Hundreds f residence in the Kumasi Metropolis drawn from stakeholders including, Financial Institutions, Traditional Authorities, Religious Bodies, Fun Clubs, the Media, Market women, Youth groups as well as the general public, on Saturday joined the Ashanti Regional Minster, Hon. Dr. Samuel Sarpong and the Mayor of Kumasi, Hon. Kojo Bonsu to help plant about five thousands trees within the Metropolis.
The exercise which forms part of pragmatic efforts by the KMA at greening Kumasi in tandem with the Kumasi Urban Forestry Project, “Me and My Tree”, is targeted at planting one million tress within the Metropolis by 2017.
Hon. Dr. Sarpong expressed profound gratitude to the people for embracing the idea by coming out in their numbers to support what he called, “environmentally friendly” exercise.
Adding that, “trees have many benefits to humanity”.
He explained that, “Global warming is the result of excess greenhouse gases, created by burning fossil fuels and destroying tropical rainforests. Heat from the sun, reflected back from the earth, is trapped in this thickening layer of gases, causing global temperatures to rise. Carbon dioxide is a major greenhouse gas. Trees absorb this Carbon dioxide thereby removing and storing the carbon while releasing the oxygen back into the air”.
“Trees absorb odors and pollutant gases such as, nitrogen oxides, ammonia, sulfur dioxide and ozone and filter particulates out of the air by trapping them on their leaves and bark” He added.
The Regional Minster emphasized that, “Trees reduce runoff by breaking rainfall, thus allowing the water to flow down the trunk and into the earth below the tree”. And this prevents stormwater from carrying pollutants to the ocean. Also, when mulched, trees act like a sponge that filters this water naturally and uses it to recharge groundwater supplies. He said.
Hon. Dr. Sarpong called on residents to cultivate the habit of planting and nurturing trees for all the positive benefits of trees to mankind.
The Mayor, Hon Kojo Bonsu praised the selfless contributions made by corporate institutions to the excise.
He said their invaluable support to the tree planting exercise is immeasurable because, “one year an acre of mature trees can provide enough oxygen for 18 people”.
“The KMA is bent on reverting the City to its enviable status of the Garden City of West Africa. These and many more developmental programmes will take us back there” He assured.
He promised to commission the environmental department at the Assembly to monitor the over ten thousand trees already planted in the metropolis.
“The exercise is on-going and interested stakeholders who desire to plant trees can see the Assembly for seedlings to plant within their vicinities” He added.
Areas covered during the exercise include, the Accra-Asafo-Bebre Road. The Anloga Junction-Airport Roundabout-Suame Roundabout. The Anloga Junction-Asokwa inter-change and the Asafo Ahmadiya Roundabout-Coca Cola road.