Sepa makes tree plantation mandatory for all housing schemes

Karachi

In an effort to better environmental conditions, the Sindh Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) made it mandatory for builders to have a proper plan with respect to plantation in every housing society, under-construction or to be built in future.

This was stated by SEPA Director-General Naeem Ahmed Mughal while speaking at the launch of a city-wide plantation drive, Green Karachi.

An initiative of the National Forum for Environment and Health (NFEH) in collaboration with several civic, land-owning, industrial and housing establishments, the campaign would plant around 15,000 trees and plant saplings till the end of September, 2016. The collaborative effort was taken in light of the ongoing monsoon season.

The SEPA chief said the decision to make greenery a part and parcel of housing schemes was taken owing to the fast degrading environment of the city.

He added that the city’s suburbs such as Landhi, Gadap and Hub Chowki were considerably green until a few decades ago but an increase in housing societies wiped out all greenery.

Mughal referred to 2015’s heatwave that claimed over thousand lives as an outcome of the ever lessening number of trees and shrinking greenery in the city’s public spaces.

The environment watchdog’s chief also highlighted the increasing dependence of people over motor vehicles, while there was absolutely no promotion of healthy activities, bicycling for instance. He further criticised the government for a lack of emphasis on usage of green and renewable sources of energy.

NFEH President Naeem Qureshi said around 20 organizations were in cooperation with the NGO for the new plantation drive.

He said the forum had provided 28,000 saplings to concerned community-based organizations, and would conduct a series of workshops for concerned citizens in cooperation with the Sindh Forest Department, IUCN, WWF and other similar organizations.

Aijaz Ahmed Nizamani, chief conservator of the Sindh Forest Department, claimed his department would provide technical, logistical, resource and material support to any non-governmental or private organisation willing to begin a plantation drive in the city, on the lines of NFEH’s campaign.

He said the department could provide 15,000 to 20,000 saplings as well as logistical support for the drive.

Nizamani stated that successive plantation drives had led to an increase in mangrove plants at the Keti Bunder coastal belt, in Thatta. He said the mainstream media played a great role by highlighting the issue of diminishing mangroves in the city’s coastal areas; but should also at the same time have highlighted reforestation in Keti Bandar as a successful initiative of the government.

A senior plant ecologist Rafiul Haq said the world lost 15 billion trees every year to deforestation. The trees if planted could make up an area equal to that of Bangladesh, he said.

Haq added that plantation drives were not enough instead proper upkeep of the trees needed to be ensured.

Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) MPA Dr Sikandar Shoro assured trying his best to create a liaison between concerned NGOs and the local government department for the sake of making such plantation drives successful.

The MPA said he would also play his role in persuading other lawmakers to get laws required for promotion of plantation and greenery passed from the provincial assembly.

Defence Housing Authority Karachi’s Director Horticulture Col (retd) Ghulam Sarwar said the society under its recent initiative planted 100,000 plants in its under construction residential scheme, DHA City, off Super Highway, while 25,000 plants would be planted in the main DHA area in Karachi.

Noted businessman Malik Khuda Baksh who had served in a number of welfare organisations, said Compressed Natural Gas was launched in the country to conserve environment, however, the CNG industry was purposely weakened despite its benefits for the society.