How poverty, demand for alternative energy fuel deforestation

The issue of deforestation has again been brought to the front burner following the prevailing economic condition in the country and the recent activities of citizens who struggle to find an alternative to the skyrocketing price of cooking gas across the country.  Many Nigerians are now in the race to find an alternative source of […]

The issue of deforestation has again been brought to the front burner following the prevailing economic condition in the country and the recent activities of citizens who struggle to find an alternative to the skyrocketing price of cooking gas across the country. 

Many Nigerians are now in the race to find an alternative source of energy, especially for domestic purposes. The development has led to indiscriminate plundering of the forest for firewood, charcoal and desperate search of land for agriculture. 

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Experts say that over the years, Nigeria has lost at least 90 per cent of its forest reserves as trees are cut down at will and farmers degrade forests to plant new crops. They, therefore, added that government should act fast to stop the menace. They said forests were one of the coldest components of the earth and helps in tackling climate change across the world. 

In Kano State, farmers said they were forced to cut down trees to cultivate crops and feed their families. Also, population growth, agricultural expansion, poverty, lack of government policy and animal grazing areas have continued to contribute to deforestation. 

Local government areas like Gaya, Sumaila and Doguwa are worst affected by the menace of deforestation, which can also be noticed in 15 other areas. 

The fact that no regulatory measure or policy has been put in place by the state government is also compounding the issue. 

Aminu Barde, a former forest superintendent in the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, disclosed that those involved in the act of deforestation were usually seasonal and subsistence farmers looking for additional income to shoulder the responsibilities of their families. “They sell the wood for firewood and plant crops for survival,” he said. 

However, a former forest specialist in the Afforestation Programme Coordinating Unit (APCU), Malam Iliya Hussaini, blamed urban dwellers for the situation in Kano, saying the rising demand for firewood and charcoal was responsible for deforestation. 

He said, “Most firewood supplies arrive by truck at a central depot in the town from the forests before they are split and distributed through an informal channel to the end-users.” 

 

In his response, Malam Buba Bello, a farmer, claimed that the recent awareness by the federal government for citizens to return to farm necessitated the quest for more lands by many people, which is taking its toll on various forests. 

In Borno State, the situation is not much different as many residents have resorted to cutting down trees due to the increase in demand for firewood and charcoal, both in urban and rural communities. 

A firewood dealer in Maiduguri, the state capital, said the rising demand for charcoal and firewood by families and bakers has led to serious deforestation. He added that firewood provides more than 99 per cent of the energy demand for baking, as well as 60 per cent to 70 per cent of the domestic energy demand for heating and cooking. 

He said the supply of firewood to many communities was determined by loggers who cut down different species of trees for timber and allied products before selling them as cheaper alternative fuel.  

He said although trees were essential to the ecosystem, firewood also made a serious economic impact on the livelihood of families and those that sell it. 

Meanwhile, a former national chairman of the Association of Master Bakers and Caterers of Nigeria (AMBCN), Dominic D. Tumba said a trailer-load of firewood, which used to be N350,000, is now N540,000. And the demand has continued to rise on a daily basis, and as such, loggers have continued to fell trees to meet up, he added. 

On what the government is doing to tackle the menace, Zaharaddeen Mohammed, a senior official in the National Agency for the Green Great Wall in Borno State, said the demand for farmland in most parts of the state had led to the cutting of trees in forests. 

He, however, said the agency was planting trees across the state to control deforestation, including 30 hectares of indigenous species at Miringa, 10 hectares of woodlot at Kwaya Kusar, 20 hectares of woodlot at Mafa, as well as 17Km shelterbelt along the Maiduguri-Bama road, 10Km shelterbelt along Maiduguri-Magumeri road and 33Km shelterbelt along the Maiduguri-Damaturu road. 

He said the agency had also planted 10 hectares of gum Arabic in Ngamdu and Benisheikh, as well as 10 and 15 hectares in Garin Kuturu in addition to institutional plantations at the Borno State University, Maiduguri (10 hectares), Al-Ansar University, Maiduguri (20 hectares) and the Nigerian Army University, Biu (20 hectares).  

The Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice and Environment, Kaka-Shehu Lawan, a lawyer, said the state had deployed forest guards to prevent tree felling, adding that effort was being made to plant more trees to replace those destroyed. 

“A total of one million neem trees have been planted across the state. Also, public agencies and interest groups will be supported to promote afforestation,” he said. 

Speaking on the way forward, Nnimmo Bassey, an environmental activist, told Daily Trust Saturday that Nigeria is really in a bad shape when it comes to the issue of deforestation. 

“Except the parks that are being protected, our forests are being degraded in a very reckless manner. Timber is being lost to export, and it is not certain if there is any oversight about what is happening, in terms of ensuring that the forest cover is protected. 

“Communities are not able to manage their forests adequately. People are just exploiting the forests as if they were no man’s land. Perhaps that is why bandits are also staying there.  

“The issue is that we look at the forests as no man’s land, so everybody goes there and takes whatever they want and occupy where they want to occupy. It presents a very serious problem to us now and in the future.

“Forests are one of the biggest natural elements to cool down global warming, so we will like to see more being done,” Bassey said. 

He continued, “The government can show examples of forest protection by rapidly building the Great Green Wall so that people can have a clear example and view of what they can look at and say that reforestation is very possible. We can begin to talk more about efforts to reforest and not just the deforestation that we are always seeing everywhere. 

 “The way our timber is being harvested can be equated to blatant acts of thievery, so we are losing the resources. Not just that we are exposed to environmental hazards, we are also losing the economic benefits of the forests. 

“So, when people go for an unregulated felling of trees, it amounts to the destruction of our vast biodiversity. The implication goes beyond economic factors; it is a loss of culture for forest-dependent communities.  

“The implication is enormous. One will expect to see collaboration among government agencies to ensure that these water bodies and forests are protected by the Ministry of Environment and Ministry of Water Resources because it is affecting everyone. Everybody should put their hands on deck to tackle the menace.

“We have lost over 90 per cent of our forests over the years. That alone should send alarm signals to the government and the people, but because of the wrong sense of resource ownership in the country and the economic and political pettiness of citizens, people more or less do whatever they can do.”

Also, Ephraim Ishaya, a father of seven engages in tree felling in the forest of Kachia Local Government Area of Kaduna State for a living. He proudly calls himself a firewood fetcher because he believes his job description puts food on the tables of many, especially those in the hinterlands who depend on firewood or charcoal for cooking. 

Ephraim said he was able to cater for his family and send his children to school through the profit he makes as a lumberjack. 

He described his job as a difficult one but added that he has no option. He narrated how, on a daily basis, he leaves his home very early to go to the forest for tree felling.

Like Ephraim, Mrs Rifkatu Luka, from Kagarko Local Government Area has been in the business of tree felling for six years. The widow and mother of three said she started felling trees on her farm and later extended to surrounding forest areas.  

“I know that deforestation and desertification pose many dangers to the environment, that is why we are planting more trees for the same purpose of cutting it later,” she said.

An agriculturalist in Kaduna, Mallam Yusuf Jume, said apart from individuals who depend solely on firewood and charcoal businesses, there is a heavy demand for trees, which is used as wood for construction. 

“Other purposes in wood-based industries are encouraging logging, which is leading to a large scale of deforestation of Nigeria’s forests,” he said. 

Jume appealed to the Kaduna State Government to set up a committee to tackle incidents of deforestation, which leads to desertification and environmental degradation, by mobilizing local government areas and traditional rulers to sensitise residents against illegal felling of trees.

In Niger State, deforestation has persisted in Mokwa, Lavun, Edati, Agaie, Magama and Rijau local government areas. The trees are mostly cut down for charcoal and timber businesses, thereby exposing the environment to degradation.

Dealers in charcoal and timber, who transport their goods at night, declined comment when approached by our correspondent. However, the coordinator, Sustainable Environment Vanguard, Muhammad Abubakar Dakpanchi, said the act could destroy the soil system and make the environment inhabitable for both human and animals.

He called for stringent measures from the government against those who put the entire environment at risk due to deforestation.

The secretary to the Niger State Government, Ahmed Ibrahim Matane, warned that government would not hesitate to deal with anyone caught engaging in indiscriminate felling of trees for charcoal or timber in the state. 

