Impact of escalating wood demand and loadshedding on Zambia’s forest

By Winston Muleba JR

Presently, it’s a great concern that forests in many parts of the country are disappearing and the current wood demand already places huge pressure on Zambia’s forest.

In Zambia, demand for wood is increasing and analysis’s predicts it will triple by 2050. Where this wood will come from is a challenge. Consumption of wood by the end users and other industrial organization dubbed contractors is very high. Trade in forest products has increased significantly over the past 50 years, especially in processed wood products such as sawn timber, pulpwood, board, and wood-based panels.

And the amount of charcoal burning that people are engaging in due to the increased use of it in towns after Zambia Electricity Supply Corporation (ZESCO) implemented the use of pre-paid (e.g., “pay-as-you-go”) and subsequently loadshedding particularly around peak hours, has driven the multitudes straight into mounting pressure on Zambia’s forests.

In respect to loadshedding, state power utility company ZESCO Senior Manager for Marketing and Public Relations Bessie Banda recently announced that the company cut its generation capacity from the current 540MW to 305MW to avert a premature shutdown of the Kariba North Bank Power Station. Ms Banda added that water levels at Kariba had worsened.

Although Zambia has diversity of animal and tree population protected under an impressive network. Recent surveys have however, shown that tree depletion is one of the major series of environmental problems.

Out of the total land area of Zambia, approximately 752,614 km² is woodland and forest cover is about 600,000 km². Forest resource has however; shown a decrease in cover over the years such that current forest area would be in the range of 60 percent of the total land area (about 450,000 Km²). Data available on forest resource estimate is nonetheless scanty and varies from source to source. It is vital to indicate that out of the area covered by the forests, only approximately 15.3 percent are managed by the Forestry Department and the area under the management of the Forestry Department is divided into reserves classified as national or local forest reserves according to report of the Auditor General on forest monitoring in Zambia. Against this, Zambia is blessed with ‘over’ 480 protected forest areas; 180 national forests and 300 local forest reserves.

A report on “forest cover crisis in the sub-tropics: a case study from Zambia” indicate that forest provides a wide range of both wood and non-wood forest products utilized by the local and urban communities.

It is undisputed that forests in Zambia are important in supporting life especially in low-income communities both in urban and rural areas. A variety of wood and non-wood forest products are utilized by industries, rural households and urban households in various parts of the country. However, today the forests in the country have been made vulnerable to both man and natural induced disasters. The rate at which forest cover is being lost has increasingly become high such that if this trend is left unchecked time may trigger the complete loss of biodiversity embodied in the Zambian forests.

Some reports indicate that Zambia is regarded as one of the highly forested countries whose forests cover accounts for about 60 percent of the total land area. However, the local demand for wood is alarmingly high. According to recent data by the Centre for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), Zambia’s deforestation rate currently stands at between 250 to 300 thousand hectares of land per year and apparently above the aforementioned figures.

And research reveals that Zambia Forestry and Forest Industries Corporation (ZAFFICO) is faced with a challenge of meeting the rising demand of timber on the Zambian market. Timber demand has increased due to the boom in the construction industry. ZAFFICO is a parastatal company that was formed from the Industrial Plantations Division of the Zambia Forest Department with the help of a World Bank loan in 1982. Based heavily on plantations, ZAFFICO was established to help meet the increasing demand for timber in Zambia and to complement supplies from indigenous forests which were being overexploited. The company has the right of ownership and management of plantation trees grown and collaborate with the Forestry Department in management of these forest reserves on which Ichimpe, Ndola, Lamba, Shiwang’andu, Chati and Kawambwa plantations were established.

Reports indicate that Zambia's natural forests cannot sustainably meet the soaring local and international demand for wood products under current forest management practices. And globally, according to the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) while intensive production is essential to meet global demand and take pressure off of the world’s forests, there can be significant negative impacts of these plantations. Some have been created from the conversion of high conservation value natural forests, and some have resulted in significant social and environmental impacts.

In view of the rate at which the forest is being exploited, environmental experts have on several counts warned that Zambia’s forests risk becoming deserts in the next fifteen years going by the current rate of deforestation.

This report indicates that demand for wood and its impact on forests is a ubiquitous part of everyday life. Wood is used for building materials, furniture, paper and packaging and as an energy source as it were. However, the increased demand for wood in urban areas has increased pressure on the forest. This is evident on the Copperbelt in cities like the Ndola that has exerted pressure on the forest reserves close to the city. Much of the pressure is being accelerated by an increase in population without corresponding increase on material wealth i.e. poverty leading to unsustainable exploitation of forest/land resources for timber, wood fuel and other forest products.

