LIFE-GIVING plants destroyed by Cyclone Nargis are to be replaced, a local non-governmental organisation has announced.
Mangrove Service Network (MSN), a local NGO, will provide 200,000 freshwater plants grown in a nursery in Bogale township, Ayeyarwady Division, with the help of Malaysian NGO Force of Nature Aid (FON) and Care Myanmar.
The plants include tamarind, white siris, eucalyptus, marlaleuca, rain trees and sisso trees. Some produce timber that can be used in buildings, while other are fruit-bearing trees.
This will be the second time MSN has provided plants to local people for replanting in the delta. The NGO distributed about 40,000 plants with the help of a German NGO last winter.
“We have a nursery in Bogale. We are also supplying NGOs that want to provide plants for replanting,” said U Win Sein Naing, chairman of MSN.
The NGO is distributing 100,000 plants with the help of FON, as well as 94,000 plants to be distributed with the contribution of Care Myanmar.
“We are going to distribute these plants in Bogale, Mawkyun and Labutta with the help of FON and in Dedaye, Kungyangon and Bogale with the help of Care Myanmar. These plants can not only provide shade, but also enhance people’s small-scale income,” said U Win Sein Naing.
Plants are mainly going to be distributed to schools, religious buildings and buildings situated along the main roads of the villages or towns, where they can help prevent the collapse of river banks, offer protection from sea waves and provide shade.
“Local people are volunteering to replant because they know these plants saved their lives during the cyclone. Surveys show that places without trees were much harder-hit by the cyclone. We’ve handed out flyers to advise people how to take care of the plants,” said U Win Sein Naing.
So many plants were destroyed in the delta that much replanting is required before conditions can return to normal.
“Fortunately, in the delta plants can grow twice a year. In winter, farmers have free time after the monsoon paddy-growing time. We’re telling people these plants can help them earn a living, but the plants are also good for the environment,” said U Win Sein Naing.
