Most valuable planter: Sault forester wins MVP award

A Sault Ste. Marie tree planter took home some hardware from Forests Ontario's annual conference in Vaughan this week.

Brent Attwell took home the Most Valuable Planter Award for his contributions toward tree planting initiatives, according to a news release from Forests Ontario, a leading charity dedicated to the preservation and maintenance of forest and grassland habitats.

Their Feb. 28 awards ceremony was to recognize important contributors to forestry and the environment.

Attwell, 1998 Lakehead University graduate, began tree planting as a summer student in 1996 for the Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority. After graduation, he formed his consulting business and started tree planting for a variety of conservation authorities.

He moved to Sault Ste. Marie in 2002 and became an advocate for tree planting in Northern Ontario as a voice for expansion of Forests Ontario's 50 Million Tree Program into the north. 

The first 50 Million Tree Program trees planted in Northern Ontario were planted by Brent's consulting business, REGEN Natural Resources Ltd., in Algoma District in 2014.

Since that time, Attwell and his company have planted nearly 500,000 trees for a range of clients with plans to plant 150,000 in 2024.