Trees

The Chipko legacy

Alienating people whose identities are linked to the forest and trees around them is not only unfair, but also short-sighted

Planting trees could cut deaths from higher temperatures by third: Study

Planting more trees could decrease deaths from higher summer temperatures in cities by a third, according to a modelling study published in The Lancet journal. The study of 93 European cities found that increasing tree cover up to 30 per cent can help lower the temperature of urban environments by an average of 0.4 degrees Celsius and prevent heat-related deaths. Of the 6,700 premature deaths attributed to higher temperatures in cities during 2015, one third of these (2,644) could have been prevented by increasing urban tree cover up to 30 per cent, the researchers said. These findings highlight the need for more sustainable and climate-resilient strategies to be integrated into local policy decisions to aid climate change adaptation and improve population health, they said. "We already know that high temperatures in urban environments are associated with negative health outcomes, such as cardiorespiratory failure, hospital admission, and premature death," said study lead author, .

How Burning trees in Brazil's Amazon melts snow in the Himalayas

Scientists are only beginning to investigate the connections between far-flung components of the planet's climate system

HC allows felling of 20,000 trees for Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project

The Bombay High Court on Friday permitted the National High Speed Rail Corporation (NHSRCL) to cut around 20,000 mangrove trees in the city and neighbouring districts of Palghar and Thane for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project. A division bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice Abhay Ahuja allowed the plea filed by the NHSRCL seeking permission to cut the mangrove trees. As per a 2018 order of the high court, there exists a "total freeze" on the destruction of mangroves across the state and permission has to be sought from the high court each time an authority wishes to fell mangroves for any public project. As per the said order, a 50 m buffer zone must be created around the area that hosts the mangroves and no construction activity or dumping of debris can be permitted within this buffer zone. In its petition filed in 2020, the NHSRCL had assured the court it would plant five times the total mangrove trees that were earlier proposed to be felled and the number wo

SC allows Mumbai Metro to pursue application to cut 84 trees in Aarey

Case pertains to construction of Metro car shed on forest land in Aarey which adjoins Sanjay Gandhi National Park; next hearing likely in Feb 2023

Trees becoming bulkier amid climate change, elevated CO2 levels: Study

The findings of new research have shown just how much the forests have been bulking up on that excess carbon

Where communities plant trees

Every day, without fail, a group of four women takes the responsibility to walk and to ensure that nobody fells trees there. They fight with intruders; they confiscate their axes and bicycles

Khattar asks officials to identify trees posing danger to life, property

Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Friday directed Forest Department officials to conduct a ward-wise survey in urban and rural areas to identify hollow old trees that are likely to pose danger to human life and property. "Trimming of such trees after taking required approvals should be done at the earliest to avoid any untoward incident as in the past many incidents of falling of such trees have been reported," an official statement quoted Khattar as saying. The chief minister was presiding over a meeting to review department-wise budget announcements made by him earlier this year. Chief Principal Secretary to Chief Minister D S Dhesi; Principal Secretary to Chief Minister V Umashankar; Additional Chief Secretary, Forest and Wildlife Department, Vineet Garg; and Additional Chief Secretary, Development and Panchayats Department, Anil Malik were among those present in the meeting.

Lutyens' lost over 350 trees due to rain, storm in three years: NDMC data

Lutyens' Delhi has lost more than 350 trees due to rain and storm in the past three years, data from the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) showed. According to the data, more than eight lakh saplings were planted in the NDMC region over a period of two years. In reply to an RTI query by PTI, the civic body stated that it also engaged residents and societies in mass plantation programmes to increase green cover. Indigenous tree species such as neem, peepal, pilkhan, jamun, arjun, khirni, and imli were planted in the NDMC area when British architect Edwin Landseer Lutyens was entrusted with the task to plan New Delhi in 1911. "A total of 354 trees have fallen in last three years due to heavy storm and rain. The NDMC's horticulture department is regularly doing pruning to balance the trees. As many as 8,38,675 tree saplings have been planted in NDMC area in last two years," the NDMC said. It also said that at present there are 1.5 lakh threes in the NDMC area. In the RTI reply, the

