Nigeria’s forests… going, going and going

From north to west and all across the country charcoal production and selling is the order of the day. Many logs are felled in droves for the production of charcoal in commercial quantity but none is planted in replacement. SINA FADARE who visited some of the villages report that danger is looming as forests are becoming empty and vegetation are getting thinner.

SEEDU Mohammed graduated from Ahmadu Bello University a few years ago. After roaming the streets for some years and repeated visits to Lagos for a job opportunity proved abortive, he was introduced to production of charcoal business in his village at Ilesha Baruba, Kwara State. With the little amount of money he was able to gather from relations, he reluctantly went into charcoal production. Today Mohammed’s story has changed; he was able to get married, secure a good accommodation and employ about 10 people in the chain of his charcoal business.

Today, he searches all the nooks and crannies of the villages in his surrounding and even goes as far as Niger State to procure charcoal directly from the producers and resell it to those who will use it for domestic purpose or take it to Lagos for exportation to Europe and other countries.

According to him, there is no turning back as the business is taking care of his bills, pays his workers and takes care of his younger siblings. “I cannot go back to Lagos again for any job, if I call my customer now that charcoal is available, within 48 hours trailers will arrive this village and I will dispatch it to Lagos or anywhere in the country, I will only receive alert on my phone,” he boasted.

To Ibrahim Sakariyahu, production of charcoal recently became his source of livelihood when he saw that within a year all his colleagues were no longer following  their father’s  cow to the bush yet they are  buying new motor cycles from the proceeds of charcoal production, he too gave it a trial and ever since then there is no looking back.

Sakariyahu, who spoke to The Nation in his village, Eji Dogari in Mooro Local Government area of Kwara State, said he has to combine farming with coal production because as soon as he produced the charcoal, there is a readymade market on the spot.

According to him, a sizable buried tree which eventually turns to charcoal will fetch him about 13 bags of charcoal which he is going to sell between N1,000  to N1,200  per bag adding that the availability of the  tree always depend   on the number of a bag of charcoal that can be produced at a particular time.

However, it was gathered that all those that are producing and exporting charcoal failed to plant another tree a situation that has created the depletion of the forest. Virtually all the villages visited are faced with this similar crisis.

Crux of the matter

In droves, logs are cut virtually in all the forests visited but there was no concrete plan for replacement The harmonious relationships between the people and the plants whereby the people of a particular culture use plants to cure many inherent diseases and for other natural benefits have been defeated. Presently, the relationships have turned to destruction of many forests and endangering of many species of trees. Thus many forests have been turned to mere woodlands.

The Nation investigation revealed that in the process of production of charcoal in commercial quantity, a lot of varieties of trees are fast disappearing from the forests. In  Kwara, Niger, Oyo and Benue states some of the trees used for charcoal production includes Aayan tree (Distemonanthus Benthamianus), Igba tree (Pakia biglobosa) and Iroko tree (Milicea Excelsa).

It was also gathered that there are other species of trees used for this purpose in the country. These include prosobis africana, trichilia emetica, anogeissus leiocarpus, danielia oliveri, khaya senegalensis, tectonia grandis, milicia excelsa and vitellaria paradoxa which are popular and most frequently used among the inhabitants as fuel woods.

However, the sad story is that most of these trees are not replaced and the states involved have done nothing to plant replacements. More worrisome was the facts that most of the producers of this charcoal are ignorant about the need to plant a replacement. For instance, Mohammed Karim who has been in the business for over a decade confessed that forests will always duplicate itself likewise the trees!

Karim while agreeing that the trees are  no longer in the forest as of the old, explained that the Kwara State government had often told them that if they cut one, five should be planted in replacement. He asked incredulously, “Where are we going to get the one we are going to plant?”

He explained that the recent effort in the area was by one of the exporters who came with about a thousand tree seedlings that were planted at a village called Tumbuyan via Ilesha Baruba in a dedicated forest. “Aside this, there was nothing from the state government apart from the radio jingle that if a tree is cut, five should be planted.”

Karim regretted that both the producers and exporters of charcoal paid about four different levies to the state, the local government and the forest guides, which they claimed was revenue to the government before charcoal could be transported from any of the villages. “Why can’t the government plough this money back to replace the fell trees? The recent one planted here few months ago by a business man, the whole community felt the impact as a lot of farmers were engaged to do the planting and were paid. If this type of action is continuous then we can regain the lost forest.”

The Nation gathered that myriads of reasons have been advanced as the cause of deforestation. Some of these are subsistence and commercial agriculture, fuel wood and biomass harvesting, logging and mining, as well as charcoal production. Of all these reasons however, charcoal production seems outstanding in terms of rural sustainable livelihood, diversification and exportation.

