Climate change has become a huge issue. Not only is it a risk to humans, but it also threatens the lives of the various species of animals and plants that inhabit this planet. Some of these species have already lost the battle and have become extinct, while many are endangered. When people think of solutions for climate change, one of the most common solutions is to plant more trees. Trees are an essential part of our ecosystem; they make up habitats for animals, absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen, they even provide food to various animals in the form of fruits. Planting more trees is a great idea, but it is not as simple as that. We need to be very careful about what kinds of trees we plant and where we plant them. Failing to do this can worsen the problem instead of fixing it. Many plantation drives often don’t consider what kind of habitat an area is situated in. They generally see an open space with a few scattered trees around and decide to conduct a plantation drive over there. Furthermore, when determining what kinds of trees to plant, they generally go for a species that either looks good or grows quickly, without taking into account how that species might affect the habitat around it. Savannahs are a kind of habitat that often fall victim to this. Savannahs consist of a grassy layer on the ground and an open canopy made of a few trees scattered around. Due to their open nature, they are generally mistaken for barren or waste land, but in reality, they are an essential part of our ecosystem and are home to several species of plants and animals that would not survive in other habitats. No matter how well-intentioned the planters’ efforts are, the ecosystem ends up destroyed due to the new trees. To make matters even worse, since the planters want to plant trees that grow up quickly, they end up planting invasive species. These invasive trees make the problem even worse since they do not let other trees grow in the area and multiply at an astonishing rate, quickly coving the entire region. An example of this is, during the British Raj, several of India’s Savannahs were misclassified as wastelands or deciduous forests. The scrublands in and around Pune were also put into this category. They carried plantation drives to convert these areas to forests by planting an exotic species of trees called Gliricidia sepium, an invasive species that cannot support animal life. These trees have now spread to all parts of Pune, destroying the habitats of several species of plants and animals. We need to learn from this mistake and realise the importance of maintaining natural habitats; otherwise, we might continue to harm the planet while trying to help it.
10 Jan 2022
By Akshat Bhatnagar
