TN needs 11 crore trees to meet Forests policy

CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu should plant 11 crore saplings over the next five years if it has to meet the National Forests Policy, which prescribes guidelines to every State to achieve 33 per cent forest cover, said R Prabakaran, VC, Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University. The State, at present, has a forest cover of only 17 per cent, way below the policy. TN’s forest cover is also way below the national average of 23 per cent, said the Vice-Chancellor at a national conference on environmental protection organised by the Loyola College.“Soil erosion due to deforestation in areas like Tirupur and Ambur are emerging as a major concern,” Prabakaran said and added, “Irrational exploitation of natural resources for short term profits need to be stopped.” Prabakaran said that, the livestock sector across the world has been contributing heavily to global carbon emissions. “About 7,516 million metric tonnes of carbon dioxide or 18 per cent of the annual global carbon emissions is from the livestock sector,” he said. “Loss of biodiversity and increase in global demand for meat is further driving up these numbers. Hence, the industry should look at ways to cut carbon emissions and explore the carbon sequestration potentials of grasslands.”Chairman of the National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) Balakrishna Pisupati said during the function that his agency would look to strengthen the panchayat level presence of biodiversity boards. Balakrishna said that the NBA, along with the Ministry of Environment, will take crucial policy decisions before India hosts the 11th CoP on biodiversity in 2012.