Construction of small dams, to provide electricity to local people as alternate energy, can help discourage tree cutting and save forests as well as bio-diversity.
This was said by Provincial Minister for Science and Technology, Hussain Ahmed Kanju.
It was observed that most of bio-diversity rich areas had been under stress since decades due to unchecked population growth and excessive use of forest wood as energy resource.
Pakistan, with only five- percent forest covered area of the total land, is facing serious challenge to save the natural asset.
Mountain Areas Conservancy Project (MACP) was launched four years back and is being implemented by the Ministry of Environment, Provincial Forest Department, International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).
IUCN and WWF constituted Valley Conservation Committees (VCC) in Kalam and valleys like Utror, Bhan, Gujjar Gabral, Gudar, Sahu, Ushu, Mahodand and number of other valleys for awareness raising through this UNDP funded MACP.
A group of journalists that visited Kalam and adjacent valleys also witnessed the problem with the people demanding permanent solution to energy problems.
"What should we do in severe cold weather when we have no other option than to cut tress to warm our homes," questioned a number of local residents and members of VCC.
"We know that we need to save these forests for cleaner environment, but we can do so only when we are provided with alternate energy resources," said President Gujjar Gabral VCC, Aqal Zada.
"We are left with only 10 percent forest covered area in our valleys. Ignorant people have been cutting tress over the years," said VCC Secretary General of Bhan valley, Hatim Khan.
Kanju believed that the problem was genuine and the NWFP government was seriously looking into construction of small dams.
He said the government had conducted a survey to construct a small dam on Swat River in Bahrain valley near Mangora.
"Total requirement of electricity for Swat is five megawatt. The proposed dam will have a capacity to produce 85 MW electricity that will be sufficient for future as well", he added.
When asked about damage to environment by construction of the dam, Kanju said, there were places naturally developed for dams and construction at those places would not affect bio-diversity and the ecosystem.
There was need for proper utilisation of river Swat water to provide alternate energy resources to local people and to save the forest covered areas, he added.
The government, donors and the implementation agencies should share the responsibility to achieve the targets of further awareness, bio-diversity conservation and sustainable development.