It was also discovered that these charcoal producers are migrant farmers, comprising mostly Tiv, Bassa, Zuru, Dukawa and Hausa who were into charcoal production as diversified means of rural livelihood. Although, this was previously a coping strategy it has turned to secondary occupation and virtually everybody in most of the villages visited are doing the business.

Danger looms

According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) research, between 2000 and 2005 the country lost 55.7 per cent of its primary forests and the rate of forest change increased by 31.2 per cent to 3.12 per cent per annum. The study also stated that from 1990 to 2010, Nigeria nearly halved its amount of forest cover, moving from 17,234 to 9041 hectares, with the combination of extremely high deforestation rates, increasing temperatures and decreasing rainfall. This contributed to the country’s desertification, with the carbon emissions from deforestation said to account for 87 per cent of the total carbon emissions of the country.

Speaking in his office  in Ibadan, Oyo State, the Chief Executive Officer of Forest Research Institute of Nigeria (FRIN) Dr. Adeshina Adepoju pointed out that deforestation is a serious problem confronting the country at this critical period.

According to him “The problem is complicated because the federal government owns the policy and the machinery to enforce the law, but the States owns the forest. The state also see logging as a form of revenue generation and there is danger of losing some species of logs  which are in the category two list of the scientist which has species like Terocapor and Ventileria which are best suitable for charcoal. These are already in danger. Some states are collecting revenue for people to explore it.”

The researcher explained that the North Central of the country is where the best species suitable for coal are grown; adding that if the State governments are collecting huge revenue from charcoal producers and exporters, why can’t they plough the revenue back to replace the fell trees?

He lamented that a great danger is looming. “That is why we are having multiple flooding in the country. Once there is no grass cover, you have a free run off, it will lead to flood. The more tree cover you have, the better, water will not run the same speed on bare ground and on grass. Once there is forest cover, the water will slow down because some will percolate into the root, little will be left to run on the ground.  So it cannot form the huge volume of flood, but the more bare ground you have, the more flooding.”

Adepoju pointed out that all hopes are not totally lost as the forest can still be restored if all hands are on deck to do so. “We recently had a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with some states like Kogi, Edo, Benue, Kaduna, Niger and Plateau. We are collaborating with them. Kogi State has planted about 20 hectares of tree this year. Planting ought to be nurtured for three years before one could be sure about its survival. There is what we call beaten up, the gap between the planting that do not survive, we close the gap in the first two years and make sure that all survived. Planting is not just dig the ground and walk away, no; it is not done that way. Nurturing is more expensive than the actual planting.”

He explained that “Within three years of planting, the tree has not formed any canopy therefore you can plant your crop in between and weed them along the tree. Those people engaged in the weeding are still going to be paid by government and you still harvest your crop, so it is a win, win case. It is a project that has to be done meticulously and diligently, the state must have a comprehensive programme to do that. There should be a task force directly linked up with the governor’s office which will monitor and holistically carry out all agreed upon to the letter. If you saddle it with the ministry of the state, it has a limited fund.”

Speaking in the same vein, an environmentalist Nnimmo Bassey stated that over 30 per cent of Nigeria’s forest cover has been lost in just the last two decades, noting that there are a lot of pressures on the country’s forests and a number of factors contribute to the decline of the forests. For him, they could be traced to socio-economic as well as political situations.

“We have been running a highly extractives economic system for decades now and this has basically meant exploiting nature’s resources for sale in the local as well as export markets. Logging has had a free reign.

“Forests have been depleted because we live for the day and have given very little thought to the future. Our trees have been treated the same way we have treated the so-called excess crude revenue, or even worse. Our forest resources have been damaged by reckless exploitation.

Policy somersault

According to a forest scientist at FRIN, Ibadan Dr. Oladapo Akinyemi, trees are essential to human existence as they provide food, shelter, remedy for ill health and source of energy and also help to prevent desert encroachment, therefore it should be adequately protected.

However, government’s policy inaction and half-measures sometimes lead to ineffectiveness. For instance, the federal government in 2016 suddenly declared a ban on exportation of charcoal via a circular without informing all the stakeholders. The Custom department that would see to its full implementation, was cut napping thus the law was ineffective.

Equally shocked about this decision, the Chief Executive Officer of Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), Mr. Olusegun Awolowo, disclosed that he was equally informed of government’s decision through a circular to his office.

According to him, the new directive had thrown exporters of charcoal into confusion as some of them had existing agreements with their partners abroad. He said government must explain the reason for the move, adding   “How can the government ban charcoal when people have been processing it? They did not even carry exporters along.”

However, while speaking on phone about the latest on the issue, Awolowo explained that everything that has to do with the importation of charcoal is the exclusive right of the Federal Ministry of Environment adding that the council only make sure that the right thing is done while exporting any goods from the country  be it charcoal or others.

In Kwara State, there was a law according to the Commissioner of Environment Otunba  Taiwo Joseph, banning the production of charcoal in the state, yet the same State government was collecting revenues and levies on producers and  exporters of charcoal!

