Section
7: Forests of Pakistan
The
forests of Pakistan reflect great physiographic, climatic and
edaphic contrasts in the country. Pakistan is an oblong stretch
of land between the Arabian sea and Karakoram mountains, lying
diagonally between 24° N and 37° N latitudes and 61° E and 75° E
longitudes, and covering
an area of 87.98 million hectares. Topographically, the country
has a continuous massive mountainous tract in the north, the
west and south-west and a large fertile plain, the Indus plain.
The northern mountain system, comprising the Karakoram, the
great Himalayas, and the Hindu-Kush, has enormous mass of snow
and glaciers and 100 peaks of over 5,400 m. in elevation. K-2
(8,563 m.) is the second highest peak in the world. The mountain
system occupies one third of this part of the country. The
western mountain ranges, not so high as in the north, comprise
the Sufed Koh and the Sulaiman while the south-western ranges
forming a high, dry and cold Balochistan plateau.
Characteristically, the mountain slopes are steep, even
precipitous, making fragile watershed areas and associated
forest vegetation extremely important from hydrological point of
view. The valleys are narrow. The mountains are continuously
undergoing natural process of erosion. The nature of climate
with high intensity rainfall in summer and of soil in the
northern regions render these mountains prone to landslides.
The Indus plain consists of
two features; the alluvial plain and sand-dunal deserts. The
country is drained by five rivers; namely, Indus, Jhelum, Chenab,
Ravi and Sutlej. Of these Indus arising in snow covered northern
mountain ranges flows towards south through the Punjab and Sindh
plains into a wide delta before entering Arabian sea. Other
rivers join it on the way, together feeding one of the largest
irrigation systems in the world. The great river system of Indus
in Pakistan derives a part of their water supply from sources
which lie in the highlands beyond the Himalayas and the western
mountains, and part from countless valleys which lie hidden
within the mountain folds. Much of the silt of the alluvial
plain is from natural geological erosion of mountains in the
north brought down by rivers. Thal desert lies between the
rivers Indus and Jhelum, while Cholistan and Thar deserts occur
on the south-east of the country.
A
great variety of parent rock types occur in Pakistan, which
exert considerable influence on the properties of the soil. The
rocks found in Pakistan can be classified into three major
groups, viz. the igneous rocks, the sedimentary rocks and the
metamorphic rocks. In the Himalayan regions, the common rock
types are metamorphic which are gneisses, schists, slates and
phyllites with some quartzite and marble. In the northern part
of Indus plain, between Sargodha and Shahkot small outcrops of
phyllites and quartzites occur. Granite, syenite, diorite,
gabbro, dolerite and peridotite are more common types of igneous
rocks, which occur in Dir, Swat, Chitral, Gilgit, Zhob, Chagai,
Las Bela and Nagarpark.
Forest area of Pakistan reported in different
official documents has varied over the years with administrative
and political changes in country as well as with changes in
methods of reporting data. Different government departments have
been publishing different forest statistics since 1947 when
Pakistan was created as an independent country. Most recently,
data of land use including forest area have been reported by
Forestry Sector Master Plan (FSMP) Project in 1993, with the
help of Landsat Satellite Thematic Mapper Images at a scale of
1:250,000 covering the whole of Pakistan.
The total area of forests in Pakistan is 4.224
million ha which is 4.8% of the total land area. However, it may
be mentioned here that the farmland trees and linear planting
along roadsides, canalsides and railway sides covering an
estimated area of 466,000 ha and 16,000 ha respectively do not
constitute forests within the context of legal, ecological or
silvicultural/management definition of forests. The situation is
also similar, but to a lesser extent, in the case of
miscellaneous plantations over an area of 155,000 ha. If the
area of these three categories of plantations is excluded from
total forest area of 4.224 million ha, then the latter is
reduced to 3.587 million ha which is approximately 4.1 % of the
total area.
Of the four forest cover percentage groups (>
70%, 40-69%, 10-39%, 0-9%), Pakistan lies in the last category:
0-9%. Between 1981 and 1990, there had been a 4.3% decrease in
forest areas of the Tropical Asia and Oceania, which Pakistan is
a part of. During the same period, a 0.6% deforestation had been
occurring each year. This is an alarming situation and needs to
be stalled and then reversed, if possible.
As recognition of the multiple values of forests has grown, so
have concerns for their disappearance. In Pakistan, subtropical,
temperate, riverain and mangrove forests are being lost because
of questionable land use practices and the ever-increasing
demand for timber and firewood. As a result, more responsible
management approaches are being demanded that can accommodate
complex economic and ecological needs. Designation of selected
forestlands as national parks, area for agro-forestry practices
and the development of plantations and afforestation practices
are needs of the hour.
