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Forests are known to have beneficial effects on the environment, influence the climate, water sources, and temperature. Forests help in conserving biodiversity, reducing harmful effects caused by chemicals from the soil, acting as a carbon sink, and protecting watersheds, all of these have great benefits to both humans and the environment. The ecos...
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... Many of these native species play crucial roles in traditional medicine, provide essential ecosystem services, and support local livelihoods through various other means. development, and unsustainable charcoal production [29]. The loss of indigenous forests has had severe implications for biodiversity, water resources, and local communities dependent on forest resources. ...
Lukenya University has recently begun implementing a Ten Million Tree Growing Initiative, as part a larger national multi-institutional country-wide tree growing program. In this paper we describe the methods used as far as tree selection and the planting itself. Note that most of the trees are not planted directly by the institution by given to farmers to plant on their land, with instruction as to how to choose a location and how to technically perform the planting and maintenance to ensure greater success for the tree and the environment surrounding it. This knowledge arises out of years of experience as far as both the biology of planting and the social interaction with smallholder farmer communities. We kept track of the survival and growth of a subsample of a number of different tree species. After about two years of operation, we performed a statistical analysis on preliminary data. We observe statistically significant advantages to survival and relative growth volume to indigenous trees and the aforementioned comprehensive instruction before plotting, among other observations we relate from the hypothesis tests performed. Finally, we present estimates of the carbon sequestration and economic value of the trees to the community. Summarizing, the paper presents a comprehensive transparent display of a tree growing initiative, a common endeavor motivated to maximize social welfare and climate change resilience, and in so doing can develop the knowledge of best practices for these purposes.
... Forests have the capacity to stabilize CO 2 levels in the atmosphere by absorbing carbon emissions. With the increase in deforestation, this balance is disrupted, and problems such as climate change become deeper (Njora and Yilmaz, 2022). Deforestation is triggered by many factors such as economic activities, agricultural practices, and urbanization. ...
The main objective of this study is to examine the impact of green investment on environmental degradation in developing countries using machine learning-based estimation combined with robustness tests of static and dynamic panel data modeling techniques. The scope of this study covers 30 developing countries for 2009–2019. This study introduces a new index of environmental degradation that uses the entropy method and includes green gas emissions and deforestation. The study addresses trade openness, the quadratic shape of economic growth, and urbanization in the context of the Environmental Kuznets Curve Hypothesis (EKC) and the Ecological Modernization Theory (EMT), in addition to green investment. This study considers the kernel-based regularized least squares (KRLS) approach, the static panel technique Driscoll & Kraay standards error method, and a dynamic panel technique system generalized moment techniques. The empirical findings from the machine learning method show that green investment significantly reduces environmental degradation with a higher coefficient resulting from the static fixed effect estimation. The study also reveals that the main hypotheses, such as EKC and EMT, are confirmed by all estimation techniques. Based on the results, the study recommends that policymakers take pragmatic steps toward green investments and increase the financing of green energy initiatives to combat environmental degradation.
... A.O., 2020). The high rate of Africa's annual deforestation is due to the high demand for fuelwood, agriculture, and population and economic growth (Njora & Yilmaz, 2022;Josephat, 2018). In developing countries, including those in Africa, the main reason for deforestation is human reliance on forest products (Soe & Yao-Chang, 2019). ...
Purpose: Forests are under intense human pressure due to a high level of dependency. Understanding socioeconomic and demographic incentives surrounding forest dependence is critical to mitigating the adverse impacts of forest degradation in Africa. Therefore, this study examines the factors promoting household forest dependence in Sierra Leone's Gola Rainforest Reserve through four research questions: (1) What is the contribution of forest income relative to total household income? (2) What are the key sources of relative forest income? (3) How do gender, age, and education influence forest dependency? (4) What factors drive dependence on forest resources? Methodology: The study's target population was rural households living near the Gola Rainforest Reserve in Gaura and Tunkia Chiefdoms in the Kenema district. The study used convenience sampling. A questionnaire and an interview guide were used for data collection. It drew from 101 survey responses analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics, binary logistic regression on S.P.S.S., and then —seven expert interviews and three focus group discussions explored with thematic analysis on Google Docs. The study used tables and figures for data presentation. Findings: The study's results showed four key findings. First, forest income accounts for 46% of monthly household income in the sampled community. Second, the top five sources of forest income are cocoa (74%), moringa tea (9%), timber wood (4%), forest spices (4%), and forest fruit and vegetables (3%). Third, age, education, and gender influence forest dependence. Fourth, livelihood and direct consumption are the key factors driving dependence on forest resources. Therefore, the study recommended that decision-makers and conservationists consider socioeconomic factors like gender, age, education, and livelihood when designing forest management projects, strategies, or policies. Unique Contribution to Theory, Practice, and Policy: The study’s outcome contributes to the growing literature on forest dependency. It provides key insights into the significant contribution of forest resources to household income. Analyzing the influence of socio-demographic factors, like gender, age, and education, on forest resources enhances the understanding of resource-use patterns. This study allows forest conservationists, government decision-makers, and academics to develop projects, policies, and strategies from an informed perspective, considering socio-economic realities, to promote sustainable forest management practices in Sierra Leone and other developing countries to mitigate deforestation.
