Indian Farmers Fighting Pollution One Tree at a Time
August 30, 2013
To anyone else, the patches of poplar and eucalyptus trees that dot the flat, green landscape of Indri are just added greenery.
But to farmer Chaudhry Sukhvir Singh, the trees are a fixed deposit.
"The biggest benefit is that I can plant these trees and then earn other income on the side. It’s like money being put in the bank. Anytime I need money for anything, I can cut these down and get my work done," Singh said as he removed weeds near a young sapling.
In a few years, the 500 poplar trees planted on Singh’s property in the northern state of Haryana will eventually earn him $15,000 when they are mature, cut down and sold to local plywood factories.
The farmer is among several hundred who receive support and guidance from the Nairobi-based World Agroforestry Center. The organization promotes sustainable agriculture by encouraging farmers to plant trees that produce fruit, timber, biodiesel and rubber.
In the 200-kilometer radius that stretches across Haryana, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh states, some 750,000 hectares of land are being used for agroforestry projects, with trees planted right along side crops such as rice. The center hopes to have 12 to 15 million hectares of land across India under agroforestry systems in the next decade.
World Agroforestry Center Director General Tony Simons said agroforestry was key in the South Asian country, which only has about 20 percent forest cover.
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2013-11-25
2013-11-25
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2013-11-25
2013-11-25