CHITRAL, Sept 2: Agroforestry remains to be the most neglected sector in Chitral despite its need to save the oak and deodar forests and create additional source of income for the farmers and thereby help in reducing poverty.

Talking to Dawn here on Friday, Murad Ali Khan, a conservation specialist, said that only three per cent of the land in the valley is utilised for agriculture purpose due to its mountainous nature while 62 per cent is rangeland with sparse vegetation.

Mr Ali regretted that this vast portion of the total area remains unutilised in the absence of natural resource management on scientific lines, which has a great potential for promotion to benefit the people.

He said that only 4.7 per cent of the total area of the district is covered with forest which is shrinking fast due to the unchecked deforestation as the local population is totally dependent on trees for timber as well as fuel wood.

He said that the fast depletion rate of deodar and oak forest is threatening the future of the area while land erosion, landsliding and mud flows have manifested themselves right now.

He said that although their is scanty rainfall in the summer season but there are a number of solutions to it as more than half of the tract can be rendered fit for agroforestry by a little effort with the help of the local communities.

Mr Ali said that the forest department of the government and Aga Khan Rural Support Progrmme have experimented a number of alien plants which are known for its fast growth on one hand and their economic value and utility on the other.

He added that such species have been found to possess the ability to withstand the shortage of water.

Enumerating some of the species, he said that ailanthus and poplar can be grown in the rangeland with little efforts but with high rate of survival.

He said that the wood of poplar can be used for construction purposes and its galore in every locality of the district will greatly ease the pressure on deodar forest while ailanthus can be best used as fuel wood.

Mr Ali said that once a high density of trees is grown in the pastures, the high risk of flash floods will also be reduced leading to soil conservation.

Regarding the economic significance of the sector, he said that as per data available with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the poorest farm household derives 20 per cent of their income from the sector and its improvement will definitely gain pleasant result in poverty alleviation and raising the standard of life.

While expounding his contention, he said that the large population of trees in the pastures will provide extra amount of fodder to the farmers and strengthen the livestock which forms a major portion of household income while presently it is affected by acute shortage of food.

He added that the cultivation of forest will also bring hard cash to the farmers when they harvest it on commercial scale.

The conservation specialist said that the process of promoting the agroforestry can be carried out by social organisation and community participation, which works well in the area.