HOUSTON, April 27 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Apache Corporation (NYSE, Nasdaq: APA) today celebrated planting 1 million trees that have improved wildlife habitats, restored storm damage, and enhanced cities and neighborhoods in 14 states.
Houston Mayor Bill White joined Apache employees as the ceremonial millionth tree was planted at the independent oil and gas exploration and production company's Houston headquarters. The tree replaced a 30-year-old oak tree that was toppled when Hurricane Ike swept through the city in September.
Apache Foundation's Tree Grant Program has helped create livable communities by donating trees that provide shade, harbor birds and other wildlife, reduce noise, store carbon, reduce erosion and produce oxygen.
"These trees have helped Galveston recover from the devastation of Hurricane Ike and replaced others lost in floods, wind and ice storms in Oklahoma," said G. Steven Farris, Apache's chairman and chief executive officer. "We're working with a conservation group that is helping assure that black bears will thrive in Louisiana, and trees provided by Apache have been planted in parks, ball fields and esplanades in dozens of communities. We planted a lot of trees in the places we do business, but we also planted plenty of them in other places where they were needed.
"Apache is an oil and gas producer. We make our living by producing the planet's natural resources, and that means we have a responsibility to be good stewards of the environment," Farris said. "While planting 1 million trees is a great accomplishment, it is just one example of what Apache employees are doing every day to leave the world a little better than we found it."
Representatives of several partner organizations joined Apache employees for the celebration.
"In 2007, the federal government declared eight disasters because of bad weather in Oklahoma," said Mary Gilmore Caffrey, executive director of Oklahoma City's Tree Bank Foundation. "Oklahomans are still struggling to repair the damage, often postponing replanting due to a lack of resources. Our partnership with Apache Foundation almost seems providential, considering the extent of the damage to our state."
"Just to put it in perspective, if you put all of the trees that the Apache Foundation purchased for TreeFolks in a solid block, they would cover more than a square mile - an area the size of downtown Austin, including the Texas Capitol complex," said Scott Harris, executive director of Austin's TreeFolks, Inc.
"Thanks to Apache, and some local volunteers, we now have one of the best-looking police departments in the state of Oklahoma," said Norma Crane, chairman of the Hobart, Okla., Beautification Commission.
Apache Foundation is the philanthropic arm of Apache Corporation, an oil and gas exploration and production company with operations in the United States, Canada, Egypt, the United Kingdom North Sea, Australia and Argentina. Apache posts announcements, updates and investor information, in addition to copies of all recent press releases, on its Web site, www.apachecorp.com.
