Monday 22 October 2018

Rewilding with Friends of Rail Corridor


commemorative planting of Magnolia singapurensis

Last Saturday (October 20th), members of Rainforest Restoration Project from Dover campus participated in a tree planting event by NParks groups "Friends of Trees" and "Friends of Rail Corridor". The planting, which took place at Fuyong Interim Park, entailed planting several native trees* along Singapore's rail corridor. 

It was very exciting to plant and learn about so many new tree species. Many of the trees planted were rare to the island. One of the species, Magnolia singapurensis, is an endangered species of which -- until recently -- there was only one known tree in Singapore. 

The event kickstarted "rewilding" of the rail corridor. Over the next 3 years, Friends of Rail Corridor aims to plant trees along 4km of the 24km rail corridor stemming from the Hillview to Bukit Timah MRT stations.

After the planting, we were able to connect with other conservation organizations. It was inspiring and humbling to see so many individuals involved in biodiversity education and conservation. Among those individuals was Second minister of National Development, Mr. Desmond Lee (RRP's second encounter with a Singaporean celebrity!).
with Minister Desmond Lee

We are honored to have been involved in such a large and important project, and hope to be a part of many future plantings with NParks. Thank you to Friends of Rail Corridor for organizing the event!
with "Friends of Trees"


*Species Planted: 
Sindora wallichii
Palaquium obovatum
Strombosia javanica
Randermachera quadripinnata
Cratoxylum cochinchinense
Leea angulata (Thorny Tree Vine)
Bhesa paniculata
Sterculia rubiginosa
Sterculia macrophylla


Check out this article from Channel News Asia to learn more about the planting and Friends of Rail Corridor's rewilding project: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/work-begins-to-restore-rail-corridor-s-native-flora-10847430