Musokotwane Environment Resource Centre for Southern Africa
 

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CEP Factsheet Series No 5: Deforestation

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Deforestation happens when large numbers of trees are cut down, often to clear land for agriculture. It is a major ecological and economic problem not only in southern Africa but elsewhere around the world.

 

MAIN CAUSES OF DEFORESTATION

Clearing land for agriculture

Deforestation in southern Africa is mainly caused by farmers who clear large tracts of forest to grow food crops. Agricultural production has undergone tremendous expansion in recent years. Growing food is more profitable than growing trees, so trees are cut to make room for crops.

 

Shifting cultivation

Shifting cultivation is a major cause of deforestation in southern Africa. In this system of cultivation a family opens up an area and cultivates it until soil fertility declines and weeds take over. With increasing human populations, the land cannot be left fallow for long periods. Land is cleared for cultivation before the natural vegetation has grown back and before soil fertility has recovered.

Shifting cultivation, in particular chitemene, is responsible for 97 percent of Zambia's annual deforestation due to agriculture. Chitemene has been in use for the last four centuries. Trees are cut, the wood is piled and burnt, and crops are planted in the ash area. The system is unique because wood used to produce ash is collected from an area many times larger than the actual cultivated area. The chitemene system alone accounts for the loss of 75,000 hectares of woodland annually.

 

Tobacco curing by commercial farms

During curing of tobacco large quantities of fuel wood are used. To cure one hectare of tobacco, one hectare of woodland is needed. The wood is burned
to heat the air in tobacco-curing barns.

The number of large agricultural estates in Malawi increased from 78,000 to 267,000 between 1970 and 1988. Most of these farms grow tobacco which use up large amounts of fuelwood for curing.

 

Rural people and deforestation

In rural areas nearly everyone relies on fuelwood for cooking and heating. People usually collect dead wood, or wood from hedgerows. This contribution to deforestation is minimal, though in some cases people cut live trees for fuelwood.

Rural people also cut trees for building material, agricultural tools such as yokes and hoes, for furniture and carving crafts and household items.

 

Population growth

Population growth increases pressure on available land resources. This has led to fragile areas such as steep hillsides being cleared of trees and used for cultivation.

 

Population movements

Population movements within countries and between countries in southern Africa result from drought, political instability and especially armed conflict. Refugee settlements cut trees for fuelwood and clear land for cultivation.

 

Urban fuelwood requirements

Fuelwood is used by urban dwellers in some countries because many homes have no electricity. Forests surrounding urban areas are usually used as sources of fuelwood.

In Mozambique over 15,000 hectares of forest are stripped each year to satisfy fuelwood demand in the city of Maputo alone. The cleared area is approximately 80km in diameter.

 

Charcoal production

Charcoal is made by burning wood slowly with little air. People prefer charcoal because it produces more energy than fuelwood and is easier to transport.

In Zambia, charcoal produced for use in urban areas has led to extensive areas being deforested. About 43,000 hectares of forest were cleared near Lusaka for charcoal production in 1990. The Copperbelt area has a high deforestation rate due to trees being cut down for charcoal production.

 

Commercial Logging

Commercial logging of indigenous trees for timbers and other wood products is done by private companies in some parts of southern Africa, for example in Botswana and Tanzania.

 

Fire

Fire destroys a surprisingly high proportion of our forests in southern Africa.

Some uncontrolled fires are caused by rural people clearing land in preparation for cultivation. Burning requires less labour than having to cut down all the trees. Other fires are caused by honey collectors who start fires to smoke bees. This causes the bees to flee making it easier for the honey collectors to remove honey from the hives.

Hunters who poach for food sometimes burn extensive areas to drive animals out of the forest so they are easier to kill. Some of these fires spread and become uncontrollable, killing many trees in the process. Some fires occur naturally and these are mainly caused by lightning. Such fires are common in this region.

The impact of fire depends on how hot it is, the type of trees being burnt and the grass cover on the ground. A fierce burn can destroy up to 30 percent of trees in a given area and usually they do not grow back. Frequent burning can prevent trees from reaching a height greater than one metre.

 

Grazing

Livestock, grazing in forest areas, prevent young trees from growing by eating tree seedlings and trampling them.

 

Tsetse fly control

In some areas forests have been cleared to eradicate tsetse flies. In Tanzania and Zambia, tsetse flies are found in forested areas. They carry diseases that affect both people and livestock. For example in Chipangali, Zambia, 8,000 hectares of forest were cleared for tsetse fly control. Large areas in Mwanza and Shinyanga (Tanzania) have been cleared to extend the tsetse-fly-free zone for livestock rearing.
Wildlife damage

Certain wild animals, particularly elephants, destroy habitats and cause considerable deforestation. In the past elephants used to range over wider areas according to seasonal availability of food and water. The creation of game reserves has restricted these animals. Now they are causing extensive destruction in game reserves in some countries.

 

DEFORESTATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT

When trees are removed the environment of the area is affected to a large extent.

 

Impact on soil and water

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