Nature always protects its environment by establishing balance. In this case, the trees that help him, that is, his vast forest. But in order to establish civilization and make themselves civilized, people have freely hit this tree, the protector of nature. As a result, we are forced to see the response of nature. One after another we are being the victims of natural disasters. Most countries have failed to maintain at least 25 percent of a country's total forest area to maintain the balance of the environment. This has resulted in desertification in many parts of the world due to deforestation.
The necessity of the tree: The relationship of our existence is involved with the tree. The need for trees is essential for our livelihood. The tree provides food for all animals. Gives oxygen to keep the giant fauna alive. At the same time, it absorbs carbon dioxide, which is dangerous to animals. By spreading its vast branches, the tree cools the burnt earth. Trees maintain the balance of nature by controlling floods, drizzles, storms. Keeps the weather and climate temperate. Makes the soil fertile. Trees make the earth habitable by preventing the greenhouse effect. From this tree comes the huge amount of wood that we need for our daily necessities like furniture, fuel, wood, housing, railway sleepers, boats, launches, dams etc. We get raw materials from various industries like rayon, pencil, paper pulp, matchsticks and boxes, camphor, rubber etc. from trees. The tree also provides valuable life-saving herbal remedies.
Current World Situation: According to the United Nations, the developed and civilized countries of the world are destroying more forests than the developing countries. But its detrimental effects are largely on third world countries. Global warming has increased as a result of higher deforestation in developed countries. The polar ice is melting. As a result, the sea level rises and the coastal areas are likely to sink. The increase in the amount of carbon dioxide has caused cracks in the weight of the atmosphere. This has led to serious problems such as the greenhouse effect. If this condition is not remedied now, scientists believe that the amount of carbon dioxide in the world will double by 2050 and that life will be extremely risky.
Forest status: Bangladesh has only 16.06 percent of the total land area. The total forest area in our country is 2.52 million hectares. Only 45% of the total forest area has vegetation. The contribution of forest resources to our domestic production is 1.6% and its contribution to agriculture is 13.24%. There are three types of forests in Bangladesh based on plant characteristics. These are-
1. Tropical evergreen and deciduous forest: This forest covers a wide area of Chittagong, Chittagong Hill Tracts and Sylhet region. Chapalis, Garjan, Gamari, Jarul, Kadai etc. are the main trees of this forest.
2. Shalban: It is located in Mymensingh, Gazipur (Bhawal's average) and Madhupur in Tangail. Besides, Rangpur and Dinajpur also have a small amount of forest. The main trees of this forest are shawl, besides chatim, kadai and hijal.
3. Srotaj Forest: This forest is located in the coastal districts of Khulna, Bagerhat, Satkhira and Cox's Bazar. The Sundarbans in the southern part of Bangladesh is the largest mangrove forest in the world. The main tree of this forest is Sundari.
Why Tree Planting is Necessary: We are constantly destroying forests in order to take civilization further and to develop and expand industry. And we are doing all this to meet the needs of the growing population. Developing countries have been relentlessly trying to position themselves as developed countries. On the other hand, developed countries are trying to improve themselves. And in doing so, all the pressure is falling on nature. Especially on the forest. As a result, new problems are being created. And to prevent all these problems, we have to work for afforestation.The problems we need to address are:
Natural Disaster Prevention
Algor, an American politician who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006, blamed global warming for the natural disasters and blamed indiscriminate deforestation for overpopulation and the need to meet their needs. Due to deforestation we are facing various storms, droughts, river erosion, floods in short intervals. Coastal green belt protects coastal disasters in our country. So we have to plant trees to prevent natural disasters.
Prevention of air pollution
Trees supply oxygen by absorbing harmful carbon-di-oxide from the environment. But as a result of higher deforestation, the amount of carbon dioxide in the air is increasing day by day. Due to deforestation, the environment is not able to purify all the other sources responsible for air pollution. As a result, air pollution is being created and people are being infected with various deadly diseases. So we need to do adequate afforestation to stay free from this air pollution and the diseases caused by it
Prevention of the greenhouse effect
According to scientists, this greenhouse effect will in the near future melt the huge ice layer of the Arctic Ocean and increase the sea level. And if it grows even 1 meter, then one third of the world, especially countries like Maldives and Bangladesh will be submerged under 10 feet of water. And so to get rid of it we have to reforest at a higher rate.
Land Erosion Prevention
Deforestation increases soil erosion and causes erosion and desertification. Therefore, it is very important to plant trees to prevent soil erosion.
Tree planting campaign: Rabindranath said- ‘Give back that forest, take this city’. That is, at that time he realized the need for forest land. Much time has passed, but now our governments have also realized the importance of tree planting. And to make everyone realize that, the government has turned tree planting into a social movement. The first week of July has been chosen as the tree planting week to save the country from natural disasters. Due to the monsoon rains this time has been fixed as the best time for planting trees. The government on its own initiative is distributing millions of saplings from various nurseries to the people for free or at nominal prices. Besides, various NGOs have also come forward in this campaign. The government has taken various measures to involve the coastal people in building a coastal green belt to prevent tidal surges and land erosion.
Government Initiatives for Forest Development: The Government of Bangladesh has set up the Forest Industry Development Corporation for the development of forest resources and their proper use. Formed forest research institute. Prohibits private extraction of timber and other products from protected forests. In order to expand the forest, the land around the forest has been taken over by the government and trees have been planted there. During the Second Five Year Plan, new forest lands have been created on 13,000 acres of land and measures have been taken to create new forests on about 15,000 acres of land.
Things to do in forest land development: The importance of forest land and forest resources for meeting the economic and other needs of the country is immense. But the amount of forest in our country is more than the need. Our forests have shrunk as a result of deforestation. But we also need to conserve and expand these forests and forest resources for other economic needs. And what to do for this-
New forest should be developed. Adequate afforestation should be done in riverine areas, valleys, hilly areas and coastal areas.
Arbitrary deforestation must be prevented. Valuable trees should not be cut down without government permission.
Forest conservation and tree planting should be done under government supervision. Adequate training should be given to the officials of the forest department for the protection and development of forest resources. The people concerned in the forest department have to suppress corruption.
Wildlife sanctuaries need to be built and conserved. People should be aware. Saplings should be distributed among the people free of cost.
Measures should be taken to ensure that no more trees are cut down to collect timber from the forest. Even in Katahal, new trees should be planted to fill that void. We have to look for alternatives to wood as fuel.
The tree planting campaign should not be limited to one week but should be continued at other times of the year.
Illegal deforestation must be prevented. The government and the people must strive for this.
We can never survive in a treeless world. We need to focus on afforestation, that is, afforestation, in order to survive. We need to conserve and develop our land in the pursuit of state economic development, personal family development and livelihood. Appropriate initiatives need to be taken not only at the government or private level but also individually and to ensure the implementation of those initiatives.
But the amount of forest in our country is more than the need. Our forests have shrunk as a result of deforestation. But we also need to conserve and expand these forests and forest resources for other economic needs.