Why are forests important for any country?

Forests are precious assets to the country. Many humans/animals depend on forests for
subsistence. It includes air, we need to breathe, to the wood we use for fire or for making
different stuff, medicines and cosmetics. It also gives watershed protection, prevents soil erosion
and reduces climate change. About two billion people rely on forests, they get shelter, livelihood,
water, food, and fruits from forests. Despite these things, forests are home to 80% of the world's
animals. It also includes ecosystem services that are censorious to human welfare like absorbing
harmful greenhouse gasses that produce climate change, providing clean water for drinking and
serving as a buffer in natural disasters. They are extremely crucial for the existence of life on
earth. All necessities/prerequisites of life are somehow connected with forests.
● Importance of forest:
It includes economical development, maintaining water cycle, temperature, oxygen, preventing
global warming and many others. One way or another, we are connected with forests to some
extent, for the existence/survival of humans, animals, reptiles and many other reasons. Forests
are also known as or called as the green gold of the country.
Economic importance:
Forests play an important and critical role in the economic development of a country.
They provide many goods that serve as raw material for several industries. Wood is used as a
source of energy for rural households and for making paper. Its timber and wood play an
important role in economic development but its non-timber products like rubber, medicinal
products, and cotton also help in developing countries. Forests assemble large amounts of
standing biomass, and many are capable of piling up it at high rates. It can store a large amount
of potential energy and under the right circumstances, we can convert it to kinetic energy. It is
also a source of attraction for tourists and thus an acceleration to economic development.
Provide oxygen and maintain temperature:
Forests are also known as the lungs of the world. They help in maintaining the
temperature of the atmosphere and level of oxygen in the air. During photosynthesis, they
consume carbon dioxide and release oxygen that is used by humans for breathing.
Water Cycle:
Forests help in maintaining water cycle by absorbing water from soil through roots and
release excess water by plants into the atmosphere in the form of vapors and these vapors from
oceans rise and condense to form clouds. Then these clouds move to land due to sea breeze and it
leads to rainfall. This is a water cycle, and it is done by forests.
Foreign exchange:
Forests provide us with honey, oil, timber and non-wood products that can be exported to
other countries but with only 0.3% share to GDP. Many industries like sports goods, furniture
and paper get their raw material from trees/forests. Many workers are employed in forestry and
industries or factories related to it. It includes illiterate/underprivileged people also.
Ecological development:
Forests play an essential role in regulation of global climate and temperature as forests
absorb the solar radiations that would otherwise be reflected into the atmosphere by the surface
of earth. Transpiration process of plants increases humidity which affects rainfall and cools down
the temperature of earth.
Forest and biodiversity:
All animals, plants, fungi and bacteria provide important services for nature and the
survival of humans. They also hold huge economic significance. Forests serve as a habitat to
many animals. Many types of reptiles like snakes and lizards, wild animals, insects, birds and
tree-top animals and all those that live in the forest streams and rivers. All these animals and
plants are called biodiversity, and the interlinkage with each other and with their environment is
ecosystem.
What kind of measure the Government of Pakistan is taking for the forests?
Pakistan is a country with low forest cover with only 5% of land area consisting of forest
according to 2004 assessment and with population growing at 2.6% annually, the forest area per
capita is declining. Government is taking these measures for forests to keep them safe and
produce new and more trees/plants for the future of the country.
National Forest Policy aims at development, conservation, restoration and management
of forests and natural resources for stability of ecosystem services and functions for the present
and future of the country. It also aims at increasing productivity of forests to complete
requirements of fuel, wood, fodder, timber and non-wood forest. Measures of this policy include
protection of forest land from being used as non-forest. And saving forest land from fire, meet
rising energy demand of the population and increase productivity of forests.
The Billion Tree Tsunami project, under rule of PTI, has been working to save
Pakistan’s forest land since June 2015 by two approaches, prevent deforestation and planting 1
billion plants by end of 2017. In the past year 250 million plants have been planted in KP. It also
includes a crackdown on timber mafias and reserve current trends and save the future of
generation.
The Green Pakistan Movement was initiated by the prime minister on Oct 8, 2018 and
the climate change industry was also coordinating to implement it in all provinces, Jammu
Kashmir and GB. The minister, Zartaj Gul, stated that 27 million trees/plants has been planted
across country under this programme.
The Plant for Pakistan scheme was launched by PTI last September in Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa to reduce the effect of global warming and change of climate. According to this
scheme, in the next five years, 1 million plants will be planted in KP. Also, Revival of the
Kundian forest scheme was announced by Imran Khan that the huge Kundian forest that was
established before partition has been turned into infertile land. And in the next four years, it will
come back to its real condition.