Committed to climate protection
Last week, employees of our Austrian site, PIA Automation Austria, set an example for climate protection. Together with the Styrian Forest Association, they planted more than 350 mixed forest trees to help a Styrian forest farmer.
Current weather conditions, droughts and pest infestations have a negative impact on global forests. This made PIA's desire to jointly launch a sustainable project for climate protection all the more urgent so, at Christmas, all 370 employees at the Austrian site received a tree sponsorship from the management.
"Climate protection is important to us as a company. This campaign sets an example and at the same time has a role model effect for other companies. Media reports show that we have to do our duty and take measures to protect the environment for the long term," says Nikolaus Szlavik, Managing Director of PIA Automation Austria in Grambach.
In cooperation with the Styrian Forest Association, PIA has now donated the trees to a forest farmer near the company location. The local, Marlies Kern, lost part of her forest last winter due to the prolonged dry period. In order to make the fallow area useable again, more than 27 forest association and PIA employees helped with reforestation. "Climate-fit trees" such as bird cherry, oak and maple tree were planted.
Herbert Großschedl, Head of Parts Manufacturing at PIA Automation Austria, motivated his colleagues to take a closer look at the topic by actively promoting the project in the company and passing on his knowledge of possibilities of reforestation to them.
"Initiatives such as the tree planting campaign help us to increase awareness of forest dieback. The ecosystem is very complex, and it requires both knowledge and time to carry out reforestation. Together, we set the forest of tomorrow today and can watch how they will develop," says Herbert Großschedl.
With the planting of the young trees, PIA completed the first step in the process of reforestation. Nevertheless, the plants must continue to be cared for in order to preserve the new biodiversity over a long period of time.