Amman municipality to replant trees in east Amman uprooted for BRT project

AMMAN — The Greater Amman Municipality (GAM) is moving forward with a project to replant Washingtonians that have been uprooted along several east-Amman roads to accommodate for the construction of the Bus Rapid Transport (BRT) project. 

Planting the trees will serve in creating greener, more beautiful streets, Director of the Agricultural Department Mohammed Qutaish said on Monday, adding that selecting this time of year will not endanger the trees’ lives. 

Washingtonians are a type of palm tree native to the Southwestern US and Northern Mexico, according to the United States Department of Agriculture’s research service. 

Qutaish noted that the department has already planted more than 350 trees in a number of east-Amman areas and will continue to do so over the upcoming period. 

In July of last year, the GAM cut down a total of 170 old trees within the boundaries of Sports City as part of the BRT's route clearance.

At the time, the GAM pledged, in a statement, to plant 10 trees for each tree it cut down for the BRT project.

Late last year, the GAM also announced a campaign to plant 3,000 trees on the University of Jordan's campus as part of the "Green Amman 2020" project, which is part of plans to make Amman a green metropolis by 2020.