Latest news with #GlobalForestWatch
RTÉ News
13 hours ago
- General
- RTÉ News
Deforestation in Sierra Leone national park threatens chimps, humans alike
Esther and Rio, two orphaned baby chimpanzees, clung tenderly to their caregiver's chest at a sanctuary inside one of Sierra Leone's flagship national parks, where unprecedented deforestation and illegal urban encroachment pose a risk to both primates and humans. The young apes, who arrived at the Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary when they were just three months old, listened with wide eyes as other chimps screeched and played nearby. The park's dense vegetation, stifling heat and the metallic fever pitch of reverberating insects served as a backdrop for the country's spectacular biodiversity, which includes several protected species. While the sanctuary rehabilitates orphaned Western chimpanzees, it is also a leading site for wildlife research and conservation education programmes. It is extremely popular with tourists - but its keepers have defiantly kept it closed since late May. The protest is meant to spur the government into action over the rapid environmental degradation taking place in the national park where it is located. The deterioration does not just affect the chimps, experts say, but also inhabitants of the wider region including the nearby capital of Freetown, home to some two million people. Situated just 15km from the overcrowded metropolis, the sanctuary lies inside the country's Western Area Peninsula National Park (WAP-NP). Mining, logging and urban development have claimed vast swaths of the verdant park. Meanwhile, poachers place traps dangerously close to the terrain for the sanctuary's Western chimpanzees, which are listed as "critically endangered" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Since 2000, Sierra Leone has lost 39% of its forest cover, according to monitoring site Global Forest Watch. And of the 18,000 hectares (44,500 acres) of forest in WAP-NP, almost a third has been ruined or severely degraded since 2012. "The last two (or) three years we have seen an increase of chimpanzees rescued, simply because you have a lot of degradation outside where wild populations are," sanctuary director Bala Amarasekaran, who founded the facility in 1995, said. Freetown threatened The dangers of deforestation extend well beyond chimpanzees, however, and also threaten humans, particularly those in Freetown whose water supply is controlled by the Guma Dam, located inside WAP-NP. The enormous structure sits about 6km south of the chimpanzee sanctuary and is surrounded by a green, old-growth tropical rainforest. In the valley below the dam, urbanisation is highly visible. The sprawl causes runoff which contains extra silt and sediment that collects in the dam's reservoir and creates sanitation issues, especially in the long rainy season. "This settlement did not exist three years ago," Maada Kpenge, managing director of the Guma Valley Water Company, said. But "every year a few houses get added to it" he said, stating that the squatting residents claim to own the land legitimately. "Every year we lose thousands of hectares of the forest," he said, adding that in 10 or 15 years' time there will be hardly any forest left. Without the trees to help regulate the water cycle and capture and retain water, the dam's level will additionally drop drastically. Under such circumstances, "living in Freetown would be a challenge, almost impossible," Kpenge said. The government faults opaque and corrupt land allocation practices carried out in the past, while highlighting new, stricter laws on land ownership that it says are helping. But activists and experts say the new regulations are not being adequately enforced. Ranger patrol AFP was able to follow a team of underequipped rangers who are attempting to enforce the rules and keep deforestation at bay. "We have so many challenges in the national park and so many (illegal) activities," Alpha Mara, commander of the forest guards within the National Protected Area Authority (NPAA), said. On the day AFP spoke with Mara, he and about 20 other rangers packed into one pickup truck to check on six sites located in the park and its buffer zone. Except for one man with a machete, the guards lacked weapons or protective gear to fend off traffickers and squatters. To tear down illicitly constructed structures or remove beams demarcating land that had been claimed illegally, the men used their bare hands. At one site, the ranger with a machete slashed the sheet metal of shacks. Suddenly, a terrified young woman emerged from one, holding a crying baby. The woman, Famata Turay, explained that her husband worked guarding the piece of land and was paid by a wealthy person living abroad who claimed it as his own. "This is illegal construction," ranger Ibrahim Kamara told her as he wrote up a report on the site. Turay said defiantly that she had been unaware. "I feel bad because