#SustainableDevelopment : Crédit Agricole Assurances commits to planting 500,000 trees each year, equivalent to 500 hectares of forests

In line with its CSR strategy, Crédit Agricole Assurances is announcing the launch of its initiative supporting French forests, with a commitment to plant 500,000 trees per year, alongside Reforest’Action and Plantons pour l’Avenir.

The renewal of France’s forests is threatened by the combined impact of global warming, repeated health crises and the drop in public subsidies for forest owners. However, forests represent the best carbon sink faced with rising CO2 emissions and the main environment for terrestrial biodiversity. Looking beyond these environmental issues, forests also involve economic and social aspects, with more than 440,000 jobs tied to these locations, and they are a source of raw materials for a timber industry that is growing rapidly.

In this context, Crédit Agricole Assurances, the leading insurer for forests, is further strengthening its commitment to support reforestation and sustainable forest management in France through specifically targeted solutions:

• A customer operation with one tree to be planted for each protection policy taken out, in partnership with Resforest’Action, for a total of 300,000 trees planted per year. As part of this national community reforestation operation, customers will be given a code by their advisor to plant - via our partner’s website www.reforestaction.com - a tree in the region of their choice;
• The payment of a subsidy to the Plantons pour l’Avenir endowment fund to neutralise its CO2 emissions, using corporate sponsorship. This fund’s main goal is to accelerate reforestation in France by providing the funding needed for plantation projects led by owners that are committed to managing their forests sustainably. Through this fund, Crédit Agricole Assurances will be able to ensure the planting of 200,000 additional trees each year.

“Fully integrated within our CSR strategy, these two actions have a long-term focus and will enable the reforestation of 500 hectares of forests in France, with 500,000 new trees planted each year. By further strengthening our commitment, we are helping guarantee the economic, ecological and social functions of tomorrow’s forests”, concludes Frédéric Thomas, CEO of Crédit Agricole Assurances.

Crédit Agricole is the leading bank for timber industry stakeholders: as the number one insurer for forests, it also finances community forests, large numbers of timber harvesting and processing companies, forest cooperatives and private owners.