Seoul Metropolitan Government Organizes A Team That Would Collect Gingko Nuts To Solve The ‘Smelly’ Problem In The City

The people in Seoul, South Korea have been complaining of the smelly gingko nuts that have fallen from the trees within the city and the Seoul Metropolitan Government has the answer for the problem, reported Korea JoongAng Daily on Monday.

"This month, the metropolitan government organized a team of 446 people to collect gingko nuts," said city official Oh Hae Young. "The metropolitan government is also planning to hand out the collected gingko nuts or donate them to senior citizens at community halls and welfare centers in Seoul."

The city government also plans to replace female gingko trees, which produce the foul-smelling nuts, with male gingko trees in areas with high foot-traffic, such as the crosswalks and bus stops starting on November. The transplanting, however, will cost around $1,740 to $2,610 per tree, with 10 percent of the 114,000 gingko trees currently planted in Seoul are female gingko trees.

The Wall Street Journal noted on Oct. 16, 2013 that the gingko tree was named as the official tree of Seoul 40 years ago by the Seoul Metropolitan Government. Since then, thousands of trees were planted along the city's streets to also help reduce the dust and air pollution.

The trees provide shade for the people during the summer seasons, but causes headache in autumn when its slippery and foul-smelling nuts fall on the ground.

In an interview with Yale Environment 360, botanist Peter Crane explained what makes gingko smelly.

"It's the outer part of the seed that produces the smell, and it smells, to put it bluntly, like vomit," Crane said. "More than likely, it reflects some sort of adaptation or modification in its dispersal biology."

The husk of gingko nuts releases gingkoic acid and poisonous substance bilobol when fallen from a tree, which causes the foul smell.

Despite the fact that the Ministry of Government Legislation prohibits people from collecting fallen gingko nuts, Lee Won Young, head of the Urban Planning Bureau for the Seoul Metropolitan Government said that no one has ever been arrested for picking up the nuts.

The gingko nut collection program will be organized in each of Seoul's district offices and volunteers will be encouraged to gather as many gingko nut as they want.