Older people always say that things were better in their time, and the newer generations have destroyed a lot of things. Whether this is true for other matters or not, it is definitely and sadly true in the matter of the environment. Steadily, the environment is being damaged around us as we, the so called aware generation, stand by the sidelines. Barring a few brave exceptions, the lot of us didn’t do anything to save what was our environmental heritage
We stood unmoved as almost all the trees on Murree Hills were razed. We watched with cold-bloodedness as whole green belts were annihilated to make way for some guy’s dream of seeing underpasses on Islamabad’s sparsely populated roads. We didn’t show any concern when The New Murree Project was announced; a project of such monumental disastrous implications that the Former Chief Justice himself, Iftikhar Chaudhry, had to take action to stop it from happening. Most of us didn’t even bat an eyelid, as the previous Punjab Government plotted that atrocious project that would have changed Lahore for all times to come, the widening of the Canal Road. Then too, it was the Former Chief Justice, who gave a stay order against the slaughter of 30,000 trees.
For those of us who live in Lahore, we have very few things to be proud of. Amongst us were certain stalwarts, certain committees, certain people who refused to let Messrs Pervaiz & Moonis Elahi ruin the Canal Road. These people filed the case in the Supreme Court and made sure that they stopped the senseless assault on the environment. I still remember driving past the canal daily, looking at the trees that were marked with an ominous red painted cross, and desperately hoping for the Supreme Court to intervene. I still remember looking at the arch that is made by branches of trees planted on opposite sides of the road, that beautiful canopy that we pass under once we reach the Punjab University, and praying to God that he let this small part of heaven in Lahore be saved. But apart from the preventive measures of certain people, the rest of us have nothing to be proud of. The mad rush to get to someplace is enough for us to not look at the serious consequences of a tree less environment. We are so happy to drive fast and without interruption that we don’t care if all the trees around us are felled just to spare us a few extra minutes on our commutes.
The new Punjab government might again contemplate widening the Canal bank road. Unfortunately, Iftikhar Chaudhry isn’t in the Supreme Court anymore to stall such plans. Government spokesmen always say that they will plant new trees to replace the old ones. Can a sapling’s purifying capability be compared to that of a fully grown tree? Can a plant have the dignity and prowess of a 50 or 100 year old tree, which is how old most of the Canal Bank Road trees are? And what about the 300, yes 300, different species of animals and plants that live in the green belts? What do we do about them?
Even if, at our peril, we ignore that trees provide beauty and shade, can we deny that trees reduce air pollution and can actually lower temperatures? Global warming is a sad reality and we can see it affecting us as well as all the other parts of the world. Last year the temperature in Lahore reached a 72 year high. Compare this incredulous rise in heat to something old Lahoris know well……up until the 80s, there were no ACs in Cantonment. There was no need for an AC, the stupendous amount of trees in Cantonment of that era was more than enough to keep them all cool. How about the fact that it has been years since I, at least, have seen a firefly in Lahore? Outside of parks, does one see the once common squirrels as abundantly as one once did? Those massive clouds of small birds that used to take flight in one huge mass nearing evening, have been reduced to a few dozen birds rushing to the safety of whichever tree they have found to protect themselves? Even that delight of many a childhoods, the ladybug, is now a rare sight. We aren’t just cutting trees; we are destroying whole eco-systems. Let there be no doubt, trees are not just an aesthetically pleasing shade providing accessory to plant in your garden and prune occasionally. They are the last defense we have against global warming. The more trees there are, the more our chances of keeping temperatures from rising drastically, the more chances we have of cutting down on electricity bills, the more chances we have of saving many a species that are looking towards us to help them out of their rapidly shrinking worlds, the more chance we have of preventing this planet from being baked, literally.
