PHA begins census of trees, plans e-tagging

Enumeration will help maintain record of plantation, says spokesperson

LAHORE: The Parks and Horticultural Authority (PHA) has begun a census of trees in Lahore for the first time.

The counting has been started in different areas of the city and the trees are also being assigned numbers that are being written on their trunks with red paint.

The PHA has also begun work on e-tagging of trees in the next phase to ensure their protection after ascertaining the location of each of them.

Initially, trees in Gulshan-e-Ravi, Allama Iqbal Town, Race Course Park, Jinnah Bagh, Gulberg, along the canal banks and other areas are being enumerated. The trees along The Mall have already been declared part of the city’s heritage to ensure their protection.

It estimated that Lahore has millions of trees and there were complaints about their theft. The e-tagging and writing a unique number on each of them will facilitate action against damaging trees or stealing wood. The PHA will be able to identify each tree in the city along with its location after the e-tagging is completed.

ICCI to plant a million trees in 2020

PHA spokesperson Nadia Tufail said the enumeration of trees had been started in Lahore to prepare and maintain their record. Last year, 175,000 trees were planted in the city and the target for this year’s spring season is 300,000. The spokesperson said the PHA authorities had issued instructions for increasing the number of trees in the provincial capital. She recalled that Lahore was considered the city of gardens and said the PHA was working to enhance its beauty.

After the completion of e-tagging, it will be easier to verify the number of trees planted. The spokesperson said the authority also regularly organised floral exhibitions in Lahore.

She said the PHA was also carrying out plantation alongside the newly built roads. Tufail said with the creation of a tree data bank in Lahore, it would now be possible to know how many trees were present in which area and how many more plants were needed in various localities. Weather and environment experts suggest that more trees should be planted in Lahore in view of the intense smog and increasing pollution in the city. They said increasing the number of trees is the most effective way to improve the environment.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 7^th, 2020.