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Maintain tree planting campaign
2006-01-03 08:29:07
By Editor
On New Year Day, President Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete urged Tanzanians to plant trees and accord importance to conservation of the country’s forests.
The President made this call after he planted a tree in the State House grounds to mark this year’s National Tree Planting day. He however regretted that this year the day was being marked without rains, not only in Dar es Salaam, but in many parts of the country.
Many areas in the country which normally experience short rains ( vuli) such as the coastal areas and others received little, too late or no rains at all.
This weather phenomenon notwithstanding, the President urged Tanzanians to continue to cultivate the habit of planting trees and decried the tendency of giving little importance to the country’s forest lands as well as their carelessness in cutting down of trees and/or setting the forests on fire.
The President also said his government would emphasize the need for a well-defined strategy for tree planting and forest conservation.
Even without the President’s prodding, have Tanzanians to be reminded every now and then that trees and other living plants are valuable? Are they not aware that the ongoing careless felling of trees invites deserts in the country?
Can’t we all see that trees beautify our surroundings, purify our air, act as sound barriers, manufacture precious oxygen, and help us save energy through their cooling shade in sunny weather and their wind breaking capability in harnessing rainfall?
We all like trees around us because they make life more pleasant. Most of us respond to the presence of trees beyond simply observing their beauty. We feel serene, peaceful, restful, and tranquil in a grove of trees.
We are’at home’ there. Hospital patients have been shown to recover from surgery more quickly when their hospital room offered a view of trees. The strong ties between people and trees are most evident in the resistance of community residents to removing trees to widen streets.
Trees also alter the environment in which we live by moderating climate, improving air quality, conserving water, and harbouring wildlife. Climate control is obtained by moderating the effects of sun, wind, and rain. We are cooler when we stand in the shade of trees and are not exposed to direct sunlight.
In addition, the stature, strength, and endurance of trees give them a cathedral-like quality. Because of their potential for long life, trees frequently are planted as living memorials. We often become personally attached to trees that we or those we admire have planted.
In the cities and towns such as Dar es Salaam, trees often serve several architectural and engineering functions.
They provide privacy, emphasize views, or screen out objectionable views. They reduce glare and reflection.
They direct pedestrian traffic. They provide background to and soften, complement, or enhance architecture.
All this is apart from the trees’ other value - monetary value, as they provide timber for building and furniture making, as well as an important source in form of firewood and charcoal.
However, all these benefits are only to be reaped with care - by replenishing the depleted tree stocks.
There is no other way, and we have all to accept that the consequences are grave.
The eccentric weather pattern as manifested by the ongoing long dry spells in the country is one such effect of deforestation.
The problem is global even though with varying magnitudes.
Since the industrial revolution many countries have experienced centuries of deforestation, and governments and global organisations have directly engaged themselves in programmes of re-afforestation which is the restocking of existing forests and woodlands which have been depleted.
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