North Minahasa (ANTARA) - The Indonesian Ministry of Environment and Forestry (KLHK) said on Wednesday that it was stepping up tree seedling planting activities during this rainy season to increase the potential for growth and development.
"We are taking advantage of the rainy season that is still here and really intensifying tree planting activities," said Nikolas Nugroho Surjobasuindro, KLHK's Director of Forest Rehabilitation, during a tree planting event in North Minahasa, North Sulawesi.
He remarked that the activity of planting tree seedlings must adapt to natural conditions, as climate is a factor that cannot be controlled by humans or technological devices. He urged all technical implementation units in each province to coordinate with the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) regarding projections of weather conditions in each region.
"We ask friends to adapt to the weather predictions provided by BMKG. Locations where it is still raining locally must be used for planting," Surjobasuindro stated.
The KLHK held simultaneous planting activities throughout Indonesia to commemorate World Wetlands Day on Wednesday, involving all levels of society to raise awareness about caring for the environment.
Deputy Minister of Environment and Forestry Alue Dohong led a mangrove planting in the coastal area of Tiwoho Village, Wori Sub-district, North Minahasa.
A total of 2,500 seedlings of mangrove (Rhizophora mangle) were planted during simultaneous planting activities on the North Minahasa coast to thicken the mangrove forest cover in the area.
Dohong emphasized the importance of the mangrove ecosystem as a natural defense for coastal areas in facing the threat of abrasion and climate change.
"We focus on planting mangrove ecosystems. In places where there are no mangroves, we focus on planting peat because peat is part of wetlands," he explained.
Tree planting activities are a concrete and strategic effort to overcome the triple planetary crisis of climate change, pollution, and the threat of loss of biodiversity. All three are interrelated and urgently need to be addressed.
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Trees offer multifarious benefits to humans and all living things. Apart from providing oxygen, they also store the densest carbon, which is not found in other living creatures on Earth.
Dohong highlighted that the existence of trees for the survival of humans and the universe plays an important role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, providing the source of life for living creatures, storing water, maintaining air temperatures, lowering noise, and reducing wind strength.
