultural Trades Association (HTA), who represents members from across the entire horticultural sector supply chain in Scotland, has welcomed the publication of Scotland’s draft Biodiversity strategy and has pointed to the impact trees and plants will have in achieving targets.
The HTA engaged with the Biodiversity Strategy earlier in the year on behalf of its 83 Scottish member businesses, including garden centres, tree and plant growers and landscapers. They called for a Government focus on Scottish and UK grown trees and plants for procurement and green space investment, as well as a greener focus on house planning and development.
The strategy, which runs to 2045, states: “Towns and cities will include nature-rich environments close to all communities, contributing to Nature Networks and measurable increases in urban biodiversity.
“Multi-functional urban nature-based solutions will enable people and biodiversity to adapt to our changing climate by cooling the urban environment and managing extreme rainfall events, with blue and green infrastructure designed and managed to benefit biodiversity, provide habitats and allow wildlife to move through urban areas.”
Jennifer Pheasey, public affairs director for the HTA, commented: “It is really positive that our sector, increasingly being recognised as ‘Environmental Horticulture’, is featured in Scotland’s Biodiversity Strategy. We believe we offer exciting, natural and green solutions to many of our climate change and loss challenges. Trees and plants are at the heart of biodiversity. Scotland’s urban towns and cities of the future can utilise environmental horticulture to mitigate air pollution, reduce extreme temperatures and providing habitats. This in turn brings about health and economic benefits.”
