JOGGINS - The Joggins Fossil Centre now has a few one-day-old trees to join the 300-million-year-old trees in its back yard.
About 500 pine and maple trees were planted around the grounds of the centre on July 7 in celebration of the third anniversary of Joggins' inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List, an occasion marked each year at the busy tourist destination.
The tree planting was also fitting considering 2011 is the International Year of the Forest, according to Jordan LeBlanc, an assistant superintendent at the fossil centre.
"Forests are just as relevant to us as biodiversity because we have coal-age forests," he explained. "So we have 300-million-year-old fossil forests on our cliffs, and now we have one-day-old trees on our grounds. Trees are the most common fossil on our cliffs, so it makes sense that we celebrate the Year of the Forest."
Also launched on July 7 was "The Art of Visiting: A Rug Hooking Exhibit" by Deanne Fitzpatrick.
(For the full story, see the July 14 issue of The Citizen-Record)
