The main focus of BIOCARBON IMPERATIVES-AFRICA’s activities is the rural communities and the youth whose activities directly or indirectly impact the natural ecosystems. Consultations would be made with other stakeholders like the donors, researchers, government officials, community leaders and like-minded persons in the implementation of the various projects.
BIOCARBON IMPERATIVE-AFRICA is dealing with several projects directed at environmental conservation and welcomes individuals, institutions or groups of persons willing to partner with her in achieving this goal.
OPERATION GOT-OWAGA (in collaboraton with Bioforest Onlus – Italy)
Operation Got Owaga is a new private reforestation efforts located some 70 kilometres from Kisumu City at the head of the Winam Gulf of Lake Victoria. The project was recently launched following the Award of the Gambrinus Giusseppe Mazzoti Prize to Professor Richard Samson Odingo of the University of Nairobi, Kenya. Apart from an Honorary Doctorate of Letters(LLD), and a plaque, there was some small money attached to the Prize which was provided by Bioforest Organisation of Treviso, Italy, to pay for a small afforestation Project in Kenya. In honour of the award, Professor Odingo has set aside one hectare of land at Koru-Fort Ternan to initiate the reforestation project. This Report, is the first official communication concerning the Operation Got Owaga. Now it can be said that the rains are here, and the forecast for the season is for more rain in the next two months.
Climate Background
The last two years in Kenya were some of the driest on record, and discouraging for tree planting. However, towards the end of last year conditions began to improve with the return of the rains, which were still erratic until a few weeks ago. Now it can be said that the rains are here, and the seasonal forecast is for more, and very heavy rainfall in the afforestation site. Under normal conditions the Operation Got Owaga site suffers from good but erratic rainfall, but the ground conditions are now perfect for tree planting. In response we started serious preparations of the site between January and February 2010 with most of the planting being carried out in March.
Fencing of the Site
After setting aside the land for the project, the next most urgent work involved fencing off the site to prevent the destruction of new seedlings by stray cattle and goats, which are found near the site in large numbers. The truth of the matter is that any unfenced land is always interfered with by neighbours who own a lot of cattle and goats, and who regard any unfenced land as open for grazing. Once our site was fenced off we were assured of some privacy to carry out our tasks.
Providing Security for the Site
To prevent trespassing on the reforestation area we felt that it was necessary to employ a watchman to take care of the project site, and the young saplings, and to take care of them from theft, or damage. This step necessitated the construction of a small “banda” (house) on the site for the watchman. Unfortunately this did not prevent the loss of seedlings from wild antelopes, and rabbits which abound the area in plenty. The antelopes apparently showed a liking for the Whistling Pine (Pinus equestifolia),seedlings which were some of the first seedlings we planted. But the decision to spend money on the little hut has paid dividends by reducing the loss of seedlings already plated to a minimum.
The Tree Planting Programme
It is important to mention the fact that when we started planting tree seedlings, we had to make a quick decision on what to do with the existing indigenous vegetation, including mature trees, which had taken years to grow. These included various species of Acacia, Combretum spp, Terminalia brownii, Ficus spp, Vitex Spp, which are all beautiful trees traditionally protected. Others included Euclea divinorum, Croton megalocarpus, and many others which had grown well and established themselves, but also gave a forest appearance. Adjacent to our site, on a neighbouring hill to the west is a remnant forest, which though much disturbed by charcoal burners still presents a wholeness, and an indication of what the natural forest in the locality should look like at 1500 metres and above sea level. Consequently a decision was made to keep the existing trees.
Finding Seedlings
The next issue was where to find suitable seedlings to plant in close proximity to the remnant forest, and the indigenous trees. Unfortunately, at one or two incipient nurseries close by , there were few suitable seedlings, especially of indigenous tree species. Pragmatically we decided to mix largely indigenous seedlings with some exotics which have come to be accepted in these parts of Kenya though we decided to exclude the Eucalypts.
Below is a list of some of the tree species which we were able to obtain from tree nurseries in Kisumu, and Maseno, 70-100km from our site. The problem is that indigenous tree species are slow growing, and will need more than 15 years before they mature. The selection used includes:
Cordia ovalis (Oseno)
Markhemia platycalyx (Siala)
Croton spp (onera)
Ficus spp (Ng’owo)
Bischopia spp
Cliricidia spp
Trichilia spp
Terminalia brownii (Keyo)
Grevillea robusta
Pinus equestifolia
Maesopsis eminii
Camel Tree
Bap kulo
Mutere
Flamboyant tree
The need for a Tree Nursery
One of the outcomes of the recent tree planting is the need for our own nursery. This will depend on more funds being available, and the aim is to target the next major planting season (i.e. After April-May this year 2010). So far we have on the ground some 3000 seedlings planted. We hope that the survival rate will be around &0 percent.
