Imran Khan waters a plant in Lahore on Monday. Reuters

Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday inaugurated “the world’s biggest” Miyawaki urban forest in Lahore, terming it “just the beginning” of the steps being taken towards implementing his government’s vision for a green Pakistan.

As Pakistan continues its massive drive to plant 10 billion trees to reduce smog, Imran urged his citizens to heed the dire warnings in a UN climate change report released on Monday.

Imran made the remarks as he inaugurated what officials say is the largest urban Miyawaki forest project in the world. Using a technique pioneered by the late Japanese botanist Akira Miyawaki, the forest covers 12.5 acres and has more than 165,000 plants. Officials say the trees are expected to grow 10 times faster than normal due to the Miyawaki technique of planting them close together.

The forest is one of 53 such sites in Lahore that are expected to work as carbon sinks. The city of 10 million has grappled with smog in recent years that has forced schools to close and earned it a ranking among the world’s most polluted cities.

“Humans have done such a disservice to God’s blessings, to this world, that many things — rising sea levels for instance because of warming and emissions — cannot come back to how they were before,” Imran said in the central city of Lahore. “All of us living in the world today, if we do all we can, maybe we can save the world from even worse harm to come.”

Since the tree planting drive started in 2018, the country has 1 billion more trees and is planting another 500 million during the monsoon season. “If you are concerned about your children and their future, the least you can do is plant one tree and take care of it,” Imran said.