PESHAWAR, September 9, 2026: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Forest Department is undertaking a major peri-urban forestry initiative in Nowshera’s Spin Khak area, with plans to plant more than 500,000 trees across 10,000 kanals of land to expand green cover and support local communities.
According to forestry officials, the plantation drive is being implemented under the multi-billion-rupee Peshawar Revitalisation Plan. The department plans to plant around 550,000 trees at the site and maintain them for the next four years.
The initiative was formally launched by Chief Minister Sohail Afridi on August 14, while the Peshawar Forest Division planted at least 50,000 saplings at the site on September 6 as part of the Defence Day Plantation Drive.
Divisional Forest Officer Mohammad Shakeel said the plantation would cover 10,000 kanals by March next year. He said the local community had provided the land for the initiative, with the land expected to be handed back to the community after four years.
The department plans to introduce a mix of indigenous and economically valuable species to improve the sustainability of the plantation. These include kikar, sheesham and beri, along with more than 20,000 olive plants and black pepper plants where conditions are suitable.
Fruit-bearing trees, including pomegranate, jujube, apricot and plum, will also be planted in selected areas. Officials said the cultivation of fruit trees could provide an additional source of income for local communities while strengthening the long-term sustainability of the forestry project.
Mohammad Shakeel said the department was also working on the construction of two reservoirs to harvest rainwater. Two solar-powered tubewells are being installed to provide water for plantations, with work expected to begin shortly.
He said the plants would gradually be acclimatised to local conditions to improve their chances of survival and establish a sustainable green landscape.
Community members have welcomed the initiative, saying the plantation could generate employment opportunities and create new economic prospects. Noorul Amin, a local community representative, said residents had signed an agreement with the Forest Department to provide their land for plantation.
Another community member, Amin, said local people would work as labourers at the plantation and benefit from employment opportunities created through the project.
Officials said the large-scale plantation could improve the local environment while also supporting the rural economy. The introduction of fruit and olive trees is expected to provide communities with potential long-term economic benefits in addition to environmental gains.
The Spin Khak and Jabbori Khattak areas are located about 30 minutes from Ghari Chandan Urban Forest, which the forestry department describes as one of the province’s largest urban forestry projects. The Ghari Chandan project was established between 2014 and 2019 under the Billion Tree Tsunami Afforestation Programme and extends across several kilometres of land.
The Forest Department has also been providing financial incentives to communities involved in forest management. Officials said more than 45,000 trees were planted in the Jabbori Khattak area last year, while tree-coppicing activities generated around Rs12 million for the local community.
For the current year, officials expect tree-coppicing to generate approximately Rs60 million. Around 80 percent of the funds are reportedly being distributed among community members, while the remaining amount is being used for plantation activities and the hiring of forest guards.
The Spin Khak initiative represents a significant expansion of peri-urban forestry in Nowshera, combining large-scale tree plantation, rainwater harvesting, renewable-energy-based irrigation and community participation to create a more sustainable green landscape.
