180 million saplings have been sown under this initiative and saplings will be provided to farmers
PESHAWAR: Forests are crucial for our economy and environment. They protect the upland watersheds against erosion and landslides and maintain ecological balance, production and ecotourism. It is a fact that only five per cent of the country’s area is under forest cover. Thus, forest resources are important for the nation due to their invaluable benefits, particularly when it comes to sustaining water supply in the country’s river system. Global warming and climate change are the greatest challenges posing serious threats to the survival of mankind.
It is heartening to note that the K-P government is alive to the situation and has embarked upon an ambitious programme of planting one billion trees under the Billion Trees Tsunami project, which is expected to be completed by December 2017.
According to the provincial government, 180 million saplings have been sown under this initiative and saplings will be provided to farmers and the general public besides providing jobs to the youth. We should put all our endeavours to achieve the dream of a green Pakistan and a green K-P. It is the joint responsibility of the government, civil society, NGOs, farmers, students and the general public to protect trees in order to enhance our forest resources.
Khan Faraz
Published in The Express Tribune, June 24th, 2016.
Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to receive all updates on all our daily pieces.
