Keith Sacre will discuss the concept of ‘Top Trunks’ which is a colloquial title to describe the Carbon Credit Rating Scheme and the associated tree tags recently launched by Barcham Trees in partnership with Treeconomics. The scheme classifies the carbon capture potential of all the trees and cultivars in the Barcham catalogue. The tree tags outline the potential of each species across its lifetime with a ceiling of 300 years. The tags also express the likely carbon capture at different stages in the lifetime of each species as well as identifying a breakeven point where the carbon cost of producing the tree is balanced by the carbon stored.

The concept aims to provide customers, professionals and amateurs alike with an easy and understandable method where they can assess the different capacities of different tree species to capture carbon and make the appropriate species choice. This will be explained in full during the session as well as detail of the methodology used and how the concept will be developed into the future.

Keith Sacre has a MSc in Arboriculture and Urban Forestry, a BSc in Arboriculture, a BSc in Social Science, and a post graduate diploma in management studies. He is currently a director at Barcham Trees, the largest container tree nursery in Europe. He is a co-founder of Treeconomics, a founder member and trustee of the Trees and Design Action Group and a trustee of the UK Arboricultural Association and is a previous chair of the Association.

Keith has over 30 years of experience in the nursery industry and was the lead author of the UK British Standard Trees: From Nursery to Independence in the Landscape published in 2014. Prior to working in the nursery industry, he spent several years managing and developing public open space in the local authority sector.