I don't have any other place to sleep," she said after the rangers left, sobbing as she looked at her half-destroyed shack. Institutional failure Because of deforestation, already extreme temperatures could become unbearable for the majority of residents in Freetown and the surrounding region, experts warn. Deforestation also exacerbates soil erosion, which is already dire during the country's rainy season, as evidenced by Africa's deadliest ever landslide, which struck in Freetown in 2017 and killed 1,141 people. Back at the Tacugama sanctuary, its founder Amarasekaran was appalled at what he saw as the government's institutional failure. If someone is breaking the law, "there should be penalties, there should be prosecution (but) that is not happening," he said. The orphan chimps often arrive malnourished and disabled. Some additionally suffer from gunshot or machete wounds while others were caught by poachers then kept as pets in villages. Even after orphans such as Esther and Rio are rehabilitated, they must still spend the rest of their lives living on the sanctuary's dozens of hectares of protected wilderness, alongside some 120 other chimps. The apes have made Tacugama the country's "number one ecotourism destination", Amarasekaran said.
Kuwait Times
16 hours ago
- General
- Kuwait Times
Deforestation in S Leone national park threatens chimps, humans alike
Esther and Rio, two orphaned baby chimpanzees, clung tenderly to their caregiver's chest at a sanctuary inside one of Sierra Leone's flagship national parks, where unprecedented deforestation and illegal urban encroachment pose a risk to both primates and humans. The young apes, who arrived at the Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary when they were just three months old, listened with wide eyes as other chimps screeched and played nearby. The park's dense vegetation, stifling heat and the metallic fever pitch of reverberating insects served as a backdrop for the country's spectacular biodiversity, which includes several protected species. While the sanctuary rehabilitates orphaned Western chimpanzees, it is also a leading site for wildlife research and conservation education programmes. It is extremely popular with tourists - but its keepers have defiantly kept it closed since late May. The protest is meant to spur the government into action over the rapid environmental degradation taking place in the national park where it is located. The deterioration does not just affect the chimps, experts say, but also inhabitants of the wider region including the nearby capital of Freetown, home to some two million people. Situated just 15 kilometres (nine miles) from the overcrowded metropolis, the sanctuary lies inside the country's Western Area Peninsula National Park (WAP-NP). Mining, logging and urban development have claimed vast swaths of the verdant park. Meanwhile, poachers place traps dangerously close to the terrain for the sanctuary's Western chimpanzees, which are listed as 'critically endangered' by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Since 2000, Sierra Leone has lost 39 percent of its forest cover, according to monitoring site Global Forest Watch. And of the 18,000 hectares (44,500 acres) of forest in WAP-NP, almost a third has been ruined or severely degraded since 2012. 'The last two (or) three years we have seen an increase of chimpanzees rescued, simply because you have a lot of degradation outside where wild populations are,' sanctuary director Bala Amarasekaran, who founded the facility in 1995, told AFP. An aerial view of Guma Dam inside the Western Area Peninsula National Park in Freetown.--AFP photos Caretaker Hawa Kamara holds rescued chimpanzees Esther (left) and Rio (right) at the Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary in Freetown. A general view of a sign that reads "Please help us protect our forest and environment for you and us" at the Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary. A caretaker looks at a chimpanzee eating at the Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary. A chimpanzee climbs a tree at the Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary. Founder and director Bala Amarasekaran stands next to a sign with a quote from British primatologist Jane Goodall at the Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary. Founder and director Bala Amarasekaran (right) visits the chimpanzee enclosures with a caretaker during feeding time at the Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary. Founder and director Bala Amarasekaran greets a chimpanzee inside his enclosure. An aerial view of houses encroaching next to the Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary. An aerial view of houses encroaching next to the Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary. Freetown threatened The dangers of deforestation extend well beyond chimpanzees, however, and also threaten humans, particularly those in Freetown whose water supply is controlled by the Guma Dam, located inside WAP-NP. The enormous structure sits about six kilometres south of the chimpanzee sanctuary and is surrounded by a green, old-growth tropical rainforest. In the valley below the dam, urbanization is highly visible. The sprawl causes runoff which contains extra silt and sediment that collects in the dam's reservoir and creates sanitation issues, especially in the long rainy season. 