The Impact Of Resettlement On Woodland Vegetation The Case Of Chewaka Resettlement Area Southwestern Ethiopia

Ethiopia has been practicing population resettlement either planned or spontaneous since thernimperial period. The resettlements were and still are carried out mainly as a response to extremernland degradation in the highlands. Recurrent drought and famine also aggravated resettlement inrnthe country. The large resettlement scheme carried out during the Derg regime has been criticizedrnfor its large social and environmental impacts. However, after suspension for some yearsrnresettlement has resumed by EPRDF government as planned and intra-regional resettlementrnprogram. This scheme, past and present, are implemented predominantly in the lowlands wherernpopulation densities are low and unutilized lands are assumed to be found. The vegetation of thernlowlands i.e. woodlands, play critically important role as a buffer ecosystems between thernhighland and arid environments and have limited capacity to endure intense human interference.rnTherefore, the impact of the current resettlement programs on these important ecosystems is notrnknown despite the claim by government’s that states it is environmentally friendly. The objectivernof assessing the land use/land cover change due to the resettlement program, identifying thernconservation measures that the resettlers are implementing, identifying the forest productrnutilization patterns of the resettlers and tree species composition of the area. The study employedrncombined methods of remotely sensed data of Landsat TEM+ and ground-based survey to detectrnthe land use/land cover changes. Questionnaire and checklists were used to assess thernconservation efforts initiated and forest product utilization patterns. The SPSS version 13 wasrnused for data analysis. Transect lines of 500m apart were used along which 30x30m plots at 300mrnintervals were taken to identify tree species composition of the area. The result of the study showsrnfile:///C|/Users/3020/Desktop/enviromental%20science/Berhanu%20Geneti%20Moroda.pdf.txt[6/1/2018 9:16:33 AM]rnthat 42.4 percent of the woodland has been changed to farmland and settlement area contrary tornthe claim. The scheme resettled large number of the resettlers (60,000) in the area, which is wellrnabove the population density of the zone before the establishment of the resettlement site. Thisrnsituation is compounded by few conservation efforts in the area which may jeopardizes thernsustainability of the woodland and life in the area in general. About 22 species of trees with in 14rnfamilies were recorded in the area. The diameter class distribution of trees revealed that thernnumber of seedlings and saplings on farmland and settlement areas is low contrary to thernwoodland and riverine areas which indicates that farmland will be devoid of vegetation unless treernplanting activities are practiced. The resettlers depend on the natural vegetation for fuel wood andrnconstruction materials, calling for planting of tree seedlings to reduce the pressure on thernwoodland. Appropriate family planning practice to keep the population growth at optimum levelrnand conservation measures compatible with the agro- ecological zone are also important.rnContinuous impact assessments in the area and through out resettlement sites in the country torntake corrective measures also facilitates the achievement of the objectives of the scheme.rnKey words: resettlement, environmental impacts, woodland vegetation, degradation

Get Full Work

Report copyright infringement or plagiarism