Maharashtra to protect Heritage trees
Context:
Maharashtra government is set to make arrangements for protecting ‘heritage trees’ by making changes to the Maharashtra (Urban Areas) Protection and Preservation of Trees Act of 1975.
Details
- The government is also planning to institute Maharashtra (Urban Areas) Protection and Preservation of Trees Act of 1975 in all local bodies of the state.
- Heritage tree is defined as a one that has passed age of 50 years. The species of the tree may be notified from time to time.
- There have been demand to consider a tree’s cultural, religious, historical, rarity, mythological and botanical importance before classifying it as heritage tree.
- The counting of heritage trees and surveys will have to be carried out every five years by the local tree authority.
Determining age Heritage trees
- The most common way of determining the age of the tree is through a method called Dendrochronology. In this method the annual tree rings will be calculated.
- The tree adds a ring every year. This will be able to determine the age and also some of its characteristics too.
- The tree ring is harvested by boring a hole and obtaining a small sample for study. The role is then closed to prevent diseases.
Significance
- The heritage tree will be used decide the compensatory mechanism. A person cutting heritage tree will have to plant same number of trees as the age of the cut tree.
- The individual has to ensure that the planted sapling survives for seven years and later have to be geo-tagged.
Compensations
A person can pay compensation in money if planting tree is not possible. The economic value has not yet been determined but it will be based on its oxygen output.
Source: Indian Express