"The 116ha Miracle Dyed in Vietnam's Green Hue, Recognized for Its Authenticity"

SK Innovation Mangrove Forest Restoration Project Receives Commendation from Vietnam's Tra Vinh Provincial Government

SK Innovation and the social enterprise Maenggeureob received a commendation from the government of Ca Mau Province, Vietnam, on the 9th in recognition of their achievements and contributions to the mangrove forest restoration project.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyewon] SK Innovation's practical ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) management activity, the mangrove forest restoration project, has been recognized for its contributions by the government of Tra Vinh Province, Vietnam.

The Tra Vinh provincial government recently awarded SK Innovation and the social enterprise Mangrove, which carried out the project locally in Vietnam, a commendation for their contributions to mangrove forest restoration and natural resource conservation. The local government highly appreciated SK Innovation's continued mangrove forest restoration efforts despite difficulties in local planting activities due to the impact of COVID-19 and other factors.

The social enterprise Mangrove, fostered by SK Innovation, received this commendation for developing and operating various educational platforms aimed at mangrove afforestation, monitoring, and improving environmental awareness among local residents in Vietnam within just three years of its establishment.

Since 2018, SK Innovation has been promoting mangrove seedling planting activities in Tra Vinh Province, Vietnam, to respond to climate change and preserve biodiversity, funded by the 1% Happiness Sharing Fund created through a 1:1 matching grant between employees and the company.

As a result, from 2018 to August this year, SK Innovation planted a total of 480,000 mangrove seedlings over approximately 116 hectares of mangrove forest in Tra Vinh Province, Vietnam. It is an exceptional case for a single company to restore over 100 hectares of mangrove forest over four years to combat climate change.

Especially this year, despite the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic and challenging conditions, SK Innovation adhered to social distancing and quarantine guidelines, maintained continuous communication with the Vietnamese government, and collaborated with the social enterprise Mangrove and local residents to continue planting activities. Consequently, from June, when planting began this year, to August, SK Innovation successfully completed planting about 140,000 mangrove seedlings over the targeted 46 hectares within a short period.

Since June this year, SK Innovation has been planting mangrove seedlings together with local residents in the Tra Vinh Province area of Vietnam.

This large-scale mangrove forest restoration project is significant in preserving the rapidly disappearing mangrove forests in Southeast Asia. SK Innovation expects the mangrove forests established in Vietnam to absorb approximately 4,000 tons of carbon dioxide annually.

Yoo Jaeman, Manager of SK Lubricants SHE Group, who participated in the local mangrove seedling planting activities in Vietnam, said, "This has been an opportunity to reflect on the significance of creating social value for the entire global community," adding, "I hope SK Innovation's social contribution activities to protect the environment and share happiness will expand further in the future."

Pham Hai Thi, an employee of Mangrove, said, "Recently, the restored mangrove forest area in my hometown, Tra Vinh Province, has exceeded 100 hectares," and added, "This is a great achievement born from the efforts of Mangrove employees, the full support of local governments including the Tra Vinh Forest Service, and above all, SK Innovation's strong commitment to the mangrove forest restoration project."

SK Innovation is expanding its global mangrove forest restoration projects to countries such as Myanmar, starting with Vietnam. Last year, SK Innovation planted a total of 45,000 mangrove seedlings over an area of 18 hectares in Myanmar.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.