SEPANG, MALAYSIA: KL International Airport (KLIA) strengthened its position as eco-friendly and environmentally-concerned by organising the "Walk The Environment" campaign recently.

The one-day programme encompassed several events such as "Pledge-a-plant", which invited participants to buy trees for RM10 each for planting in the KLIA area. Each tree is labeled with the donor's name and the tree's scientific name.

Other activities included "Walk the Environment Race" at the KLIA forest, where about 150 participants competed in a treasure hunt-style run. The route of the race was lined with clues and gave participants the chance to explore the greenery of the KLIA park.

One of the aims of the race was to promote the KLIA forest, which boasts up to 400 tree species such as merawan siput jantan, jelutong, pinang penawar and many more.

The race was also held to mark the naming of the KLIA forest as "KLIA Green Park".

The KLIA Green Park provides an educational research area for students and other forestry bodies, based on the wide variety of plants available. It is also suitable as a recreational area (for jogging, trekking, mountain biking cycling and camping).

"Walk The Environment" also featured exhibitions, displays, talks on the environment, demos and entertainment performances.

Tan Sri Dr Aris Othman, chairman of Malaysia Airports, said: "We recognise the need for sound environmental practices to reconcile the needs of present and future generations through the application of technology and human ingenuity."

He added: "Human factor plays a very important role in an organisation's environmental and social performance. I am proud of the KLIA community for their commitment to the environment.

"It is a showcase of teamwork to jointly develop a set of coordinated action plans to achieve operational excellence at KLIA, where all parties at the airport have a part to play to ensure sustainable performance in the future."

The campaign was part of KLIA's Project Green Planet, which was launched last year in tandem with the airport being awarded the Green Globe 21 Certification for the fourth year running.

KLIA was first certified in 2004 and has so far been the only airport in the world to attain the status of being Green Globe-certified.