Tilli (U/E), March 1, GNA – The Tilli Forest Reserve in the Bawku West District of the Upper East Region is under threat of wildfire devastation, which is causing destruction to some tree species.
Vegetation cover and some economic trees including shea, dawadawa and baobab have all been destroyed by wildfires, thereby affecting the ecosystem of the area.
Checks by the Ghana News Agency (GNA) revealed that apart from the wildfires destroying the forest reserve’s corridor, which could be developed into tourist site, some of the trees have illegally been logged leaving the stumps.
Aside serving as habitat for birds and animals such as monkeys, rabbits and deer, the Tilli Forest Reserve also provides protection to the Red Volta and conducive climatic condition for agriculture purposes.
It also facilitates the seasonal movement of wildlife from neighbouring Burkina Faso and Niger.
Mr Emmanuel Omane, the Manager of the Bawku Forest District, Forestry Commission, in an interview with the GNA, said the phenomenon was adversely affecting the fertility of the soil and contributing to the impact of climate change.
Describing the situation as a “yearly ritual,” Mr Omane noted that although the trees were drought tolerant and had survived fire over the years, they were under serious threat as the annual fires were getting too much.
“When the trees burn out eventually, not all of them are able to survive when the rains start and this is affecting the entire ecosystem,” he added.
The District Manager stated that apart from overgrazing and long drought which affected the survival of the 20,000 trees planted last year under the Green Ghana Initiative, wildfire was one of the major challenges that the Commission encountered.
He said about 40 per cent of the trees survived.
As part of measures to curtail the problem, Mr Omane explained that community fire volunteers had been formed to assist the Forestry Commission to combat wildfires but lack of incentives had made them dysfunctional.
He said the Commission planned to incorporate economic trees into the project to make the residents appreciate the initiative and support to protect the trees to restore the degraded lands.
“With regard to overgrazing, we are planning to fence the young trees and plant side marching species such as dawadawa, shea and other thick trees to address the long drought and wildfire issues,” he added.
GNA