This archive report was first published on 12 November 2019.
As the government prepares to plant 10 million tree seedlings in the Maasai Mau Forest, environmental experts are cautioning against the use of non-indigenous tree species that could have devastating effects on the ecosystem.
According to Environment Cabinet Secretary Keriako Tobiko, the tree planting drive aims to restore 140,000 hectares of degraded land and revive several rivers, including those in neighboring countries, that the forest sustains.
However, experts warn that without proper guidance, the donors may provide seedlings of trees that are not indigenous to the region, such as eucalyptus, cypress, and pine, which are common in local nurseries.
This could lead to negative ecological impacts, as experienced with the introduction of Prosopis juliflora (“Mathenge”) in the arid and semi-arid lands (ASALs) in the 1970s.
Mathenge was brought from South America for ecological rehabilitation, but turned out to be invasive and became a livelihood and environmental menace.
Considering the tree lifespan, such negative effects may only be realized 20-30 years later.
Experts recommend that a “Mau restoration species checklist” be prepared and made available to interested parties, and that local nurseries be involved in raising the required seedlings.
They also suggest that a tree seed and seedlings system be initiated to advise on planting the right tree in the right place, and that tree diversity be promoted to enhance mitigation of the adverse effects of climate change.
With decreasing indigenous forest land, the future forests will be on farms, and through agroforestry (tree on farm), the tree cover in catchment areas will be more easily restored.
It is upon the government to explore ways of reaching this goal, and to ensure that the tree planting drive is done in a way that benefits both the environment and the local communities.
Mr. Simon Kang'ethe, an environmental scientist at World Agroforestry (ICRAF), is quoted as saying:
Restoration of the Mau will require planting of ecologically suitable tree species, the equivalent of the remnants of the ecosystem. We are not only increasing the vegetation cover. We must plant diverse tree species that easily grow in this ecosystem and can withstand pests and diseases.
