CONSERVATIONS NIGERIA

Tag: Deforestation

  • New study presents how to curb future pandemics by preventing deforestation, wildlife trade

    New study presents how to curb future pandemics by preventing deforestation, wildlife trade

    A recently published study in the journal Science has concluded that investing $22-$31 billion in curbing habitat loss, deforestation and wildlife trade; monitoring and controlling disease emergence would dramatically reduce the risk of another pandemic. That represents just 2% of the total cost — $10-$20 trillion — inflicted on the global economy by the COVID-19 pandemic.

    The study, authored by Andrew Dobson of Princeton University, Stuart Pimm of Duke University and Les Kaufman of Boston University, warns that novel diseases are increasingly common and that a global pandemic risk response must be among the economic priorities after the pandemic. The authors note that two new viruses spill over from wildlife to people every year, and that these spillover events occur most frequently in tropical forest areas where deforestation, wildlife trade and habitat degradation are highest.

    Read also: Academics, NESREA, EHORECON, parks service, unite against air pollution in Nigeria

    “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, and we have to invest in conserving nature if we want to make COVID-19 the last pandemic,” said Tanya Sanerib, international legal director at the Center for Biological Diversity. “Spending billions on conservation and prevention makes sense when you consider the economic devastation wracking the globe right now. If we don’t devote resources, we’re playing Russian roulette with nature, and nature always wins.”

    Existing zoonotic diseases from wildlife and livestock already kill 2.7 million people each year. While many of these diseases are known and not highly transmissible, emerging and novel zoonotic diseases now arise at predictable intervals due to the exploitation of wildlife and nature around the world.

    In May the Center for Biological Diversity and NRDC released an action plan to stop future pandemics. The plan called for $10 billion per year in spending by the U.S. government to address wildlife trade and help people transition to new livelihoods, combat habitat loss and fragmentation, and reduce disease risk.

    To date the U.S. Congress has not allocated any additional resources to address habitat loss, deforestation or wildlife trade activities that are the root cause of the COVID-19 pandemic.

    “The current pandemic is a symptom of the larger extinction crisis that’s also driven primarily by wildlife exploitation and habitat loss,” said Sanerib. “Unless we transform our unhealthy relationship with wildlife and nature, we put at risk not only our own health but the health and well-being of our planet.”

  • Gombe losing 600m of land to desert encroachment annually, says GGP

    Gombe losing 600m of land to desert encroachment annually, says GGP

    The Gombe State Greener Project (GGP) has called for urgent action as the the rate of desert encroachment in the state hits 600 metres per annum.

    Acting Coordinator of GGP, Muhammad Tasiu made the call recently, warning that the phenomenon is degrading lands in the northern parts of the state.

    He noted that the menace prompted the establishment of the GGP, which is aimed at planting one million trees every year.

    “Our target is to plant four million trees in four years of this administration,” Taisu said.

    He explained the project is a mechanism the state government is putting in place to arrest the menace, which has claimed over 12 kilometres of land across the state in the last two decayed.

    “The environmental challenges in Gombe State is not limited to desertification. We are also prone to erosion problem, especially in the Gombe metropolis where we have severe gully erosion, the planting of more trees could also arrest the situation,” the Acting coordinator said.

    He added that about 11 non-governmental organisations had been engaged for the smooth running of the GGP which is in four sections.

    “The first component of the project is to plant trees in residential areas and in public places as well as in schools and to sensitise residents on the need and benefit of tree planting. It will also encourage planting of trees in our places of worship,” he pointed out.

    He noted that the project has creation of shelter belt in four local government areas in the northern part of the state.

    “We are working on the modalities of establishing the shelter belt which would arrest the issue of desert encroachment in the north,” he said.

    On the sustainability of the trees when planted, Muhammad explained that the project had entered into agreement with the Youth Empowerment and Social Support Operation (YESSO).

    ‘‘YESSO, a World Bank-assisted project in Gombe State will employ 27,000 youths that will watch over the trees and make sure they survive and grow. They will be paid N7, 500 every month’’ he said.

    He said another dimension of the project is how to address the issue indiscriminate felling of trees in the state.

    He lamented that on average, about 1000 trees are felled by firewood sellers’ everyday in Gombe State “and they don’t plant any tree. That is also a major challenge that the government want to look into.”

    The government official said the project would be flagged off by Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya within the second week of August and those sites for the pilot project have been identified.

  • Nigerians express concern over alarming deforestation rate

    Nigerians express concern over alarming deforestation rate

    Conservationists and environment experts in Nigeria think the rate of deforestation in the country calls for a state of emergency declaration. This reaction follows the revelation that the country loses between 450,000 and 600,000 hectares of forest to deforestation annually to rank among the countries with the highest rate of deforestation in the world.

    The National Coordinator, Nigeria Erosion and Watershed Management Project, Dr Salisu Dahiru, made the shocking revelation in Benin, while delivering the 10th Environmental Outreach Magazine public lecture Last week.

    In his talk tittled, “Managing land degradation in Nigeria; the challenges, action and remediation”, Dahiru noted that 24 billion tons of fertile soil are lost every year globally, while 7.3 million of hectares of forest are lost yearly globally.

    “Nigeria is said to be one of the countries with the highest deforestation rate in the world with about 450,000 to 600,000 hectares of forest lost annually,” he said.

    He identified population pressure, deforestation, bush burning, over grazing, agricultural depletion of soil nutrients through poor farming, inappropriate irrigation and indiscriminate mining as some the causes of land degradation in Nigeria.

    While saying that NEWMAP had succeeded in reclaiming some of the land lost to degradation, he noted that inconsistency in policies, inadequate budgetary allocation and unhealthy rivalry between environmental agencies were affecting management of degradation and deforestation in the country.

    Dahiru said policy execution as well as stakeholders’ cooperation was needed in managing land degradation.

    Reacting to the revelation on social media, Nigerians called for awareness and proper orientation of citizens on the matter so that individuals can know the roles they can play in preventing further loss.

    “Awareness and aggressive sensitization needed on the importance of conserving our forests, they must be,” Bashir Abayomi Ibrahim, tweeted.

    “The ministry of environment should do more especially in terms of awareness and enlightening the population,” UMHashim added.