KAWA MULTIMEDIA PUBLICATIONS
Introduction
Aware of the threat of disappearance of tropical forests all efforts must be made to conserve the existing forests and to create new ones. The following measures should be adopted.
Reafforestation schemes. Land which has been cleared of trees should be replanted with new ones. Special nurseries should be established to raise seedlings for this purpose.
Afforestation. New trees or forests can be established m areas where forest vegetation has never existed. Unproductive shrub and grasslands should be planted with trees to create more sources of wood and its products.
Governments should set up regulations to control use of forest resources. These can include:
• Restrictions on cutting down trees for agricultural expansion and building.
• Orders to restrict overuse of forests by industry. Timber companies should be given fixed quotas annually.
• Licences to restrict hunting and fishing activities in forest areas. The use and dumping of chemicals m rivers flowing through forests should also be prohibited.
Pests and diseases which damage and destroy valuable wood and young trees should be controlled by Spraying with pesticides, and burning of diseased or infested parts.
Accidental fire outbreaks can be controlled by:
• Putting up warning notices at forest margins to regulate the activities of charcoal burners, tourists and other forest users.
• Provision of fire beaters near to paths in the forest. These are special, weapons, feather or fan-like, with long handles for putting off fire.
• The use of fire lines, for example, roads or specially cleared strip of forest, to avoid spreading of fire throughout the forest.
• Education of the public about the dangers of wild fires.
• Installing look-out towers from which fire, outbreaks can be sighted and reported to fire fighters. Air patrols can also be used.
• Setting fire regulations to prevent the wanton setting of fire in and close to forest areas.
Wastage of valuable wood material in form of saw dust should be minimised and if possible completely avoided. Saw mills and other wood processing plants should extract timber, pulp and veneers by treating logs with chemicals to avoid any possible wastage,
Use should be made of the several alternative sources of energy and fuel in order to spare millions of trees which would be cut to provide fuel wood and charcoal. Tropical countries should look to their solar potential as an automatic alternative source of power.
Agro-forestry i.e. deliberately growing trees together with agricultural crops or livestock should also be adopted so as to ease the pressure put on natural forests to provide fuel and other products of wood.
Every effort should be made to stabilize the size of the population in all tropical countries. This will maintain a balance between population and forest resources.
Every country should establish local forestry services to assist with forestry work at the community level, and particularly to encourage farmers to plant trees.
Larger blocks of forests should be gazetted as forest reserves and remain under the control of centrally organised forest Departments in all tropical countries.
Every country should vigorously pursue research into all aspects of forest ecology and utilization in order to minimize and, or prevent misuse and overuse of forest resources.
Reafforestation schemes. Land which has been cleared of trees should be replanted with new ones. Special nurseries should be established to raise seedlings for this purpose.
Afforestation. New trees or forests can be established m areas where forest vegetation has never existed. Unproductive shrub and grasslands should be planted with trees to create more sources of wood and its products.
Governments should set up regulations to control use of forest resources. These can include:
• Restrictions on cutting down trees for agricultural expansion and building.
• Orders to restrict overuse of forests by industry. Timber companies should be given fixed quotas annually.
• Licences to restrict hunting and fishing activities in forest areas. The use and dumping of chemicals m rivers flowing through forests should also be prohibited.
Pests and diseases which damage and destroy valuable wood and young trees should be controlled by Spraying with pesticides, and burning of diseased or infested parts.
Accidental fire outbreaks can be controlled by:
• Putting up warning notices at forest margins to regulate the activities of charcoal burners, tourists and other forest users.
• Provision of fire beaters near to paths in the forest. These are special, weapons, feather or fan-like, with long handles for putting off fire.
• The use of fire lines, for example, roads or specially cleared strip of forest, to avoid spreading of fire throughout the forest.
• Education of the public about the dangers of wild fires.
• Installing look-out towers from which fire, outbreaks can be sighted and reported to fire fighters. Air patrols can also be used.
• Setting fire regulations to prevent the wanton setting of fire in and close to forest areas.
Wastage of valuable wood material in form of saw dust should be minimised and if possible completely avoided. Saw mills and other wood processing plants should extract timber, pulp and veneers by treating logs with chemicals to avoid any possible wastage,
Use should be made of the several alternative sources of energy and fuel in order to spare millions of trees which would be cut to provide fuel wood and charcoal. Tropical countries should look to their solar potential as an automatic alternative source of power.
Agro-forestry i.e. deliberately growing trees together with agricultural crops or livestock should also be adopted so as to ease the pressure put on natural forests to provide fuel and other products of wood.
Every effort should be made to stabilize the size of the population in all tropical countries. This will maintain a balance between population and forest resources.
Every country should establish local forestry services to assist with forestry work at the community level, and particularly to encourage farmers to plant trees.
Larger blocks of forests should be gazetted as forest reserves and remain under the control of centrally organised forest Departments in all tropical countries.
Every country should vigorously pursue research into all aspects of forest ecology and utilization in order to minimize and, or prevent misuse and overuse of forest resources.