An assessment of the adequacy of the moratorium on logging as a sustainable forest management tool: a case study of eastern- mau forest reserve area

Abstract

Sustainable forest management is a key concept of managing and using forest resources in a manner that sustains their biodiversity, fecundity, regeneration capability and their ability to attain current and future economic, social and ecological uses both nationally and worldwide.1 recognizing the need to curb deforestation, kenya has put in place measures to protect, conserve and increase forest cover in a bid to ensure sustainable forest management. These measures include the recent institution of the moratorium on logging in public and community forests that begun on february 2018 and was to end of november 2019.2 according to reports the moratorium on logging has resulted in various socio-economic implications among timber producers and forest dependent communities3 posing some critical questions on whether the moratorium on logging is a sustainable forest management tool. This study assessed the adequacy of the moratorium on logging as a sustainable forest management tool using the east mau forest reserve as the case study area and more particularly the nessuit forest block. The key constituents of sustainable forest management that were examined in the study included public participation and involvement in environmental governance and decision making, the effect of government action on the ecological, social, economic, and cultural functions of the forest and the validity of the moratorium on logging as a legislative tool. Stratified random sampling and purposive sampling was used to select participants from the study area as well as key informants such as the kenya forest service (kfs) officers and the chief conservator of forests. The study used interviews and questionnaires and reports from household heads and key informants as instruments for collection of data. The data collected was analyzed using percentages and frequencies. The results indicated that a considerable number of the public commended the moratorium on logging for its ecological benefits in terms of conserving the 1 ‗sustainable forest management implementation,‘ <https://foresteurope.Org/sustainable-forest-management-implementation/> accessed 24 september 2019. 2 james kariuki, ‗government extends forest logging ban by one year,‘ (2018) daily nation < https://www.Nation.Co.Ke/news/govt-extends-forest-logging-ban-by-a-year/1056-4855586-f9flxf/index.Html>accessed 23rd september 2019. A moratorium on logging has been in place in kenya since february 2018 following a public outcry over illegal logging that was blamed for the reduction of water levels in the country‘s key rivers. 3 sam kisika, ‗kenya logging ban: do senator‘s claims about gdp and demand add up,‘ (2019), africa check <https://www.Polity.Org.Za/article/kenya-logging-ban-do-senators-claims-about-gdp-and-demand-add-up-2019-08-14> accessed 21 november 2019.

Environment. However, the results also indicated that the public resisted implementation of the moratorium on logging despite its benefit because of non-involvement in its formulation and its negative impact on the socio-economic and cultural functions of the forest. Additionally, through a review of various literature the study concluded that the moratorium on logging was inherently unconstitutional, having no legal backing and this hindered its effective implementation. The study concluded that the logging ban did not take into consideration the socio-economic and cultural needs of the present and future generation and therefore was not a sustainable forest management tool. The study recommends that the cabinet secretary of the ministry of environment and forestry undertakes environmental impact assessments and involves communities reliant on forest resources in sustainable use and management prior to implementation of forest use regulations. The study further recommends that various government officials should cease from instituting unconstitutional laws such as the moratorium. Further, the study proposes that research should be done on establishing the sustainability criteria to be used as a baseline for other forest management laws and regulations.