Illegal Logging and Deforestation in Africa.

[100ponder]

Illegal logging and deforestation in many African countries is publicized from time to time and I want to start a dedicated discussion tread on it.
( Moderators, I could not find a suitable tread but if I missed it - then please delete this tread.)

To kick off discussion I request interested persons to visit the Kingsley Holgate Foundation's
Face Book page at https://www.facebook.com/KingsleyHolgateFoundation/

Thanks,

Gerrie.

[Richprins]

That is indeed one of the world's most dire problems, 100p!

Much worse than poaching...

Even affects climate change!

[RogerFraser]

Great thread 100p

For those that don't frequent Facebook :

From Kingsley Holgate's Latest Expedition

BUSH NOTE: STOP THE KILLING
We’re talking not only about the crisis facing wildlife especially our rhino and elephant but also the loss of habitat through greed and corruption around illegal logging in Africa. In Moz alone the Environmental Intelligence Agency revealed that 93% of logging in Mozambique is illegal and the key driver of forest crime being the ongoing demand from China. Just from what we’ve seen the days are numbered for the great hardwood trees of Mozambique.
We’re not naïve – we understand that people need to live and that charcoal and timber is a necessary resource for people BUT it’s out of hand.
The deforestation in countries like Malawi is staggering… But in keeping with our expedition’s strapline of Hope Crosses Any Terrain, we do find hope…
Wildernis Safaris’s Central Africa Roots to Fruits programme is one of these – run by ex-forrestry officer Mr Master Banda they timelessly supply schools and clubs with tree seedlings (more than 200,000 to date).
‘The secret,’ says Mr Banda, ‘is that we use the initiative of one third of the seedlings being fast-growing fruit which can be planted close to the homesteads.’ We visit a nearby school – the excited kids gather around, the even have their own tree clubs and show us how they make liquid fertilizer for their trees. ‘We even get seedlings to take home,’ says 12-year old Wiseman Qoto with a big grin.
We urge our fellow travellers who adventure through these countries to try and support tree-planting initiatives. We did and hopefully will help off-set some of our Landies’s carbon emissions as we continue to zigzagging North towards Ethiopia. Will keep you posted.

[Flutterby]

Good thread 100P!

[Klipspringer]

https://news.globallandscapesforum.org/ ... rbon-farm/


South Africa’s first carbon farm with spekboom trees

[Lisbeth]

It's the perfect place for this topic, fundamental for a healthy ecosystem and for the Earth in general and for all the living creatures, 100ponder

[Alf]

It’s awesome

[Lisbeth]

AFRICA DEFORESTATION


Here's the good news. In a global context, annual deforestation rates are relatively low in Central Africa, compared to other rainforests in Southeast Asia and South America. The bad news is that scientists are not really sure how accurate this figure is. Learn more about deforestation in:

The Congo Basin

The Congo Basin contains 20 per cent of the world’s tropical forests – some 301 million ha – and makes up one of the most important wilderness areas left on Earth.

A mosaic of rivers, forests, savannahs, swamps and flooded forests, the Congo Basin forests span six countries – Cameroon, Central African Republic (CAR), Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon – that are home to unique species such as mountain and lowland gorillas, bonobos, okapis, chimpanzees and elephants.

Given the extent and rate of forest fragmentation from roadside farming and logging, basic simulations suggest that few large blocks of the region’s relatively undisturbed forest will remain in 50 years. In fact, it is estimated that up to 30% of forests will disappear by 2030.

In West and Central African countries, degradation of forests has already transformed some areas into savanna grasslands or degraded savannas.

The threat

Along with pressures caused by population growth over the last few decades, unregulated and often illegal extraction of timber puts wildlife, local people and economies at risk.

Unrelenting timber demand from around the world – in particular, rapidly rising demand from China -- means that the forests of Congo Basin are being harvested at unprecedented rates. Often, this is done unsustainably or not in accordance with local laws. Road-building by logging companies has also opened up remote areas of forests to poaching and illegal logging.

THE SOLUTION

Concerted action that balances the rights of indigenous groups with market demands will be a critical element of conservation in the Congo Basin.

