Al Bawaba

The legendary cedar of Lebanon
is the oldest recorded tree in human history, having been first
mentioned some 4,500 years ago. The Egyptian pharaohs and other ancient
Mediterranean civilizations used the wood to build their palaces,
temples and ships. Centuries later, the cedars of Lebanon are in
trouble, with only a few isolated groves left, due to deforestation and
illegal logging. But that is changing. In the last six years, more
than 600,000 trees — cedars as well as other native species — have been
planted throughout the country as part of the Lebanon Reforestation
Initiative (LRI). The goal of the initiative, launched in 2010
with help from USAID, the US Forest Service, the Lebanese government and
local business sponsors, is to expand existing wilderness reserves and increase forest cover by 50 percent by the year 2020.

“Getting trees to grow in these
severely degraded lands is a major challenge,” says Darin Stringer, an
Oregon forester and head of the consultancy Pacific Stewardship, who was
brought in by the Forest Service as an adviser to the LRI. But
the Lebanese are “passionate in their desire to reclaim their forests,”
Stringer says. The initiative has helped introduce sustainable forestry
practices and wildfire management to Lebanon, in combination with
traditional methods.

Indeed, the LRI has galvanized the support of
the Lebanese public, across religious and sectarian lines. Local buy-in
has been key to success, helped by the use of social media to generate
interest. The results have been dramatic: After just four years, the initiative has transformed forestry practices
in Lebanon and has greatly benefited rural economic development and
local livelihoods in diverse communities, especially those affected by
the Syrian refugee crisis. The survival rate of the new plantings has
been 70–90 percent.

“This project has a message of hope and
caution. The hope is of communities and a nation … rebuilding the forest
against great odds,” Stringer said. “The caution is to societies with
productive forest lands: It’s far easier to be a steward for an existing
forest than to try to bring it back after it’s been heavily exploited.”