Gov’t may move Arbor Day to March due to global warming

The government is considering moving up Arbor Day, which currently falls on April 5, to a more suitable time for tree-planting in March, in consideration of constantly rising temperatures caused by climate change, according to the Korea Forest Service (KFS).

On Arbor Day, nationwide tree-planting campaigns and events are carried out.

“As tree-planting season has been advanced to some extent due to global warming, there have been growing calls for Arbor Day to be held earlier,” KFS Minister Park Chong-ho said during media briefing, Wednesday.

“It is time for us to review the need to move up the date, though a national consensus would be necessary considering the historical significance of Arbor Day.”

This year’s Arbor Day marks its 76th anniversary.

The current date of Arbor Day was decided to mark the day in 1493 when King Seongjong (1457-94) of Joseon Kingdom cultivated a field in what is now Seoul to encourage people to engage in farming.

Local administrations have been consistently raising the need for tree-planting events to take place earlier in the year, claiming that it was no longer appropriate to plant trees in April due to rising temperatures.

For this year’s Arbor Day, Park noted his organization is planning to hold events to plant 4,800 trees in about a 20,000-hectare area.

“We will continue to encourage people to participate in tree-planting so 3 billion trees can be planted by the end of 2050,” he said.

Yonhap Spring blossoms on campus Magnolias blossom on the campus of Yeungjin College in Daegu, Thursday, a day before “Gyeongchip,” a day traditionally said to be when frogs and insects awake from hibernation.

Yonhap Korea Forest Service Minister Park Chong-ho speaks during a media briefing at the Government Complex in Daejeon, Wednesday, announcing plans for tree-planting campaigns and events to be held on Arbor Day that falls on April 5.