The forest cover of Tamil Nadu has increased by 83.02 sq km and the tree cover by 159 sq km in the last two years, according to the India State of Forest Report 2019. As per the report by the Forest Survey of India (FSI), released by the Union Minister for Environment and Forests in New Delhi, there has been a marginal increase in both forest and tree cover.
Tamil Nadu is among the top States when it comes to a large number of forest types (more than 35) as well as maximum tree diversity and shrub diversity, because of its tropical wet evergreen and semi-evergreen forests in the Western Ghats, along with Kerala and Karnataka. Tamil Nadu has the highest tree species richness after Karnataka, and shrub species richness after Arunachal Pradesh, according to the report.
While the State has continued to bring more areas under reserved forests over the last decade, which has increased its cover, the tree plantation drive through the decade by the government could have improved tree cover, say officials. Inside the reserve forest areas, moderately dense forests top more and outside of them, both moderate and open forests dominate the landscape, according to the report.
The Nilgiris tops the chart in very dense forest with 466.72 sq km. When it comes to urban afforestation, major cities, including Chennai have shown a negative growth from 2017. Only Coimbatore city has improved its green cover. Plantations and trees outside forests constitute 28.40% of the area under forest types followed by southern dry mixed deciduous forest that accounts for 22.43%. Lantana camara continues to be the major invasive species inside the forest areas with its spread to over 2,209 square kilometre.
Commenting on the report, M. Narasimhan,former head of the department of botany, Madras Christian College, said degraded hilly areas and barren hills should be planted with native plant species to increase forest cover in the State. “The riparian flora density should be increased and the concept of Trees Outside Forest (TOF) which is planting trees in all locations which are by definition not a forest, should also be encouraged,” he said.
K. Kalidoss, president of OSAI, an environmental organisation, said that the government should follow the Forest Act of 1980 rigorously to avoid degradation of lands. “It has led to deforestation. The forest lands and estates leased should be restored to government control. We should increase of green cover in urban areas and cities too,” he said.
The Forest Cover in the State is 26,364.02 sq km which is 20.27 % of the State’s geographical area which is a long way short of the government’s target to increase forest and tree cover to 33% as per Vision 2023.