... Forests have a crucial role in the preservation of biodiversity, mitigation of soil contamination resulting from chemical substances, functioning as a carbon sink, and safeguarding watersheds. These multifaceted contributions yield significant advantages for both human societies and the natural environment [15]. Illegal logging causes serious environmental problems such as global deforestation leading to reductions in carbon stocks, degradation of biodiversity, lowering water quality and discouraging sustainable logging practices and forest management thus undermining the competitiveness of the legitimate forestry industry. ...
The Southern regions of India, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, and Indonesia are where teak originated. Teak is a high-value wood that used to be an export good for Thailand, bringing in a lot of money. Thailand produced approximately 71,954.53 m3 of teak plantation timber and exported wood products worth 1.1 billion baht overseas in 2018, according to the Forest Industry Organization (FIO). Due to its high demand, there is also a chance that smuggled wood from within the country or wood that has been illegally obtained abroad will enter the supply chain. Encroachment and illegal logging are still major problems in Thailand. Blockchain technology has become extremely popular due to its distinctive immutability and traceability properties, which have the opportunity to overcome a variety of issues. In order to get rid of illegal teak timber and achieve traceable, transparent, and reliable teak data that is moved through the teak supply chain, we present a decentralized application (DApp) based on the Ethereum blockchain that implements a traceability system for teak identity. According to the findings of the experiment, our DApp achieves a good trade-off between the system’s gas cost of 116K (2.53 USD) to store data in the Ethereum blockchain and provide high security, transparency, privacy, resilience, and robustness. We observed that the newly proposed blockchain-based system can reduce illegal logging, the usage of paper-based documentation, and the time needed to validate the documentation in teak supply chain controls when we compared it to the traditional process used in the supply chain.
... Soil erosion ensues when weathered soil particles are dislodged and transported by wind or water (Njora et al., 2022) [16] Deforestation, agricultural expansion, extreme temperatures, precipitation including acid rain, and various human activities contribute to soil pollution through erosion. Human interventions such as timber harvesting, excessive ~ 668 ~ cropping, and overgrazing expedite this process, leading to soil erosion 4.8 Radioactive pollution: Living organisms are consistently subjected to diverse radiations known as background radiations. ...
... Soil erosion ensues when weathered soil particles are dislodged and transported by wind or water (Njora et al., 2022) [16] Deforestation, agricultural expansion, extreme temperatures, precipitation including acid rain, and various human activities contribute to soil pollution through erosion. Human interventions such as timber harvesting, excessive ~ 668 ~ cropping, and overgrazing expedite this process, leading to soil erosion 4.8 Radioactive pollution: Living organisms are consistently subjected to diverse radiations known as background radiations. ...
... Concerning lignocellulosic material-derived biochar, sufficient and stable biomass input is needed at a bigger scale of application, which could promote large-area land use for the cultivation of targeted biomasses and thus promote deforestation. Cutting indigenous forests is carried out to fulfill the need for more land for cultivation, the expansion and building of manufacturing and industrial facilities, the development of new residential areas, and the construction of infrastructures (Njora et al. 2022). The adverse impact of the forest conversion to low-input agricultural land was revealed by De Blécourt et al. (2019), who studied the cultivation of beans, pearl millet, maize, sorghum, and groundnuts in the west of Namibia and Zambia, where fertilizers were occasionally used to counter low yield of biomass. ...
... Deforestation for agricultural use and settlement plays a great part in global issues, including carbon emission and soil erosion. Deforestation accounted for 15% of the world's carbon emissions based on the Global Forest Goals report in 2021 (Njora et al. 2022). Deforestation for agricultural use released 11.7 gigatons of carbon which is 35 times that of settlement between 2010 and 2018, while agricultural land use also accounted for approximately 33% of the overall soil erosion rate per hectare of deforested land (Hu et al. 2021). ...
