Mindanao seeks to break world record on tree planting

MANILA, Philippines - Mindanao is gearing up to break the Guinness world record for the most number of trees planted in an hour at multiple sites on Sept. 26.

Mindanao’s tree planting activity, dubbed as TreeVolution: Greening MindaNOW, targets to plant 4,636,000 trees in a total of 9,200 hectares in the island’s six regions in just one hour to break India’s world record.

India set the world record in 2011 when 1,945,535 trees were successfully planted by 340,200 people in 408 locations. 

Environment Secretary Ramon Paje is urging the people of Mindanao to join the TreeVolution because more than breaking the world record, the tree planting activity is an opportunity to reforest the island, which has been suffering from serious deforestation in the last decades.

“We are urging Mindanao residents to turn out in full force and actively participate in tree planting as this is in support of the National Greening Program (NGP) of the government,” Paje added.

The NGP, which the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has spearheaded, seeks to plant 1.5 billion trees in 1.5 million hectares by 2016. It also aims to achieve food security, biodiversity conservation, environmental stability, and climate change mitigation and adaptation.

Many groups and individuals have already signified intention to join the tree planting activity, according to the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA), the lead convenor of TreeVolution.

Those wanting to join the TreeVolution can still register online in the event’s official Facebook account.

All local government executives in Mindanao were also tapped to help ensure the target of planting over 4.6 million trees would be met. 

A resolution passed by the Confederation of Provincial Governors, City Mayors and Municipal League Presidents of Mindanao (Confed-Mindanao) said that each municipality or city local government unit shall contribute five hectares each for planting sites.

The TreeVolution is organized by the DENR and MinDA in partnership with the Department of Agriculture and the Department of the Interior and Local Government. – With Rhodina Villanueva