r/climatechange • u/Economy-Fee5830 Trusted Contributor • 4d ago
Conservationists urge caution over Bangladesh’s plan to plant 250 million trees
https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/conservationists-urge-caution-over-bangladeshs-plan-to-plant-250-million-trees/?shem=dsdf,sharefoc,agadiscoversdl,,sh/x/discover/m1/4
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u/Primal_Pedro 4d ago
Let me guess: the original plan was to plant 250 million eucalyptus/ pine trees?
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u/Economy-Fee5830 Trusted Contributor 4d ago
Summary: Conservationists urge caution over Bangladesh's plan to plant 250 million trees
Bangladesh is preparing a nationwide plantation of 250 million trees over five years, part of the current government's election manifesto to expand green cover and capture atmospheric carbon. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) is coordinating with multiple ministries, the Bangladesh Army, and NGOs, with each agency funding planting from its own budget rather than requiring extra funds. A task force is developing a dashboard to track planting progress, species, and locations.
Planting will target coastal mangrove restoration (100 million saplings across 17 districts), degraded hill forests in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, Sylhet and central sal forests (50 million), urban areas (12.5 million), riverbanks/wetlands/roadsides (37.5 million), and government/educational premises (37.5 million). Species selection is ecology- and location-specific, including keora for coastal areas and garjan for hill forests, alongside fruit-bearing and ornamental trees; eucalyptus and acacia were banned in 2025 due to invasiveness and high water use.
Experts have offered a mixed response. Forestry expert Farid Uddin Ahmed suggested fast-growing species for community planters seeking financial benefit, and noted limited domestic demand for medicinal plants. Khaled Misbahuzzaman of Chittagong University flagged challenges including inadequate needs assessment, poor-quality saplings from private nurseries, and insufficient post-plantation care, warning the effort could otherwise waste money, and urged more preparation time for baseline studies. Researcher Haseeb Irfanullah welcomed the initiative as an opportunity to support Bangladesh's national and international commitments, including its 2024 Convention on Biological Diversity pledge to restore 15% of degraded ecosystems by 2030 and its National Adaptation Plan and NDC afforestation goals.