Pakistan's Forest Heritage — The Cedar Forests of the Murree Hills

The deodar cedar (Cedrus deodara) is Pakistan's national tree. It is also, in the Murree hills, the defining ecological structure of the landscape — the species whose canopy, roots, and presence create the environment that makes Bhurban what it is. The dense cedar and blue pine forest surrounding Bhurban at 6,800 feet is not merely a backdrop for tourism; it is the primary ecological asset of the region.

This matters for a reason that extends beyond ecology: the forest's commercial value is increasingly tied to its conservation status. Properties like Himalaya Villas & Resorts in Bhurban derive their entire commercial proposition from the quality of the surrounding forest. A cleared or degraded forest removes the value proposition of the accommodation — the private cedar garden, the forest walks from the property gate, the specific smell and sound of the deodar-dominant canopy — entirely.

The Bhurban and Galyat forest faces two primary threat categories: illegal logging and development encroachment. Both have been documented and partly addressed by provincial forest departments and TDCP; neither has been eliminated.

Illegal logging, while reduced from its peak decades, continues at lower levels in less-accessible forest sections. Development encroachment — new construction that clears forest land for residential or commercial development — is the more active current threat. The Bhurban road and surroundings have seen significant construction over the past decade, each new structure reducing the intact forest area marginally while increasing the pressure on road infrastructure and water supply.

Pakistan's deforestation rate is among the highest in Asia — a widely cited figure before the Ten Billion Tree Tsunami programme. The Murree hills specifically have experienced significant forest loss over the past century, from both commercial logging and agricultural conversion at lower elevations. The remaining intact forest patches — Ayubia National Park and the community forests of Bhurban and the Galyat — represent the residual of what was once a much more extensive cover.

The specific policy lever most relevant to the Murree hills context is the economic case for eco-tourism as a forest-compatible land use. A private villa estate generating PKR 70,000 per villa per night from 12 villas in an intact cedar forest delivers significantly more per-hectare economic value than any alternative land use that requires forest clearance.