Forest cover of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) has been increased by around 5 percent, bringing the total to 25 percent, following the completion of Billion Tree Tsunami Project (BTTP), contributing to the fight against climate change. This was claimed by KP Forest Department during an exposure visit of mainstream media persons to billion tree afforestation project which, according to the officials, achieved the highest survival ratio of over 80 percent compared to the global rate of around 50 percent.
Furthermore, the project proved to be a drive for creation of over 0.5 million green jobs mostly for rural women and unemployed youth, who are owning 13,000 nurseries as well as community chosen forest 'Nigehbaans.' The BTTP attracted praise within Pakistan as well as abroad and that is the reason ambassadors of Germany, France and other European countries and international media visited the forests sites.
The officials revealed that German government has agreed to support the BTTP by extending a grant of €13.5 million (over Rs 2 billion) to supplement KP government's efforts for green growth initiative. In this regard, a survey has been tasked to WFF to determine the area for intervention and a PC-1 would be prepared on the basis of that survey. Pakistan's overall forest cover is 5.1 percent, where KP stands first with 25 percent, Punjab, around 5 percent, Sindh, less than three percent, and Balochistan, less than one percent. Under the BTTP, 593,292 hectares of land were covered with 1.208 billion seedlings.
The KP has become the first-province globally to take up forest target under "Bone Challenge" and first entity amongst the 45 countries to achieve its target.
The success of BTTP has encouraged the federal government to launch the initiative 10 Billion Trees across the country and around 5 billion trees would be planted in the first phase. KP Minister for Forestry, Environment and Wildlife Syed Muhammad Ishtiaq Urmar, Secretary Forestry Shahidullah Khan, Project Director Mohammad Tehmasim, Chief Conservator Peshawar Niaz Ali, Chief Conservator Malakand Mohammad Riaz, Divisional Forest Officer Malakand Asghar Khan, former DFO Malakand (currently posted at Reduction Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) Pervez Manan and other senior officials of the Forest Department briefed media persons.
The department arranged site visits to Garhi Chandan, Peshawar, Hero Shah, Malakad division, Bhuldehr, and Haripur, and apprised the media of the targets, achievements and challenges of the BTTP. They talked about the misconceptions being spread by some of the critics of the project including less number of trees, plantation of water-consuming trees like eucalyptus and other related matters.
According to forest experts, eucalyptus roots do not go beyond 22 feet and it was noticed that it was growing in a very dry area with almost xerophytic conditions. As far as biodiversity is concerned, it was clarified by officials that it is no harm to other species and was noticed in the visit that other species were growing well along it. The landscape, which was deforested previously, is being restored naturally by the project and will help efforts combat climate change and mitigate the risks posed by higher temperatures.
The Forest Department officials pleaded that it can help in transitioning to a greener economy for Pakistan and the project has already been commended on an international level as an example of how to deal with the impacts of climate change.
According to the Provincial Forest Resource Inventory (PFRI) 2000 report, 78 percent of KP forests were under-stocked, 74 percent forests were incapable of regeneration and after 25 to 30 years from the year 1999, both industrial and firewood would not be available any more from local forest resources.
Climate Risk Index ranked Pakistan as the 7th most vulnerable country to ill-impacts of climate change, where KP is exposed to extreme climatic vagaries, weather events and disasters.
The BTTP was launched on 14th November 2014 with the objectives to increase area of forests by 2 percent in five years, rehabilitate area of degraded forests, conserve KP forests as valuable natural asset for future generations, establish rules for REDD+ to assign carbon value to forests, skill development, awareness about climate change impacts and sensitisation of rural community for forest conservation and development.
Initially the project was designed for 5 years with a total cost of Rs 28 billion where financial support from donors was to be explored but later on the project was formulated on the provincial ADP. The PC-I was redesigned for Rs 22 billions for 4 years.
The PC-I was redesigned again and split in phases, while project cost was reduced to Rs 19.448 billion and a target of one billion trees to be planted was set. The project has exceeded the target and 1.208 billion trees were planted with planting and sowing, 311 million, farm forestry, 165 million, and enclosures, 732 million.
To achieve the project target, the department had prepared implementation modalities including awareness campaigns, developing nurseries (departmental & private nurseries), departmental/block planting all categories, planting through land owners/ woodlots, planting through hashers on communal land, planting through outsourcing (phase-I), enclosures involving local communities, free distribution of plants and planting by community, all formations of FE&W department were mobilised (Wildlife, EPA,PFI & FDC), GIS technology was utilised for mapping, planning and measurement of plantation area, and the project was implemented apolitically and transparently.
Further 80 percent planting stock was raised through private nurseries and 13,260 nursery units were established with each unit produced 25,000 plants.
Under the project, departmental nurseries were established where intensive care and sophisticated techniques were required and these raised 20% planting stock, while the nurseries were used as demonstration and training sites for private nursery growers.
To ensure transparency in BTTP, monitoring was conducted through departments (internal), Project Management Unit monitors (internal), FP&M Circle of Forest Department (internal), M&E Directorate of P&DD (external), third party monitoring (external, WWF), SSU Chief Minister's Secretariat), special audit (physical & financial) through AGP and by SUPARCO through satellite images and drones, which visited 500 sites and detected 88-95 percent change in forest cover.
During the project implementation, eleven people were martyred, six got injured and three were incapacitated. Further 350 officials were punished for negligence during the project implementation.
The BTTP also faced challenges including suitability of species versus choice of land owners, local disputes and conflicts, delay in provision of funds, undue political confrontation and discouragement as well as no financial / technical assistance from the international development partners, accidental and intentional fire hazards, insects, rodents (rabbit, wild boar and porcupine), diseases and other pathogenic outbreaks.
The BTTP officials maintained that they have learnt that political will, ownership and dedicated team along with active community participation and stakeholders' trust can make the dreams a reality.
There is need to replicate afforestation projects as sufficient waste land is available, while sowing and dibbling shall be practiced and added to the syllabus of Forest Institute of Peshawar (PFI).
Now the federal govt is planning to launch 10 Billion Tree Project which would be implemented from 2019-20 to June 2024, and one billion seedlings of them would be planted in KP. The provincial government has already started the project implementation to continue its momentum but no money has been released and resultantly, Rs 1.84 billion liability has been accrued.
Provincial Forest Minister Urmar said that against the availability of 0.15 million kanals, 0.064 million have been covered with 3.5 million plants in the outskirts of Peshawar i.e. Gari Chandan. He said it is a backward area and the project has proved to be catalyst for job creation as well as meeting their wood-related requirements. He said that survival ratio is 83 percent in the area where every species like eucalyptus, kikar, sheesham and sanatha have been planted. The local community urged the provincial government to go for fruit trees where feasible which will be helpful in creating more jobs.
The department also arranged a visit to Hero Shah in Malakand division, which has been covered with 4.3 million trees.
A visit to Haripure district revealed that afforestation project on both sides of Hazara Motorway is fast becoming a success as the seeds sown in 2018 have now become almost 6-8 feet plants. The different kinds of seeds utilised in the campaign included acacia nilotica, chir, bakain, alenthus, phulai, sanata, sheesham and others.
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