Subject: Effective Use of Tree Planting as a Nature-Based Solution in South Africa: A To-Do List for DFFE

Dear Honourable Minister Dr. Dion George,

The Greenpop Foundation, an award-winning environmental NGO based in Cape Town, extends our heartfelt congratulations on your recent appointment as the Minister of Forestry, Fisheries, and the Environment. Your leadership has the potential to be pivotal in guiding South Africa toward a future where our environmental, social, and economic systems function in harmony.

Your extensive career in finance and economics gives us hope that tackling environmental issues will be seen as an economic priority under your leadership. Supporting healthy ecosystems is money well spent. Functional natural landscapes build environmental and social resilience, helping to mitigate and reduce the impacts of economically burdensome events such as Day Zero, the Knysna fires, and the KwaZulu-Natal floods. In fact, according to a recent Forbes article, the financial benefits of restoring ecosystems are 8 to 10 times greater than initial investment costs.

We also believe that your interests in community development and social justice uniquely position you to address the intersecting social and environmental challenges of our time. We hope to see a renewed focus on sustainable development and environmental stewardship in South Africa over the next five years and look forward to the positive impact your tenure will have on our nation’s interconnected ecosystems, social systems, and economic systems.

Nature-Based Solutions to Climate Change

With the recent ascent of the Climate Change Act into law, you have entered DFFE at the beginning of a seemingly bright, new era of coordinated climate action in South Africa. With this huge milestone behind us, the challenge of effective implementation lies ahead. At this seminal time, ensuring that our ecosystems are preserved and restored as an essential nature-based solution to climate change should be incorporated into national climate strategies.

The Greenpop Foundation stands in solidarity with the shared vision of a climate-resilient, equitable, and sustainable South Africa. Founded in 2010 with the mission to actively restore forests and green urban areas across Sub-Saharan Africa, we use ecologically and developmentally sound principles to ensure our work is impactful and sustainable in the long term. We are proud to be an official supporting partner of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration and actively work to contribute our knowledge and experience to support restoration efforts across the continent. To date, we have planted over a quarter of a million trees in four countries and greened over 400 urban sites across South Africa.

The Role of Trees

As we celebrate Arbor Week in South Africa, school children, corporate employees, and municipal officials alike will be dusting off their spades and participating in tree-planting events across the country. At The Greenpop Foundation, we have been reflecting not only on the vital role that trees play in our environment and communities but also on the complexity of planting trees and restoring ecosystems effectively. If tree planting is to be incorporated into national climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies as a nature-based solution (as it should be), clear guidance and guidelines must be provided and followed.

In that spirit, Greenpop would like to propose seven actions (one for each day of Arbor Week) to ensure the long-term success and ecological integrity of tree planting as a nature-based solution in South Africa. Please consider this a hopeful, well-meaning to-do list for DFFE.

A To-Do List for Government Tree Planting Programmes

1. Define Holistic, Impact-Based Goals

Tree planting should be seen as a means to an end rather than an end in itself. To ensure that tree planting projects have a lasting impact, trees need to be considered as part of the broader ecosystem—be that rural or urban. As such, we recommend that DFFE frames tree planting as one activity (of many) within holistic landscape management and restoration plans.

We also recommend that DFFE align project goals with international standards, such as those provided by the World Resources Institute or the Society for Ecological Restoration. The goal should not merely be to plant a specific number of trees. Rather, goals should focus on holistic impact for people and the planet. These may include bringing a certain number of hectares under restoration, reducing urban temperatures, sequestering carbon, or increasing restoration-related employment. Clear, measurable goals will allow DFFE to assess success and ensure meaningful social and environmental progress rather than just counting trees planted or distributed.

2. Learn from Past Projects

Once goals are defined, we encourage DFFE to assess current tree planting projects in South Africa, such as those run by The Greenpop Foundation, Wildlands, and Food & Trees for Africa, to determine the best methods, species, and techniques for tree planting in different regions. These projects should be seen as pilots that can inform larger-scale work.

Furthermore, we encourage DFFE to host regular forums with tree planting projects and organisations around South Africa to better quantify the tree planting initiatives currently being undertaken and foster collaboration between organisations and the government. These forums would also provide a platform for DFFE and these organisations to develop a national set of standards for tree planting projects.

3. Define Appropriate Planting Locations

With goals and best practices in place, locations for trees need to be selected.

According to CapeNature, indigenous forests naturally cover only 0.56% of South Africa’s landmass. In the diverse array of ecosystems found within our country, only a very small portion provides the essential ecological conditions to sustain indigenous forests. Within this context, trees do not belong in every natural setting. Tree planting in inappropriate contexts can alter ecosystems and threaten important indigenous vegetation such as the fynbos of the Western Cape and the grasslands of the Highveld. This information should be clearly reflected in all national tree planting, reforestation, and ecosystem restoration guidelines and campaigns.

In the past, national tree planting campaigns, such as the 10 Million Trees Programme, which aims to contribute towards African Forest Landscape Restoration Initiative (AFR100) targets, have lacked clarity regarding appropriate tree planting locations. The communications surrounding this programme encouraged citizens and businesses to plant trees but did not give any guidance on appropriate areas for trees.