Total Forest Area under the control of the Forest
Departments (including Azad Kashmir and the Northern Areas) is
4.26 million hectares. The per capita forest area is only 0.037
ha compared to the world average of ONE ha. Main reason for this
is that more than 70% land area of Pakistan is Arid and
semi-Arid with annual rainfall of 250-500 mm: too low and
erratic to sustain natural vegetation and to plan afforestation/regeneration
programmes.
Forest Areas and Rangelands (in ha.)
Forest Type |
NWFP |
Punjab |
Sindh |
Balochistan |
Northern Areas |
Azad Kashmir |
Total |
Coniferous |
1105 |
29 |
- |
131 |
285 |
361 |
1911 |
Irr. Plantations |
- |
142 |
82 |
- |
2 |
- |
226 |
Riverain Forests |
- |
51 |
241 |
5 |
- |
- |
297 |
Scrub Forests |
115 |
340 |
10 |
163 |
658 |
1 |
1287 |
Coastal Forests |
- |
- |
345 |
- |
- |
- |
345 |
Mazri Lands |
24 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
24 |
Linear Pltns. |
2 |
4 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
6 |
Private Pltns. |
159 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
159 |
Range Lands |
150 |
2683 |
490 |
787 |
2104 |
195 |
6409 |
TOTAL: |
1555 |
3249 |
1168 |
1086 |
3049 |
557 |
10664 |
The following forest types are found in
Pakistan:
-
Littoral and Swamp forests
-
Tropical dry deciduous
forests
-
Tropical thorn forests
-
Sub-tropical broad-leaved
evergreen forests
-
Sub-tropical pine forests
-
Himalayan moist temperate
forests
-
Himalayan dry temperate
forests
-
Sub-alpine forests
-
Alpine scrub
Littoral and Swamp forests
These are more or less gregarious forests of
low height which occur in the Arabian sea around the coast of
Karachi and Pasni in Balochistan. The main species is
Avicennia marina (99%). Other species like Rhizophora
have disappeared over a period of time due to heavy cutting.
According to latest estimates, these forest cover an area of
207,000 ha.
Tropical dry deciduous forests
These are forests of low or moderate height
consisting almost entirely of deciduous species. Their canopy is
typically light though it may appear fairly dense and complete
during the short rainy season. This type does not occur
extensively in Pakistan but there are limited areas in the
Rawalpindi foothills carrying this vegetation type, all much
adversely affected by close proximity to habitation or
cultivation. It is closely similar both in floristic composition
and in structure to that developed freely in the adjoining parts
of North West India. The chief tree species are Lannea (Kamlai,
Kembal) Bombax ceiba (Semal), Sterculia,
Flacourtia (Kakoh, Kangu), Mallotus (Kamila, Raiuni)
and Acacia catechu (Kath). Common shrubs are Adhatoda
(Bankar, Basuti, Bansha), Gymnosporia (Putaki) and
Indigofera (Kathi, Kainthi).
Tropical thorn forests
These
are low, open and pronouncedly xerophytic forests in which
thorny leguminous species predominate. This type occupies the
whole of the Indus plain except the driest parts. The major tree
species are Prosopis cineraria (Jhand), Capparis
decidua (Karir, Karil), Zizyphus mauritiana (Ber),
Tamarix aphylla (Farash) and Salvadora oleoides (Pilu,
wan). Among them are a large number of shrubs of all sizes. The
tree forest climax is very frequently degraded to a very open,
low thorny scrub of Euphorbia (Thor), Zizyphus (Ber),
etc. owing to the universally heavy incidence of grazing and
other biotic factors. Edaphic variants, especially connected
with degree of salinity, shallowness over rock, etc., often
occur. A characteristic pioneer vegetation is developed on
inland sand dunes and the semi-deserts of the areas of least
rainfall.
On the basis of climax
vegetation, the whole Indus basin plain with the exception of
parts of the districts of Sialkot, Gujrat and Jehlum, consists
of tropical thorn forests. Prior to development of irrigation,
agriculture and urbanization, the area extended from the
foothills of the Himalayas and low-hills in the south-west
Punjab plains and Balochistan to the Arabian sea. The climax
species of these forests are Salvadora oleoides,
Capparis decidua, Tamarix aphylla and Prosopis
cineraria, which grow on a wide range of soil textures, from
flat deep alluvial soils to heavy clays, loams and sandy loams.
The climate varies from semi-arid (250 to 750 mm rainfall) to
arid (less than 250 mm rainfall). The summer temperature in this
tract is as high as 50°C.