He lamented that some people were undermining the state government’s efforts at fighting the trend.

He called for the support of traditional rulers, community leaders and other stakeholders in combating the menace, saying a task force on forest exploitation had been set up to that effect.

It is a similar situation in Plateau State, where our correspondent gathered that the menace is rampant in almost all the 17 local government areas. 

One of the lumberjacks in Yelwa community of Shendam Local Government Area said he was aware of the existing law prohibiting tree felling in the state but didn’t have any option, especially since the government could not give him the opportunity to sustain another means of livelihood.

The lumberjack, who asked not to be named in this report, said it was wrong for the government to prohibit tree felling without providing an alternative.

“We believe everyone has the right to go about their legitimate businesses. The trees we cut belong to us because we own the farmlands. I inherited mine from my father, who also inherited it from my late grandfather. I have authority over my property.

“The government has not been fair to us. We try to give our best by adding value to the people and the society. The common man cannot get cooking gas, so the only way out is to look for firewood. Without us, carpentry services will not be possible; even the timbers we use for roofing our homes will not be obtainable,” he said.

He disagreed with those who argue that tree felling is detrimental to the environment and human lives, saying the activity has been going on for centuries without harm to anyone.

The commissioner for environment in Plateau State, Idi Bamaiyi, told our correspondent that deforestation was on the increase and becoming alarming.

He identified some of the activities that lead to deforestation to include construction of buildings, roads, farming and mining. 

He said measures had been put in place by the state government to curtail the menace. He said the government reintroduced tree planting in 2020, and in 2021, it collaborated with non-governmental organisations to plant seedlings on behalf of the state government. 

 “In 2021, 500 seedlings were planted in four local government areas. All these were aimed at checking deforestation in the state. As a measure, all forests and communal reserves are being reactivated. Cutting trees as firewood has been stopped. In doing all these, we engage communities on the implications of their activities, which in many cases have helped,” the commissioner said.

Deforestation threatens human existence – Experts

In Benue and Kogi states, experts agreed that deforestation affects biodiversity, which in turn threatens human lives. They told Daily Trust that the destruction of forests causes a wide range of problems, including water cycle destruction and greenhouse gas emissions.

The director-general, Ministry of Environment in Kogi State, Mr Augustine Adama, recalled how changes in climatic conditions cause global warming, flooding and erosion.

“Deforestation also causes loss of habitats for wildlife, as well as draught, which leads to desertification and melting of the polar ice (ozone layer),” he said.

An environmental expert in Benue State, Orshi Henry, said the extent of deforestation had become a global problem but worse in states, such as Benue, where it contributes to flooding and climate change.

“As experts, we advocate that trees be planted to replace anyone cut down. Cut one, plant two. As the population grows, demand increases, with lots of pressure on the forest for timber. For me as a professional, the solution is to ban the felling of trees,” he said. 

Also, the director, Department of Forestry Services in the Benue State Ministry of Environment, Tyolumun Peter Gever, explained that clampdown on offenders had not been easy due to lapses observed in the law backing activities of deforestation in the state.

He, however, said the state government was in the process of reviewing the law. “We discovered that so much was not taken into consideration when the law was passed in 2010. So we have written to stakeholders to make their inputs.

“We are reviewing the tariff rate to reflect current realities. The former was N50. A permit used to be N700, but we are taking it to N3,500,” he said.

Also, the commissioner for rural development, who is presently overseeing the Ministry of Environment, Victor Akaha, said, “Trees have been here with us for ages but now going into extinction because people cut them down for charcoal.

“When they kill the plant and raise charcoals, the economic value is devalued, but when you leave it, year in and out, it gives income. 

“Animal species have disappeared with deforestation. Lots of herbs with medicinal value are today gone due to deforestation. Sources of alternative medicine have also retreated,” Akaha added. 

Baba Martins (Abuja), Ibrahim Musa Giginyu (Kano), Misbahu Bashir (Maiduguri), Hope Abah Emmanuel (Makurdi), Ahmed Ali (Kafanchan), Ado Abubakar Musa (Jos), Adama John (Lokoja) & Abubakar Akote (Minna)