If a tree falls in a forest and no one is near to hear it fall, did it make a sound?

This is an old philosophical thought experiment that is still pertinent. However, in the context of mangroves and Karachi’s islands, these words do demand clarification and restructuring: If some trees in a forest are removed before they are seen by us, did those trees ever exist? Or without mincing words: If a forest is cut and the land cleared for development before it is documented, photographed, filmed, brought to the forefront on social media, or argued on national TV, was the forest ever there?

I would like to state two verifiable truths.

1 The mangroves of the Eastern Delta of the Indus River Basin, far from urban centres, are being replanted. These efforts are commendable.

2 The mangroves of the Western Delta of the Indus River Basin are being ignored. These are the mangroves near coastal cities, especially Karachi. They are being cut, removed and sold at throwaway prices. Mangrove lands are being allocated for development. Some small-scale plantation is being done sporadically and then often broadcasted with fanfare.

Which conversation is a fact, and which part of the fact is the critical truth? Which words were spoken in the broadcasts and which were not used or voiced?

To provide context, let me illustrate through these perplexing comparative statements: Mangroves were planted by us, versus mangroves were planted by us on land in a garden away from salt water, above the level of tides, away from their natural habitat.

The first question and these statements are not rhetorical or hypothetical. They are based upon current verifiable happenings and illustrate the schism between perception and reality.

Understanding the nexus between the perceived and the real is important in the understanding of our own life, personal existence, presence and future on this Earth.

Accepting any stimuli or information received without questioning and analytical thought leads to misperception and a belief in a reality that may not be correct. Today’s assault of fake, moulded or selected news is on an epidemic scale. Additionally, our addiction to the rush of dopamine through social media is changing the way we accept information and is reflected in the way facts are presented. The format of images shown, the words that are written and spoken, and the auditory tones and sounds broadcast are all designed to move us.

The philosophy of perceptions has been discussed since humans have had sentient abilities, and the skills learnt have been used to influence human thought. The tools available today are training us to receive vast volumes of information, see it fast, and perceive it on an epidermal-sensationalist level. But, unfortunately, without any requirement of deep understanding. That incredible resource, the Internet, has profound information; we just need to selectively seek it from multiple, responsible sites and think about it. We know about the need to replant our mangroves. We witness them being planted. We are rightfully happy when we see wonderful, valid statements in the media claiming that mangroves are being planted, the carbon credit business is successful, and the environment is benefiting. These facts are correct. But questions need to be asked, and information needs to be analysed and thought about.

I would like to elaborate on the previous statement. Mangroves for carbon credits are being planted substantially and successfully in what I call the Eastern Delta. This is in the estuaries east of the Port Qasim channel.

The carbon credit business is in full momentum around Keti Bandar and Shah Bandar, and it is generating profit. If these mangrove plantations are monitored, nurtured and protected and if the dying saplings are not replanted, only approximately 30% will grow into a community of trees – into mangrove forests. This will take a few decades. The environment will benefit substantially, but only when these forests grow and mature. Funds will be required to pay for manpower, technical skills, fuel for boats, and the costs of independent monitoring organisations to oversee this critical activity. These funds and organisations are as yet to be identified and allocated. They are not part of a long-term financial plan. The success of mangrove replantation depends on the growth of these saplings into a forest, and not just on the plantation drive and the ledger of accounts recording the number of seedlings put into the ground.

We see posts about the effort and push towards planting mangroves. This has become a popular and valuable CSR activity. This is a good thing. The taglines of photographs of happy faces of known good people proclaim with pride their role played in helping to mitigate climate change. The smiling faces are sometimes looking at planted seedlings within circular planting beds, surrounded by lush green lawns. Terrestrial sweet water gardens are planted with intertidal plant life that needs salt water.

There are other photographs of colourfully dressed local women smiling and squatting on a non-saline riverine clay surface that is parched and cracked due to a lack of water. The image shows them placing plastic-covered tubes of soil with mangrove seedlings, with the plastic wrapper still intact around it, and planting in the ground. These images are intended as a reference to project delivery – a give-back to the environment and responsibility towards the community. The intent may be laudable. However, we are all witnesses to the evidence of a lack of inquiry into what the reality of environmental needs is for the task at hand versus the desired perceptions of what the act of planting has achieved.

I would like to think this is a misinformed act, and it is most certainly misperceived by many as positive. The resources for information are available. The right questions just need to be asked. Curiosity, research, learning, skill and training need to be valued and sought.

This methodology is much needed. Especially for governmental and nongovernmental institutions, large corporations, and businesses. Planting mangroves is important. But without a willingness to understand the requirements of an obligate halophyte – the mangrove – and the ecosystem it will grow in, this effort can only be seen as greenwashing and the ticking of boxes on corporate forms. Mangroves are intertidal plants; they need the twice-daily ebb and flow of saltwater tides to live, grow and thrive.

Mangroves should not be planted in gardens on terrestrial land or in sweet water riverine flood plains that see water only in gaps of months or years.

