Syracuse.com - Cyclists traveling through Syracuse today to raise funds and awareness for tree research

[HuntingNY-News]

The fundraiser, the "STIHL Tour des Trees," is celebrating the re-emergence of the American chestnut and promoting energy efficiency. The cyclists, whose ranks include tree care professionals from four countries, stopped at the SUNY ESF campus.

More than 100 cyclists,who are participating in the STIHL Tour des Trees, North America's largest fundraiser for tree research, are traveling today through Syracuse. Theystopped this morning at the SUNY ESF campus.

The cyclists are participating in a week-long, 585-mile cycling adventure to increase awareness of the need for tree research and raise funds for the Tree Research and Education Endowment Fund (TREE Fund).

The trip started July 28 in Niagara Falls. The cyclists are traveling through Upstate New York and into Canada, ending Aug. 3 in Toronto.

Cyclists, whose ranks include tree care professionals from four countries, will make a stop at the campus of the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry (SUNY-ESF) for a presentation by Professor William A. Powell, director of the Council on Biotechnology in Forestry, and researchers from SUNY-ESF, on the University's American chestnut research program.

Powell's research team, cyclists, and National Grid will also dedicate a transgenic American chestnut tree developed by the American Chestnut Research and Restoration Center planted on the college grounds of SUNY-ESF.

SUNY-ESF's American Chestnut Research and Restoration Center conducts basic and applied research dedicated to the development of a blight-resistant American chestnut tree (Castanea dentata) with the goal of reintroducing the majestic American chestnut into forest ecosystems of New York and the eastern United States.

National Grid supports arboricultural research as a sponsor of the STIHL Tour des Trees and the TREE Fund's Utility Arborist Research Fund. As part of the company's commitment to environmental sustainability and energy-efficiency, National Grid will present a $250,000 check to SUNY-ESF for energy-efficiency measures implemented throughout the campus.

This morning's tree dedication is taking place at the Gateway Center on the SUNY ESF campus.

For more information or to donate to the "STIHL Tour des Trees."

WHEN & WHERE:

Tuesday, July 30

9:15 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.

American Chestnut tree dedication at Gateway Center, SUNY-ESF

Gateway Center, SUNY-ESF

1 Forestry Drive, Syracuse, N.Y. 13210

WHO:

Cornelius B. Murphy, Jr., Ph.D. president, SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry

Melanie Littlejohn, regional executive, National Grid Central New York division

William Powell, Ph.D., Director of the Council on Biotechnology in Forestry, State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry

Randy Miller, Chairman-Elect of the TREE Fund Board of Trustees and a cyclist in the STIHL Tour des Trees

WHY:

SUNY-ESF's American Chestnut Research and Restoration Center conducts basic and applied research dedicated to the development of a blight-resistant American chestnut tree (Castanea dentata) with the goal of reintroducing the majestic American chestnut into forest ecosystems of New York and the eastern United States.

Along with National Grid's longtime sponsorship of the STIHL Tour des Trees, also this year a National Grid arborist is participating in the Tour. The company's deep commitment to environmental sustainability and carbon reduction is celebrated through SUNY-ESF's energy-efficiency measures implemented throughout the campus.

Approximately 100 cyclists from around the world committed this year to fundraise for the TREE Fund in the STIHL Tour des Trees on a weeklong, 585-mile cycling adventure. With professional backgrounds including accounting, hairstyling, ministry, and arboriculture and a shared passion for trees and the environment, the Tour's cyclists have created North America's largest fundraiser for tree research.

For more information visit stihltourdestrees.org or contact Kate Lewis at [email protected] or 757.232.2526.