'This settlement did not exist three years ago,' Maada Kpenge, managing director of the Guma Valley Water Company, told AFP. But 'every year a few houses get added to it' he said, stating that the squatting residents claim to own the land legitimately. 'Every year we lose thousands of hectares of the forest,' he said, adding that in 10 or 15 years' time there will be hardly any forest left. Without the trees to help regulate the water cycle and capture and retain water, the dam's level will additionally drop drastically. Under such circumstances, 'living in Freetown would be a challenge, almost impossible,' Kpenge said. The government faults opaque and corrupt land allocation practices carried out in the past, while highlighting new, stricter laws on land ownership that it says are helping. But activists and experts say the new regulations are not being adequately enforced. Ranger patrol AFP was able to follow a team of underequipped rangers who are attempting to enforce the rules and keep deforestation at bay. 'We have so many challenges in the national park and so many (illegal) activities,' Alpha Mara, commander of the forest guards within the National Protected Area Authority (NPAA), told AFP. On the day AFP spoke with Mara, he and about 20 other rangers packed into one pickup truck to check on six sites located in the park and its buffer zone. Except for one man with a machete, the guards lacked weapons or protective gear to fend off traffickers and squatters. To tear down illicitly constructed structures or remove beams demarcating land that had been claimed illegally, the men used their bare hands. At one site, the ranger with a machete slashed the sheet metal of shacks. Suddenly, a terrified young woman emerged from one, holding a crying baby. The woman, Famata Turay, explained that her husband worked guarding the piece of land and was paid by a wealthy person living abroad who claimed it as his own. 'This is illegal construction,' ranger Ibrahim Kamara told her as he wrote up a report on the site. Turay said defiantly that she had been unaware. 'I feel bad because I don't have any other place to sleep,' she told AFP after the rangers left, sobbing as she looked at her half-destroyed shack. Institutional failure Because of deforestation, already extreme temperatures could become unbearable for the majority of residents in Freetown and the surrounding region, experts warn. Deforestation also exacerbates soil erosion, which is already dire during the country's rainy season, as evidenced by Africa's deadliest ever landslide, which struck in Freetown in 2017 and killed 1,141 people. Back at the Tacugama sanctuary, its founder Amarasekaran was appalled at what he saw as the government's institutional failure. If someone is breaking the law, 'there should be penalties, there should be prosecution (but) that is not happening,' he said. The orphan chimps often arrive malnourished and disabled. Some additionally suffer from gunshot or machete wounds while others were caught by poachers then kept as pets in villages. Even after orphans such as Esther and Rio are rehabilitated, they must still spend the rest of their lives living on the sanctuary's dozens of hectares of protected wilderness, alongside some 120 other chimps. The apes have made Tacugama the country's 'number one ecotourism destination', Amarasekaran said. 'You cannot be boasting about having a world-class sanctuary and we are still failing to protect it,' he said. - AFP
Zawya
3 days ago
- Business
- Zawya
In Uganda: procuring responsibly
Forests account for 11.5% of Uganda's land and are vital to the nation's ecosystem. They provide timber, food, fuel, and medicines for many Ugandans. However, this green heart of Africa is facing a serious challenge. In 2023 alone, Uganda lost 37.6 thousand hectares of its natural forests, according to Global Forest Watch. If this trend continues unchecked, it could lead to the disappearance of these essential natural forests in the coming decades, along with a wealth of irreplaceable biodiversity. The impact of deforestation is deeply felt by local communities that rely on forests for their daily needs. For instance, Bangazi Edward, a resident of Buwala village in Jinja District, Eastern Uganda, highlights the growing pressure on the land: 'We are having a problem with firewood because we have few trees, and the population is really big.' This situation underscores the urgent need for sustainable solutions. Bold government policy Fortunately, there is hope