Traditional fertilizers are highly inefficient, with a major loss of nutrients and associated pollution. Alternatively, biochar loaded with phosphorous is a sustainable fertilizer that improves soil structure, stores carbon in soils, and provides plant nutrients in the long run, yet most biochars are not optimal because mechanisms ruling biochar properties are poorly known. This issue can be solved by recent developments in machine learning and computational chemistry. Here we review phosphorus-loaded biochar with emphasis on computational chemistry, machine learning, organic acids, drawbacks of classical fertilizers, biochar production, phosphorus loading, and mechanisms of phosphorous release. Modeling techniques allow for deciphering the influence of individual variables on biochar, employing various supervised learning models tailored to different biochar types. Computational chemistry provides knowledge on factors that control phosphorus binding, e.g., the type of phosphorus compound, soil constituents, mineral surfaces, binding motifs, water, solution pH, and redox potential. Phosphorus release from biochar is controlled by coexisting anions, pH, adsorbent dosage, initial phosphorus concentration, and temperature. Pyrolysis temperatures below 600 °C enhance functional group retention, while temperatures below 450 °C increase plant-available phosphorus. Lower pH values promote phosphorus release, while higher pH values hinder it. Physical modifications, such as increasing surface area and pore volume, can maximize the adsorption capacity of phosphorus-loaded biochar. Furthermore, the type of organic acid affects phosphorus release, with low molecular weight organic acids being advantageous for soil utilization. Lastly, biochar-based fertilizers release nutrients 2–4 times slower than conventional fertilizers.
... Efforts to increase afforestation and reforestation activities have been observed since 2002 (average of 326,794 ha/year from 2002-2018 as outlined in the 2019 FRL), these can be attributed largely to the establishment of private commercial plantations and Government-led initiatives. However, deforestation and forest degradation (average 338,863ha/year) still occur at slightly higher rates: there is therefore a net loss of forest in Kenya [55]. Kenya is one of the countries which has documented reduction forests cover the past 30 years within the gazetted forest, trust lands as well as in the private land [56] including in gazetted and protected water towers [52,57]. ...
Land as a resource remains a useful in alleviating human risks through provision of food, water, energy and environmental goods/services. There appears to be intertwined relationship between land and climate change, where climate change is perceived as a threat to land, while land and land use remains a major factor in climate change. There are however, few studies that have explored these intricate interrelationships between climate change and land as a nexus approach especially at the local levels. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to bring to light the interconnectedness between land and climate change and land, as well as assesses land impacts on climate change, in Kenya, and further suggests strategies needed to address these issues from a multidimensional perspective in the policy-making process. Scoping review was used to gather data from academic journal articles, book chapters, global databases, national database and conference papers. The objective of scoping reviews is to provide a broad overview of the literature on a specific topic and identify patterns, trends, knowledge clusters, and gaps. The study also obtained secondary data from various sources in the study. The study established that land-use influence climate change through agricultural expansion, urbanization, activities in catchment areas, large scale settlements, deforestation, manufacturing and industrial activities. Climate change then impact the land through reduction in agricultural activities and production, negatives on the forest ecosystems, reducing water resources, as well as detriment to quality of human, 2229 animal and plants life. The study concludes that land use change is a major driver of climate change and climate change drives land use activities in a nexus. To further this research, the study recommends ways of exploring land-sensitive approaches to climate change and land use management in a nexus a approach. The nexus approach that allows for the inter-linkages, trade-offs, and synergies existing between climate and land resources need to be developed.
... Community participation becomes imperative if sustainable mangrove management has to be undertaken to encompass a future outlook on a natural resource [46]. Policies that are co-created, co-designed, and co-produce through community participation enhance sustainability with the impacts going beyond motivation from policies and law to actual ownership [47]. ...
Community Participation is fundamental for sustainable mangrove management which enhances environmental sustainability. This study analyses the setting of governance standards using policy frameworks. The study adopted a correlational research design and used a mixed methods approach. It shows awareness of policies supporting community participation in mangrove conservation was at 94.6%. The respondents who knew existing policies of the forest conservation and management act were at 27.80% closely followed by those with knowledge of local agreement with Kenya Forest Service at 25.40%, and those who practiced community/traditional by-laws at 21.80%. Notably, 18.40% of the respondents indicated knowledge of the national mangrove management plan while only 6.70% expressed awareness of the public participation law. Community participation is overly affected by gender perceptions in the education level, age, and knowledge of governance standards. The findings indicate 71% of women have not participated in setting governance standards as well as 69.20% of men. 81% of respondents disagree with the existence of county government policies in mangrove conservation. There is a lack of enough participation in setting governance standards towards the existing policy framework, affecting mangrove management.