Research reveals that only an estimated 25 percent of the country’s population is connected to electricity. This compounded by erratic power supply through loadshedding, forces even the most affluent communities to resort to charcoal as a source of energy.

Unfortunately, much of this wood is produced in ways that damage forests. Some of this damage comes in the form of outright deforestation, in which forests are completely cut down and replaced by farms or pastures and deforestation has potential to reduce rainfall over a wide region, even as it spurs increased rainfall in the immediate area where that deforestation took place. Deforestation is primarily a concern for the developing countries like Zambia. However, the definition of what is and what is not forest remains controversial. It can change the global change of energy not only through the micrometeorological processes but also by increasing the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere because carbon dioxide absorbs thermal infrared radiation in the atmosphere. One of the most important ramifications of deforestation is its effect on the global atmosphere.

Some research indicates that deforestation, and especially the destruction of rainforests, is a hugely significant contributor to climate change. Scientists estimate that forest loss and other changes to the use of land account for around 23% of current man-made CO₂ emissions – which equates to 17% of the 100-year warming impact of all current greenhouse-gas emissions.

As children are taught at school, trees and other plants absorb CO₂ from the air as they grow. Using energy from the sun, they turn the carbon captured from the CO₂ molecules into building blocks for their trunks, branches and foliage. This is all part of the carbon cycle.

A mature forest doesn't necessarily absorb much more CO₂ that it releases, however, because when each tree dies and either rots down or is burned; much of its stored carbon is released once again. In other words, in the context of climate change, the most important thing about mature forests is not that they reduce the amount of CO₂ in the air but that they are huge reservoirs of stored carbon. If such a forest is burned or cleared then much of that carbon is released back into the atmosphere, adding to atmospheric CO₂ levels.

Of course, the same process also works in reverse. If trees are planted where previously there weren't any, they will on soak up CO₂ as they grow, reducing the amount of greenhouse gas in the atmosphere. It is thought that trees, plants and other land-based "carbon sinks" currently soak up more than a quarter of all the CO₂ that humans add to the air each year – though that figure could change as the planet warms.

The struggle to save the Zambia’s rainforests and other forests continues and there is a growing worldwide concern about the issue. In order to save forests, there is need to know why they are being destroyed.

As it were, the Forest Department that is entrusted responsibility over forest resources has inadequate staff and funding to effectively perform their role of natural resource conservation. Forestry inspections to forest areas are therefore almost absent. The local people on the other hand are not also able to protect forest resources and watersheds largely due to lack of sensitization coupled with increasing levels of poverty in the local communities. The local forest dwellers have instead compromised the resources in their quest to survive. This has rendered them unsustainable.

Therefore, for the fact that demand for responsible forest products in Zambia and international trade, can provide enormous incentives for livelihood, the absence of appropriate environmental and social safeguards; forest management policies and responsible demand, trade has negatively impacted forest conservation. Cutting down of trees perhaps has led to an increased driving force behind the developments of draught occurrences for the past years especially in the low forest covered areas of Southern Zambia.

This report highlights that people engage in tree cutting activities for survival: to sustain their livelihoods. This suggests that there are several reasons that led Zambians to indiscriminately cutting down of trees: clearing of land for farming is one factor, but logging for timber and cutting trees for firewood and charcoal making rank top on the causes. In addition, lack of agriculture inputs (i.e. fertilizer) and losses of fertility has led people to cut more primary forests in order to produce enough food. Loss of jobs during the privatization era of the 90s caused many people to settle in forest-protected areas illegally leading to encroachments which levels are still high to date.

It is evident that forests in Zambia are being cut or destroyed without a clear knowledge of all the consequences and without a commitment to sustainable use. The loss of forests disturbs not only the local ecosystem, but has a ripple effect that could result in less rainfall hundreds of miles away.

Researches reveal that forests have a major impact on local weather systems and can also affect the amount of sunlight absorbed by the planet.

It has been discovered that cutting trees for timber purposes in Zambia could increase flooding mainly for two reasons. First, with a smaller ‘tree fountain’ effect, soils get to be fully saturated with water. The ‘sponge’ fills up earlier in wet season, causing additional precipitation to run off and increasing flood risk. Second, high rate of tree cutting often results in soil compaction unable to absorb rain. Locally, this causes a faster response of stream flows to rainfall and thus potential flash flooding.

