Quantifying forest degradation rates and their drivers in Alle district, southwestern Ethiopia: Implications for sustainable forest management practices

Abstract

Forest ecosystems contribute significantly to global climate regulation. Nonetheless, vulnerability has emerged as a multifaceted topic in the scientific world. Despite the importance of forest ecosystem services, there has been little quantification of worldwide forest change. The main objective of this study was to quantify forest degradation rates and drivers in the Alle district in Southwest Ethiopia. A mixed-research design was used to collect data on forest degradation rates and drivers in Alle district, incorporating both quantitative and qualitative method. The Land Use/Cover (LULC) for 1990, 2010, and 2022 derived from Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) and Landsat Operational Land Imager (OLI) were used to detect changes and rates of forest degradation. Using a simple random sampling technique, 284 respondents were selected and questionnaires, interviews, and field observations were used to collect survey data. The results indicated that the forest cover of Abidibor per hectare was 2467.5 ha (97.2 %), 2268.3 ha (89.4 %) and 2203.9 ha (86.8 %) during 1990, 2010, and 2022, respectively. The forest coverage of Aba Gamta was 8296.7 ha (96.7 %), 6796.9 ha (79.2 %), and 6654.5 ha (77.6 %) in 1990, 2010, and 2022, respectively. Agricultural and grazing land increased, whereas forests and wetlands decreased during the respective years. The majority (39.36 %) of the sampled respondents reported that the conversion of forest land to agriculture by a rapidly growing population resulted in the expansion of agricultural land and rural settlements, resulting in forest degradation manifested by deforestation, overgrazing, and overexploitation. Thus, the forest coverage of the area decreased rapidly with time. As a solution to the devastating problems of diminishing forests, the local government and other stakeholders should consider conserving and managing depreciating forests by controlling direct drivers and determinants through participatory and institutionalized mechanisms.