Sambalpur: A newly raised rural forest near Potapali village under the Town forest range in Sambalpur forest division is slowly inching towards total destruction due to the rampant discharge of fly ash and smoke by a steel firm in the vicinity. The Forest department created the rural jungle in a year through a plantation of over 10,000 saplings in the Japanese Miyawaki method on one hectare of land on Landa hill. The plantation work had been started in August 2021. The forest is home to over 70 types of trees and has been raised by organic methods.
The soil of the area underwent a test before the start of the plantation and organic medicines were also sprayed to prevent pest attacks. This is the second successful forest raised by the Forest department. Debadutta Biswal, the principal chief conservator of the forest (PCCF) visited the site and expressed his displeasure over the degrading condition of the trees. He directed the DFO Biswanath Nilambaran to take steps in this regard. The locals have also been opposing the works of the steel plant. They reiterated that there is no problem in operating the plant but the firm should not overlook the protection of the local environment and pollution norms. The land, which was earlier lying barren, has turned into a lush green forest within a year.
However, the steel plant in close proximity has posed a serious threat to the forest. The black smoke and fly ash discharged by the plant have threatened the forest’s flora and are gradually denuding the area of its green cover, Forest department officials said. The claim has been found to be true as ash discharged from the plant is enveloping the branches and leaves of the trees. It is apprehended that the ash settling on the trees might also result in the spread of disease and pest attacks, potentially putting the forest at risk of total destruction.
On the other hand, ACF Tejaraj Nayak said that the trees get enveloped in a thick layer of ash from the steel plant for which a letter will be written to the state pollution control board (SPCB) asking for its intervention in the matter.
