Tree plantation imperative to fight global warming: commissioner

KARACHI: A meeting, held under the chairmanship of Karachi Commissioner Muhammad Sualeh Fauqui, reviewed the ongoing tree plantation campaign in the city.

The commissioner said that there was dire need to grow trees to tackle global warming challenges in Karachi and make Karachi a green city. He said that Karachi needed a comprehensive tree plantation on the lines of international urban forestry so as to save the city from environmental pollution and global warming.

He further said, “We can make the city better and greener for which all stakeholders, citizens and organisations from government and non-government sectors should participate in the campaign.”  The meeting decided that beside planting trees in parks, on the banks of river beds, along the roads and on green belts, urban forest parks would also be planned to develop and managed with the support of relevant stakeholders where sufficient spaces are available.

DCs will work on it to find the spaces where a large number of trees could be grown. They have been asked to discuss with the civil society, relevant organizations and make plans to initiate the urban forestry drive in the city.

It was also decided that district-wise committees would be formed which would run the affairs of the campaign and its management and supervision.

The commissioner also stressed the need to engage youth and school going children in the campaign. He asked Private Schools DG Mansoob Siddiqui to make plan in this regard and involve those schools which have space for plantation to carry out campaign according to the space they have.

The Citizen Foundation representative Tariq Suri told the meeting that they had planned to grow 50 million plants in next five years. It was also told in the meeting that Korangi Association of Trade and Industries (KATI) and SITE Association of Trade and Industries were also planning to grow one million plants each in their respective areas. KATI also told the meeting that with the coordination and cooperation of the Korangi deputy commissioner and Korangi District Municipal Corportions, they were making arrangements to grow trees with sewerage waters or used waters instead of fresh water.

Ahmed Shah of the Karachi Arts Council also promised in the meeting that the Arts Council would motivate its youth group of arts council which is the largest youth group of the city to take part in the campaign as a public service and for the protection of the environment of the city.