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ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – A man is facing criminal charges after he damaged and chopped down trees believed to be over 100 years old in Sulaimani’s Penjwin area, near the border with Iran. His actions sparked outcry by villagers in a region that struggles to protect its environment.
Residents of Chawtan village accused a person from the neighbouring village of Kolitan of chopping down a group of trees.
“About 20 old trees, aged over 100 years, have been cut in the last month,” Omer Ahmed, a resident of Chawtan, told Rudaw TV’s Berpisyar programme on Thursday. The area is not a protected zone, but is open to the public “like a resort,” he added.
Hemin Ismail, mayor of Nalparez subdistrict in Penjwin, said the alleged culprit made a request to his office to prune 16 trees.
“He submitted a request to make improvements to some 16 trees on the grounds that their branches were very thick. We have a special committee that checked the place and told him that the people of the village should agree, then he can do this. We do not support cutting trees and we have fined those who have cut trees in the past,” said the mayor.
Trees are not the only thing disputed between the two villages, added the mayor. They also have issues over water and land.
Rudaw’s Horvan Rafaat, reporting from the area, found several trees that had been chopped down in an area between the two villages. Chawtan villagers also claimed to have found a shack they say the same man used to turn the wood into charcoal and told Rudaw they have filed complaints about the man with the mayor’s office many times.
Mayor Ismail denied receiving complaints, but said the man “has harmed some trees and if he has violated the law, there will be punishment.”
Local forestry police said the man in question had submitted a request to prune trees, but under another name. “He has cut four trees but the remaining 16 trees are unharmed,” said Ismail Ibrahim, head of Penjwin forestry police. “We will take legal action against him for badly pruning the trees.”
The man will be in court on Sunday and, if found guilty, could be fined or jailed, Ibrahim added.
Deforestation is a serious problem in the Kurdistan Region. Forest fires frequently break out during hot, dry summers, often caused by picnickers or military activity by Turkey and Iran. In winter, people chop down trees to use as firewood.
Residents of Chawtan village accused a person from the neighbouring village of Kolitan of chopping down a group of trees.
“About 20 old trees, aged over 100 years, have been cut in the last month,” Omer Ahmed, a resident of Chawtan, told Rudaw TV’s Berpisyar programme on Thursday. The area is not a protected zone, but is open to the public “like a resort,” he added.
Hemin Ismail, mayor of Nalparez subdistrict in Penjwin, said the alleged culprit made a request to his office to prune 16 trees.
“He submitted a request to make improvements to some 16 trees on the grounds that their branches were very thick. We have a special committee that checked the place and told him that the people of the village should agree, then he can do this. We do not support cutting trees and we have fined those who have cut trees in the past,” said the mayor.
Trees are not the only thing disputed between the two villages, added the mayor. They also have issues over water and land.
Rudaw’s Horvan Rafaat, reporting from the area, found several trees that had been chopped down in an area between the two villages. Chawtan villagers also claimed to have found a shack they say the same man used to turn the wood into charcoal and told Rudaw they have filed complaints about the man with the mayor’s office many times.
Mayor Ismail denied receiving complaints, but said the man “has harmed some trees and if he has violated the law, there will be punishment.”
Local forestry police said the man in question had submitted a request to prune trees, but under another name. “He has cut four trees but the remaining 16 trees are unharmed,” said Ismail Ibrahim, head of Penjwin forestry police. “We will take legal action against him for badly pruning the trees.”
The man will be in court on Sunday and, if found guilty, could be fined or jailed, Ibrahim added.
Deforestation is a serious problem in the Kurdistan Region. Forest fires frequently break out during hot, dry summers, often caused by picnickers or military activity by Turkey and Iran. In winter, people chop down trees to use as firewood.
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