Unfortunately, photographic evidence shows otherwise. Well-intentioned actions undertaken without knowledge, or the acceptance of advice without question or thought, or for the sake of convenience, or simply to keep the shoes of donor-observers unsoiled, can lead to misrepresentation. Let me be clear: If mangroves are planted where they cannot survive, it is a falsehood to claim benefit from the climate crisis. At the end of the day, the seeds we plant need to be able to grow and thrive for our future and our children’s future, not to mention our own zamir (conscience).

Reality and the perceived real can be very different. Perceptions are rooted in one’s personal point of view and in the sensory abilities that each distinct species has. Yes, rhetoric allows for the ambiguities of the perspective of the absolute. However, there do exist some truths that are not dictated by perceptions.

Global warming and its fallout, climate change, is not just a perceptual reality. It is empirical, quantifiable and present. The resulting changes are being felt globally, and especially in Pakistan. Glacial melt and the changing patterns of rainfall storms are resulting in the flooding and devastation of communities. Runoff of fertile soil, waterlogging, and rising terrestrial salinity are impacting our ability to provide food for ourselves, let alone for other countries. Rising sea levels and the warming of the ocean’s surface have already started and coastal communities and cities will see climate migration. Species change is already present; we are in the sixth mass extinction of life on this Earth. Our untreated pollution is flowing unabated into our seas. The organic and chemical toxins are changing the biology and botany of our waters. Solid plastic waste is not only a danger to our marine life but is also a catalyst for increasing the temperature of the water surface. This has escalated within my lifespan. I am pained to be witnessing it. These are empirical facts.

We are at risk. However, efforts in localised areas can still help mitigate some of the extreme effects of global warming. Attempts to change the microclimates of localities need to be undertaken urgently. Our mountains need to be reforested, the riverbeds and flood plains of our Indus River and its tributaries need to be replanted, and our cities need parks and avenues of trees, with the rooftops covered in plants. Our saline farmlands require halophytes planted on them; our vast delta needs to be revived. Nature-based solutions by locals in localised areas are required on an ongoing basis if our communities and culture are to survive.

The first imperative step for the delta in southern Pakistan is the plantation of halophytes to revive biodiversity. Halophytes are plants that grow in the presence of saltwater or brackish water. Mangroves are a species called obligate halophytes, and they require salt to survive. Their roots need to be exposed to both air and salt-infused water. They are intertidal and grow on the coast, in the zone between the low and high tide levels. They are not terrestrial (land-based) plants.

The Sindh Forest Department, especially the office of the Conservator of Forests, Mangroves, is doing seminal work in the reforestation and biodiversity revival of our delta. The carbon credit market has given their work a boost. One has to appreciate it when business enterprise facilitates the regeneration of nature. However, if the protection, monitoring, and nurturing of the new plantations as previously mentioned is not implemented, this revival is at risk.

The Indus River Delta spans about 6,000 square kilometres across, and about 93% of this is in the Eastern Delta, and parts of this vast area are slated for replantation. Commendable.

However, this section of the delta has very little river water flowing into it, due to barrages and dams built upstream. Consequently, the pH of the water here is less than ideal, except when upstream flooding happens. This results in slow growth of saplings into trees and about two-thirds of the newly planted atrophy. They need to be replaced, and all need to be protected.

The remaining seven percent is the Western Delta. These are the islands of Karachi. The growth of mangroves here is faster and more profuse. This is because of the outflow of wastewater from our coastal cities. I have personally photographed and am witness to Avicenna Marina Mangrove forests with canopy heights above 50 feet. The trees on these islands are being cut. The tall canopies I photographed in 2012 are gone, and the current height of the mangroves on Bundal Island is now only in the range of 20 to 25 feet. In 2021, due to the disturbance and sound of chainsaws, the flamingos migrated to other areas, and Brahmini kites had to leave for a lack of tall trees to nest on.

These low-lying alluvial deltic islands made of shifting sands were slated for industrial and residential high-rise development. These islands, where almost 60% of the sandbanks are flooded by the ocean twice a day, would have required a retaining seawall of about 13 feet above low tide sea level. Imported or dredged infill for the 24-kilometre square of Bundal Island alone would have been needed. The longshore drift currents along our coast erode and reshape these islands constantly, and the seawalls require constant rebuilding. The unaffordable high initial capital investment and continuous expenditure to reconstruct the shores would literally be carried away by the sea. I can only be thankful that these plans do not seem to be progressing.

Karachi has been blessed with this natural resource, our island’s mangrove forests. Even if we just protect them from being cut and allow the seeds to propagate naturally, without being trampled, within a 15-year period we will have vast forests of oxygen-producing mangroves upwind to Karachi. This is the time to push for and implement marine protected areas, and protected nature reserves on our islands. Especially Bundal Island and Khiprianwala Island. Our city needs these forests to be here for ourselves and our children’s future.

Tariq Alexander Qaiser is an architect and environmentalist. His YouTube channel is Edge of Delta. edgeofdelta@gmail.com

Please note that all images in this article are not to be reproduced or reused in any way.