A local tour company and the Marianas Visitors Authority jointly launched on Tuesday a tree-planting project in which tourists visiting the island are the main participants.
The project is designed to protect the environment as well as promote repeat visits to Saipan among tourists, according to Yoichi Matsumura, general manager of Pacific Development Inc.
A family of tourists from Tochigi, Japan became the first participants of the project.
They planted budding flame trees along Beach Road, Tuesday.
The Tisukas who are scheduled to leave the island today, also became the first recipient of the “Environmentalist Award” given by PDI to guests participating on the project.
According to Matsumura, Mrs. Tisuka is pregnant and there are indications that she may visit the trees that her two sons planted after giving birth in Japan.
The travel executive said a tourist must pay $25 for every tree that will be planted.
Matsumura said they have requested MVA to identify tourist sites where visitors can plant trees.
He said the project will keep the island beautiful and at the same time, give tourists a reason to come back and revisit Saipan.
More than 70 percent of tourists visiting the islands are Japanese. Last year, a total of 373,525 Japanese tourists went here.
But since the September 11 terrorist attacks, the arrivals rate of Japanese tourists has steadily showed signs of weakness, putting pressure on local tour companies to come up with fresh ideas such as the tree-planting project to keep them coming back.