Earlier, these forests merged
with riverain forests along the river banks and with scrub
forests in the low hills in the north and north-western regions
of Pakistan. Together these forests provided an ideal habitat to
the wildlife of the area which seasonally migrated according to
their needs; during cold winter from the lower hills towards the
plains in search of food and shelter, from the flood plains
towards the dry areas during floods and towards the rivers
during the summer drought. This is no longer the situation.
Riverain forests now grow in the forms of disjunct patches over
an area of 173,000 ha. Irrigated agriculture is carried over
18.668 million ha. and irrigated tree plantations over an area
of 103,000 ha in this tract.
S ub-tropical
broad-leaved evergreen forests
These are xerophtic forests of thorny and
small-leafed evergreen species. This type occurs on the
foothills and lower slopes of the Himalayas, the Salt Range,
Kalachitta and the Sulaiman Range. The typical species are;
Olea cuspidata (Kau) and Acacia modesta (Phulai), the
two species occurring mixed or pure, and the shrub Dodonaea
(Sanatta) which is particularly abundant in the most degraded
areas. Total area of these forests is estimated to be 1,191,000
ha.
Sub-tropical pine forests
These are open inflammable pine forests
sometimes with, but often without, a dry evergreen shrub layer
and little or no underwood. This type consists of Chir pine (Pinus
roxburghii) forests found between 900 m and 1700 m elevation
in the Western Himalayas within the range of the south-west
summer monsoon. It is the only pine of these forests though
there is a small overlap with Pinus wallichiana (Kail,
Biar) at the upper limit.
Himalayan moist temperate forests
The evergreen forests of conifers, locally
with some admixture of oak and deciduous broad-leaved trees fall
in this category. Their undergrowth is rarely dense, and
consists of both evergreen and deciduous species. These forests
occur between 1500 m and 3000 m elevation in the Western
Himalayas except where the rainfall falls below about 1000 mm in
the inner ranges, especially in the extreme north-west.
These forests are divided into
a lower and an upper zone, in each of which definite species of
conifers and/or oaks dominate. In the lower zone, Cedrus
deodara (Deodar, diar), Pinus wallichiana, Picea
smithiana and Abies pindrow (Partal) are the main
conifer species in order of increasing altitude, with Quercus
incana (rin, rinj) at lower altitudes and Q. dilatata
above 2130 m. In the upper zone Abies pindrow and Q.
semecarpifolia are the dominant tree species. There may be
pockets of deciduous broad-leaved trees, mainly edaphically
conditioned, in both the zones. Alder (Alnus species)
colonizes new gravels and sometimes kail does the same.
Degradation forms take the shape of scrub growth and in the
higher reaches, parklands and pastures are subjected to heavy
grazing.
Himalayan dry temperate forests
These are open evergreen forest with open
scrub undergrowth. Both coniferous and broad-leaved species are
present. This type occurs on the inner ranges throughout their
length and are mainly represented in the north-west. Dry zone
deodar, Pinus gerardiana (Chalghoza) and/or Quercus
ilex are the main species. Higher up, blue pine communities
occur and in the driest inner tracts, forests of blue pine,
Juniperus macropoda (Abhal, Shupa, Shur) and some Picea
smithiana (e.g. in Gilgit) are found locally.
Sub-alpine forests
Evergreen conifers and mainly evergreen
broad-leaved trees occur in relatively low open canopy, usually
with a deciduous shrubby undergrowth of Viburnum (Guch),
Salix (Willow, Bed), etc. The type occurs throughout the
Himalayas from about 3,350 m to the timber limit. Abies
spectabilis and Betula utilis (Birch, Bhuj) are the
typical tree species. High level blue pine may occur on
landslips and as a secondary sere on burnt areas or abandoned
clearings. Rhododendrons (Bras, Chahan) occur in the
understorey but do not form extensive communities as they do in
the central and eastern Himalaya. Dwarf junipers are often
abundant.
Alpine scrub
Under this type are included shrub formations
1 m to 2 m high extending 150 m or more above the sub-alpine
forests. The characteristic genera are Salix, Lonicera
(Phut), Berberis (Sumbul, Sumblue), Cotoneaster with
Juniperus and occasionally Rhododendron or Ephedra
(Asmania).
 |
Map
showing Forest area of Pakistan |
Map
Credit: UNEP
Environment Assessment Programme for Asia and the Pacific (http://www.rrcap.unep.org) |
References
and Credits:
-
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Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, August 1997
-
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All Rights Reserved.
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Environment Assessment Programme for Asia and the Pacific
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