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Public Agenda (Accra)

Ghana: Anansesem And Climate Change

Ama Oforiwaa Boamah

13 August 2007

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Any Ghanaian who has spent any childhood years in Ghana would certainly agree that the characters of the wise spider and the rest of the animal kingdom in Ghanaian tales are indeed, unforgettable and inspiring. Anansesem were told with such great meaning because not only did people hear of them but they could see, touch and smell them.

These animals and trees which play such important part of the African culture and tradition are currently not as comfortable as they once were in our African tales. Their habitats have been vehemently pressured by changes in their environment. This has made it almost impossible for the new generation to imagine or believe the beauty that our African tales still share. In science these animals and their habitats which our local tales speak so much off is referred to as biodiversity.

Biodiversity is a hybrid of biological and diversity. Scientifically, it is the variability of living organism, be it those in the terrestrial, aquatic ecosystem or both. Ghana belongs to a biologically rich and diverse collection of life which is referred to as the upper guinea forest ecosystem. This ecosystem extends from Guinea into Sierra Leone and eastward through Liberia, Cote d'Ivoire and Ghana, and then it ends in western Togo. According to the census of Ghana in 2002, there are a total of over 3600 plant species in Ghana. In the list of animals there are about 225 mammal species, 724 birds, 221 amphibians and reptiles and 850 species of butterflies in the forest zone of Ghana.

Also more than 504 species have been recorded in the aquatic habitant of this country. Over the years, the rich biodiversity of Ghana, which brought so many people all over the world to testify, has come under threat by both human and natural influences. These influences have contributed immensely to changes of the biodiversity in Ghana and all over the world. Some species have either been totally wiped out or have become extremely scarce because of the lack of comfort in their natural habitant. For instance, the Red colobus monkeys which used to be a common habitat in the Ghanaian forest were declared extinct in 2000.

Additionally the EPA in the year 2000 identified that marine turtles that were found along the coast were threatened in those habitat. So many other species of living organisms has nationally been classified as endemic or near endemic. The threats which have jeopardized biodiversity in Ghana could be at its worst in the future. One cause of the change, over a period of time, have been identified as a result of the rise in temperature of Green House Gases (GHG) such as carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, oxides of nitrogen and sulphur oxide. GHG's in Ghana is a very popular outcome of agricultural practices, vehicular and factory emissions and the burning of wood fuel or biogas. High temperatures cause plants and animals that cannot withstand heat to die. When global warming is intense the sea level could get so high that it can drown coastal mangrove and wetland habitants. Prolonged lack of rain can also result in desertification and soil erosion, which would in tend result in loss of animals.

Though Ghana is one of the least contributors of global warming, research have proved that it is even most vulnerable to its implication. Mining is also one of the factors that threaten biodiversity in Ghana. For instance in Ghana, many forests lands are located on lands that are equally rich in gold or diamond or bauxite. For that matter many multilateral mining companies have been given the authority to clear of virgin forest so they can mine for minerals, especially with surface mining. Many mining companies which are found in the eastern and western regions of Ghana have deforested large arches of forest land to mines, regardless of the human habitants, because mining is more profitable in every economic sense. This cutting down of trees has also driven away many living organism from their natural habitant. On other occasions some actions of mining companies such as chemical spillage in water bodies, dumping of trailing and non reclamation of the land has sped up pollution of biodiversity.

A typical example is the Bonte mining company, which liquidated its mining activities in Ghana without reclaiming the land of big pits and other chemical spillages. In the case of the actions of Bonte mining company both living organism and human beings can drown in one of their manmade pits or die drinking contaminated water. Another cause of change that has threatened biodiversity is desertification as a result of bushfires, urbanization, wood fuel and infrastructure development. In a typical traditional African setting bush fires are set in the act of hunting for game and preparation of farm. Though this is mostly down with extra care some times it can get out of control and destroy extra forest land. Indiscriminate bushfires can also destroy the quality of nutrients in the soil and render it impossible for growing more forest cover. Desertification as a result of urbanization and infrastructure is another huge cause of the change in biodiversity. Ever since Ghana grew out of its HIPC status, so many developments have been taking place in the rural areas of the country. So many forest areas have been cleared to make way for various infrastructures such as bridges, hospitals, community centers and so on.

Although Ghana is one of the few countries that emit carbon, the country is even more vulnerable to its implications in the absence of the rich vegetation. Desertification due to wood fuel production is the most common activities in Ghana but is one of the slow but sure causes of change in biodiversity. In Ghana the supply of wood fuel is 71 percent more than any other kind of energy and 60 percent in demand. Wood fuel is most common because it is the cheapest of all. Everyday people cut down trees and collect brunches from the wild, with the notion that there is more that enough to last for ever, so they do not care to plant more trees or leave dead branches to decay to fertilize the soil. However research has proved that some trees such as the nim tree are going scarce because it's used for wood fuel. The loss of trees in the natural habitat drives living organisms away or causes them to die because of their food becomes scarce and they are easily exposed to harmful invasive alien species.

The third factor that has caused change in biodiversity is the threat of overexploitation of timber. In Ghana currently there are less than 2 million hectares of timber reserves but unsustainable logging is still a dominant practice in the forest area. The cutting down of trees also decreases the natural comfort of diversity. Threats to biodiversity have to be checked because it involves a chain of other reaction, which brings of misfortune to mankind eventually. In an attempt to check the threats that have reduced the quality nature of biodiversity found in Ghana, mainstream adaptation of climate change is most important. Mainstream adaptation is a most convenient way of integrating climate change policies into measures of development planning and ongoing sectoral decision making.

This is a role of government and key characters in decision making because what normally takes place on in the environment is as a result of decisions taken by the government. For instance by surveying protected and unprotected forest areas in mining areas constantly, the mines commission can avoid any mining companies who have intension of not reclaiming the land. The mines commission, by so doing can avoid having to reclaim the land or compensate individuals who will sue the mine for various damages. By adopting mainstream adaptation, government can save extra expenses that would come along with the dangerous implication of climate change in the future and create more awareness to the endemic. The second most important option of mitigating the change in biodiversity is by increasing the access to information and improving public understanding to environmental issues. First the need for access to information is very vital in minimizing the implication of change in biodiversity because it gives the public an idea about the level of risk this country is confronted with.

On many occasion politicians have shawned any opportunities to give accurate and relative information for fear that they would be judged with their actions. But that is not right; public servants must be transparent in their action concerning any issue of the environment, because it is only the only way that they can be held accountable for every loss or gain on the environment. For example, the Parks and Garden would not have been attacked recently over the cutting down of trees in the capital if they had been very open about their intensions to the public.

Secondly ability to access information particularly about biodiversity keeps the public involved and informed on the state of biodiversity of Ghana. Maximum disclosure of government's decision in relation to biodiversity is axiomatic to the support of government by the public.

Another way of preventing the threats to biodiversity is by educating the rural areas on the risk of climate change and their contribution to it. The government must reinforce the ban on unsustainable logging and enact laws which will make it mandatory for all timber industries to go into afforestation.

All the common threats to biodiversity have caused a drastic change to living organisms and the entire human environment as a whole. If those threats are not properly checked it could make life even more unbearable and uncomfortable in the future.

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