Singapore has launched a reforestation campaign after losing huge amounts of mangrove habitats in the past century. It plans to plant 1 million trees within 10 years to improve living conditions for wildlife and people.
The One Million Trees project involves restoration of both inland and mangrove forests. As of October, 51,819 trees have been planted. Four varieties of native coastal and black mangroves tree species have been selected by NParks to be used in reforestation efforts.
The trees are sourced from Singapore’s tree banks, which include nurseries as well as trees that have been salvaged from construction sites. Up to 13,000 trees could be removed over the next 15 years to make way for transport and housing projects in Singapore, but the government has stated that for every tree it removes it will replant another.
Trees from the tree bank are destined for Singapore’s parks, university grounds, rooftop gardens, roadsides and its outlying islands. They will also be used to help create 26 therapeutic gardens across the city for the aging Singaporean population. By the time One Million Trees officially wraps up in 2030, a goal is for all Singaporean households to be just a 10-minute walk from a park.
The government hopes greening the city will also help mitigate the “heat island” effect created by its pavement and skyscrapers, which absorb and radiate solar radiation and increase the temperature of Singapore’s urban core. Researchers have found there can be up to a 12.6° Fahrenheit difference in temperature between Singapore’s downtown and its less built-up portions.
The city also plans on more than doubling the amount of its “Nature Ways,” which aim to make the streets cooler and more aesthetically pleasing while replicating some of the habitat value of forests by planting trees, shrubs and ground cover along sidewalks.