on the horizon. Uganda has recognized this danger and is taking action by enacting public policies and processes that promote sustainable public procurement. This strategic approach not only aims to preserve the environment but also enables the nation to meet its environmental and climate commitments. Uganda aspires to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 12, particularly Target 12.7, which encourages sustainable public procurement practices in alignment with national policies and priorities. Lawrence Semakula, Accountant General in the Ministry of Finance, Planning, and Economic Development said, 'we have developed a national action plan for sustainable procurement, which we are integrating into the government procurement cycle.' This plan is meant to strengthen the inclusion of sustainability as a core part of public procurement and reduce environmental impacts of public development projects. Responsible sourcing: a reality As the nation rises to meet these challenges, it seeks to ensure that procurement is responsible and paves the way for a sustainable future. One positive example of responsible procurement of wood for development in Uganda is Adrift Eco Lodge, an eco-conscious African lodge located near the Kalagala Falls on the Nile River in Eastern Uganda. Constructed using 70% FSC-certified timber sourced from the Busoga Forest Company (BFC), this eco-lodge demonstrates the possibilities of sustainable building practices. Leanne Haigh, Chief Executive Officer of Adrift, stated, 'For us, it was a no-brainer about how we were going to build this property; procuring FSC sustainable wood was just part of that process.' Scaling up sustainable sourcing in Uganda Annah Agasha, Deputy Director of FSC Africa, believes the sustainable sourcing example in Uganda can be scaled. "Adrift's use of certified timber from Green Resources to build their ecolodge is a significant milestone," she says. "It demonstrates how businesses can contribute to sustainability while enhancing their own credentials. We aim to support them in showcasing this responsibility to their customers." The Busoga Forestry Company Ltd. (BFC), a subsidiary of Green Resources AS, is dedicated to sustainable forest management and increasing the availability of responsibly sourced certified products in Uganda. In 2019 and 2020, BFC obtained the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Chain of Custody certificate and Forest Management Certificates, respectively. The FSC-FM certificate ensures responsible forest management, while the FSC-COC certificate guarantees the traceability of responsibly sourced wood and products from the forest to the consumer. Benefits of responsible sourcing BFC's impact goes beyond just responsible sourcing. With approximately 900 employees, primarily from local communities, the company supports over 16,000 individuals, fostering economic stability. Through social funding, BFC invests in essential infrastructure, including schools, clinics, and clean water solutions, significantly improving local living standards. Recognizing the importance of education, BFC offers bursary programs and training opportunities that empower individuals and promote community development. Furthermore, BFC champions gender equality, with 32% of its workforce being women in various roles from middle management to equipment operators. David Kiyingi Nyimbwa, Commissioner of the Procurement Policy and Management Department at the Ministry of Finance, Planning, and Economic Development, believes that FSC certification can promote legal forestry and strengthen the registration of sustainable forestry companies. 'With FSC, we believe we can work together to promote legal forests and help in the registration of potential and actual [sustainability wood product] providers,' says David Kiyingi Nyimbwa. The advantages of responsible forestry extend beyond environmental benefits and lead to positive changes in the lives of local people. Uganda's economic development is greatly reliant on forests, and there is promise. By carefully considering each procurement decision, making responsible choices, and sourcing wisely for development projects, Uganda can secure a sustainable future. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Forest Stewardship Council. Media contacts: Frida Salim Market Development and Communication Specialist-East Africa FSC Africa Regional Office Nairobi, Kenya East Africa Israel Bionyi Senior Regional Communications Manager FSC Africa FSC Africa T: +49 (0) 228 367 66 0 F: +49 (0) 228 367 66 65 About FSC: The Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC®) is a nonprofit organization governed by environmental, social, and economic perspectives equally – covers more than 150 million hectares of certified forests and is the global benchmark for sustainable forestry. NGOs, consumers, and businesses alike trust FSC to protect and enhance healthy and resilient forests, for all, forever.
