Insurance company staff and volunteers plant mangrove trees in Bagan Lalang

Digging in: Tokio Marine volunteers hard at work planting mangrove trees.

TOKIO Marine Life Insurance Malaysia Bhd contributed to environmental protection by planting mangrove trees at the Bagan Lalang beach in Selangor.

Volunteers from the company and its agencies took part in the planting of mangroves.

The activity was conducted in collaboration with the Malaysian Nature Society, which held a briefing on the importance of mangrove forests at the Environment Interpretative Centre in Sepang.

The insurer has held mangrove-planting events since 1999 and considers mangroves to be “insurance for the future of the Earth”, with its innumerable benefits towards biodiversity.

As of last March, the company says it has planted approximately 8,400ha of mangrove forest in nine countries, covering South-East Asia, South Asia and Fiji.

Tokio Marine aims to continue undertaking this project for 100 years to protect the future of the planet.

“Today, we proactively respond to risks arising from climate change to ensure safety and security in our society.

“A recent report published by the National Hydraulic Research Institute highlighted the dangers of rising sea levels in Malaysia.

“We come together to play our part in society, helping to increase the mangrove forest as they function as embankments to protect communities from storm surges,” said Tokio Marine Life Malaysia deputy chief executive officer Yoshiaki Okabe, who led the mangrove-planting team.

“It was an exhilarating experience for everyone. This is not your usual planting of a fruit tree in your backyard.

“The survival of the young shoot of a mangrove plant depends on the depth of the hole one digs and the sturdiness of the bamboo stick tied to support it as it constantly takes the beating of the waves.

“With its excruciatingly slow growth rate, it can grow only about 0.7m in five years. We hope the two hundred shoots survive in their first year.

“We plan to return next year to do more,” said Tokio Marine Life Malaysia head of corporate communications Wilson Tang, who was one of the volunteers who took part in the effort.