Local People's perception of forest ecosystem services, traditional conservation, and management approaches in North Wollo, Ethiopia

Ahmed Hassen, Kerstin K. Zander, Stella Manes, Misganaw Meragiaw

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

10 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

For their livelihoods, many people rely on the services offered by forest ecosystems. Nevertheless, forests are being lost and degraded on a global scale, endangering the delivery of important services. This is the situation in Ethiopia, a nation where land degradation and deforestation pose a threat to the majority of forest ecosystems. Studies in North Wollo are very scarce and limited despite the present growth in evidence bases measuring environmental services and risks across the globe. The traditional knowledge and attitudes of the locals concerning trends in forest management, conservation, and ecosystem services were investigated in this study. We used many approaches for gathering data. The quantitative data were analyzed and interpreted using descriptive statistics, one-way ANOVA, multiple linear regression, and general linear regression models. The main threats to forest ecosystems in North Wollo included deforestation for the production of firewood and charcoal, increased population growth and agricultural needs, environmental pollution, the allelopathic influence of exotic species, and loss of soil fertility. These dangers cause instability and a decline in the range of ecological services provided by forests. Regarding this, the customary rules, social exclusion, and indigenous beliefs were utilized as a conservation technique to maintain and protect the remaining natural resources. In addition, the community uses terracing, gully prevention, and hillside planting with native trees to restore the ecology that has been damaged. As a result, efforts should be made to solve the current difficulties and dangers since local people, the government and non-governmental organizations have an interest in preserving forest ecosystems. In general, encouraging the direct involvement of locals in decision-making and equitable distribution of the benefits resulting from the ecosystems could aid in addressing the difficulties and risks to the ecosystems.

Original languageEnglish
Article number117118
Pages (from-to)1-10
Number of pages10
JournalJournal of Environmental Management
Volume330
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 15 Mar 2023

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
First, we thank the people in the study villages for sharing their knowledge and views. Next, AH gives heartfelt thanks to the North Wollo Zone forest resource offices and Woldia University for their helpful assistance, material support, encouragement, and constructive comments at all stages of the research work. SM received a fellowship grant from the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior ( CAPES , Grant no. 001 ) and by the grant ‘Doutorado Nota 10’ from Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (FAPERJ , Grant no. E-26/200.611/2021 ). Finally, we acknowledge English language proofreading by Dr. Elliott Pearl through the AuthorAID network.

Funding Information:
This research received financial support from Woldia University.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 Elsevier Ltd

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