The tradgey of the Western Area Peninsular Forests
A few weeks ago there was a radio announcement that the ministers of Land, Country Planning and the Environment together with the minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Food Security were to undertake a tour of the western area Peninsular and that they would take action against anyone who had built in forest reserve areas, especially those which constitute the catchment areas of the Guma and Congo dams as they constitute a threat to the water supply to the city of Freetown and its suburbs.
Out of curiosity I drove up to Regent and then down and along the new Peninsular road which is under rehabilitation. Leicester Peak is now rid of all forest cover and vegetation and left naked for developers to continue their havoc. On the Peninsular road my heart bled as I looked up at Mount Sugar Loaf and the chain of mountains of the Western Area Peninsular which overlook Freetown and the Atlantic Ocean. I came to the conclusion that the concerned ministers were attempting to lock the stable gates after the horses have already bolted because the mountains have been completely rid of every forest cover and vegetation leaving them bare and ugly. The unfortunate and sad condition has been caused by human activity including deliberate clearing for the expansion of human settlements. Everywhere buildings are being erected further up towards the top of the mountain range. Little wonder that the western area has experienced the longest dry season in my own memory with the rains beginning only now with less than a week to the end of May. And let no one pretend that it is due to the world wide climate change.
As I went as far as Hamilton junction I turned back concluding that the tragedy was the same all the way to Tokeh with perhaps a patch of forest in the immediate vicinity of the Guma dam which is by no means enough to constitute a realistic catchment area. Were we to have really heavy rains, the soil from the mountains would be washed down first, causing severe erosion and then followed by the destruction of the beauty of our famous beaches with silting. Bird and other wildlife in the peninsular have been completely wiped out thus making the area no longer attractive to Eco-tourists.
The European Union provided funds in the past for the effective conservation of the western area forests. During my 25 years with the Conservation Society we and other groups engaged in the preservation of our biodiversity devoted much time creating public awareness through advocacy and education towards nature conservation and the preservation of our rich fauna and wildlife. It would now appear as if we had been preaching to deaf ears. Could the inexcusable stubbornness be due to our good fortune in that we have never experienced the natural disasters like prolonged drought which have been the bane of some other countries even in our own sub region?
On reading this some people may conclude that it is alarmist and an expression of despair, a state of hopeless resignation. There are remedies which could reverse the trend in the areas not yet covered by human settlements. They provide the only opportunity that is left to us to preserve the rich heritage left to us by past generations and which we are under moral obligation to conserve not just for the next generation but for generations yet unborn.
The government through both the ministry of Agriculture Forestry, Food Security and the Environment, the Environmental Protection Agency EPA must now make a determined effort to HALT ANY FURTHER EXTENSION OF HUMAN SETTLEMENTS UP THE MOUNTAIN SLOPES. NEXT IT MUST SEEK FUNDING AND CONTRACT OUT TO COMPREHENSIVE TREE PLANTING ON THE MOUNTAIN TOPS AND THE ENTIRE AREA. Unless and until there is a political will to do this regardless, the battle to save the Western Area Peninsular Forests and Mountains would be futile and lost forever with predictable dare consequences. I u
nderstand that on his Excellency’s instructions a three storey house on a protected site has been demolished. If this is true and I sincerely pray that it is then there is hope for the successful implementation of the above proposals. remember, time is running out.
PUAWUI…..DR. SAMA BANYA
(Former honorary President of the Sierra Leone Conservation Society)
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