Taxus baccata, known as European yew in English or as “red tree” in Persian, is an evergreen tree that can live up to between 400 and 600 years. All parts of a yew tree are toxic to humans but the trees are also the source of Taxol, an expensive alkaloid used in chemotherapy and treatment of cancer. Because of this medical benefit, some developed countries cultivate these trees, which are in danger of becoming extinct. But in Iran they are often cut down to make things like hookahs and wooden ornaments.
The village of Siah Roodbar in the northeastern province of Golestan is one of the biggest sources of this tree in Iran. However, it has lost many tree to poachers and illegal logging by people desperate to make some income.
Recently, some young people from the village started an online campaign, “I am a yew, too” (#من_هم_یک_سرخدارم in Persian) to save this precious resource and asset, both to warn people of the danger of the trees becoming extinct and to ask the government agencies to take action.
Photos by the Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA)
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