The white scale pest has destroyed 750 hectares of planted forests in Southern Khorasan in northeastern Iran.
IRNA reported on Sunday July 19 that the trees were only 10 years old.
The head of Southern Khorasan natural resources explained that persistent drought had already weakened the forest and fields of the province, and they were forced to cut down the trees to halt the spread of the white scale pest.
Southern Khorasan has 11 percent of the country’s total area and it is the province with the second-highest amount of desert area. Planting forest trees in the area is a common measure against desertification.