Riau Plants 200,000 Mangrove Seeds on World Mangrove Day

TheIndonesia.id - The Riau provincial government celebrated World Mangrove Day on July 26 by planting 200,000 mangrove seeds in Buruk Bakul village, Bengkalis regency, as governor emphasized the importance of tree for coastal areas.

Riau governor Syamsuar was present at the event and said his administration is committed to make the province green, including by supporting mangrove planting in different areas.

“It is part of a collective commitment to create Green Riau. And during a meeting with the Ministry of National Development Planning in Bali, we also shared the same commitment to make Riau one of the planet’s lungs,” Syamsuar said in a statement on Wednesday, July 27, as reported by Antara.

During the planting on Tuesday, Bengkalis regent Kasmarni and local residents were also present.

According to him, there are 224,895 hectares of areas for mangrove in Riau, and the trees are crucial, especially in the coastal areas within the province, to prevent coastal abrasion.

In regards to the collective commitment to make Riau an Earth’s lung, Syamsuar said his office will be supported by farmers’ groups in the province who also aim to continuously take part in mangrove conservation.

Meanwhile, Bengkalis regent Kasmarni lauded the event as a strategic effort to shift the focus to environmental issues. Moreover, mangrove can also be optimized to create products with high value.

“Therefore, we ask the coastal communities to manage their areas, so mangrove can have economic value and contribute to improve people’s welfare,” Kasmarni stated.

Lastly, program director of Mangrove Ecosystem Restoration Alliance (MERA) in Riau Muhammad Imram Amin expressed hope that continuous mangrove conservations can be included in Green Riau program managed by local government.