In the past, forests have been managed by the Provincial Forest Departments mainly for protection. It is only during the last three decades that production aspect, through involvement of local communities, had been given due consideration. As the FGR are mainly confined to mountainous areas of northern Pakistan, afforestation of logged over areas has been exclusively carried out by the Provincial Forest Departments sponsored by foreign aid agencies such as the World Food Programme (WFP), ADB, UNHCR, Swiss Development Agency, GTZ and FAO/UNDP. Indigenous species have been used with little efforts towards conservation or use of quality planting stock. Stand conservation in the sub-continent has been practised since the mid-1940s in the form of “Preservation Plots” wherein the original flora of a compartment is maintained and preserved on scientific lines. However, no efforts were made during the last four decades to continue this system. By and large, as the population pressure by humans and livestock increased, the natural forests were not given due attention that they would have deserved. The genetic origin of the planting stock is of poor quality; seeds are collected from genetically inferior stands, which later on results in low survival and productivity in plantations. As for artificial regeneration, planting of less important species e.g. Ailanthus and Robinia in Pinus roxburghii (chir pine) stands has not only upset the balance of natural ecosystem but also further masked FGR conservation efforts. These operations were supplemented by constructing check dams to improve water catchment areas, which resulted in degradation in the coniferous forests.
There is still a need to support such activities by establishing ex situ and in situ conservation stands. On account of the lack of proper FGR conservation measures, Rhododendron, an important native species associated to chir pine, is almost extinct and steps for in situ conservation of this species should be undertaken to rehabilitate and restore the ecosystem. There are also several other forest species that require special conservation efforts as these have several uses besides land stabilization and amelioration of the environment. These species are listed in Appendix 1. However, the species listed in Appendix 1 are not included in large-scale afforestation/artificial regeneration programmes but are important components of the ecosystems. The associated multipurpose tree food species (MPTFS) occurring in different ecological zones are also important for food security and many of these are either extinct or endangered in their native habitats (Shams R. Khan 1998).
Since seeds are often collected from inferior trees/stands, the health status of plantations raised from such genetically poor sources is also not satisfactory (Blake 1991). There has been severe attacks of Pinus wallichiana (kail) defoliator in blue pine forests, which was later controlled by biological means. Low seeding in chir pine is a problem to the establishment of conservation stands. Provincial forest departments are not working on any FGR conservation activities. The Pakistan Forest Institute, Peshawar (PFI) did establish some species/provenance/progeny trials of over 12 ha to improve the coniferous forests of Pakistan. The study on isozymes has helped to identify highly diverse populations in chir pine to establish seed stands. Little or no research work has been done on Abies, Picea, Cedrus, Acer, Taxus or Alnus growing mixed with coniferous forests in Himalayas. Plantations of major species in the natural stands of coniferous forests have been established in the recent past but the aspect of conservation of rare FGR has been ignored by the provincial forest departments. A separate R&D Directorate in the NWFP Forest Department was created only a couple of years ago. This institute will hopefully undertake conservation and management activities in the future.
Similarly, several broad-leaved species in the plains are also either extinct or endangered as these are not included in afforestation programmes. In order to improve seed collection and storage conditions, a seed centre has also been established in Azad Jammu & Kashmir to undertake preliminary seed testing programmes (Roshetko 1995).
