Monrovia – Logging companies and some farmers in Liberia are blame for destroying Liberia’s natural forest reserves, making conservation difficult, despite efforts to management the forest.
Report by Willie N. Tokpa, [email protected]
Instead of replanting trees, farmer and loggers are continuing massive deforestation in their areas of operations.
The Forestry Development Authority (FDA) says operation within some high carbon sites is causing risk to the country’s natural reserve, depleting the forest and scaring away wild lives and other species.
Apart from danger caused by their operations, FDA says Liberia loses huge sum of money meant to benefit citizens when farmers cutdown big tress without replanting and when logging companies ignore reforestation.
Deforestation is reportedly creating a negative impact on the country’s forest reserved. The size of forest, according to FDA, might not be able to absorb the content of greenhouse gases which are dangerous to the atmosphere.
Constant deforestation without replanting has created some level of difficulties on the implementation of the National REDD+ Strategy, which is gear at enabling Liberia reserves its remaining forest land. REDD+ means reducing emission from deforestation and Degradation.
To date, FDA through its REDD+ project has not been exact on the percentage of forest cultivated into farmland.
At the same time, an exact date has not been developed on the amount of damage caused by logging companies, which contributes to deforestation in Liberia.
Saah A. David, REDD+ Project Coordinator, said the FDA and REDD+ are fast tracking process for a national forest infantry in Liberia to have a complete data on Liberia’s forest reserved.
“It’s difficult to know the percentage of forest transform into farmland and the extent logging company has on deforestation in Liberia. When we complete the national infantry, we will have the baseline to know all of these data,” David said.
He also noted that in addition to farming and logging operations, other land users including, mining, pit-sawing, charcoal burning and human settlement among others are drivers of deforestation in Liberia.
He maintained that the area of forestland affected by shifting cultivation is estimated at over 30% of the 80% canopy cover forest and almost 70% of the 30 to 80% of the total area subject to logging concessions.
Charcoal production and chain sawing are estimated to affect at least 25% of the forest.
But with the full cooperation of all actors involved in implementing the National REDD+ Strategy, Liberia forest reserved would be adequately sustained.
In a wake of implementing strategy to address hazard of deforestation and forest degradation, REDD+ has begun supporting communities and various groups to eradicate forest emission and prevent risk faced by Liberia’s natural forest reserved.
REDD+ views the Liberian media as a partner to help fast track a consultative and quantitative analysis of the different land use options for the development of this strategy.
Over the weekend, several media practitioners from various outlets were trained in Gbarnga, Bong County on how to effectively communicate on the Liberian Forest sectors management.
The strategy is part of a US$3.6 Million agreement entered into by the Liberian and Norwegian governments in 2008, which compels the West African nation to keep its forest and get paid in return.
Currently, the FDA and REDD+ are implementing the Liberia Forest Project geared at strengthening capacity for the management of targeted landscape, improved land use planning, community forestry in targeted forest landscape, helping community for alternative livelihood and strengthening capacity for sustainable agriculture.
According to an analysis conducted by the group, approximately 50% of the forestland in Liberia has been allocated for commercial concessions or is designated for conservation as protected areas.
“Most of the concession land is yet to be developed and most of the protected areas are yet to be established, so the available land uses data is more of an indication of planned land use changes than a measure of current land use,” David noted.
Meanwhile, the REDD+ boss said Liberia can strive towards a sustainable forest management approach to improve economic development through the strategy.