PESHAWAR, Dec 19: The government has linked a lifting of ban on cutting trees for commercial purposes with the improvement of woodlands through an increased plantation strategy.

A high-level inter-provincial meeting held at the Forest Institute discussed ways for the development of forestry to bridge the gap between supply and demand of wood, an official handout issued on Saturday said.

There should be a balance between the import and export of wood. Also, a massive awareness campaign should be run to apprise people of the importance of afforestation, the meeting noted.

It discussed the supply and demand of fuel wood and timber for household and industrial use and analysed consumption pattern of wood products in the country. Federal Minister for Environment Tahir Iqbal said there was a big gap between wood consumption and wood production in the NWFP.

He added: "We should bring into use such lands and areas where plantation of trees is possible. Most of the areas are still lying unused." There is a need to search and develop the species of plants which are suited to different climes, and effort must be made to produce good quality wood in abundance.

Expressing concern over growing smuggling of wood and illegal tree cutting, Mr Iqbal said forest staff should check the practice. This could be done easily if the staff worked sincerely, he said.

He stressed the need for developing a mechanism for forest projects which could be run with local resources without foreign financial assistance. He called for planting a maximum number of shisham and poplar plants in areas suitable for their growing.