Browsing by Author "Obiri, John Angoro Festus."

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Resource quantification, use and sustainable management of coastal forests in the eastern Cape province.
(2002) Obiri, John Angoro Festus.; Lawes, Michael John.
Indigenous forests of South Africa are few, small in size and highly fragmented, yet they face intense exploitation particularly in the rural areas. Management of these forests is challenging. High rural dependency on forests and the need to ensure the maintenance of the forest ecological processes that maintain biodiversity and ecosystem integrity are at odds with one another. Rural needs from forests are mainly short-term and interfere with the longer cycle of ecosystem maintenance. In Umzimvubu District of Eastern Cape Province forest management through sustainable use is hampered by a lack of information about the forests' ecology, resource availability and exploitation patterns. Thus it is difficult to set quotas or sustainable harvesting levels. This study addresses these challenges by tackling crosscutting themes of (1) forest policy and use, (2) forest resource availability and exploitation and, (3) the ecological processes of forest regeneration - all vital components for sustainable forest management. Using questionnaires it was found that all forest stakeholders (i.e. forest resource users and managers) were opposed to a ban on forest resource use but agreed to regulated harvesting. Although the new forest policy advocates the devolution of forest management from the state to communities, resource users preferred a greater role for the state in forest management than expected. Given the choice stakeholders selected state forest management over community forest management. However, the combination of roles of the state and communities in forest management, as exemplified by the new policy of participatory forest management (PFM) is probably the most applicable management practice, although it is not without its problems. Tree species are the focus of this study. Trees were largely used for fuelwood, medicinal purposes, craftwork, fencing posts and building poles and involved twenty species. Poles and posts were indiscriminately harvested from the medium (10-20cm dbh) tree size-class. Fuelwood harvesting was selective and only certain species were used. Fuelwood harvesting is unsustainable because the average amount of deadwood produced by the forest marginally balanced that removed from forest as fuelwood. Similarly medicinal tree harvesting (largely through stem debarking) was unsustainable and at least 28% of the debarked trees died. Only one species (Macaranga capensis) could withstand the current stem bark harvesting pressure. Species suitable for pole and post harvesting were determined by a graphic method, based on linear-programming approach that examined the spatial scale or grain of regeneration of a species. The grain of a species is established by comparing the density of stems from a species at the forest canopy and sub-canopy levels and sanctions harvesting only if a species was adequately represented at both levels i.e., fine-grained. Only one species (Englerophytum natalense) met these requirements in all forests and could sustain high levels of pole and post exploitation. Harpephyllum caffrum and Heywoodia lucens are among the most coarse-grained species and their use is discouraged. A relatively high percentage of the forest is under gaps (7.8%) created via natural disturbances of windthrow (50%), breaking tree branches (20%) and snags (13%). Another 17% result from selective tree cutting activities. The gap-phase dynamics paradigm appears to play a minor role in forest tree regeneration, as gap-size niche-differentiation is weak and there is no gap-filling guild of pioneer species. A lottery paradigm best explains tree regeneration in gaps in the forests of Umzimvubu District. Although selective tree harvesting creates gaps, in moderation gap creation is unlikely to change the forests' species composition since there is no gap-filling guild that is favoured by gaps and recruitment is a chance event. Resource use in the forests of Umzimvubu District is unsustainable and PFM offers a viable option for managing these forests. Sustainable use of forest cannot be achieved without an integration of the multifaceted social and ecological issues of forest management and more importantly without prioritising and understanding the ecology of forests.
Socio-economic and environment impacts on the utilisation of umSimbithi Tree (Milletia grandis) in Eastern Cape : a case study of Mt. Thesiger Forest, Pondoland.
(1997) Obiri, John Angoro Festus.; Lawes, Michael John.; Granger, James Edmund.
Wood products from Milletia grandis (E. Mey) skeels (umSimbithi), a prominent tree in the coastal scarp forests ofPondoland, form an important economic base for the craft workers in Urnzimvubu District ofthe Eastern Cape. The local carving industry draws considerable income in a place where employment opportunities are scarce, poverty is rife and financial burden and dependency is high. Despite the curio trade being perceived as important by the local communities, little is known about this craft work industry or its impact on the forest especially the sustainability of the wood resource base. Resource availability and impacts of harvesting were assessed at Mount Thesiger Forest Reserve (MTFR) through sampling plots and social surveys oflocal carvers and curio traders. Stem size-class distributions ofstanding trees and stumps were used to investigate the present quantity, past harvesting patterns and distribution ofM grandis within the forests. Line transects sampling confirmed umSimbithi as a forest margin species penetrating to about 50 metres into the forest from the edge and its. current use was found to be unsustainable. Current monitoring and management of most State forests in the Eastern Cape is inadequate, and although a harvest ban has been served, it has only led to and encouraged poaching. Social surveys indicated that the quality of monitoring and sustainability of wood stocks in the Headmen forests appear better than in State forests and this raises hope for successful comanagement structures in the area. Craftwood production and derived income varied from one month to another depending on wood availability, size and shape of stems, with straight stems being most preferred. MontWy income per carver was estimated between R960 to RIIOO while the annual yield for the estimated 100 carvers in the communities surrounding MTFR approximated RI.l million. It was observed that higher sales could be obtained if (1) the amount of wood wasted during harvests and carving could be minimised and (2) the craft products were marketed in the lucrative up markets such as Johannesburg, Durban and Maseru. Interviews with 30 carvers pointed to several problems most of them originating from the stoppage of harvest permits following the ban on umSimbithi. Various recommendations addressing carver's needs and promoting sustainable resource management are proposed. These include (1) establishing an appropriate land tenure system, (2) reviewing the permit system, (3) strengthening the institutional capacity ofthe Forest Department and (4) enhancing efforts on community forest outreach through the extension system. Above all, and to achieve sustainable forest management in Pondoland, tenurial rights needs to be addressed and the options of co-management, community management and privatisation are discussed. It was noted that for sustainable development to be realised in Pondoland, co-management ofnatural resources is important and this must be supported by introduction ofother economic activities that would alleviate pressure off the forests.