Pirelli North America donates to Longleaf Pine Restoration

Pirelli North America has awarded Berry College a $10,000 donation to support the ongoing Longleaf Pine Restoration Project, marking another year of the company’s commitment to environmental sustainability and community partnership.

The project, which began in 1999, is now led by Berry Assistant Professor of Environmental Science and Studies Adrienne Ernst with support from Berry Forester Tim Chesnut, aims to restore the rare and essential longleaf pine habitat in Northwest Georgia. The partnership between Pirelli, Berry and The Nature Conservancy in Georgia continues the 27-year effort to plant approximately 500 acres of longleaf pine annually.

“Pirelli’s continued funding of the longleaf pine project enables Berry to continue caring for and studying one of the few remaining protected areas of old-growth longleaf pine in this region,” Ernst said. “The Longleaf Pine Project at Berry serves as a model of conservation and evidence-based restoration. Our faculty, staff, and students study how to preserve and expand this critically endangered habitat and the rich biodiversity it supports.

“Ongoing faculty and student research in the longleaf stands has demonstrated a wealth of diversity in plants, birds, spiders, and amphibians. This funding will support expanded monitoring and management in these stands.”

Longleaf pine forests once spanned more than 90 million acres of the southeastern United States, but by the late 20th century, they were reduced to fewer than 3% of their original range. Today, thanks to intensive restoration efforts, that area has grown more than 5.2 million acres.

For more than 25 years, the Berry Longleaf Pine Project has focused on restoring old-growth mountain longleaf pine habitat. Berry’s restoration project is among a small number of similar efforts in the mountain longleaf pine region.

For more information on the Berry Longleaf Pine Project, please visit berrylongleaf.com.