Go green: "Plant a tree for future generations' Minister relates story of durian tree to create environmental awareness at two schools' Adopt-A-Park ceremony By MARGARET PERRY A MINISTER turned storyteller yesterday in a bid to encourage students to look after the environment for future generations. Mr Lim Boon Heng, Minister without Portfolio, told the story of a grandfather who planted a durian tree, which takes about 10 years to bear fruit, for his young grandson to enjoy when the boy was older. ""What we enjoy today is the work of our parents and grandparents. In turn, we must do our part for future generations,'' he told his 200-strong audience of 10- to 12-year-olds. Mr Lim was speaking at Ghim Moh and Henry Park primary schools' Adopt-A-Park ceremony at Mount Faber Park. At the beginning of the ceremony, a minute's silence was observed for victims of the SQ 006 crash. The Adopt-A-Park Scheme was launched in February 1997 to forge closer links between the community and those who manage Singapore's parks, and create a greater awareness and appreciation for greenery and nature. As of Nov 1, 105 organisations, including schools, hospitals and community organisations, had adopted 33 out of a total of 35 parks and five nature areas. Mr Richard Lim, principal of Henry Park Primary, is planning to hold some lessons at Mount Faber Park. ""Children can learn outside the four walls of a classroom. Here, they can get hands-on lessons in science and nature,'' he told The Straits Times. The youngsters seem to enjoy their adopted park. ""It's very good here because, in Singapore, you can't find many places like this easily,'' said 11-year-old Chua Gek Sze from Ghim Moh Primary. ""Gardening is dirty work but fun, and all my friends have enjoyed it,'' she added. Mr Chuah Hock Seong, principal parks manager for the National Parks Board, stressed that the scheme was not about using children as free gardeners. ""This is about children learning about nature -- seeing how plants grow, deciding which ones to plant and getting gardening experience,'' he said. Caring for the environment is not the concern of just schoolchildren. Three hundred company bosses and senior managers from major international corporations met here yesterday to discuss the responsible use of hazardous substances. Holding the meeting here was a significant milestone, Mr Ooi Chwee Kim, chairman of the Singapore Chemical Industry Council, said at the sixth Asia Pacific Responsible Care 2000 Conference. ""It also marks the coming of age of South Asia's emphasis on the importance of chemical management,'' he said. South Asia has been perceived traditionally as lagging in this area when compared to Europe and the US.