“Someone’s sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago.”― Warren Buffett
Recent years have witnessed the announcement and implementation of huge tree-planting projects which are politically popular, media-friendly, and often have stunning numbers attached. In 2014, Pakistan launched “Billion Tree Tsunami” planting project, which was expanded into a nationwide “10-Billon Tree Tsunami” project in 2018. Similarly, China is on track to plant 35 million hectares (87 million acres) of trees in its northern arid areas to make a Great Green Wall. The program started in 1978, and is planned to be completed around 2050,
China’s Green Great Wall Plan- is a 2,800-mile network of forest belts designed to stop the sands. Chinese scientists from the Ministry of Forestry believe the trees can serve as a windbreak and halt the advancing desert. In a recent report to the United Nations, Chinese officials predicted that the effort will “terminate expansion of new desertification caused by human factors” within a decade. By 2050, they claim, much of the arid land can be restored to a productive and sustainable state. Likewise, “Ten Billion Tree Tsunami Programme” is initiated to revive Forest and Wildlife resources in Pakistan, to improve the overall conservation of the existing protected areas; encourage eco-tourism, community engagement and job creation through the conservation.
China’s Green Wall Project is possibly the largest proposed ecological project in history, the new Great Wall calls for planting more than 9 million acres of forest at a cost of up to $8 billion. To build the wall, the government has launched a two-pronged plan: Use aerial seeding to cover wide swaths of land where the soil is less arid, and pay farmers to plant trees and shrubs in areas that require closer attention. A $1.2 billion oversight system, consisting of mapping and land-surveillance databases, will be implemented. Similarly, Pakistan’s “Ten Billion Tree Tsunami Programme, Phase-I” is a four-year (2019-2023) project by Government of Pakistan with the total cost of 125.1843 billion. The project is being implemented across Pakistan by the Ministry of Climate Change along with Provincial and territorial Forest and Wildlife departments.
Moreover, the Ten Billion Tree Tsunami Programme not only includes tree planting/regeneration but also supports implementation of target 15.1, 15.2, 15.5 and 15.7 of the Sustainable Development Goals. The programme targets will also result in mitigating the impact of climate change in the country since plantations are a major source of carbon sink. The increase in vegetation cover will prevent land degradation and improve aquifer. Through this programme, plantation target of 859.426 million plants on 381,374 hectares of land has been achieved from 2018 up till 30th April 2021. 614 plants are available in nurseries at present. The target of planting 1 billion plants will be achieved by June 2021.
The results of China’s Green Wall Project is evident from the fact that it has provided financial stability to many previously impoverished communities located in the prospective Great Green Wall region. Government investment in infrastructure surrounding the project has also aided regional development. The Chinese government claims that the project has already yielded a decrease in sandstorms, stabilized acres of desert, and even increased precipitation. Similarly, the 10 Billion Tree Tsunami has provided more than 100,000 jobs through World Bank Grant. During the Global COVID-19 pandemic, the Forest and Wildlife Departments provided green jobs through green stimulus to approx. 85,000 daily wagers under Ten Billion Tree Tsunami Programme.
Conclusively, it is high time for us to realise that climate change is one of the greatest challenges faced by humanity. The Greenhouse–gas emissions and over-exploitation of natural resources result in a rise in temperature which brings floods, droughts, a rise in sea level, and other destructive events. The problem is that climate change is a global bad, and it requires collective efforts and cooperation to limit its effects. One state cannot control Climate change alone because it does not take it into borders. Formally, the climate change issue was a matter of low politics, but the beginning of the 21st century brought an understanding that it poses greater threats than traditional ones. After the events of 2020, consumers made one thing clear: They want a more sustainable world. The Covid-19 plays a major role in the realization of steps taken towards climate cooperation. States often make climate promises but cannot fulfil these promises because of the fascination with development and ignore climate change. But now world leaders have realized that the lessons of COVID-19 can tackle global climate change problems otherwise it will make this world difficult to live in.