Time of India
08-06-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
City residents protest translocation of trees
Guwahati: Civil society activists and concerned citizens on Sunday gathered to voice their objection against the govt's recent translocation of trees from the Ambari area, undertaken for an upcoming flyover project valued at over Rs 800 crore and spanning from Noonmati to Ambari. Residents claim the govt has not only disregarded public sentiment and environmental responsibility, but has also gone back on their earlier commitments made to the Gauhati high court in affidavits. Noted littérateur Hiren Gohain, present at the protest, criticised the govt, questioning both the unscientific methods employed and the overall rationale and feasibility of the flyover project. Prominent scientist and writer Dinesh Chandra Goswami said, "Tree translocation must be carried out with utmost care, but in this case, the govt has displayed a reckless disregard for both the trees and its citizens. The conditions in which the trees are kept in is truly saddening, and this reduces their chance of survivability." Social scientist Apurba Kumar Baruah and historian Manorama Sharma cited studies from Dehradun's Forest Research Institute (FRI), indicating that tree translocation in India has a low survival rate of approximately 10%. Figures from Global Forest Watch, an online platform, show that Assam lost over 18,000 hectares of natural forest last year, significantly above the national average.
Fast Company
05-06-2025
- Climate
- Fast Company
Canada's wildfire season is off to a destructive start. This satellite data shows just how bad
While images of wildfires capture their ferocity, data can provide insight into how bad a fire season is. Such is the case with two graphics, powered by satellite data, that showcase a Canadian wildfire season off to a wild—and scary—start. Twice a day a NASA satellite sends images to the ground, giving a real-time view of where fires are burning. This is especially useful for remote areas where no sensors are stationed. As of Tuesday that satellite had picked up four times as many fire hot spots across Canada than is typical for early June. That's more than any year since the satellite began transmitting in 2012, except 2023, according to data from Global Forest Watch. Though the satellite has recorded thousands of hot spots so far this year, that does not mean there are actually that many active fires. Each hot spot could be detected repeatedly over the course of days. And because each detection is about the size of 26 football fields, it can represent part of a much larger blaze, said James MacCarthy, wildfire research manager at Global Forest Watch. Based on data from the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre, about 200 fires are actively burning in Canada and have consumed about 7,700 square miles (19,900 square kilometers) of terrain, most of it in the last week. Only 2023 saw such high numbers so early in Canada's fire season, which runs from April through October. That year wildfires burned a record 67,000 square miles—more than twice the surface area of Lake Superior, the largest of the Great Lakes. Taken together, the hot spots and acres burned mean 2025 is the second-worst start to the season in years. 'A warm and dry finish to May and early June has created a significant fire season,' said Liam Buchart, a fire weather specialist with the Canadian Forest Service. The weather conditions are made more likely by climate change and encourage wildfires to start. That means even though 90% of wildfires in Manitoba this year have been human-caused, according to the provincial government, climate change helps enable their spread. 'Climate change is creating the conditions that make it more likely that human-caused fires are going to spread, or even start,' MacCarthy said. 'It might be a human starting it, but it's going to spread quickly because now there's hot and dry conditions that are occurring more frequently and more intensely than they have in the past.' The hot and dry weather is likely to to continue for at least the next week across Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta, according to Natural Resources Canada. The agency's forecasts also call for 'a warmer and drier than normal July and August for large portions of Canada,' Buchart said. 'The remainder of the fire season looks to remain above normal, especially over the northern prairie provinces and southern British Columbia,' he said.
