Jan 24, 2017
In Jajarkot, Nepal, the pine forests is threatened by the illegal rosin extraction. Four community forests in the district have reported deaths of more than 10,000 pine trees owing to excessive rosin extraction.
Several companies have the license to extract gum rosin from pine trees. The government regulation issued in 2007 states that companies can only extract gum rosin from trees that are standing at 1.30 metres above the surface and are at least 36 inch in diameter. The resin extracting companies should also leave at least five mother trees per hectare and extract the sap from a single point of the tree. However, for more profit, the licensed companies did not follow the regulation. The development of gum rosin industry in this area is unsustainable. 
District Forest Officer Upendra Prasad Patel was unaware about haphazard rosin extraction in pine forests. “We do not have sufficient human resources to conduct regular monitoring,” he said when asked about the absence of forest authority in places where rampant pine resin extraction was causing trees to die out. Patel also vowed to take stern action against the rosin extraction companies that are found violating the regulations.

http://kathmandupost.ekantipur.com/news/2017-01-24/jajarkot-pine-forests-under-threat.html