As an environmental organisation best known for planting trees, Greenpop has often been approached by businesses and international donors over the years wishing to undertake large-scale “reforestation” near Johannesburg, a region predominated by indigenous grasslands. While we have refrained from participating in these activities, it is clear that significant confusion exists as to which types of ecosystems can be reforested. This concern regarding large-scale tree planting in South Africa’s grasslands is frequently raised by Professor William Bond at the University of Cape Town and is also shared by many local organisations engaged in tree planting, including Greenpop.

While it’s true that in some cases planting trees in areas that are not historically forests (such as villages, agricultural lands, and urban areas) may be beneficial, this approach needs careful planning and should only be considered when existing ecosystems are already disturbed and trees would provide clear benefits for the community (such as heat reduction, reduced wind speed, and improved crop yields).

It is important to prioritise planting in ecologically appropriate areas to preserve and enhance our natural heritage and combat climate change. As the governmental authority on this matter, we strongly recommend that DFFE provide clear geographical guidance on future tree planting campaigns (based on scientific as well as local knowledge) to ensure that tree planting efforts are undertaken in the right locations and do not inadvertently cause social, ecological, or climatic harm.

As a starting point for selecting locations, you might consider focusing on degraded Mistbelt forests in the Eastern Cape, decommissioned forestry land on the Garden Route, or on the thousands of under-greened schoolyards across the country. By including cities, especially urban areas that have been historically underserved and disadvantaged, tree planting projects can work to not only overcome environmental concerns and meet multiple Sustainable Development Goals but also redress the legacy of urban green infrustructure inequity established by Apartheid, which many communities still struggle with today.

4. Consider Tree Species, Sourcing, and Ecological Integrity

Just as trees should be planted in appropriate locations, choosing appropriate species is equally critical. In forest ecosystems, only locally indigenous species should be planted. In urban areas, species that thrive in cities while contributing to cooling, air purification, and community well-being should be selected. Climate resilience should also be considered by choosing species and planting methods that can withstand changing climatic conditions.

DFFE does well in offering indigenous trees from government nurseries to NGOs and municipalities engaging in tree planting activities. However, we are not aware of any explicit policy to ensure that trees of specific genetic stock are planted in appropriate regions. Sourcing trees from outside specific eco-regions can cause species hybridisation and have detrimental impacts similar to planting invasive species, compromising local biodiversity and ecological integrity.

To mitigate this risk, we urge DFFE to develop and disseminate tree selection and sourcing guidelines based on scientifically grounded best practices. These guidelines should ensure that all reforestation and urban greening trees planted in South Africa are the correct species, locally sourced, and ecologically suitable for the specific regions where they will be planted.

5. Guide the Management of the Polyphagous Shot Hole Borer (PSHB)

The movement of trees over large distances and inappropriate nursery management increases the risk of spreading invasive species, such as the Polyphagous Shot Hole Borer (PSHB), which has already caused significant damage to South Africa’s urban trees and indigenous forests.

It is critical that DFFE develop and implement PSHB (and other pest and disease) management guidelines for new tree planting projects to maintain ecosystem health and mitigate the huge impact this could have on our existing urban green infrastructure. In urban areas in particular, we should be concerned about the preservation of our majestic heritage trees, which drive eco-tourism.

6. Improve Maintenance & Monitoring

Once a tree is in the ground, particularly in urban areas, the real work begins. Developing and implementing a robust maintenance and monitoring programme is crucial to ensure that trees survive, mature, and deliver the expected benefits.

We recommend that DFFE create a clear policy for tree maintenance (especially in urban areas) and monitoring that includes adequate funding, local job creation, and training for those responsible for ongoing care. These actions are critical to overcoming the challenges that have plagued past government-led tree planting initiatives, such as the low survival rates (43%) reported in The Greening Soweto Project.

Furthermore, we advocate for transparent data reporting. By openly sharing data on the success rates of tree planting efforts, DFFE can build trust, encourage citizen engagement, and enable adaptive management practices. Regular monitoring and evaluation should be integral components of any tree planting initiative to ensure success and make informed adjustments as needed.

7. Secure and Allocate Funding

All of the above steps require secure, long-term funding to ensure their success. However, we also recognise that DFFE’s budget is limited, and the costs of managing and maintaining tree planting initiatives could be prohibitive.

We suggest that DFFE work to establish and leverage public-private partnerships that could help secure ongoing funding for tree planting and ecosystem restoration. Additionally, we recommend that DFFE consider establishing a dedicated fund that NGOs and other organisations can access to support their tree planting and restoration work. This fund could provide grants to support the planting, monitoring, and maintenance of trees in ecologically appropriate locations.

Moreover, we suggest exploring opportunities for carbon financing as a means to support and scale up tree planting initiatives. By registering projects under a carbon standard, DFFE could tap into carbon markets to generate revenue that could be reinvested in further restoration efforts. We would be happy to support DFFE in exploring and implementing these options.

Call to Action

Honourable Minister, we believe that these seven actions can significantly enhance the impact of tree planting as a nature-based solution in South Africa. By incorporating these recommendations into national tree planting initiatives, DFFE can lead the way in ensuring that our efforts are scientifically grounded, socially equitable, and ecologically sound.

We would welcome the opportunity to engage further on this topic and contribute our expertise to the development and implementation of these guidelines. We invite you and your team to initiate a dialogue with us and other stakeholders to discuss the next steps for ensuring the success of the 10 Million Trees Programme and other tree planting initiatives in South Africa.

Together, we can work towards a future where trees are planted and cared for in a way that truly benefits our environment, communities, and economy.

Yours sincerely,

The Greenpop Foundation