The 8th October, 2005, earthquake proved to be one of the devastating events in the country’s history.
The toll on property and human lives were at high. However, there were reports that areas with better vegetation
covers suffered minimal or no damages. To investigate this, a study to assess the role of different vegetation
types in reducing earthquake damages was conducted in Muzaffarabad District. It was revealing that
substantial vegetation cover acted as a barrier against natural hazards such as earthquake. On the other hand,
it was also proved that amongst different land uses, forest lands were the most effective in terms of reducing
earthquake damages.