Rotherham firm's tree planting op to offset carbon footprint

Throughout 2024, Harsco Environmental’s Aldwarke plant is offsetting diesel usage needed to maintain links between the site and its two principal Sheffield locations of Forgemasters and Marcegaglia.

With a total of 250,000 litres of diesel used across the three sites, producing 938 tonnes of Co2, it was calculated the company needed to plant at least 256 trees to offset the environmental impact.

Harsco teamed up with award-winning sustainability specialist Make It Wild, which has planted thousands of trees, dug ponds, restored wildflower hay meadows, protected ancient woodland and created many different habitats across nine sites nationwide.

Make It Wild’s Derbyshire site, Rowan Tree Farm Reserve – a biodiversity project of nearly 50 acres – was chosen for the planting of 259 trees, with Harsco Environmental receiving full certification to prove the carbon footprint offset.

General manager Carl Brown said: “As our name suggests, Harsco Environmental takes green issues very seriously and does want to be seen as an environmentally friendly company so we are always investigating new ways to reduce our carbon footprint and ensure that we are more environmentally friendly.

“It’s inevitably a slow process but what we are looking at is what we can achieve right now rather than what is not possible yet.

“We are very pleased that Make It Wild were able to offer us a local site and we have already been to see the trees, which are forming part of a new woodland habitat.”