PESHAWAR, Pakistan: Forests have always been the lungs of northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province of Pakistan, yet today they are gasping.
In these forests, the silent giants of pine and deodar are vanishing at an alarming rate. Illegal logging in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has soared dramatically over the past five years, with 200,000 cubic feet (CFT) of illegally cut timber, worth hundreds of millions of rupees.
Forests under siege
Policy gaps, abandoned management plans, and weak enforcement have created a perfect storm, opening the floodgates for smuggling and environmental degradation. For the people living among these woods, the trees are more than a resource — they are life itself, now imperilled by human greed and institutional neglect.
According to Forest Department data, the highest number of illegal logging cases were reported in Malakand Forest Region-III, where 180,127 CFT of timber was confiscated and fines totalling Rs 457.9 million were imposed.
Similarly, Region-I, which includes Bannu, Dera Ismail Khan, North Waziristan, South Waziristan, Kurram Forest Division, Kohat Forest Division, Orakzai Forest Division, and Peshawar Forest Division, recorded 6,578 CFT illegal logging.
Likewise, Region-II, comprising Northern Forest Region-II, Agror Tanawal, Lower Kohistan, Upper Kohistan, Torghar Forest, Hazara Tribal, Kaghan Forest Division, Galyat Forest Division, Haripur Forest Division, reported 87,130 CFT illegal cutting.
In addition, authorities seized 7,335 CFT of illegally cut wood in Hazara Tribal Region, 3,676 CFT in Upper Hazara Forest Circle, 5,758 CFT in Siran Forest, 1,718 CFT in Galyat Forest, and 32,896 CFT in Lower Hazara Forest Circle.
Smuggling and mismanagement
Globally, forests are managed through Scientific Management Plans or Working Plans, usually spanning 10 to 15 years, which evaluate tree species, soil health, local population, and socio-economic impacts.
In Pakistan, the Scientific Management Plan was shelved after the 1992 floods, leaving millions of dry and fallen trees to accumulate like fuel on the forest floor. Experts warn that these dry trees significantly increase wildfire risks, setting the stage for environmental disasters.
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government initiated the revival of the management plan in 2014. However, the programme was temporarily halted again in 2024, according to a former Forest Department Secretary, Syed Nazar Hussain Shah.
Since May 2024, the administrative forest management plans in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have been abandoned, bringing the legal timber trade to a standstill. Meanwhile, smuggling networks — often purportedly facilitated by officials — have flourished.
Experts believe the ongoing mismanagement is feeding both corruption and the black economy, posing serious threats to the environment and public resources.
Who owns the trees
Forests in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa fall under the three main regions — Hazara, Malakand, and the Merged Districts.
- In Hazara Division, Reserved Forests are state-owned with no public rights.
- In Malakand, Protected Forests are state-owned, but locals are allowed to collect firewood and graze livestock. In certain areas, locals also receive 20 to 60 per cent shares from forest produce.
- Guzara Forests are privately owned but cannot be converted for other uses.
- In the Merged Districts, Communal Forests are owned by locals but are managed by the Forest Department since 2022 under the Forest Amendment Act, 2022.
- Locals across various forests retain limited rights to collect water, firewood, home-construction timber, and livestock fodder.
Salman Marwat, an officer at the Forest Department in Peshawar, however, admits that the process in merged districts is ongoing, but due to the prevailing security situation, implementation remains slow.
Learning from the world
In 2014, then Forest Department Secretary Nazar Hussain Shah revived the Scientific Management Plan, permitting only the cutting of dry, weak, or diseased trees — a globally recognised best practice.
He tells WE News English that developed countries follow similar methods, turning forests into multi-billion-dollar industries. “The United States exports $18 billion worth of timber annually, Canada $17 billion, Germany $12 billion, while Austria, which is smaller in area than Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, exports $4.5 billion worth of wood each year,” says Shah.
Forest wealth eroded
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s forests contain an estimated 93 million cubic metres of coniferous wood, capable of producing 1.86 million cubic metres (65 million CFT) of timber annually. At market rates averaging Rs 1,500 per CFT, this output is valued at Rs 975 billion ($3.45 billion).
Yet, during the 2024–25 fiscal year, no timber auctions were held in major depots — including Goharabad, Chakdara, and Dargai — while markets flooded with smuggled timber.
This raises serious concerns about the Forest Department’s performance, internal mismanagement, and alleged collusion with the timber mafia.
However, Muhammad Rafiq, a former Chief Conservator of forests, reveals that the Scientific Management Plan is being manipulated, allowing illegal tree-cutting to gain a façade of legality. “This plan dates back to the British era, when timber was needed for railway engines and other infrastructure. The tragedy is that we are still clinging to a plan designed for a completely different time, even though today’s realities are vastly changed.”
Nature on the brink
Environmental experts warn that rampant deforestation and illegal logging are accelerating climate change, leading to rising temperatures, shifting rainfall patterns, soil erosion, and an increased risk of floods.
They caution that without immediate reforms — particularly the restoration of the Scientific Management Plan — Khyber Pakhtunkhwa may face a devastating environmental and economic crisis.
Prof Sultan‑i‑Rome — a Swat‑based historian and author of several books on the Swat and its forests — highlights the grave environmental and socio-economic consequences of unchecked deforestation. He warns that in the areas where government’s writ is weak, deforestation is as common as dust. Local voices are often excluded from legislation, forcing them to cut trees to survive.
People whose livelihoods depend entirely on forests face a life-and-death situation. When their basic needs remain unmet, they inevitably turn to cutting trees. The government has categorised forests into various types and implemented very strict rules, which creates difficulties for the local populations. Those living near forests often lack basic facilities such as gas, electricity, and other essentials — what choice do they have but to turn to the trees?” he says.
He adds that widespread bribery has greased the wheels for transporting illegally cut timber across the country.
Blame thy neighbours
Prof Rome further notes that during the peak of terrorism, forests in Malakand Division suffered severe destruction. “While terrorists caused some damage, the timber mafia inflicted far more, yet the chaos allowed smugglers to blame militants and continue their work unchallenged.”
Muhammad Rafiq echoes Sultan-i-Rome’s concern.
He says illegal logging has financially benefited militants, as timber cut in Malakand was smuggled into Afghanistan and later re-imported into Pakistan as “Afghan timber.”
Rafiq warns that deforestation has direct socio-economic consequences. “Tourists visit forest regions for their natural beauty. If forests disappear, tourism collapses, and local incomes suffer. Look at Kalam — tourists just come for the forests.”
