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General News on Friday, April 5th, 2019
Source: ghananewsagency.org
2019-04-05
The protocol agreement aims to protect the Volta Lake by planting bamboo
The Forestry Commission and the Volta River Authority have signed a protocol agreement for the planting of bamboo to protect Lake Volta, which houses the dam Akosombo for efficient energy production.
As part of a project entitled "Bamboo for Volta Lake Protection", the two institutions would collaborate to fight deforestation as a result of livelihood enhancement activities in watersheds. from the lake, including the gorge, which contains the dam.
The development has had negative effects on the lake, sometimes manifesting as unsustainable hydropower generation, resulting in intermittent power outages.
In particular, the use of bamboo species must contribute to the protection of the Volta Lake by serving as a means of demarcation of the average sea level at 85 meters above mean sea level, located under the lands acquired by the VRA.
It will also create a buffer zone to prevent encroachment of lands acquired by the VRA, protect against erosion and prevent or reduce the evaporation rate of Lake Volta and promote the socio-economic importance – Bamboo economics for the sustainable development of riverside communities.
Mr. John Allotey, Deputy Director General for Forests, and Mr. Ebenezer Tagoe, Deputy Director General, VRA, signed the Memorandum of Understanding and Framework for Collaboration on behalf of their organizations.
Commenting, Mr. Allotey said that, as part of the government's existing program to promote sustainable development through the development and use of bamboo and rattan resources, a unit on bamboo and rattan (BRU) was created within the Forestry Commission at The Chief Executive Officer and his executive management team will facilitate the implementation of all related policies across the country.
He added that this decision underscored the importance of bamboo and rattan resources, which are the two largest non-timber forest products with many socio-economic and environmental benefits in the country.
Allotey said project stakeholders, which include riparian communities, landowners and district bademblies, will join forces with FC and VRA to reforest the land within the community. the VRA acquired with a water-tolerant plant, bamboo and extend it to other parts of the lake in other geographical jurisdictions in the following years.
He said the three-phase project, which began in 2019 and was to end in 2032, would help, upon completion, the knowledge of 71 riverine communities and the public about the ecological and socio-economic benefits of water and sanitation. use of bamboo. protect the water plans.
It would also establish a 270-hectare bamboo plantation along the shores of the lake to support the production of hydroelectric power, while the skills of the 71 riparian communities would be improved in the processing and use of bamboo, as well as 420 community members trained in the creation and management of bamboo nurseries.
For its part, Ebenezer Tagoe said that the signing of this Memorandum of Understanding and this Collaborative Framework Agreement was a significant step forward in the relationship between the two agencies in achieving the national goal environmental protection of natural resources in Ghana.
He said recent collaborations with the Forestry Commission had highlighted the need to strengthen the collaborative initiative not only in forest reserves but also in non-forested areas as well as in the Lake Volta Basin in Ghana. .
In this regard, the Forestry Commission undertook an badessment in 2018 and provided a report indicating the frequency, environmental relevance (conservation value) and extinction level of fauna and flora within the project sites. of solar energy from VRA to Lawra, Kaleo and Bongo, in northern Ghana. .
Mr. Tagoe expressed the hope that this collaboration would open the door to other agencies to provide the necessary financial and material support to the VRA and the Forestry Commission for the protection of Lake Volta, which serves as a source of information. of water for the production of electricity from three large hydroelectric plants. Akosombo, Akuse and Bui with a total installed capacity of 1,580 MW.
At the same time, the Forestry Commission has also signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Owirenkyiriman Traditional Council and Praxis Africa in the areas of sustainable development and forest restoration.
Mou also needs to address issues of forest cover and management of rural communities.
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