As the Arizona Cardinals return to the gridiron for a new season, there are even more reasons to cheer for touchdowns. Through Salt River Project’s Trees for Touchdowns campaign, SRP will pay to plant 100 Ponderosa Pine trees for every Cardinals touchdown scored this season.
Since 2010, more than 1.3 million acres of forests have been destroyed by devastating wildfires. Together with SRP customers and the National Forest Foundation, SRP has planted nearly 1 million trees on 2,560 acres of forest land through the Tress for Change program, which is funded by SRP customers who pledge an additional $3 or more to their monthly bill.
SRP matches each donated dollar up to $200,000 annually – with 100 percent of the funds used to help sustain healthy forests and safeguard the Valley’s watershed. So far, more than 2,300 customers have joined the Trees for Change program.
Last year, the Cardinals finished with a 13-3 record and scored a franchise record 59 touchdowns – resulting in the planting of 5,900 trees. And thanks to the Cardinals and their exciting offense this season, SRP will plant thousands more trees that will protect Phoenix’s watershed, revitalize habitat for native wildlife and reduce greenhouse gases.
“Hundreds of thousands of Ponderosa Pine seedlings have been planted through this program, and we thank the Cardinals for their partnership to help us plant thousands more,” said Lori Singleton, director of Customer Programs and Operations Support. “Their efforts and our customer contributions will help restore and protect the watershed that provides water for Valley residents.”
Forest land devastated by fire causes erosion and sedimentation that can end up in the streams, rivers and reservoirs that supply the drinking water that residents depend upon in the Phoenix metro area. During their lifetime, the trees also remove carbon dioxide from the air, store carbon in plant tissues and produce oxygen, thereby helping to decrease the impacts of global warming.
Customers who sign up for the Trees for Change program between now and the end of the year will be entered for a chance to win autographed Cardinals gear.
SRP is the third-largest public power utility in the nation, serving more than 1 million electric customers in the greater Phoenix metropolitan area. SRP is the largest provider of water to the Valley, delivering about 800,000 acre-feet annually to agricultural, urban and municipal water users.
