*ISLAMABAD – PTI government has decided to seriously implement NationalForest Policy in Pakistan.*
*Advisor to PM on Climate Change Malik Amin Aslam Khan has said thatNational Forest Policy (NFP) will be implemented in letter and spirit. Hestated this while chairing a meeting on the subject here Monday.*
Authorities say just 5.2 percent of the country is covered by forest,against the 12 percent recommended by the United Nations.
Federal Secretary Climate Change Khizar Hayat Khan and other seniorofficials from forest department were also present in the meeting.
Malik Amin Aslam Khan directed for reactivation of Federal Forestry Board(FFB) which was approved by the Council of Common Interest last year underthe National Forest Policy after due deliberations and consultations withall provinces.
The Board will have representation of all the provinces. The implementationof “Ten Billion Tsunami Tree Plantation Project” is also included in TORsfor harmonization of the project, all over the country. The FFB willprovide a high level platform for spearheading the massive forestryinitiative across Pakistan. The FFB, shall play a pivotal role in theimplementation of Prime Minister’s vision of massive tree plantation and inparticular “Urban Forestry”.
The Ministry has issued a notification in this regard which speaks volumeof an ardent resolve of the government towards the implementation of “Greenand Pollution Free Pakistan” and to tackle all imminent climate hazardsincluding heat wave in urban areas.
Read Top Stories
In northwestern Pakistan, hundreds of millions of trees have been plantedto fight deforestation.
In 2015 and 2016 some 16,000 laborers planted more than 900,000fast-growing eucalyptus trees at regular, geometric intervals in Heroshah —and the titanic task is just a fraction of the effort across the provinceof Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, according to AFP reportlink.
“Before it was completely burnt land. Now they have green gold in theirhands,” commented forest manager Pervaiz Manan as he displayed pictures ofthe site previously when only sparse blades of tall grass interrupted themonotonous landscape.
The new trees will reinvigorate the area’s scenic beauty, act as a controlagainst erosion, help mitigate climate change, decrease the chances offloods and increase the chances of precipitation, says Manan, who oversawthe revegetation of Heroshah.
Residents also see them as an economic boost — which, officials hope, willdeter them from cutting the new growth down to use as firewood in a regionwhere electricity can be sparse.