Sponsors of the STIHL Tour des Trees include STIHL Inc.; TREE Fund Crown Sponsor Bartlett Tree Experts; TREE Fund Partners Arborjet; Asplundh Tree Expert Co.; International Society of Arboriculture; KASK Helmets; Tree Care Industry Association; The Davey Tree Expert Company; Tree Services Magazine; Arbor Age; Lewis Tree Service; National Grid; Arizona Public Service; PacifiCorp; Unitil; Arborwell; New York State Arborists; Ontario Chapter ISA, Trees, Inc.; SavATree; Utility Arborist Association; West Coast Arborists Inc.; Anderson's Tree Care; Eco-Bond; Ford Motor Company; Forestry Equipment of Virginia; Gamma Tree Experts LLC; Lakefront Utilities/GRCA; Morrisville State College; Tamarack Tree Care; Vermeer; Wright Tree Service, Inc.; and Workshop Creative Group.

About the TREE Fund:

The TREE Fund's mission is to support sustainable communities and environmental stewardship by funding research, scholarships and education programs essential to the discovery and dissemination of new knowledge in the fields of arboriculture and urban forestry.

The TREE Fund has supported research that has led to important developments in:

• Understanding air pollution reduction and carbon sequestration by trees

• Determining the costs and benefits of urban trees

• Improving conditions for tree growth in difficult sites

• Strategies to manage diseases and pests that affect urban trees

For more informationor, visit www.treefund.org.

About STIHL Inc.

STIHL Inc. manufactures the number one selling brand of gasoline-powered handheld outdoor power equipment in America,* as well as the number one selling brand of chain saws in the world. STIHL products are sold through servicing power equipment retailers from coast to coast - not mass merchants. Located in Virginia Beach, Va., STIHL Inc., the headquarters for U.S. operations for the worldwide STIHL Group, exports to over 90 countries around the world; and the majority of STIHL products sold in America are also built in America.* STIHL products sold through U.S. STIHL dealers are for distribution in the United States only. For more information or for the name of a local STIHL retailer, call toll free 1-800-GO STIHL (1-800-467-8445), visit stihlusa.com or text your zip code to 78445.

*A majority of STIHL products are built in the United States from domestic and foreign parts and components. "Number one selling brand" is based on syndicated Irwin Broh Research as well as independent consumer research of 2009-2012 U.S. sales and market share data for the gasoline-powered handheld outdoor power equipment category combined sales to consumers and commercial landscapers.

STIHL is pleased to support the work of Independent We Stand, the Tree Research and Education Endowment Fund (TREE Fund), International Society of Arboriculture (ISA), the Tree Care Industry Association (TCIA), National FFA, Professional Landcare Network (PLANET), the American Tree Farm System (ATFS), and the National Association of State Park Directors.

For information on job opportunities with STIHL Inc., please go to www.stihlcareers.com. STIHL is an EEO and drug-free work environment.

National Grid (LSE: NG; NYSE:NGG) is an electricity and gas company that connects consumers to energy sources through its networks. The company is at the heart of one of the greatest challenges facing our society - to create new, sustainable energy solutions for the future and developing an energy system that underpins economic prosperity in the 21st century. National Grid holds a vital position at the center of the energy system and it 'joins everything up'.

In the northeast US, we connect more than seven million gas and electric customers to vital energy sources, essential for our modern lifestyles. In Great Britain, we run the gas and electricity systems that our society is built on, delivering gas and electricity across the country.

National Grid delivers electricity to approximately 3.3 million customers in Massachusetts, New York and Rhode Island. It manages the electricity network on Long Island under an agreement with the Long Island Power Authority (LIPA), and owns over 4,000 megawatts of contracted electricity generation, providing power to over one million LIPA customers. It is the largest distributor of natural gas in northeastern U.S., serving approximately 3.4 million customers in New York, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island.

For more information please visit our website: www.nationalgridus.com.

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About the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry

The SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry (ESF) is the only college in the United States devoted solely to the study of the environment. Since it was established in 1911, the college has developed innovative programs in a broad range of academic areas related to biology, chemistry, engineering, management, design and planning. The college focuses on educating problem solvers who will help develop the science and technology for a sustainable future.

View the full article on The Syracuse Outdoors Blog