It is now just called Nairobi!  It?s a shame for it has not only lost its title but also the aura of the Green City in the Sun.

How do we let our rivers turn into sewers, the air to be polluted everyday by un-road worthy cars or the mass deforestation of our key water towers?

We have also turned our backs to the careless cutting of trees within the city to make room for the emerging concrete jungle. People are cutting trees recklessly, some centuries old, without replacement. Cut one tree, plant two or three more. And only cut after you have permission from the Chief. That?s what the law says, what it has always said, right? No exceptions! But now concrete is replacing the lush green vegetation and trees that once graced the suburbs. 

Lavington Green, Nairobi, a residential area, was a green neighbourhood from what our parents and grandparents remember. Now, apartments are coming up like weeds – the right word is actually - mushrooming. The scenario is being replicated across the city. There does not seem to be any form of control of development. More than ten trees are cut down per less than a quarter acre. I don?t see an initiative of replacing them.

A tree is an element of nature?s gift of beauty. It?s enchanting, beautiful and also has a major role to play in nature. Trees are crucial to the Carbon Dioxide and Water Cycle. Through transpiration, trees increase the chances of rainfall in an area. They take in Carbon Dioxide as raw material in photosynthesis and release oxygen as its product. This reduces the Green house effect.

A place with trees is ultimately, or at many times, a place with fresh, cool and clean air. As God?s gift in the midst of summer or dry months, they provide shade from the blazing heat.

They also protect the soil! Their roots hold soil together and their leaves intercept rainfall thus protecting the soil from soil erosion. And it doesn?t stop there. Trees are habitats to all sorts of animals and creepy crawlies. It also provides food for animals directly from their leaves and fruits and also as the producers in food chains and webs. There are fewer monkeys and birds in general as compared to the numbers we had in the Green City. However in places like Arboretum that?s full of trees, you can find many there. Removing one tree is destroying biodiversity even when considering the tree alone

The importance of planting trees or simply ?not cutting them down? in urban areas cannot be overemphasised. One day, we may not enjoy the simple pleasure of fresh air or cool shade from Nairobi?s heat. Heed my warning! If we keep treading along this path of careless removal of trees, this day will come sooner than later.