Forests
1.1 Productive and Protective Forests
- Productive Forests
- Natural forests
- High tree density
- Close forest canopy
- Commercial value is high
- Used in timber production
- For various uses like industrial and construction
- Protective Forests
- Planted by humans
- Linear plantation
- Can see separate lines
- Amenity planting along roads
- Less commercial value
- Not for valuable wood species
- Linear plantation
- Mainly to reduce surface erosion
- Lower temperature (absorb heat)
- Shade for travelers
- Add to scenic beauty of the area
- Planted by humans
- Natural forests
1.2 Importance of Forests
- Ecological Importance
- Habitat to different species
- Stabilize the environment
- Reduce pollution
- Reduce soil erosion
- Reducing the speed at which rain water hits the soil
- Water supply regulated
- Most water redirected to reservoirs
- Instead of breaking the banks and flooding
- Floods reduced
- Tree leaves fall on the soil
- They decompose over time
- Forms humus
- This humus is rich in nutrients
- Maintains soil fertility
- Fertile soil results in better crop production
- Feeds millions of people
- Transpiration
- Water cycle and rainfall
- Industrial and commercial importance
- Raw material for industries
- Construction
- Timber
- Pharmaceutical
- Paper
- Wood based industries
- Timer for transport vehicles
- Recreational Value
- Promote tourism (Amazon Rainforest is important to Brazil’s tourism)
- Eco-tourism
- Tourism creates employment for people
- Revenue earned
- Standards of living improve
- Employment for people in forest department
-
- Provides fruits
-
- Promote tourism (Amazon Rainforest is important to Brazil’s tourism)
- Raw material for industries
- Forms humus
- They decompose over time
- Instead of breaking the banks and flooding
- Most water redirected to reservoirs
Forest distribution is closely linked to altitude (height of land in relation to sea level)
1.3 The Affect of Density, Rainfall, Temperature and Type of Soil on Forests
- Altitude
- Different altitude, different types of forests
- Aridity
- Balochistan Plateau and Southern Indus Plain
- Stunted plant growth
- Thorny bushes and scrub
- Precipitation
- Means rainfall, snow, hail, dew etc. (Water falling from sky in any form)
- Coniferous trees in the northern mountains due to higher precipitation
- They are more than 30 meters high
- The total growth within one year is equal to the distance between the whirls
- Evergreen
- Leaves are green throughout the year
- The tree has needle like texture near leaves to reduce transpiration
- The straight and tall trunk rises up high to search more sunlight
- The trunk is thin as upward growth is rapid
- However, the bark is thick
- As a result, cold winds are blocked
- The branches are downward sloping
- So snow slides off easily
- Less growth near the surface as more growth is vertical
- Roots are shallow
- Soil is thin and subsoil has frozen water
- So most water is absorbed from near the surface
- Also, cold areas so long root growth not possible
- The spread of roots is high to hold firmly against strong winds
- They are adapted to higher precipitation
- Salinity
- Mangrove forests in Indus and Hub Delta
- Edaphic factors
- The type of soil (will read in detail in agriculture)
- Different forests in different types of soils.
- Balochistan Plateau and Southern Indus Plain
1.4 What are the threats to Mangroves in Pakistan
- Mangrove trees are cut for fodder (animal feed) and firewood
- Waste from cities (domestic and industrial) enter the sea
- Poisons mangrove areas
- Stunts their growth
- Sand is removed from beaches
- For usage elsewhere
- To develop beaches
- In both cases, mangrove growth is hurt as they cannot find rich material to grow properly
- Beaches are reclaimed
- Construction of buildings and roads
- Mangroves are cut down
- The development dams and barrages
- On River Indus (upstream)
- The silt is deposited in the dams and reservoirs
- Very little amount reaches the mangroves
- Mangroves do not get the nutrients in ample amount
1.5 Main products of forests
- Timber
- Wood used in construction and industry
- Fuel Wood (Firewood)
- Wood used for domestic heating purposes
- Minor products
- Resin
- Fluid in plant tissue
- Inside Chir
- Becomes solid when comes in contact with air
- It is used in varnishes and nail polish etc.
