Bangkok city hall plans 100,000 trees this year at Bt30m
The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) has planned to invest Bt30 million in planting 100,000 trees this year in an effort to increase the capital city’s green space.
BMA deputy permanent secretary Wiparat Chaiyanukij said the project – now submitted for the governor's approval for the required budget – will be divided into two batches.
The first batch of 50,000 trees requiring Bt5 million would be planted at public parks and state offices.
The second batch of 50,000 trees requiring Bt25 million would be planted by 50 district offices on land plots of private organisations, temples, schools, and along the Bang Khun Thien coast.
Currently, Bangkok City has 20,000 rai (3,200 hectares) of green space in the form of public parks and gardens, a ratio of 6.2 square metres per head, below the World Health Organisation’s standard of 9 square metres per head.
The BMA has been implementing three solutions to boost green space, including finding empty lands under its care to be turned into space for public use, increasing the number of parks beyond the current 35 public parks, and encouraging the private sector to add greenery to their properties and to support the BMA’s attempts to increase green space in general.