Tree plantation is the process of transferring of seedlings from one place to another for different purposes. There are various reasons behind tree plantation but the most important are forestry, land reclamation, and maintaining the ecological balance of the environment of the earth.
Importance of tree plantation
Plantations of trees are important as they improve life and fulfill the essential needs of mankind. During photosynthesis, the trees breakdown food materials and consume carbon dioxide. Moreover, trees support life by providing habitat to different species such as squirrels, bees and birds.
Trees cleanse the climate by absorbing carbon dioxide from the environment and releasing oxygen. The trees cool the environment through their leaves by absorbing the sun heat. Thus, there occurs cooling in the atmosphere.
Trees clean the air by absorbing harmful chemicals such as nitrogen oxide and removing dust particles from the air by absorbing them in their leaves.
The need for afforestation
According to the latest special report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), global average temperature change above pre-industrial level is projected to overshoot the 1.5 degrees Celcius mark by some amount well before the end of this century unless urgent steps are taken.
Pakistan has been consistently ranked among the ten countries worst affected by climate change. The increased frequency and intensity of extreme climate events during the last two decades in Pakistan, has had serious and long-term adverse impacts on the country.
Available data suggest that the Hindu Kush Himalayas is heating up at a rate faster than the global average, causing an increase in melting rates of Pakistan’s seasonal snow cover and some low elevation glaciers.
If accompanied by an intense rainfall event, this can lead to extreme flash flooding, debris flow or glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF), the likes of which have recently been experienced more frequently in the highlands of the country.
Pakistan’s deforestation rate
With the annual deforestation rate in Pakistan recorded as the world’s highest, such a tendency will lead to an increase in the spread of life-threatening diseases. The natural forest cover had reduced from 3.59 million hectares to 3.32m hectares at an average rate of 27,000 hectares annually.
The country’s deforestation rate has been estimated between 0.2 and 0.5 percent per annum — the highest in the world — accounting for four to six percent decline in its wood biomass per annum, the LHC verdict deplored.
Ten Billion Trees Tsunami
Pakistan has recently kicked off a country-wide “10 Billion Trees Tsunami” campaign aimed to counter climate change through a massive afforestation drive.
If this drive is carried out with a strategic approach, especially in the tree species planted, it will improve the safety and wellbeing of the people manifold, including vitally important flood prevention.
This campaign takes off from the 2014 “Billion Trees Tsunami” afforestation drive that was launched by the provincial government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) as a way to counter the effects of droughts, cloudbursts and storms in that Himalayan region, all worsened by climate change.
Billion tree Tsunami
A promising aspect of the new drive is that it is being launched in the most populous cities in its initial phase: Lahore, Karachi, Multan and Peshawar.
This is going to play an important role in minimizing the Urban Heat Island (UHI) effect (localized increased warming of an urban area due to the concentration of concrete buildings and asphalt roads).
In cities, the small area covered by trees and other vegetation is shrinking at a rapid pace, as indicated by recent studies based on satellite remote sensing data, worsening the UHI effect.
Since vegetation, in particular trees, intercept solar energy, their shade reduces the temperature of surfaces below them and their natural evapotranspiration help maintain cooler conditions and maintain outdoor thermal comfort.
Challenges for Billion Trees Tsunami
The 10 Billion Trees Tsunami project may face a number of challenges, however, the first will be to ensure the survival of the saplings.
The authorities can improve the chances of survival by promoting native species that can withstand and naturally regenerate in various ecological regions of Pakistan. As yet, there is no information on which species the government has chosen.
Another challenge is to choose the plantation sites wisely. While the drive will be carried out all over the country, the KPK government has already invested over USD 123 million in support of this project and aims to allocate a further USD 100 million through the year 2020.
PM Imran to launch the country’s largest plantation campaign
Prime Minister Imran Khan will launch the country’s largest tree plantation campaign today with a target of planting 3.5 million saplings across the country.
The premier had asked members of parliament, the chief ministers of all the provinces and volunteers from the Corona Relief Tiger Force to participate in the plantation drive, which is being carried out on Tiger Force Day.
Advisor to Prime Minister on Climate Change Malik Amin Aslam said all provinces, including Gilgit Baltistan, Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Islamabad Capital Territory will participate in plantation campaign, with one million members of Tiger Force joining the campaign.
“A target of 300,000 trees for plantation has been set for Sindh, 1.2 million for Punjab and two million trees in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,” he said. “In the federal capital, around 1.2 million saplings would be planted under the initiative.” Apparently the target of 3.5 million trees in 1 day seems unrealistic.
To conclude, the time has come for us to realize the importance of tree plantation. Also, it is our duty to contribute to tree plantation. In addition, the government must take this matter seriously and should start working towards involving more and more people to advance the cause.
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