Another Green Ghana activity is scheduled for June 9. We are excited that the annual event is being sustained in a manner which can lead to the reversal of the unacceptable degradation of our forest and savannah cover all things being equal.
The repercussions of the continuous loss of our fauna and flora can only be conjectured. With the realities of climate change dawning upon us and the rest of the world in an unprecedented manner, not greening is certainly not a preferred option.
When we lose our flora, our already challenged fauna also goes, the two intricately intertwined.
This year’s Green Ghana chapter is coming against the backdrop of alarm bells being chimed about the loss of native tree species in our forests and savannah cover.
This is not good news although we are not surprised about the trend.
For us, the organisation of the ‘Green Ghana’ activity, now an annual affair, should entail engagement with identified places of the loss of the native tree species and holding conversations with the locals about the unfolding loss.
Some locals might not have noticed the gradual loss of the species but educating them about the reality could have them sit up. This way they can contribute their quota towards the amelioration of the anomaly regardless of how minute their interventions are. Even getting to them to take note of the unfolding situation is a wonderful achievement.
In the forest areas where illegal mining activities have been cited as one of the factors responsible for the unwanted trend, more needs to be done to arrest the anomaly. We have all along concentrated on the effects of illegal mining activities on water bodies ignoring the fallouts on our flora. This picture too should be presented to the locals so they would better appreciate the reality and begin to do their bit to alter the trend.
The information churned out about the loss of native species is something which must attract the attention of policymakers who must devise better and effective means of reversing the trend.
Prof Paul Bosu, Director General of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research’s (CSIR) presentation on the near extinction of some local tree species and the perilous state of natural regeneration of our forests should not be taken lightly.
The foregone presents a real danger to the future of our forests and savannah, the consequences of which are far-reaching.
With no visible efforts at restoring harvested timber and other species, destroying the regenerative capacity of the soil in the forests is a blow, recovering from which is an obvious tall order.
We have been alerted. What next is sincere and effective action. As we look forward to another Green Ghana Day, let us reflect upon the foregone; all of us, policymakers and the citizenry, especially those directly impacted by the reckless management of our forests and savannah.