Nazim Hossain: We are all busy in the world of interests, all rushing towards our respective destinations. We are neglecting our society, we are neglecting our social responsibility and literally we are becoming unkind to our family and most of us are depriving ourselves of natural beauty. Caught in the hustle and bustle of the day, I have forgotten that trees contribute the most to saving lives.
We know the benefits of planting trees and we also know why we should plant trees. Trees give us oxygen which is most important for survival. Trees improve air quality, improve climate, conserve water, prevent soil erosion from natural disasters and help wildlife survive. We use trees to make comfortable furniture and also enjoy the utility of trees for various daily activities including tree fuel. The trees become enthralled with mesmerizing colorful natural beauty in each season and spread a serene serenity in the nature. But why are we indifferent about planting trees? What are we doing? We rush to indulge in modern civilization and live a life of luxury. We have to think about it. But why do we think about it? We think we are making a lot of money, making more money with which to build luxury apartments, cars and save more money for my next generation, because we think money is everything that will give them a great future. One thing we should always remember is that money cannot buy or give a life.
Loss of vegetation can lead to climate change in nature, desertification, soil erosion, reduced crops, floods, increase in greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and many problems for indigenous peoples. We have built large industrial plants that emit more carbon dioxide (CO2) gas, which is one of the main causes of global warming or climate change. Cutting down trees releases a large amount of greenhouse gas into the atmosphere which is very harmful to our life. Healthy forests absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, acting as a valuable carbon sink. Bangladesh is getting more than the amount of deforestation in the world every year. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), around 1.4 percent of deforestation occurred worldwide during the period 2000-2015. In Bangladesh it is 2.6 percent. 2 thousand 600 hectares of forest are deforested in the country every year. Even protected forests are not spared from deforestation. As massive deforestation is taking place, exposed land dries up and the habitats of numerous species are destroyed, the indigenous communities who live there and depend on the forests to sustain their livelihoods are also threatened.
Let’s say we never planted a single tree in our entire life. We never encouraged our neighborhood or anyone to plant at least one tree. For example, I have actually done nothing to the nature that I breathe and have many natural benefits. Instantly we are selfish by nature. Our future generations will never forgive us when they know that we just made money, ate money, planted money and encouraged them to make money to build their luxurious lives. Because of this they will curse and blame us.
In other words, “When the last tree on Earth is cut down and the last air is poisoned, we will realize that we cannot eat money, money cannot buy life. But then there will be no more time. There is still time. Come, be aware and let’s make people around us aware. Let’s plant more trees for our life and save our future generation.
