On Friday, Natural Resources Minister Vickram Bharrat announced that the 2025 National Budget includes $300 million for the reforestation of areas in and around Mahdia, Region Eight (Potaro-Siparuni).

This announcement came during the first day of the consideration of the estimates and expenditure for the 2025 National Budget where Bharrat responded to Opposition Member of Parliament David Patterson’s request for a breakdown of a $1 billion allocation for the Natural Resources Management Programme.

Minister Bharrat detailed that the $300 million will be directed towards land reclamation and reforestation efforts in Mahdia, which has been significantly impacted by large mining pits. The remaining funds will continue the mineral mapping project with $735 million, while $10 million will cover advertising and regulatory reviews.

This follows last year’s allocation, which supported land reclamation in Region 10, specifically addressing a major bauxite mining site near the Wismar residential area in Linden.

Bharrat further noted that funds from the 2024 budget were also spent on reforestation in Bisaruni, Region 10, an area that suffered significant forest fires during the dry season.

He said: “As you know, at that point in time, there was limited capacity to deal with forest fires. Thankfully, now you’ve had a partnership with the Brazilian government where we are enhancing our capability and capacity to deal with forest fires.”

The Minister emphasised the urgency of improving fire management, citing global challenges such as the ongoing wildfires in California. Bharrat also highlighted the reforestation of over 2,000 trees on a 30-acre plot, planting a mix of Bullet Wood, Baromalli, and Acacia species, some of which are fast-growing while others require more time to mature.

“We’ve had a number of personnel trained in Brazil, and we continue the collaboration with the government of Brazil to enhance our capacity, because it’s something that we must be ready for. Climate change is real, and we’ve seen already, a prolonged dry spell. We have seen what is happening in the US In California, massive forest fire ongoing. So, it’s something that we cannot take likely.”