The long term effect of escalating wood demand and loadshedding on the soil resource can be severe. Clearing the vegetative cover for slash and burn farming exposes the soil to the intensity of the tropical sun and torrential rains. Forest floors with their leaf litter and porous soils easily accommodate intense rainfall. The effects of cutting down trees for timber and charcoal production on water availability, flash floods and dry season flows depend on what happens to these countervailing influences of infiltration and evapotranspiration- the sponge versus the fountain.

A quick analysis of energy sources in Zambia reveals that about 90 percent of the population use charcoal related sources of energy, thereby making charcoal burning a lucrative business venture and major source of livelihood for many people. Surely, the ground is fertile for a thriving charcoal business. After all, for many rural households, earning a living from farming and selling firewood and charcoal are essential to survival.

It is evident that that there is need to maintain the sustainability of forests, key stakeholders are expected to perform their roles effectively. The Ministry responsible for forests, as the key player in forest management, is responsible for developing and implementing policies, regulations, and appropriate institutional framework for forest programmes and operations and is responsible for management of forest resources in the country.

Due to high wood demand, loadshedding among other factors that poses pressure on Zambia’s forests, the country is left with two possible futures: one in which demand for timber products is met in a sustainable way, and another in which business-as-usual production continues to degrade and destroy the forests.

However, despite escalating wood demand and loadshedding posing pressure on Zambia’s forests some initiatives could be put in place to check the long term cover losses and degradation. Therefore, to halt, mitigate; create a sustainable forest future and meet the increased demand for wood in a sustainable way, the country requires effective government policies, innovative technologies, and informed consumers.

There is also need to initiate the enactment of a new law or strengthen the existing legislation/legal framework on sustainable forest management; update current forest management plans in order to strengthen the sustainable management of forests; strengthen the capacity of the Forest Department; Maintain the forest boundaries to distinguish between reserved and non-reserved areas to lessen the conflict that is likely to encourage encroachments and illegal activities in the forests.

Furthermore, embracing multispecies plantations. Multiple species could make more efficient use of limited resources than a single species. And there is evidence that applying this practice to forest management could lead to improved soil quality, quicker growth, and higher timber yields. Multispecies plantations are more expensive to manage than monocultures, but these costs could be offset by increased yields and environmental benefits. Policies to encourage multispecies plantations could have both economic and environmental benefits. However, more research is needed in order to better understand how and where these plantations will work best.

It is worth noting that forestry contributes to economic growth in Zambia. However, current unsustainable levels of utilization have led to great losses of forest cover. For years remorseless destruction of forests has been going on and we have not been able to comprehend the dimension until recently. It is clear from the findings above that the Ministry responsible for Environment and Natural Resources had weak monitoring mechanisms and had not been effectively monitoring the protection and harvesting of forests in order to reduce the risk of encroachment, illegal logging and vandalism, resulting in possible loss of biodiversity in Zambia.

The problem of forest cover loss in Zambia needs an agent and immediate address. With frequent occurrence of high demand of Timber on the Copperbelt province and across the nation there are growing fears that if the current trend (rate of forest loss) is left unchecked, the situation is expected to become worse over time. It’s evident that though individual patches of annual clearing are small, they tend to expand and coheres over time.

Across Zambia, wood fuel has proved to be the common energy source (supplying about 90% of urban household) used by most households, with increases under cultivation and hence deforestation is at increase.

Research indicate that demand for wood products such as charcoal, furniture and construction materials is a major cause of damage to Zambia’s forests and that demand is projected to increase over the next half-century.

However, in as much as concerned stakeholders are trying to protect Zambia forests, local communities consider government as an enemy, if it intervenes in their business of cutting down trees because of the fear that government could take away the ownership rights of the forest resource from the local forest dwellers that strongly believes are the traditional owners of the forests. This suggests that local communities need education on the importance forest conservation.

About the Author

Winston Muleba Junior is a Digital Journalist, Aquaculturist, Researcher, Writer and Disaster Management Practitioner who uses media and ICT to promote environmental conservation; science, technology and innovation. He gravitates towards environment, water, aquaculture and agriculture as he is skilled at juxtaposing the latest research and expert opinion with the everyday lives and struggles of people on the ground.

Email: mwenyamuleba@gmail.com