Community Tree Planting
When we came to the field we found that recently, the Government of Kenya has promulgated a new policy for each farmer to plant trees in at least 10 percent of their land. The programme has just started, and cheap seedlings are difficult to com by. To assist we decided to adopt a women group with 25 members for tree planting. We undertake to provide each of them with at least 50 seedlings each. This is intended to encourage a culture of afforestation. A start has been made, but we cannot go very far because of the high cost of seedlings bought at Kisumu and beyond.
THREATS TO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY LINKED TO GLOBAL WARMING IN THE 21ST CENTURY; OBSERVATIONS ON THE ECONOMIC RELATIONS BETWEEN EUROPE AND AFRICA
By Professor Richard Samson Odingo, Professor Of Geography, University Of Nairobi, Kenya Nobel Laureate, And Past Vice President Of The Intergovernmental Panel On Climate Change (IPCC)
ABSTRACT
Recent scientific findings by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) have revealed climate change threats to continued global sustainable economic development. It is quite clear that added to the recent economic instability experienced by most nations in the world, the course of development during the 21st century will not be smooth unless urgent attention is paid to the warning signs which have appeared on the horizon, and which demand to be addressed. In 2007 the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate change (IPCC) concluded that “global warming is unequivocal”, and this means that all the nations of the world should prepare themselves for the consequences, depending on the vulnerability of their economies to the expected impacts which go along with climate change. From the very word go climate change marked by anthropogenically caused global warming will disrupt most efforts to achieve sustainable economic development.
Climate change brought about by global warming which is expected to intensify in the next 50-100 years, unless checked by the whole of the human race, is likely to be accompanied by undesirable disasters such as drought and floods, disruptions to agricultural production, disruptions to health, particularly in the developing countries of the world, death from heat waves, water stress in many arid and semi-arid lands, sea level rise which will threaten to completely inundate some low lying developing countries such as the Maldives, as well as numerous coastal settlements and river deltas around the globe.
No country will be immune from the ravages of climate change, although there is evidence that in the long term some high latitude countries stand to benefit from a warmer climate, but they will also have to put up with the consequences of ice and snow melt in the Arctic, as well as widespread ice melt on high mountains in the Northern Hemisphere. Climate change benefits will accrue to those who choose to pursue a low carbon economy, accompanied by the development of climate friendly technologies with new products, that produce less emissions of Greenhouse case, and thus have a lower carbon foot-print.
It is quite clear that added to the climate change related disruptions to the global economy, most nations will have to put up with other natural disasters, which will equally destabilize their economies. The message is clear. We need to pay adequate attention to environmental issues which impact the global economy, and to respond appropriately, and in a timely manner before irreparable damage is inflicted on the global economy. The nations of the world will have a chance to demonstrate their fore-sightedness when they meet in Copenhagen in December during COP 15, when they have to address the new architecture required to keep climate change in check after 2012, when the Kyoto Protocol expires. Failure to reach an agreement in Copenhagen will definitely damage the global economy. Judging from the way the Group of 20 leading nations in the world responded to the global economic down-turn, it is disappointing that they have failed to approach the threat posed by climate change with the same vigour. By agreement right from 1992 developed countries undertook to reduce their share of global emissions of Green house gases to save the planet for humankind. Whether or not they do this remains to be seen.
This is equally true of the relationships between Europe and Africa. Africa has been declared the most vulnerable continent to climate change, and Europe will experience Africa’s problem as the burden of environmental refugees intensifies. Most nations in Southern Europe such as Italy will need to find ways to handle the climate linked African problems whether they like it or not. European nations have always preyed on Africa as their source of raw materials for their own economic development. They have to take part of the blame for the mistakes made during the colonial past. Even today the giant lumbering companies responsible for massive deforestation in Equatorial Africa are from Europe. European Mining companies are also responsible for environmental degradation in Africa. It would therefore be logical to expect Europe to assist Africa deal with the ravages likely to be inflicted by climate change, and environmental degradation. If Europe truly had a conscience, they would have considered a Marshall Plan to lift Africa from its developmental problematique. Africa also needs assistance to get a proper handle on renewable energy. But it is surprising that Europe is looking at the Sahara Desert as a source of solar energy for itself rather than for Africa! There is much scope for European-African debate on how to co-exist with minimum friction in the face of a rapidly changing climate.
