The Kirthar mountain ranges, that constitute a large part of Kalat district, are generally devoid of thick vegetation. Herboi is the only real forest in the district. The forest is the main source of timber and it provides a large quantity of fuel wood. The forest is also used for grazing cattle, goats, sheep and camels by the local population.

Harboi is the main forestry area in Kalat. It is famous for juniper woods. The following areas have been declared as protected forest/rangeland in the district, while Sorab and Johan are the natural forestry in the area.

Source: Forest Department Kalat

Note: There is a forest nursery in the district.

There is no commercial forestry in the Kalat district. Only the Forestry Department provides plants to the public for forestry. Forestry Department plants in the area of Harboi. In the private sector very limited commercial forestry activities have been started in Kalat, Sorab and Johan area.

The slopes of the Harboi provide the best forests. The Juniper (Juniperus Excelsa) Gwan or Khanjal (Pistacia Cabalia), mash monk (Prunus Aberrance) and arching (Pranus Amjy Dalus) are very common in the area.

The principal trees are Pistachio and Juniper. Among other forest vegetation types are Cumin, Arafetida, Hyssoup, Kisantzur and Panerbend.

Wood obtained from forests is mainly used for fuel purposes because other sources of fuel are too expensive. There is no formal procedure for forest cutting and marketing in the district. The people do it themselves according to their own requirement. Sometimes the government auctions the trees to the private people. The land owner also sells the trees to private contractors for cutting and marketing purposes. The wood is used for cooking, construction and heating purposes.

The Forest Department is one of the oldest Departments in Kalat. It was in functioning even before the partition of India in 1947. The Department is headed by a District Forest Officer (DFO). The other staff members include Foresters and Forest guards who look after the forests and grow new plants.

Wildlife and forestry are interrelated, for the promotion of wild life the promotion of forestry is necessary. In Kalat district, the main forest area is Harboi valley. In other areas the forest is very limited.

Chakor (Pheasant) is an important and precious bird in the area. The other animals present in the Harboi valley are wolves, foxes and jackals. Hunting for chakor is very common in the district, which results in its population decreasing at a rapid rate. By creating awareness among the masses about the importance of preservation of the animal species, through print and electronic media, shooting of chakors and other wildlife can be checked.

Because the climate of the area in general is not conducive for bee keeping , bee keeping activities do not exist. Some potential is available in the Harboi forest and bee keeping could be carried out on experimental basis here. If successful, the local population could have an additional source of income.

The provincial government and private sector are involved in forestry activities, while NGOs and international agencies are supporting tree plantation in the area.

The district generally lacks real large forests except for the one known as Harboi. The juniper forest is well known. The foremost requirement for further forestry development is to prevent people from cutting trees for wood and to educate them to preserve the vegetation. Bee-keeping can be experimented in the Harboi forest. New researches regarding the soil and climate may be conducted in several areas. The provision of technical know-how, guidance and practical assistance by the government may create interest in the people for the development of this sector. Major issues in this sector are deforestation and wild life management.

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