Federal govt puts a dent in billion tree tsunami by cutting down protected walnut trees in Chitral

ISLAMABAD - Development should not come at the cost of environment and resources of people as a protected ecosystem guarantees sustainable growth of a nation and saves our future generations.

Ill-planned development projects, whether they are aimed at driving out a country from a tough situation, should be discouraged if they ruin an already fragile environment system.

Recently, Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi inaugurated  Golen Gol Hydropower Project in Chitral, an effort to improve power situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The project is expected to add 108 megawatts of electricity to national grid system on its completion.

But, the project brought difficulties to local people and caused destruction of thousands of trees, including protected walnut species, in Chitral which play an important role in the Chitral ecology and economy.

Mohammad Zubair Khan, an environmental journalist in his report published on thethirdpole.net, claimed that thousands of trees were chopped down in the area in order to make way for transmission lines running from the power plant, depriving people of their source of income.

The report quoting WAPDA sources said that 206km long transmission lines will be laid down, while 813 towers will be constructed.

A land owner of Chitral, Nister Azad, told the media outlet that 1,300 trees had been cut down, including 253 chestnut trees, to make space for a transmission line.

“There was a time when I and my family felt like proud owners of chestnut trees, but now we have nothing to left to be proud of,” Azad said.



He said that Wapda contractors chopped the trees, which took decades to grow, despite the petitions in the court against the route of the transmission lines.

Another local, Fakhar Alam Khan said that the contractors cut down 2,600 trees on his land, including 72 walnut trees.

He said, “Walnut and other fruit trees are the source of extra income for us. Walnut trees alone provide us with a minimum of 2,256 USD annually. It is an important part of our daily life, especially in the snowfall season when we use its leaves for cattle feed and wood for fuel.”

The locals also claimed that the Wapda deliberately chose this route as they had suggested alternative to it but it was not considered. They also said that the trees were chopped down without getting a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from agriculture department.



According to agriculture department a NOC must be obtained from the department before any such activity. The department informed the media outlet that the Wapda did not get any NOC before cutting the trees.