- Mazri
- It is used in making baskets and mats etc.
- Major use in packaging industry
- Ephedra
- Used in pharmaceutical industry
- It has medicinal properties
- Resin
The Main Reasons for Deforestation
- Agriculture
- Mining requires forest removal
- Commercial value of minerals is greater than timber
- So wood cut to do mining
- Construction
- Dams and barrages
- Require large-scale forest removal
- Urbanization
- Increase in the size of cities
- More area needed for expanding cities
- Industrialization
- Needs transport
- Road transport requires clearing of forests
- Rail also requires clearing of forests
- Wood-based products
- Sports goods and plywood
- Construction industry
- Make offices and other buildings
- Vehicle building
- Buses require wood
- Boats require wood
- Heating and Cooking requirements
- Fuel wood usage
- A large part of rural population depends on fuel wood for cooking and heating
- Overgrazing
- Nomadic herding
- Sub-tropical scrub forests and tropical thorn forest areas
- Converted to deserts
1.6 Effects of Deforestation
- Ecological Effects
- Loss of habitat for species
- Results in extinction
- Air pollution
- Death of species
- Environmental loss
- Loss of ecological and biodiversity
- Soil exposure
- No trees to hold the soil together
- Water erosion, especially in heavy rainfall
- Siltation occurs more in reservoir due to more eroded material
- Water supply is disrupted
- Can damage the crop yields and food production
- Also damaged by wind erosion
- Surface run-off increases
- As a result, there are more floods
- The property and crops are destroyed
- Again, this results in loss of food
- All these aspect could lead to starvation, hunger, malnutrition and death
- As a result, there are more floods
- Climate can change
- Less transpiration
- Less convectional current rainfall occurs
- Food resources are lost
- Floods in some areas, drought in other areas
- Conversion of different areas to deserts over time
- Less transpiration
- Other issues
- Siltation increases
- More eroded material
- Reduces capacity of dams and reservoirs
- Can hinder the production of HEP
- Fisheries are harmed
- Loss of fish species
- Less chances for earning from fishing
- Fishing industry destroyed
- Crop production reduced
- Agro-based industries
- Less raw material
- Industrial production reduced
- Damage to damns
- Further economic cost in maintenance
- Canal cleaning costs also rise.
- Agro-based industries
- Siltation increases
- Can damage the crop yields and food production
- No trees to hold the soil together
- Loss of habitat for species
1.7 Solution for the Deforestation Issue
- It is difficult to solve the problems caused by deforestation once it has occurred.
- Irrigate the deforested area to allow regeneration programs to work.
- Commercial species planted
- Grow fast
- Fuel wood planted
- Valuable species saved from being used as fuelwood.
- Awareness amongst people about the negative affects of deforestation
- NGO effort
- Natural gas supply to Northern areas
- Reduce the use of fuel wood for heating and cooking
- Improve plantation techniques so that tree can grow faster
- Forest management and Sustainable Forestry
- Selective cutting
- Not cutting saplings or small trees
- Cutting a restricted amount of trees
- Not leaving large tracts of deforested areas
- Heavy machinery like bulldozer used minimally
- This damages the sold the tree roots
- Forest laws implemented
- Illegal cutting banned
- Village/ farm forestry programs
- Urban Forestry
- On roadside
- In open spaces
- Fruit trees of hill slopes
- Food for local people
- Less soil erosion
- Reduce speed of river
- Less floods
- Terracing technique
- Cutting hillsides into flat terraces
- Using stone walls
- Called bunds
- Water and soil held back
- Contour Ploughing
- Parallel contours on hillside
- Strip farming
- 2 or more crops grown on same field
- Usually one tall and one short crop
- Tall crop protects the short crop
- Selective cutting
- Commercial species planted
1.8 Soil protection in Northern Mountains
- Steeper relief and wetter climate
- Steepest slopes
- Afforestation
- Steep slopes
- Terracing
- Contour ploughing
