The
Condition of Afghanistan's Environment |
The
lack of information on the quality of air,
water, vegetation, land, and other environmental
factors could be attributed to the non-existence
of organizations or agencies devoted to this
issue. Studies revealed that until at least
2000 B.C.E, the land of Afghanistan was covered
with cedar-rich forests, and had a different
pattern of climatic and life support system
than that of today.
The ecosystem in Afghanistan
had never been damaged to the extent that
it has been in the last two decades. This
deterioration has been created by the unlimited
use of nature and its energy. Albeit, this
environmental degradation was enhanced by
war.
Two thirds of the landscape
of Afghanistan is occupied by mountainous
terrains with little or no vegetation, typical
of an arid country. For this reason, the vegetation
in these terrains play a vital role in the
ecosystem. For example, if we consider the
role of pistachio (Pistacia vera, yielding)
among hundreds of other floras, we find out
that it not only provides climatic and environmental
stabilization over the areas of its growth,
but eases the life of thousands of families
by providing them with a natural source of
income.
Half of the remaining parts
of the country's landscape are deserts, which
are hostile environments. The rest are farmlands
and pastures. At present, only six percent
of the fifteen percent of agricultural land
in Afghanistan is under cultivation. In the
past twenty years, the agricultural areas
have been drastically decreased. It is estimated
that we lost thirty percent of our farmlands
and pastures, either by abandonment or degradation.
The farmlands in the province of Kabul have
been lost due to degradation resulting from
the expansion of the urban institutions. This
led to a drastic change of the previously
dominant climatic and environmental factors
in this region.
Compared to that of 1979,
our agricultural farm products have decreased
fifty percent. To compensate for this loss,
rural people started to utilize the free natural
resources of their environment. The end result
of this process was a disaster for our few
natural forests, which were cut and smuggled
to Pakistan. Deforestation, floods and avalanches
added to the devastation. Once the forest's
productivity was declined or monopolized by
certain warlords, the poor farmers sought
another cheap and accessible alternative,
which was the cultivation of opium. This was
encouraged by Afghan warlords, and the growing
international drug market. Hence, this resulted
in further degradation of Afghanistan's environment.
Many forested areas and farmlands
were burned and degraded by the use of heavy
war technology and chemicals. It is estimated
that ten thousand villages, and their surrounding
environments were destroyed. This continuous
process still takes its toll on our environment.
However, the legacy of land
mines in Afghanistan is the worst environmental
nightmare that has been created as a result
of constant war. The presence of more than
ten million land mines in the country, makes
it the world's most deadly mine field. The
daily death toll due to these devices is about
20 to 30 people, mostly children and civilians.
Even though Afghanistan itself
doesn't have any industry to create air pollutants,
smog is a common phenomenon in most of the
urban areas. Trans-boundary air pollution
is another concern. Due to this, we receive
enormous amounts of pollutants originating
from the Aral sedimentary basin, Iran, Turkmenistan,
and Uzbekistan's industrial parks. How much
of the pesticides originating from these countries
and worldwide end up on our lands and environment
through air currents and rains, is another
mystery that is adding to our environmental
crises. Chemical weapons have been used during
the Afghan war with the Soviets, and this
caused severe short-term damage to our environment
and ecosystem. No data exists on their long-term
effects.
It could be concluded that
at present, the environment in Afghanistan
is in a deep crises. The problems not only
affect the people of Afghanistan and their
ecosystem, but the whole world. Once any of
the environmental components are lost, recovery
is almost impossible, e.g., the capture of
a pair of Caspian Tigers (Panthera Tigris
Virgata), roaming in the mountains of eastern
Afghanistan in April 1997, may have put an
end to the survival of this highly endangered
and almost extinct species.
The
people of Afghanistan are in desperate need
of help to repair their natural habitat and
ecosystem. The international community is
responsible for lending Afghans a hand in
order to help revive this wounded piece of
our common home, earth.
