Residents Seek Guidelines On Grazing In Public Forests

 

Cattle in a grazing land

People living near forests have asked the government to sensitise them on the guidelines for grazing in public forests.

The communities in uplands Limuru in Kiambu said they needed the education as they did not want to clash with or disrupt the Kenya Forest Service’s (KFS) efforts to restore forests, especially in areas where trees were cut down years ago without being replanted.

This is in response to the Kenya Forest Service’s (KFS) release on Monday about new grazing guidelines in forests.

KFS said the Grazing in Public Forests law, enacted in 2005, was poorly enforced and that now it aims to better protect trees and vegetation.

Cabinet Secretary for Environment, Climate Change, and Forestry, Soipan Tuya, announced on May 13th of this year that the state will not allow the grazing of animals in public forests as part of measures to protect seedlings planted in the ongoing national tree-growing campaign.

Peter Wachira, from Githirioni in Lari subcounty and who has been benefiting from the uplands forest, asked the Chief Conservator of Forests (CFA), Alex Lemarkoko, to start educational forums.

”The CCF is supposed to ask the forest station managers, county forest conservators, and their staff to teach us on  how to graze in Public Forest in a guided way so that we do not interfere with their work. We want to be law-abiding people,” Wachira said.

Wachira, who revealed that he rears 23 sheep and three cattle in Uplands forests, added that he cannot allow himself to be among those who break the law knowingly.

According to KFS, they will increase efforts to stop illegal grazing, focusing on conservation and community involvement.

Communities benefit from forests through activities like grass harvesting, grazing, and tourism under the Community Forest Association.

Under the new law, grazers need a permit and must register with forest stations, which will track grazing activities.

Uplands CFA official John Mwathi is in support of the law, saying it will help protect the forests.

“Whenever there is no law, the people who have pride take advantage of undermining people like us, the CFA. Now, the law will assist us in ensuring there is discipline within the CFA’s and the grazers,” he said.

Mwathi suggested arranging a meeting for all people who graze, including those who want to graze in the forests, to inform them about the law.

“We want to support the government, the CFA, and the KFS in the conservation of forests and the environment at large. We want to ensure President William Ruto’s directive of having planted 15 billion trees is achieved by 2023,” he said.

During the ban last month, CS Soipans said that Grazing of animals in the forests will not go on as it is interfering with the government policy where planting of trees in degraded areas of public forests is done, then livestock comes in and clears it all over.

The Kenya Forest Service protects around 6.4 million gazetted forests and another 420 million acres under the counties.

Kiambu County has six forests, with the major ones being the Kieni and Kinale forests, which occupy an area of 426.62 km2.

By Norman Kavithi