20-07-2009

Pakistan Sets World Record by Planting Half a Million Trees in a Day

via news.bbc.co.uk

A new world record is set by volunteers in Sindh by planting 541,176 trees in a single day, according to the Guinness World Records. The record-breaking tree-planting marathon was witnessed by representatives of Guinness World Records and the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. Some 300 volunteers, working in groups, planted mangrove saplings in the 750 acres of the Indus river delta region. Mangroves grow in delta regions where the fresh waters of the river mix with sea water. Pakistanis beat the previous team record for tree planting which was set in India just last month when 447,874 saplings were planted in Assam state. Each volunteer group was issued saplings by a panel of experts which also monitored the planting process to ensure that standards set by Guinness World Records were met. The Guinness representative was there to ensure that no old plants were included in the count.

Suggested by Omar