HILLCREST ENVIRONMENT CLUB
"Our Gaia Matters..."
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HILLCREST ENVIRONMENT CLUB "Our Gaia Matters..." |
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save our future INTERACTION
BETWEEN HILLCREST AND KFWG OPEN LETTER TO THE MINISTRY FOR THE ENVIRONMENT The Club began helping the Kenya Forests Working Group (KFWG) to gain support to reverse the decision by the Kenyan Government to excise more than 170,000 acres of indigenous forests in the country. By getting the Hillcrest community to sign a petition, along with 3 million other people, the group believes it will be able to reverse the decision. The club has tried to gain as much support as possible to help the great efforts put into this campaign and we hope we will be rewarded. Top THE KENYA FORESTS WORKING GROUP The Kenya Forests Working Group is a gathering of individuals, institutions and organizations (government and non-governmental, local, national and international) concerned with forest conservation and management. It is a sub committee of the East African Wildlife Society. Leaflets (printed on recycled paper) containing more information on the KFWG and their work are available from the Head Coordinators. Just contact one of us on the given addresses. Excerpt from the KFWG leaflet: Did
you know? ·
Forests catch, store and release water
which supports human life, wildlife, agriculture and industry ·
A natural indigenous forest is more
important than the value of its wood products.
Forests provide essential services to the nation and the world, including
soil and water conservation, production of wood and non-wood products,
environmental services such as carbon sequestration, protection of the
biodiversity on which our future depends, and social benefits such as
recreation, Eco-tourism and ceremonial sites. Planting trees cannot re-create a natural forest. ·
To local communities, forests provide
building materials, fodder, firewood, fruits, medicine, sacred sites and
employment. ·
Indigenous forest soils absorb
considerable quantities of water, slowly releasing it in the forms of streams
and rivers. ·
Kenya’s remaining indigenous closed
canopy forests cover 1.2million hectares. This is less than 3% of Kenya’s total land area. ·
Half of Kenya’s threatened bird
species are found within forests. ·
There are more threatened large mammal
species in forests than Savannah ·
Clearing indigenous forest is the final
step in losing all its rich biodiversity forever.
It cannot be replaced. INTERACTION BETWEEN
HILLCREST AND KFWG The Hillcrest community provided an enormous response to signing the petition forms but this alone cannot stop the forest excisions. We realized that even though these excisions are going to severely affect our lives, the general public is not very informed about them, and on top of this are not very bothered about the matter even if they do know. In an attempt to spread awareness we invited the Kenya Forests Working Group to give a short introduction about their work during one of the school assemblies. The follow-up was a lecture the following week. When this Club started I had a very optimistic view about the work that can be done, but as more and more projects are put to work, I have awoken to the reality that to most people, our environment is everyone else’s problem. For example, out of the 40+ outcome that I was expecting we had around 10 students attending the lecture, when 6 KFWG representatives had come all the way to our school to give the talk. Talking to the representatives, we found out that they have experienced the same lack of response during their work. It is extremely disturbing that we all live off the environment and yet cannot even take the time to think twice about it. On top of this, the forest excisions not only have environmental implications, but also have effects on our daily lives such as water shortages and further power rationing. Feedback after the
KFWG lecture, Monday 3rd December: · The KFWG, want to take legal action against the excisions. This is why they need petition forms to be signed. If they can come up with 3 million signatories, this can represent a majority. · Advertising to raise awareness has been tried. The major problem with this is the cost of advertising. The Nation Group of newspapers has helped by providing two pages of adverts for the cost of one. Posters and radio advertising. · Another idea was to channel the money raised to buy the land that has been set aside for excisions. The major problem is TIME. As every second goes by more and more forests are being excised. A great amount of pressure has already been put upon the government to reconsider their decision and yet they go on destroying one of our country’s most important resources. The problem with the idea to buy the land to prevent deforestation is that as soon as it is given to individuals, that individual is very likely to immediately deforest the plot in order to hide the fact that it used to be forest. Again, TIME is against us. With the upcoming elections, the forests have become a political instrument. Little do those in power realize that these forests are a non-renewable resource and cannot be depended on in this way forever. In a way the majority of our efforts are futile, as a deaf ear is turned upon them and they are totally ignored by those who have it within their power to stop the excisions. We are told that the land has to be excised to provide land for homeless people to settle on but I am very sure that for this to happen will be a rare occurrence. OPEN LETTER TO THE MINISTRY FOR
THE ENVIRONMENT In order to express the views of the Club and the majority of Kenyans, who are aware of the matter, we have sent a letter to the Ministry for the Environment, a copy of which is available for you to read below: 21st January 2002 Minister for the Environment Kenyan Government Mr. Joseph
Kamotho RE:
KENYAN FOREST EXCISIONS The Hillcrest Environment Club is deeply concerned by the government’s decision to excise 170,000 acres of forest. We realize that the forests, if defined as belonging to the government, are also defined as belonging to the people of Kenya. We also know that the clearing of forests will affect our own lives, directly or indirectly and we have already experienced the effects of the clearances on the climate in the form of power rationing and/or water rationing. The short-term dividends of deforestation are minute compared to the negative long-term effects for the majority of Kenyans. We expect that you have had a number of similar complaints about the forest excisions. We want to add our voice to those you’ve already heard and make the cry for a fair decision even louder. We are the youth of this country. We will be the ones who have to face the negative implications of the excisions. Our children will be the ones who have to live in a country where we will have to tell them that the government did not listen to our pleas for a country where the balance between man and nature could still exist. The precious trees of our forests mean so much to OUR country’s future. They are a latent social worker. Kenyans especially should not take this issue lightly. Our country is known to be the cradle of mankind. What sort of cradle will it be when the remaining 2 % of forest cover is removed? The existence of these trees defines our own existence. The forests are not merely objects, which can be removed and replaced. They are entire living ecosystems, which means that any intervention needs to be carefully considered. We urge you to take us (and other Kenyans who have realized the detrimental effects of the excisions) seriously. Our future lies in the decisions made by the government and therefore these decisions should reflect upon the requirements of Kenyans, both now and in the future. Once removed, these forests can never be replaced. Their destruction is an irreversible step. As an Environmental Organization we are going to continue our work to make Kenyans and non-Kenyans alike aware of the excisions and their effects. We appeal to you as the Minister of the Environment to take action and represent the immense environmental concern from all across the country. We hope that you will live up to your title. Yours faithfully Hillcrest Environment Club WHAT CAN YOU DO? · RAISE AWARENESS ABOUT THIS TOPIC, SIMPLY BY TALKING TO PEOPLE YOU KNOW, BRINGING THE SUBJECT UP AT SCHOOL, AT WORK. · WRITING LETTERS TO BODIES LIKE THE GOVERNMENT TO SHOW YOUR CONCERN. · LOOKING OUT IN THE NEWS TO FOLLOW WHAT IS GOING ON · IF WE CANNOT STOP THE EXCISIONS, AT LEAST WE CAN MAINTAIN FOREST COVER WITH TREE PLANTING. BUT WE ALL KNOW THAT THIS CAN NEVER REPLACE THE ORIGINAL FOREST · GETTING TOGETHER WITH OTHER CONCERNED PEOPLE AND DISCUSSING THE TOPIC, YOU WILL PROBABLY COME UP WITH MORE IDEAS · GETTING IN TOUCH WITH THE HILLCREST ENVIRONMENT CLUB OR THE KWFG IF YOU WANT MORE INFORMATION OR HAVE ANY IDEAS. Thankyou for taking the time to go through this article, Anokhee Shah (Vice Head co-ordinator, Hillcrest Environment Club - 2001) |
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