TITLE:
Quantifying Forest Loss in the Mbalmayo Forest Reserve (Center Region, Cameroon)
AUTHORS:
Mingang Danielle Liliane, Ngueguim Jules Romain, Momo Solefack Marie Caroline, Tchongouang Abigaelle, Tientcheu Tcheugoue Alphonse Loic
KEYWORDS:
Mbalmayo Forest Reserve, Satellite Images, Ethnobotany, Land Use/Land Cover Change
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Geoscience and Environment Protection,
Vol.10 No.9,
September
30,
2022
ABSTRACT: This study was carried out in the forest reserve of
Mbalmayo, Center Region of Cameroon, with the aim to analyze the dynamics of
land use/land cover (LULC) changes over the past 30 years. The databases used
were made up of 3 Landsat satellite images (5TM of 1990, 7ETM+ of 2005 and 8OLI
of 2020). The satellite images were processed using ArcGIS and Erdas Imagine
software. Ethnobotanical surveys were conducted to investigate the
relationships between the local population and the forest reserve. The Mbalmayo
forest reserve is consisted of seven main land cover namely: mature secondary
forest, young secondary forest, savanna, fallows and crops, built, bare soil
and water surface. The dynamics of the forest cover undergoes more significant
changes between the years 1990-2005 with losses estimate at 4762 ha compared to
the years 2005-2020 (2231 ha), with a marked decrease in the area of dense
forests. This regression is much more important in dense forest vegetation. The
forest cover lost 6993 ha (26.92%) of its surface, which corresponds to an
average rate of deforestation of 233.1 ha/year. The survey revealed the need
for NTFPs for the Mbalmayo reserve forest populations. Indeed, all respondents
agreed that they use non-timber forest products from the forest, mainly for
medication (37%), wood (34%) and food (24%). Therefore, it becomes urgent to
redefine a management plan for the Mbalmayo forest reserve which will define how the forest must be managed in order to
avoid the loss of large areas of forests disappearing each year under
the human action, which exerts pressure on forest species, thus leading to
their possible disappearance.