The floating forest

While we have an almost daily news story about deforestation, a floating forest has been "planted" in Rotterdam in the Netherlands. Jeroen Everaert, the initiator of the project, was inspired by the artwork of Jorge Bakker, a Dutch artist of Colombian origin, who imagined a post-apocalyptic life with amphibious trees and people living on rafts. Why don't we translate art into real life? Jeroen Everaert asked himself, wanting to beautify an ugly part of Rotterdam's harbour. Done and done!

The Floating Forest is the result of the research work of several colleges and universities and the collaboration of several institutions. The research focused on finding the tree variety that could survive planted in a buoy. The Dutch elm was the winner. The metal buoys, which are highly resistant to storms, were donated by the Dutch Ministry of the Environment after being replaced by plastic ones. Good idea to reuse scrap iron! The elm saplings were also donated by a nursery. Each sapling was planted in a buoy and draws its water from a 600 litre freshwater tank at the base of the buoy, and the 'soil' is a mixture of sand and fabric that allows the saplings to be fed similar to natural trees.

The water reservoirs will be refilled about 4 times a year and the forest will be able to last between 5 and 10 years. Everyone who comes to the area will enjoy nature and marvel at what people can do and become more aware of the need to protect the environment. Of course, the floating forest in Rotterdam is the first of many that will 'grow' in other parts of the Netherlands.

And while we're on the subject of a floating forest, let's hear about another one: Homebush Bay, in Sydney, Australia, is where a 102-year-old ship was taken after doing its wartime duty. Before it was dismantled, the ship was transformed into a "floating forest" that today attracts tourists and photographers from all over the world. The ship, which is an SS Ayrfield and weighs over 1000 tonnes, was built in 1911. In 1972, she was brought to Homebush Bay to be dismantled, but fate decided to give her another life.