2 min read / April 22, 2019
Rolling Meadows, April 22, 2019 – In celebration of Earth Day, Komatsu today announced its support of and partnership with Green Forests Work (GFW), a non-profit organization dedicated to restoring more than a million acres of formerly mined lands in the Appalachian region of the eastern United States and spreading proper reclamation efforts worldwide.
Since 2009, GFW has planted nearly 2.5 million trees across approximately 4,000 acres in Appalachia, but there are nearly one million acres left to reforest. Working together, GFW and Komatsu aim to restore approximately 1,000 acres of forest in West Virginia's Monongahela National Forest over the next three years.
“Komatsu’s wholehearted support of the Green Forests Work mission will make a noteworthy difference in our ability to not only do this work domestically in the U.S., but to spread proper reclamation efforts on a global scale,” said Dr. Christopher Barton, president and founder of Green Forests Work. “Our partnership and work together in the Monongahela Forest will accelerate the work to properly reclaim these formerly mined lands and create multi-use, sustainable forests to help revitalize local economies in transition from the former coal-based economy of the region.”
Komatsu’s 2019 contribution to the project provided the maximum investment required to allow GFW to obtain available matching funds from The USDA - US Forest Service. This alignment between corporate, non-profit and government entities aims to help establish healthy, productive forests on formerly mined land on the Mower Tract of the Monongahela National Forest and to improve water quality in the Lambert Run watershed.
“At Komatsu, we are committed to our role as an engine of progress; empowering our employees, customers and communities by working together to create sustainable solutions,” said Rod Schrader, Chairman and CEO of Komatsu America Corp.
Komatsu is an industry-leading manufacturer and supplier of equipment, technologies and services for the mining, construction, forklift, industrial and forestry markets. For nearly a century, Komatsu equipment and services have been used by companies worldwide to develop modern infrastructure, extract fundamental minerals, maintain forests and create technology and consumer products. The company’s global service and distributor networks support customer operations, tapping into the power of the Internet of Things to enhance safety and productivity while optimizing performance. To learn more about Komatsu’s focus on sustainability, visit www.komatsu.com
Built upon decades of scientific research and field implementation, Green Forests Work guides successful reforestation efforts that create economic opportunities and enhance local and global environments. Based in West Virginia, the non-profit organization was founded in 2009 in collaboration with the Science Team of the Appalachian Regional Reforestation Initiative to restore formerly mined lands and provide opportunities throughout the Appalachian region of the eastern United States through the creation of green jobs, environmental enhancement and climate change mitigation. Learn more at https://www.greenforestswork.org/.
