Proposal on a Reforestation Plan for the Hewler District, Kurdistan Region, Iraq

Background
The climate and the ecology of Kurdistan have changed. The global warming is pushing the Sahel belt northward in Spain, southern Italy, and Greece as well as in the Middle East generally and maybe Kurdistan specially. The historians telling about the huge forest covering a belt from Turkey to the ridges of the Himalayas are long gone as well as the forests of their songs and poems. Today only a few percent of the Kurdish soil is covered by forests, mainly in the northern parts of the Iraqi Kurdistan. Only in some pockets of this area is the natural forest still able to reproduce and flourish. In others the mature trees survive while the seedlings don’t. This forest is not able to regenerate itself; it’s especially evident in the outskirts of the Barzan region.
Several factors can be added that have accelerated the transition to a drier regime:
The huge oil burns during the recent war probably made the relatively slow change toward a drier climate to take a huge leap forward.
The cutting of previously planted forests, also during the war may have altered the climatic patterns or at least the soil regime.
The overgrazing by ruminants as well as the compacting of the surface by hoofs and cloves has made it harder for seeds to establish as well as in has made the run-off of precipitation faster, resulting in less water left in the soil and an even more severe erosion.
The scenario with the huge flood that undermined the bridge in Bestora this winter and set villages under water would have been different with a dense biomass upstream able to store transients of water. This is a worldwide experience, described in scientific literature from Chile, Bolivia, Peru, Tanzania, Nepal and Australia. (Literature list provided on request)
In short:
The carrying capacity of the land is dwindling, leaving the rural population poor and hungry in a land full of possibilities. The trees previously covering the country are nor able to provide sustenance to cattle, not to man: The result an increased migration to the towns, first and foremost to Hewler. We have to look for other species adapted to the changed conditions and able to provide the inhabitants of the land with a living and incentive to stay.
After a first positive meeting with the major of Hewler and his assistant about the forestation of Kurdistan generally and Hewler specially, I promised to return with a plan.
Before this I have been doing extensive traveling in Kurdistan to study the status concerning soil types and depth, trees and shrubs, and during early spring; the impact of rain. I have not found data about the water table but it’s of minor importance for the moment being.
I have also consulted the experts at the arid, semi-arid and continental climate research units at the major American universities and their counterparts in New South Wales, Australia. I have also extensive contacts with three NGO:s that work with forestation projects globally. Together we have tailored an action plan that covers the alternatives we can see, this far.

Proposal
For the wealth of the nation I hereby propose a forestation plan for Hewler district, Kurdistan Region, Iraq. The objectives of this plan are:
To increase the carrying capacity of the land for both man and animal by introduction of new species and new techniques of agroforestry. Thereby making it possible for the people to continue living in the rural areas with an increased income and quality of life.
To reclaim degraded land and stop erosion.
To reintroduce the forests from the past, as far as possible.

Mechanism
In this proposal I have outlined the full plan. Altering the plan in either direction will of course change the quotation and will be subject to discussions.

Phaze 1
Propagation and provenience test: Comprises 60 species and varieties and more than 300.000 seeds. Duration: February 2007 – Mars 2008. This will go on every coming year with new varieties found and tested. Irrigation techniques that promote a deep root system as well as different planting methods will be tested and evaluated. But first and foremost is the survival under the extremes of the Kurdish climate tested: frost tenderness and drought hardiness.
(Stage 3) Establishment of a Rural Development Center (RDC) with staff and nursery. Duration: May 2007 – December 2008. The objective of this center is the promotion of the economy in the rural areas in such away that it enables people to stay in their villages instead of migrating to Hewler and a sure poverty.
Education of staff at the RDC in agroforestry techniques. Duration: 1 day / week (except for the busy seasons) June 2007 – June 2008.
Planting a genetic park of elite plants by the Nursery. September 2007 –
Start a close cooperation with similar units worldwide.
Build a mathematical model for the most effective patterns of plant distribution.
Plant an educational park within an ordinary park in Hewler in which the different species are described and their benefits, displaying how they can be used.

Phaze 2
Train staff in the ordinary nurseries in propagation of Tree Legumes. Duration: September 2007.
Send 1.000.000 seeds of selected varieties to the nurseries for propagation. Duration: February 2008 – April 2008.
Employ and train extra staff for planting. Duration: April 2008.
Develop logistics at the nurseries that enables extensive planting during a short period: Duration January 2008 – March 2008. (The tree week: During this week, the children supported by the military with logistics plant as many trees as they can. They do the country a favor and gain environmental awareness. This is just an example of the possibilities.)
Develop a system of plant protection. Duration: In effect March 2007 – March 2010.
Inoculation test with Kurdish acorns (like Q. libani) and strains of truffle mycelium with high water absorbing capacity. Duration: April 2007 – September 2008. This might make reintroduction of oak possible and might give the rural population a stable income by collecting spring truffles.

Phaze 3
Send 2.000.000 seeds of selected varieties to the nurseries for propagation. Duration: February 2009 – April 2009.
Establish demonstration farms all over the Hewler region using different agroforestry techniques. Duration: May 2009 – May 2010.
Employ and educate agroforestry informers at the demonstration farms. Duration: March 2008 – May 2010.
Support the establishments of modern forest industry like saw mills, fiber board plant and wood furniture. Duration 2009 –
Establish an investment fund (the Rural Development Fund) from which initiatives in the rural area can apply for micro loans.
Make it to a standing paragraph in every business agreement that companies establishing in Hewler must plant a number of trees according to size of agreement – or contribute to the Rural Development Fund with a sum equal.