More than 10,000 trees have been planted on land close to Lower Roddlesworth Reservoir in Lancashire - the third tree planting scheme United Utilities has delivered in Lancashire this tree planting season.

The water company has also delivered projects at Spade Mill near Preston and Delph Reservoir between Darwen and Bolton - altogether more than 23,500 trees and shrubs have been planted.

At the site at Higher Hill between Darwen and Chorley, a mixture of native trees and shrubs including Oak, Downy Birch, Alder, Hazel, Hawthorn, Rowan and a selection of native shrubs have been planted on a 11-hectare site adjacent to the reservoir.

Funded through the Forestry Commission’s England Woodland Creation Offer, the new woodland has been created as part of United Utilities’ pledge to plant one million trees by 2030.

The project has been overseen by United Utilities’ Woodland Officer Michael Bullivant who said:

“This piece of land sits alongside an existing woodland and offered a great opportunity to extend it. We’ve selected tree species that are best suited to thrive in that location, and we are looking forward to seeing the new woodland maturing and boosting the biodiversity in the area.”

The new woodland will also play an important role in improving the resilience of the catchment land around reservoir, by increasing the diversity of the vegetation which will help to stabilise the soils and reduce the impact of heavy rainfall.

Michael Bullivant added:

“It is great to see three new woodlands created in Lancashire during this tree planting season and we’re already looking forward to doing more in the next season.”