- Gentle slopes
- Hedgerows replanted
- Alternative farming
- One terrace of crops
- Other terrace of grass
- Prevents soil exhaustion (soil being deprived of nutrients)
- Reduces over cultivation (cultivation to the point of soil exhaustion)
- Strip cultivation
- Alternate crops in same area
- Steepest slopes
1.9 Soil protection in Western Mountains and Balochistan Plateau
- Unreliable rainfall
- Drier Climate
- Resistant bushes
- Act as shelter belts and windbreaks
- Protect crops behind them
- Smaller, better quality herds
- Reduces overgrazing
- Prefer: cow and other animals
- REDUCE goats
- Goats keep eating and eating
- Do overgrazing
- Gullies filled with soil
- Allow replantation in the area
- Surface water and soil runoff reduced using stones
- Act as barriers
- Act as shelter belts and windbreaks
2.0 Sustainable Forestry
- Meaning
- Managing and using forests in a way that
- Meets current demand
- Preserves the forests for the future generations
- Protects the environment (REMEMBER ALL THREE ASPECTS ARE CRUCIAL)
- How to ensure sustainable forestry
- Afforestation campaigns
- Planting trees in new areas
- Especially, planting new forests when cutting down current forests
- For example
- If one tree cut down
- You plant one tree
- Afforestation projects have to focus on
- Selecting a suitable area for afforestation
- The management of the afforested area
- Using the forest products from this afforested area in a way that it can ensure sustainable usage
- How afforestation occurs
- Nurseries are planted all around the project area
- They have small saplings
- The project officers ensure smooth supply of seedlings
- Local community is motivated to participate
- Local community knowledge about the local forest characteristics is crucial for success.
- Later saplings are nurtured to grow fully into trees
- Afforestation projects of the government
- The Tarbela-Mangla Watershed Management Project
- Focuses on increasing afforestation on privately owned badlands
- On the watershed of Tarbela and Mnagla
- Other goals are soil conversation and agricultural improvement
- Rachna Doab Afforestation Project
- 1995 Baltistan
- Agha Khan Rural Support Programme
- 830,000 trees planted
- AKRSP
- Reforestation campaign
- Replanting deforested areas
- Cutting trees at a rate equal to or slower than their growth rate
- If one tree of a certain special takes 10 years to grow completely
- Each year only 1/10 of the total available trees must be cut
- That way, when all current trees have been cut down in 10 years
- They would already have been replaced by new trees
- This is also called
- Natural tree/forest replacement rate
- We should cut trees at less than this rate
- Each tree that is cut must be replaced with another tree
- Nursery based saplings (small trees)
- If a large number of trees are required to cut down
- For example, a large dam is built
- A new forest should be planted in a different area
- If one tree of a certain special takes 10 years to grow completely
- Agha Khan Rural Support Programme
- The Tarbela-Mangla Watershed Management Project
- Afforestation campaigns
- Managing and using forests in a way that
2.1 Types of Forests
·  Alpine Forests
- Northern Areas (Chitral, Dir, Kohistan)
- Stunted growth
- Less sunlight
- Low temperature
- Roots spread sideways
- More nutrition taken
- More sunlight attained
- Better grip
- Upward branches
- More sunlight
- Importance
- Fuel wood
·  Coniferous Forests
- Norther Areas
- Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa
- Abbottabad
- Shangla
- Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Murree
- Balochistan Mountain
- Quetta and Kalat
- Description
- Evergreen
- Low temperature does not affect them
- Conical
- So snow slides down
- Sloping branches as well
- Thick and needle-shaped leaves
- Transpiration reduced
- Less leaf fall
- Positive: Less food loss
- Negative: Less humus so less soil fertility
- Importance
- Timber for furniture and boxes
- Environmental protection
- Flood reduces
- Soil protected by spread out roots
- Breeding ground for wildlife
- Tourism
- Earning
- Scenic beauty
- Evergreen
·  Tropical Thorn Forests (Rakh)
