Press Release: UN-HABITAT launches tree plantation campaign in flood-affected communities

 

PRESS RELEASE

UN-HABITAT launches tree plantation campaign in flood-affected communities from January 15^th to February 29^th.

UN-HABITAT launches a tree plantation campaign in the communities affected by the floods of 2010 and 2011. The campaign intends to extend to 400 villages with 200,000 trees. As part of the reconstruction and rehabilitation process, trees are being cut from nearby forests of affected areas without any plans of reforestation. Cutting of trees contributes to increased soil erosion, drought, water logging and occurrence of erratic rains. This also results in a decrease in carbon sink through significant increase in carbon dioxide levels and other associated gases.

Families in the affected areas, besides using timber for the shelter construction, use fodder and wood as fuel, which results in deforestation. This acts as a catalyst towards global warming and has a negative impact on the environment, the local economy, flood resilience and sustenance of the extremely poor. To mitigate such negative impacts and its associated consequences, it is imperative to mobilize affected communities to plant trees at places such as the kitchen gardens, schools, mosques, or communal land. The current success rate of tree plantation is very low as individuals are not involved in plantation. UN-HABITAT has thus seized the opportunity to launch a massive tree plantation campaign with participation from communities reaching out to as many as 30,000 families across the country.

Trees are being planted at villages with the involvement of beneficiary households with aims to compensate for or improve the greenery in villages, to reduce environmental degradation, to reduce the affects of the harsh summers, to provide improved local access to fruit, fuel and fodder and to raise awareness among the affected communities while promoting the trend of tree plantation. The forest department will be providing technical assistance to the communities for appropriate selection of trees, plantation and caring. The campaign will last for 45 days but the results will be reaped for years to come.

For further information contact:

Ghazala Siddiqui

Ghazala.siddiqui@unhabitat.org.pk

Torsum Khan

0321-5346742

Communications and Public Information Officer

UN-HABITAT, Pakistan

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