Head of FRWO Praises the Role of NGOs in Nature Coservation

Khalil Aghaee, Deputy Minister and Head of Forests, Range and Watershed Management Organization (FRWO) at the 10^th National Conference of the Network of Environmental NGOs on Wednesday at University of Mohaghegh Ardabili (UMA) said that the survival of human beings depends on realization of sustainable development that in turn, is dependent upon the conservation of the natural resources and the environment. If we are to choose between the urgency of creating jobs for livelihood of communities or the need for natural resources preservation, the priority definitely goes with the latter.

According to FRWO’s website, in this meeting Khalil Aghaee said we should assess the economic value of ecosystem services as a principle for valuation of natural resources. In other words, we have to calculate the value of goods and services produced by each and every hectare of rangeland in the long run, and then compare it with the value of the industrial products we are going to produce there.

He added that the value of ecosystem services of natural resources and the environment is more important for present and future generations than building a factory in a particular natural site. Therefore, we have to move an industrial unit to another suitable location for the sake of nature preservation.

Aghaee emphasized: “environmental protection and natural resources management cannot be accomplished by FRWO alone, but require the active involvement of all stakeholders and on the top of that the environmental NGOs in mobilizing the participation of people”.

He also pointed out that given the fact that 99 percent of wild-land fires are human induced, there is an urgent need for NGO's involvement in promoting a culture that respects the nature conservation among people.

Aghaee  acknowledged that the main concern of NGOs is to protect the natural resources and urged the governmental agencies to pay due attention to this concern and welcome it as an opportunity.

Finally, he congratulated the media people on the occasion of the Journalist's Day, and praised their vital role in raising awareness among people about the virtues of natural resources.