YouTube has always been a source of entertainment for many people, and recently some of the creators on it have used it for good. MrBeast has built his career on giving to those in need, and now he’s trying to give back to the environment with a fundraiser called #teamtrees. 

Team Trees is a partnership between YouTuber MrBeast and the Arbor Day Foundation, trying to plant 20 million trees by 2020. More than 600 YouTubers have since joined, raising more than 15 million dollars. Planting so many trees will have a great effect on our environment, and our students at BBCHS have been planting trees themselves.  

Mr. Swafford is the head of the Ecology Club, a group of students dedicated to protecting our environment. Some of their past works include planting trees around the school and cleaning up the river. They are currently working on planter boxes for flowers, and are expected to plant around the spring. 

Back to Team Trees, planting 20 million trees will have a great effect on the environment by removing tons of greenhouse gases, such as CO2. This is important because while a fully grown tree can remove about 48 pounds of CO2 in a year, we produce about 2.57 million pounds per second. This leads to what people call the greenhouse gas effect, where CO2 traps solar radiation in, causing temperatures to rise. This has varying effects such as melting polar ice, and an increased risk of fires.  

As well as removing CO2, seven fully grown trees can produce about enough oxygen for about one person. Using this logic, 20 million trees will produce enough oxygen for about 2,857,142 people. While it’s not a lot in the grand scheme of things, it’s a good step in the right direction. 

If you are looking to plant your own trees, here are some tips to help you. First, dig a hole as wide and deep as the root ball. Place the tree in, and before you backfill the dirt, make sure your tree is straight. If it’s bent, it hurts root development as well as resistance to winds. After the tree is straight, put the dirt back into the hole, and level with the surrounding dirt. Make sure the dirt doesn’t cover the crown of the tree, which is the place the roots transition into the trunk. Next, put mulch over the dirt, which minimizes harsh temperatures as well as keeping water in the soil and weeds out.

Trees have always played a big role in our environment, and they need to be preserved. If they aren’t, temperatures can continue to rise and oxygen will be used up without a way to replace it. If you wish to donate, go to teamtrees.org. Your donation will help save our environment.