By Staff Writer
Lumezi Town Council in collaboration with private sector players and the traditional leadership have embarked on a tree planting exercise as a deliberate measure to mitigate climate change effects in the district.
This arises from an initiative by Chief Chikomeni of the Chewa speaking people who requested that trees are donated and planted in the chiefdom by the local people.
Speaking at the flagging off of the 31,200 trees planting exercise at Kamwekwezi Primary School, Lumezi Town Council Chairperson, and Oliver Mwale said this initiative will be rolled out across the district because climate change is a serious issue which should be mitigated.
Mr Mwale also advised tobacco farmers to act in the preservation of the environment for future generations by preserving trees as the council is committed to collaborate with more stakeholders to plant trees in order to curb climate change effects.
“We would like to urge farmers to develop land use plans. While you cultivate tobacco which requires firewood for curing, you should also preserve the trees because we do not want to experience adverse effects of climate change here” he said.
Lumezi is among the leading districts in Eastern Province with rampant indiscriminate cutting down of trees for purposes of charcoal burning, tobacco growing and opening up of new fields for farming by the community.
Speaking at the same event, Lumezi District Commissioner, Jimmy Phiri said government through the Forestry Department and Local Authority will continue to promote sustainable environmental management of natural resources to mitigate climate change.
Mr Phiri said there is need for other stakeholders to be proactive in promoting tree plantations as a demonstration of environmental restoration.
“The tree planting activity is a pathway to replenish the earth with vegetation. The strongest way to protect the environment is to plant and save trees which act as agents of reducing global warming world-over” Mr Phiri said.
Meanwhile, Chief Chikomeni has implored the 136 cooperatives in the area to take up the responsibility of planting different species of trees.
The traditional leader said he has also decided to involve all the schools in the chiefdom to participate in planting of trees by allocating 100 seedlings to each school.
Chief Chikomeni has instructed his subjects that all those opening new fields should plant trees in their fields as they continue with farming activities.
And Tobacco Board of Zambia Regional Manager for Eastern Province, Mainza Sialubanje noted that the tobacco industry has highly contributed to climate change hence the organization taking up the initiative to donate trees in Lumezi.
Tobacco Board of Zambia TBZ has since donated 30,000 tree seedlings to Chikomeni while Kanele Land Care, an environmental conservation organization specialized in the production of tree seedlings donated 1,200 trees to eleven schools in Lumezi.
This is contained in a statement issued by LTC Public Relations Officer Irvin Muyumbwa