- Pubjab Plain
- Southern And Western Balochistan
- Sindh Plains
- Description
- Low height
- 6-10 metres
- Thorny hardwood
- Deep roots to gain water
- Scanty vegetation
- Water is less
- Importance
- Firewood
- Low height
·  Sub-Tropical Scrub Forests
- Lower Himalays
- Suleman and Kirthar Ranges
- Western Mountains
- Makran Coastal Range
- Description
- Sub-tropical broad-leafed and tropical thorny species
- Broad leaves to get more water
- Importance
- Watershed protection
- Firewood
- Grazing purposes
- Riverain (Bela) Forests
- River Indus and tributaries
- Linear plantation
- On river banks
- High-yielding commercial hardwood species
- Linear plantation
- Importance
- Shishum and Babul
- commercially valuable species
- River Indus and tributaries
- Sub-tropical broad-leafed and tropical thorny species
·  Mangrove Forests
- Coastal areas of Sindh
- Coastal areas of Balochistan (Delta area)
- Description
- Broad leaves with drip tips
- Leathery texture to reduce transpiration
- Water loss from leaves = transpiration
- Low Trees and shrubs in tidal mud flats
- Sea water resistance and survival
- Cleaner water
- 6-8 meters high
- Generally 3 meters
- Growth stunted in Indus and Hub Delta
- Domestic and industrial waste dumped untreated in Arabian Sea
- Limited species in polluted areas
- Importance
- Firewood
- Timber for coastal communities
- Fish and shrimp breed
- Food for camel and other animals
- Nutrients for marine life from fallen leaves
- Coastline protected
- From erosion
- from Wave action
- From storms
- Barrier against huge waves
- Reduce earth quake intensity
- Absorb Tsunami shock waves
·  Irrigated Forests
- Changa Mange near Lahore
- Wan Bachran inThal
- Chichawatni in Sahiwal
- Ghulam Mohammad Barrage
- Guddu Barrage
- Economically important species
- Large quantities
- Shisham, Babul and Eucalyptus
- Economically important species
- Timber, firewood
- Shade and scenic beauty in linear plantation
Lesson Tags
Forests | Types of Forests | Importance of Forests | Detailed Notes For Preparation & Revision | O Level Pakistan Studies 2059/02 and IGCSE Pakistan Studies 0448/02 | The Environment of Pakistan
Our Affordable Paid Courses
Courses Page: https://educateachange.com/courses
Paid Courses For O Level/ IGCSE Pakistan Studies
To get the latest content, updated and detailed notes, video lectures, live classes, quizzes, assignments personally marked by Sir Hunain (past paper based assignments) and much more, consider our paid courses.
Pakistan Studies – The History and Culture of Pakistan Crash Course Link: O Level Pakistan Studies 2059/01 OR IGCSE Pakistan Studies 0448/01 The History and Culture of Pakistan Crash Course
Pakistan Studies – The History and Culture of Pakistan Full Scale Course Link: O Level Pakistan Studies 2059/01 OR IGCSE Pakistan Studies 0448/01 The History and Culture of Pakistan Full Scale Course
Pakistan Studies – The Environment of Pakistan Crash Course Link: O Level Pakistan Studies 2059/02 OR IGCSE Pakistan Studies 0448/02 The Environment of Pakistan Crash Course
Pakistan Studies – The Environment of Pakistan Full Scale Course Link: O Level Pakistan Studies 2059/02 OR IGCSE Pakistan Studies 0448/02 The Environment of Pakistan Full Scale Course
Free Education
Check out more free material at our Free Education Section
Free Education Link: https://educateachange.com/free-education
Ask Your Question Link: https://educateachange.com/forums/forum/free-education-forum/
Contact Information
Whats App: +92 336 311 1855
Email: free@educateachange.com
Social Media For Hunain Zia
YouTube: AYLOTI
Facebook: Official Facebook Page
Instagram: Official Instagram Page
LinkedIn: Official LinkedIn Profile
TikTok: Official TikTok Profile
Twitter: Official Twitter Profile
SnapChat: Offical SnapChat Account
Free Education Groups
Facebook General Free Education Group: Real Free Education
Facebook CAIE Free Education Group: AYLOTI Education
Fair Usage Policy
NOTE: To ensure fair use and legal use of this material, please note the following: plagiarism, copying, saving, distribution, re-distribution, cross-posting and using this content on ANY other platform or website is prohibited.