GABON: Sibang Arboretum, located in the centre of the capital Libreville is a protected area but activists are raising alarm that communities living around the forest are cutting down the trees for their survival

Record ID: 786728

  • Title: GABON: Sibang Arboretum, located in the centre of the capital Libreville is a protected area but activists are raising alarm that communities living around the forest are cutting down the trees for their survival
  • Date: 22nd June 2012
  • Summary: LIBREVILLE, GABON (RECENT) (REUTERS) EXTERIOR OF ENTRANCE OF SIBANG ARBORETUM IN LIBREVILLE WITH PEOPLE ENTERING FOREST BOARD READING IN FRENCH: COME AND VISIT SIBANG ARBORETUM" VARIOUS OF NUMBERED TREES TREE WITH BOARD SHOWING TRADITIONAL AND SCIENTIFIQUE NAME OF TREE STUDENTS VISITING FOREST TEACHER TALKING TO STUDENTS ABOUT TREES KAPOK TREE MEASURING G25 METERS
  • Embargoed: 7th July 2012 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Gabon
  • Country: Gabon
  • Topics: Environment
  • Reuters ID: LVA5HX1KUEM4S0XI31BAHD98B12
  • Story Text: Three quarters of Gabon is covered by dense tropical rainforests and part of the lush Congo Basin region, the second -largest ecosystem in the world.
    But the forests of the central African nation, like many similar woodlands around the world are at risk from logging and deforestation.
    Communities living nearby cut the trees for energy, construction and illegal supply to logging companies. Some trees are also in demand for their medicinal qualities.
    According to Mongabay, an international environmental organisation, Gabon loses roughly over 10,000 hectares of wooded land a year to logging.
    In a bid to reverse the effects of deforestation and protect its forests, authorities are trying to sensitize communities about the importance of preserving the country's trees.
    The Sibang Arboretum, a protected area in Gabon's capital Libreville is being used as a point of reference for the population to learn about forests and the unique ecosystems that exist within them.
    Spread across 16 hectares of land, Sibang Arboretum is home to various tree species that are the subject of ongoing research.
    But even with the efforts being made to safegaurd Sibang, illegal loggers still find ways to operate. They say they know it is wrong, but they have no choice.
    "We know that it is forbidden, we are aware of it, but we need wood. For example during this season, we need wood to boil water. So even if we are aware about not cutting trees, we come to cut trees. For example, a tree fell over there, it's no longer useful, so we come to cut it so that we can use it," said a resident of Sibang who did not want to be identified.
    "I will use the tree bark that I just took to cure my tooth ache. At this moment, my sister is also suffering from tooth ache, that is why I came this morning to the forest to get the tree bark," said Charlie Abessolo, another Sibang resident.
    Since Gabon's independence, the Arboretum has been under the supervision of the Agricultural and Forestry Research Institute (IRAF) and the Institute of Pharmacopeia and Traditional Medicine, which both fall under the Ministry of Scientific Research.
    Henri Bourobou, the Director of the Institute of Pharmacopeia and Traditional Medicine said without an alternative for wood resources, it will be difficult to stop the cutting of trees in Sibang.
    "So Sibang is surrounded by neighbourhoods that are putting pressure on it, neighbourhoods whose people come to exploit the forest, looking for wood and tree barks. But you know, this kind of exploitation is inevitable because other forests are situated too far from the city," he said.
    According to scientists, up to 20 percent of Gabon's plant species cannot be found anywhere else in the world.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2012. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
Register