Assessing the Impact of Urban Growth on the Forest Degradation in Musanze District
Abstract
As the days are passing there are changes in development in many districts of the country where the urbanization is growing in term of expansion every day. This expansion is due to the population pressure where the population need to satisfy their needs and trying to accommodate themselves with all those acts the forests are damaged by population through constructions and by cooking and which leads to forest degradation. It is in this context that the present study was conducted in order to assess the impact of urban growth on the forest degradation in Musanze. The study had the Specific objectives which were the analyzing of the trend of forest degradation; the assessment of urban growth status; and to establish the relationship between urban growth and forest degradation. The researcher used data (orthophoto) from Rwanda Land Management and Use Authority of the period 2009-2019. The Arc GIS, total station TS06, Differential GPS, have been used for accomplishing this research. Results show that forests lost at rate of 3.3 % every year due to the heavy urban growth which is not monitored and this implicate that within 30 years there will not be any forest in Musanze district. It is recommended that the district should deliver the education and training courses to local communities; should organize special campaigns about importance of forests to the comminutes and the society, should mobilize the population and other stakeholders to plant many trees in whole city and also make the forestation.
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Introduction
The human population grew at unprecedented rate during the last two decades globally as well as in the Asia-Pacific region. The region accounts for more than half of the world’spopulation. During the last 25 years, the population of the region grew by more thana billion (2.45 billion in 1980 to 3.6 billion in 2005), and is likely to reach to 4.2 billion by 2020. However, population growth changed its character and form in the twentieth century with the advancement of technology and medical facilities. This has resulted in major demographic transitions, such as changes in rates of births and deaths, age composition and rural population growth rate. The impact of demographic changes on forests and the environment is often discussed in terms of biological carrying capacity, i.e. the maximum number of individuals that a resource can sustain (Schaffartzik, et al., 2014). However, many factors influence carrying capacity, such as economic development, socio-political processes, and trade, technology, and consumption preferences. Many studies have already shown that demographic changes in conjunction with the other factors have affected natural resources in general and forests in particular (Misselhorn, 2005). Forests provide an array of goods and services critical to economic development and human well-being. The demands of a growing population on forests are increasing in both magnitude and variety. However, the impacts of demographic changes are not widely understood beyond the very broad and superficial relationship that population growth increases demand for goods and services provided by forests. In this context, athematic study on the impact of predicted demographic changes on forests and forestry has been conducted as part of the Asia Pacific Forestry Sector Outlook Study II (APFSOS II). Some of the important demographic factors that could affect forests and forestry by 2019 include population size and growth, population distribution and population structure (Corvalan, et al., 2005).
As the days are passing there are changes in development in many districts of the country where the urbanization is growing in term of expansion everyday and every time. This expansion is due to the population pressure where the population need to satisfy their needs and trying to accommodate themselves with all those acts the forests are damaged by population through constructions and by cooking and which leads to forest degradation. The present study was conducted in order to assess the impact of urban growth on the forest degradation in Musanze.
Conclusion
This study focus was to assess the impact of urban growth on the forest degradation in Musanze district, from 2009-2019. To facilitate and guide the decision making for the urban planners for taking into account the forest degradation, and the good land use planning to sustain urban growth in Musanze District. To provide a useful understanding on how government policies should be implemented for improving the quality of urban life for city residents The result shows that there are big quantities of forests lost every delay the rate of 3.3 % every year due to the heavy urban growth as it characterized in time of the forest loss which is not monitored and this can implicate that within 30 years there will not be any forest in this city. Recommendation Based on the results found for this research, several recommendations were formulated to facilitate the better urban planning and land use management: Delivering education, training and bridging courses to local communities. The contact of city residents with urban and forest officers is the main source from which urban residents receive advice to avoid the big rate of forests loss, To organize special forest campaigns about the good importance of forests to the communities and the society, To improve a strong collaboration between city residents and other stakeholders involved in urban planning and development, To mobilize the population and other stakeholders to plant many trees in whole city and also make the forestation where the forest has been degraded.