WWF and its partners are working throughout the region to create a network of protected areas to:

- conserve biodiversity,

- encourage logging and mining companies to promote good management practices,

- promote the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation and degradation of forests,

- support sustainable business practices and financial investments in development and infrastructure projects,

- improve the livelihoods of indigenous and local peoples,

- reduce wildlife poaching and the bushmeat trade.

East Africa

Eastern Africa has a diversity of forest types – vast open miombo woodlands, remnant coastal forests and unique mountain forest in the Eastern Arc. East Africa’s coastline is one of the continent’s most biologically diverse areas, offering a rich mosaic of coral reefs, mangroves, lowland forests and savanna woodlands. Unfortunately, for all its natural resources, Coastal East Africa is seen to have some of the highest rates of poverty in the world.

Although precise figures are hard to calculate in this region, remote sensing analysis suggests that forest loss has been greatest in Mozambique, Tanzania and Zambia. The coastal forests of Tanzania and Kenya have been reduced to just 10 per cent of their original area.
The threat
In addition to outright land conversion, the region’s forests are under pressure from over-harvesting for timber and fuelwood. Over the past ten years, global demand for the region’s abundant and often undervalued natural resources led by Europe, Asia and particularly China has resulted in trade that is not only unsustainable but sometimes also illegal.

Forest conversion has also wreaked havoc on the region’s biodiversity. “Slash and burn” clearing has destroyed huge tracks of ancient coastal forest and increased human-wildlife conflict. This situation is being exacerbated by unregulated investment in commercial agriculture throughout the coastal region.

Across Africa, oil, gas and mining projects are driving investment in new and improved infrastructure. Forests within these development corridors are vulnerable to loss or severe degradation through conversion to agriculture or colonization by settlers seeking employment and other economic opportunities.

The combination of unsustainable management and uncoordinated externally driven resource extraction, exacerbated by climate change, threatens to destabilize the region’s development and natural resource base.

East Africa forest facts

- The East Africa coast supports rich wildlife populations of which 60-70% are found only in the Indo-Pacific and 15% are found nowhere else in the world.

- Between 2000 and 2012, East Africa lost around 6 million hectares of forest. WWF projects that the region will lose 12 million hectares between 2010 and 2030 if current trends continue.

[Lisbeth]

Ethiopia plants more than 350 million trees in a day

2019-07-30 14:40 - Aljazeera

Ethiopians have planted more than 350 million trees in a single day as part of a campaign to fight deforestation and climate change.

Getahun Mekuria, Ethiopia's minister of innovation and technology, said 353 633 660 seedlings were planted in 12 hours on Monday.

The planting spree, which surpassed the initial goal of 200 million trees planted in one day, will be a world record, officials said.

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed ambitious Green Legacy Initiative, launched in May, aims to plant four billion trees across Ethiopia by October. "Today Ethiopia is set in our attempt to break the world record together for a green legacy," Abiy's office said in a Twitter post.



Some schools and government offices were closed for the occasion and Abiy told fellow Ethiopians to "go out and make your mark", as he planted his own tree in the southern city of Arba Minch.

So far, more than 2.6 million trees have been planted in almost all parts of the East African nation, agricultural officials say.

According to Farm Africa, an organisation involved in forest management in Ethiopia, less than four percent of the country's land is now forested, a sharp decline from about 30% at the end of the 19th century.

Ethiopia's rapidly growing population and the need for more farmland, unsustainable forest use and climate change are often cited as the causes for rapid deforestation.

In addition to ordinary Ethiopians, various international organisations and the business community have joined the tree planting spree which aims to overtake India's 66 million trees planting record set in 2017.

It is not yet clear if the Guinness World Records is monitoring Ethiopia's the mass planting scheme, but the prime minister's office told The Associated Press news agency that specially developed software is helping with the count.

Earlier in July, Swiss scientists published a study in journal Science saying that the most effective way to fight global warming was to plant one trillion trees.

The report said that over the decades, those new trees could suck up nearly 750 billion tonnes of heat-trapping carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

That is about as much carbon pollution as humans have spewed in the last 25 years.

[Richprins]

This is really the only way to combat climate change, and all countries should follow suit immediately.