KABUL, June 9 (Xinhua) -- Four scenic areas have been declared as protected sites and national parks in Afghanistan, according to the Afghan Presidential Palace.
The palace said in a statement reaching Xinhua on Tuesday that a meeting, chaired by President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani, announced forests of eastern Nuristan province, standing waters of eastern Ghazni, Darqad District of northern Takhar province and Imam Sahib District of northern Kunduz province, as protected areas and national parks of Afghanistan.
First Vice-President Amrullah Saleh and several provincial governors also attended the meeting, in which Head of National Environmental Protection Agency (NEPA) Shah Zaman Maiwandi signed the documents of the newly four protected areas and national parks, according to the statement.
In order to have a sound environment in the next four years, the NEPA was instructed to coordinate with local religious scholars, provincial governors and districts' chiefs in this respect, the statement added.
The country previously had three national parks. Band-e-Amir in central province of Bamyan, Wakhan in northern Badakhshan province, Kol-e-Hashmat Khan wetland in Kabul were announced national parks in 2009, 2014 and 2015 respectively. Enditem
