Samoa Conservation Society Open Day – a hit with the Forest Heroes!

June 13, 2015 by conservesamoa 1 Comment

Mt Vaea was alive with green activities as the Samoa Conservation Society held their open day on Saturday 13 June.

Over 50 society members, their families and friends gathered to celebrate the Society and contributed to efforts by the Government and partners to restore the Mt Vaea Reserve.

The Mt Vaea Reserve was established in 1978, one of the first in the country, is a popular tourist spot due to its close proximity to town, the tomb of Robert Louis Stevenson and its cultural placement in the oral history of Samoa.

“We are very pleased with the turnout today. This is our first major event and I’m very happy that many parents came and brought their children”, says Sala Josephine Stowers-Fiu, President of the Samoa Conservation Society.

“It is a good day for the forest and for our efforts to support the Government restore our national heritage. We need to continue conservation efforts in all our communities, such as planting of trees in order to regenerate the forests. The trees are the lungs of the earth, and everyone on this planet need this”, she adds.

The Samoa Conservation Society is a local environment NGO that is working to save the Manumea, Samoa’s national bird. The Manumea requires good forest to survive and this is one of the aim of the Society is to save Samoan species by saving forests and working with communities to protect them.

Members were able to plant over two-hundred native plants to replace the invasive trees that have taken over much of the Mt. Vaea Reserve. Five tree species have taken over the Mt Vaea.

“These invasive trees are fast growing, they replace our native species”, says James Atherton, SCS member and organiser of the event.

“To restore this Reserve requires all of our help, and the Society and its members are pleased to contribute in a small way towards a big task”, he adds.

“I’m really pleased that I brought my children to Mt Vaea and they got a chance to plant native species. My daughter planted nine trees”, says Leatigaga Mark Bonin.

The children were not left idle, as they were split into three teams to explore some of the species. Team Forest Heroes and Conservation Avengers did some challenging activities including identifying tree species and learning more about what is a native species and what is not.

The Samoa Conservation Society will be holding another activity next month and welcome all the members of the public to join them. A fun quiz night is being planned and there will be plenty of conservation information to help everyone become a Samoan environment hero.