More worrisome was the law that if charcoal farmer cuts a tree, five should be re planted. But the same government did not have any concrete plan for such replacement.

In addition the state said production of charcoal is illegal, but the government is generating revenue from loggings and exporters of charcoal through its agencies.

Given credence to this statement, a charcoal exporter and the Managing Director, Anamelo Forest Concession Limited, Mr. Edward Ayeni said that a lot of levies are paid to the state before he could take his coal consignment to Lagos. “If there is a law that charcoal is banned in any of these states why are they collecting various levies with receipts issued in government’s name?  Take for instance, a container will pay about N25,000 after loading before it could be allowed to leave the state. This is different from other levies from the policy and others on the road.”

Ayeni pointed out that “The state should not play the role of an ostrich, they should harmonise all the members of the association and identify them, let them have a forest, get it certified and operate within the guided law, therefore make it a legal business not just swooping on a loaded trailer of charcoal and pretend that all is well. The supply chain for the local consumptions cannot be curtailed.”

He argued that “It is high time the government see it as a business otherwise they will create more hunger in the land. The dealers, middle men, the transporters, the mechanic that fix their vehicles, the custom collects huge amount of money therefore banning will compound the problem.”

If the system is not harmonized like other countries that have licensed forest where things could be monitored and controlled. This will give room to plant more trees where deforestation could be arrested.

He argued that the government was not sincere in most of her pronouncement noting that only 30 per cent of the total productions of charcoal are exported while the remaining 70 per cent are consumed locally. “How can any government discourage the production when there was no serious alternative for rural dwellers that relied on charcoal for their domestic use?”

The frustration

Putting the record straight and shedding more light on the purported ban on the importation of charcoal in the country, the President of Association of Charcoal Exporters in Nigeria,  Mr. Lere Fagbola, explained that the ban has been lifted adding that  charcoal exporters were frustrated from all fronts by the government  who virtually milked them before consignment are exported.

According to him, “we paid various levies to government purse at the procurement point, at the port, the Customs Service and  even money for planting of trees which at the end was not usually plough back to the forest, yet the same government accuse the exporters of not planting in the forest.”

He regretted that the association could not attract good investors because of the fear of inconsistent government policy, “a situation that made some of the big time investors go to countries like South Africa, Ghana, Brazil, Congo and Malawi to invest in forestry.”

He explained that exporters of charcoal are facing a lot of challenges particularly on the issue of forest certification; the charcoal produced in such a forest   can only be marketable in Europe. “Therefore all hands are on deck to meet up with this standard, but the government is not helping the matter at all because of inconsistent policy.”

He explained that the association has acquired about 10,000 hectares of land in Ora village in Ifelodun area of Kwara State where about 5,000 hectares has been planted with Euclatus trees, adding that this will be a continuous exercise in order to arrest the serious crisis of deforestation.” We have acquired another area in Oke Ogun area of Oyo State where similar things done in Ora will be replicated. This will be our own contribution to save our forest from deforestation.”

Coal briquette to the rescue

In order to salvage the forest from total desertification, Dr. Akinyemi said coal briquette is a good alternative if it is well exploited.  According to him, it has universal advantages if a special stove can be designed for the sole purpose of the coal briquette.

Shedding more light on the sustainability of  coal briquettes, Mr. Adegoke Idowu a wood expert at FRIN noted that coal briquettes are made from saw dust and a good alternative to charcoal from fire wood.

“Whenever logs are cut into desired sizes, the remnants in form of dust that are disposed anyhow could be used for coal briquette after processing and can be used with a specially designed stove. This is environmentally friendly, cheaper and a source of better energy than charcoal from the wood”

Idowu explained that if government is very serious about deforestation, coal briquette should be well funded and made available to the people especially in the rural areas where it is needed mostly. “It can be exported to all neigbouring countries if investors are encouraged to venture into the business in a commercial quantity. This will discourage drastically the usage of charcoal and the demand will fall abysmally therefore the forest will be restored back gradually.”

To Adepoju, coal briquette is a laudable ideal but all hands must be on deck to make it work. “We are still back to same spot, if there is no concerted and deliberate step to fund the project, it cannot work out. There are better ways of using coal briquette; in fact a small one can cook for the family a day if it is put in a stove. We should just get our priority right and put attention to where it should be put. If flood is reoccurring for 10 years and we start planting of trees this year in the next ten years the flood will be disappearing gradually the way it came.”

Thinking along same line, Fagbola pointed out that coal briquette could have been the best alternative, but he regretted that it is extremely difficult to convince the people to key into such a technology. “From my own experience, I made some coal briquette prototype with the hope of duplicating it commercially, but unfortunately I met a brick wall at the marketing level. Government must be able to do a lot of advocacy and aggressive enlightenment programme to convince the people that coal briquette is better and cheaper.”

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