A Hastings gym-owner is hoping to create a whole forest of native trees on Te Mata Peak by buying one tree every time a new customer joins up.
Aspyre Fitness owner Jamie Loughran said he had contacted the Te Mata Peak Trust, who were "very enthusiastic" about the plan, and now hoped to plant 500 native trees at an approved area of Te Mata Peak by the end of this year.
"It's an idea I had several months ago but it takes a bit of jumping through hoops to get the right permission from the right people.
"The idea is I have created a separate account, so every time somebody buys a membership a portion of that is transferred to a separate account to go toward the cost of a tree.
"I have not increased the costs of my gym memberships, each tree works out at an average of $6 per tree.