Leadership (Abuja)
1 February 2008
Bauchi — Bauchi State House of Assembly has passed a resolution for the establishment of wood lot plantations to check desert encroachment in the state. The resolution passed on recently, followed a motion by Abdullahi Yayu (PDP), representing Chinade-Madara constituency.
The house, which unanimously adopted the motion, directed the government to raise tree seedlings and resuscitate its Technical Committee on Ecological Problem to protect and preserve the ecosystem. While presenting the motion, Yayu said that the desert which had made incursion into substantial parts of the state's arable land, had affected food production.
He said that the situation could lead to draught and economic decline in the 20 local government areas. He noted that the desert had taken over about 305 kilometres of land in 13 of the council areas in the past five years.
The legislator listed Alkaleri, Dambam, Darazo, Gamawa, Katagum, Zaki, Shira, Misau, Giade, Itas-Gadau, Ningi and Kirfi, as local governments most hit by the menace. "Desertification is not uniform but mostly determined by intensity of human activities, such as bush-burning, grazing, deforestation, mining as well as poor irrigation and farming techniques," Yayu said.
He appealed to the state government to embark on sensitisation campaign on the consequence of indiscriminate felling of trees and desertification. "All edicts on illegal felling of trees for fuel, timber, bush burning and anti-poaching activities must be re-enforced," the lawmaker said.
He also called for the introduction of bio-gas technology to reduce over-dependence on firewood. In his contribution, the Speaker, Alhaji Babayo Gamawa, also appealed to the government to put in place urgent measures to contain the desert. Babayo called for the introduction of an integrated strategy for combating desertification and mitigation of the effects of draught.
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