This large amount of paper was necessary, according to AMP, to cover the number of explanatory memorandums it has to hand out to staff, regulators and various market watchers.

The company sought the advice of environmental group Planet Ark last month, asking them to organise the mass tree planting, which AMP has offered to fund.

Andrew Mohl, AMP chief executive, says that he is very conscious of the environmental impact the documents, totalling 550 pages each, have had and is glad to be able to do something to compensate.

While the cost of the tree planting to AMP hasn’t been revealed, it is understood to be worth tens of thousands of dollars. The plantation is believed to consist of the planting of a variety of native trees, shrubs and grasses as part of a revegetation programme at South Australia’s open-range Monarto Zoo in the Murray Darling Basin. The plantation will also prove beneficial to local endangered species, such as the bilby, by providing added habitat space.

Jon Dee, Planet Ark managing director, says that he believes AMP’s tree planting was a first for an Australian corporation and he hoped others would follow its example, especially in the production of annual reports.

AMP is expected to release its 550-page explanatory memorandum detailing its plan to split its Australasian businesses from those in Britain later this month.

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