Over 2,300 trees to be transplanted, felled for Delhi Metro Phase 4

A total of 1,616 trees will be transplanted and 773 felled for the construction of a few key corridors under the Delhi Metro's Phase 4 project. The city government has set aside an area of 3.32 hectares for the construction of Neb Sarai metro station-Saket Block corridor. There are 774 trees at the site, of which 184 will be felled and 590 transplanted at government schools in Chhatarpur, R K Puram, Jonapur and Mandi village. An area of 7.86 hectares has been exempted for the construction of the Sangam Vihar-Sarita Vihar Depot stretch of the Aerocity-Tughlakabad corridor. Of the 668 trees at the site, 407 will be transplanted and 261 felled. A total of 472 trees will be transplanted and 194 will be felled for the construction of Aerocity and Vasant Kunj metro stations of the Aerocity-Tughlakabad Corridor being built under Phase 4. Compensatory plantation will be done on DDA land along NH-24 and DND Flyway near the eastern bank of Yamuna and at Madanpur Khadar. Around 1.16 hectar

Only 37% of trees transplanted in last 3 yrs survived in Delhi: Forest Dept

Only 37 percent of the trees transplanted in the national capital in 2021-22 have survived despite the implementation of the Delhi tree transplantation policy, according to forest department data. A senior forest department official said, "The policy has made the tree transplantation process more scientific but we are yet to study its impact as it was implemented just a year-and-a-half ago". The forest department data showed that only one-third (33.33 percent) of the 16,461 trees transplanted in Delhi over the last three years survived. Only 1,521 of the 4,162 trees transplanted in the city in 2019-20 survived. Just 2,001 (28.57 percent) of the 7,003 trees survived in 2020-21 and 1,965 (37.10 percent) of the 5,296 trees transplanted in 2021-22 are alive, the data showed. According to the Delhi government's tree transplantation policy notified in December 2020, agencies concerned have to transplant a minimum of 80 percent of the trees affected by their development works. The bench

Over 5,100 trees to be felled in Delhi for Saharanpur highway construction

More than 5,100 trees will be felled in Delhi for the construction of the six-lane Delhi-Saharanpur highway by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), according to official documents. A total of 9.58 hectares of deemed forest land in Delhi having 5,104 trees has been diverted for the construction of the 14.75-kilometre stretch of the highway. The tree species include Sheesham, Sahtut, Peepal, Champa, Ashok, Subabul, Neem, Eucalyptus, Kikar, Ber, Jamun and Gular. According to the Deputy Conservator of Forest (Central), all the 5,104 trees on the deemed forest land will be felled and compensatory afforestation will be raised at NTPC Eco Park, Badarpur at a cost of Rs 8.66 crore. The Delhi portion of the Delhi-Saharanpur highway extends from the Akshardham NH-9 junction to the city's border with Uttar Pradesh. The project is part of the first phase of Bharatmala Pariyojana, the second-largest highway construction programme in the country under which 50,000 km of roads will b

Over 7,000 trees illegally felled, damaged in Delhi in a year, shows data

Last year between January 1 and June 30, Delhi's forest department received over 4,100 complaints in the south forest division of trees being illegally damaged in violation of the provisions

Green cover increased by 31.6% in Telangana, says minister Harish Rao

Telangana Finance and Health Minister Harish Rao on Thursday inaugurated Grand Nursery Mela at People's Plaza on Necklace Road in Hyderabad

Plea against damage to tree while road construction; Delhi HC issues notice

Delhi High Court issued a notice to the Public Works Department (PWD) and the Delhi Police on a petition regarding the damage that occurred to a tree in Rohini area during road construction

SC to hear plea against construction of metro car shed in Aarey forest area

Supreme Court agreed to hear a plea seeking direction to stop the construction of a metro car shed under the project of Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (MMRCL) in Aarey forest area on July 29

US announces plans to plant more trees as climate change kills off forests

The Biden administration on Monday announced plans to replant trees on millions of acres of burned and dead woodlands

Unsustainable hunting threat to 1,300 wild mammal species globally: Report

Around 12 per cent of tree species in the wild and 1,341 wild mammal species globally are threatened by unsustainable logging and hunting, according to a new report by the IPBES

Unnatural urbanisation

Urban planning must be more eco-sensitive

Are the plants in your house not growing? Tips to keep indoor flora alive

To check if a plant is a right fit for your region, look for its temperature tolerance and the ecosystem it belongs to