Circuit of the Americas (COTA) will plant 296 trees in honor of four-time retired Formula One world champion Sebastian Vettel ahead of Sunday’s US Grand Prix in Austin for his contributions to sports and environmental causes.
The 296 trees represent the German F1 total starting with the first 20 saplings planted on COTA’s premises on Thursday, which will be known as ‘Vettel Grove.’
The remaining trees will be planted in a grove at a nearby park to help restore the floodplain.
35 year old father of three children announced his retirement in July says he wants to focus on family and other interests including climate change.
The Aston Martin driver said climate change made him question his job in F1 and has been spotted at the tracks scavenging after races.
At the Miami Grand Prix in May, Vettel wore a t-shirt with the slogan “Miami 2060 – first major underwater – Act now or swim later” to highlight the effects of climate change.
A few weeks later, at the Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal, he arrived at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on a bike wearing a white T-shirt with a pipe print with the words “Stop Mining Tar Sands” at the top and “Canada’s Climate Crimes” ” is engraved along the bottom.
