Bureti sub-county in Kericho has rolled out an ambitious tree planting exercise that will see 3,000 tree seedlings planted in the area per month as a way of combating the effects of climate change.
Addressing wananchi during the launch of the tree planting exercise held at Chepmwor water catchment area in Ngororga sub-location on Wednesday, area deputy commissioner Lawrence Omondi challenged the locals to plant at least 300 tree seedlings by the end of this year with a view of reaching the national target of 30 per cent forest cover as it currently stands at 12 per cent.
The administrator urged the residents to value water catchment areas as they contributed significantly towards the conservation of water, a critical natural resource.
DCC Omondi directed the chiefs and their assistants to spearhead the tree planting drive in their areas of jurisdiction by ensuring they commit to planting 3,000 trees per month in their locations with the view of supporting the government’s target of attaining 30 per cent forest cover by 2032.
He asked residents to change their attitudes towards conservation and management of forests and water catchment areas, pointing out that forest destruction will lead to degradation of the environment and competition for the natural resources existing in the community.
“We owe it to ourselves and the next generation to conserve and preserve our forests and water catchments. We need to mitigate against drought, competition for water, increase in temperatures by planting as many trees as this affects the growth of tea plants subsequently reducing the tea yield which is a leading cash crop in this area,” said Omondi.
500 indigenous and bamboo tree seedlings varieties were planted during the launch of the exercise.
Present at the event were members of the area security team, local administrators, representatives from a Community based organization (CBO) Transform Green World a, Bureti Tea factory management among other invited guests.
By Sarah Njagi
