FATA's 4200ha Forest Cover Declined Since 2000, Says Global Forest Watch Report

(@FahadShabbir)

FATA's 4200ha forest cover declined since 2000, says Global Forest Watch report

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 19th Jan, 2020 ) :The erstwhile Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) now the newly merged districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) have seen a decline of 4200 hectares in the forest cover.

This was revealed in a report issued by the Global Forest Watch highlighting the loss of forest cover in the world.

The research claimed that from 2001 to 2018 FATA lost its 4200ha of tree cover equivalent to 4.1 percent decrease in tree cover since 2000 and 9,60,000 tonnes of Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions (as the trees lost would have absorbed these CO2 emissions released freely in the year).

Moreover, the Global Forest Watch data showed 36ha increase in tree cover gained by the FATA from 2001 to 2002 which was equal to 100 percent of all tree cover gained in FATA.

"In 2010, the former FATA had 43,900ha of tree cover, extending over 1.8 percent of its land whereas in 2018, it had lost 25,700ha of tree cover equivalent to 5,660 tonnes of CO2 emissions," it added.

It merits mention here that the report says, "Tree cover loss is not the same as deforestation-tree cover loss includes change in both natural and planted forest and does not need to human caused." The data sources for the report were satellite images collected through Hansen, University of Maryland, Google Earth, United States Geological Survey and NASA technologies.

In order to detect forest fires in the area, the visible infrared imaging radiometer suite (VIIRS) technology was employed to get real time and accurate data.

"There were 1VIIRS fire alert reported in 17 October, 2018 which was low compared to the same week in previous year. However, 26 VIIRS fire alerts were reported in 21 November, 2018 which was also low compared to the same week in the previous year. Interestingly, there were 53 VIIRS fire alerts reported in the week of December 19, 2018. This was average compared to the same week in previous year. However, there were 9 VIIRS reported fire alerts in the week of January 3, 2019 which was unusually less compared to the same week in previous year. The fire alerts as per VIIRS was one this year in January 3, 2020 and was usually low as compared to the same week in previous year," it added.

When contacted the project director billion Tree Afforestation Project Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Muhammad Tehmasib told APP that the land in the newly merged districts of erstwhile FATA was private one and not under the state's control. Therefore, there had been massive forest cutting done by the locals in the area where the timber was exported to Afghanistan. There was no law applicable in this region owing to its special status and private ownership of the forest areas.

He went to mention that after the merger of FATA into Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 47 percent of the trees out of the total target set for the province under 10 Billion Tree Afforestation Project would be planted in the former FATA. This would help to not only revive rather further boost its depleted forest cover as the number of trees was huge, he added.

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