Better late than never

A recent report in this paper that the Prime Minister has approved the launch of "Green Pakistan Programme" comes as a pleasant surprise to all those concerned about the environmental degradation. The plan is to plant 100 million trees during the next five years all over the country along canals and roadsides as well as in the forest areas of KPK, Fata, Gilgit-Baltistan, Azad Kashmir, Balochistan, Punjab and Sindh. The federal government, which is to oversee all aspects of the revival and preservation initiative, would provide 50 percent of the funding requirement while the provinces are to meet the rest of the cost. Although late in coming this green programme is reflective of a realization that any further neglect can lead to disastrous consequences.
As it is, Pakistan is one of the top ten countries most at risk of suffering from the effects of climate change. In fact, extreme weather events have already begun. During the recent years, floods have been playing havoc with life and property from the hilly areas of the north to the plains of Punjab, Sindh and Balochistan. Except for KPK, where one-billion-tree campaign is already under way and the government has banned even routine logging to prevent wanton destruction of forests by timber mafias, the provinces are yet to show a serious interest in planting trees - the single most important defence against environmental degradation caused by greenhouse gas emissions. Under the present initiative, the Ministry of Climate Change is to devise plans for the assessment of forests depletion using modern technology, and also for both short- and long-term forest resource expansion. The ministries of Climate Change and Science and Technology are to work together, helped by the Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission's imaging technology, to monitor the forests for illegal logging and degradation on a regular basis, and produce periodic reports. This should provide efficient evaluation on the state of forestry. The next step, of course, has to be ensuring sustainable management. For that the government needs to lay down well thought-out guidelines and mechanisms for disease and fire control, as well as normal harvesting in a way that does not cause depletion.
Hopefully, the present initiative will impel provincial governments to preserve and enlarge forests. For a successful outcome, forestry needs to be put on the concurrent list. While planting trees along roads is vital to offset carbon emissions they must also adopt other measures to reduce environmental pollution. Until a few years ago, it was mandatory for vehicles to annually obtain road fitness certificates. Over time, this important practice has fallen by the wayside. Similarly, the previous government had announced Euro-2 emissions standards to control harmful vehicular emissions. Compliance is sporadic at best. It is about time these requirements are effectively implemented.