Forest officers from across the State stressed on the need for increasing forestry produce and research on new tree species.
Retired forest service officers also shared their experiences with serving officers during a workshop organised by the Uttarakhand Forestry Research Institute on the road map for Uttarakhand forestry research vision 2025.
Former senior forest department officer ID Pandey said that research is being conducted in most spheres but now there is need for research on water.
Water shortage is a major problem being faced in the mountainous regions of Uttarakhand where traditional water sources are drying out due to various factors.
The department and NGOs can work together in order to recharge such water sources. About 67 per cent of the State is under forest cover but this resource is not being used properly, which should also be the subject of research, he added.
Retired senior forest officer Prakash Bhatnagar stressed on the need for forestry and research activities in the mountainous regions of Uttarakhand. Referring to the recent disaster in the State, he said that such calamities are exacerbated by environmental imbalance.
The technical hurdles being faced in plantation in tiger and elephant zones need to be resolved soon, he added.
Speakers at the workshop spoke on the need for changes in the Forest Conservation Act while stating that the altitude limit fixed to ban felling of trees in the mountainous regions of the State is not practical.
Trees should be axed or lopped according to the principles of silviculture in such mountainous areas to maintain the biodiversity, said the speakers.