Clayton® and Arbor Day Partner for Planting | Press Release
HomeNewsroomPress releasesClayton® Partners With the Arbor Day Foundation in Reforestation Efforts for New River Gorge National Park and Preserve
Clayton® Partners With the Arbor Day Foundation in Reforestation Efforts for New River Gorge National Park and Preserve
October 26, 2024—2 min read
National homebuilder empowers Arbor Day Foundation to plant over 60,000 trees in legacy coal mine reforestation project
Clayton®, a leading national builder of single-family attainable housing, has partnered with the Arbor Day Foundation to plant 60,000 trees as part of the legacy coal mine reforestation project in Kentucky and West Virginia, including the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve, as part of its larger partnership to plant 4.47 million trees by 2025.
This innovative reclamation project aims to restore native forests on former coal mine lands, enhancing biodiversity and combating invasive species across public lands, including the National Park, to help Clayton in its commitment to
About Clayton
Founded in 1956, Clayton is a leading single-family, values-driven home builder committed to opening doors to a better life through homeownership. The company’s portfolio includes a comprehensive range of site-built, modern manufactured, Tiny, CrossMod® and modular housing. In 2025, Clayton built more than 59,000 homes nationwide. Clayton remains committed to delivering attainable, sustainably-built housing with a lower cost of homeownership and creating world-class experience for customers and team members. For more information, visit claytonhomes.com. CrossMod is a registered certification mark of the Manufactured Housing Institute.
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"Reforestation is important in the National Park because public lands provide benefits to all of society,” according to Michael French, Director of Green Forest Work. “National parks provide a community with clean air, clean water, carbon sequestration and recreation. It’s important to the community to restore these impacted forests and undo damage that was done years ago."
“As a national homebuilder, we recognize the importance of environmental stewardship and being a force for good in the communities we serve, " said William Jenkins, senior director of environment and sustainability at Clayton. “We are proud to partner with the Arbor Day Foundation – their experience and partner network help to ensure Clayton supports scaling native species forest restoration in areas across the country, like the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve.”
“The Arbor Day Foundation is lucky to have a lot of great corporate partners, like Clayton,” said Dan Lambe, CEO of the Arbor Day Foundation. “These partners help us drive impact, drive scale and plant trees in forests and neighborhoods of greatest need. This work helps us change lives for people across the planet.”
These efforts are part of a broader partnership between Clayton and the Arbor Day Foundation aimed at planting trees in forests of great need. Clayton partners with the Arbor Day Foundation to identify strategic locations impacted by environmental degradation by planting trees to restore vital ecosystems and foster a long-term, sustainable impact. In September 2024, during Climate Week NYC, Clayton was honored to become the first home builder to join the Evergreen Alliance, a collective of engaged leaders in corporate sustainability. This program is part of the Arbor Day Foundation’s broader mission to foster environmental sustainability through conservation and reforestation initiatives.
Since 2022, Clayton and the Arbor Day Foundation’s partnership has resulted in more than 4.2 million trees planted, supporting the restoration of more than 8,300 acres of forestland.
