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` Nigerian Flag Nigeria has the worst deforestation rate in the world. Between 2000 and 2005, Nigeria lost about half its primary forests to logging, substinence agriculture and the collection of firewood and coal. Primary forests refers to the most biodiverse and carbon-dense forests. Nigeria is facing a serious issue of rapid deforestation. I found that the main problem with the deforestation in Nigeria is their need for fuel wood, they do not use kerosene as they find it too expensive thus they cut down trees to get these fuel wood. They need this fuel to cook thus they cut down these trees. 90% of the Nigerian population stated that they relied on kerosene as the main energy source for cooking but because it is too expensive and often unavailable due to limited supply, 60% said they used fuel wood instead. This is usually in rural areas where most of the population is at.

 Nigerians queueing up for Kerosene The country is also not taking any measures to stop this alarming deforestation rates, they have not implemented any laws nor given education on deforestation, therefore deforestation there can only get worse and worse. The government has taken little or even no measures to prevent illegal logging thus the figure of deforestation can only go higher and higher. I think the poverty in Nigeria has a large link with deforestation. An example would be the one I gave earlier, kerosene is very expensive thus people use fuel wood for cooking which contributes to deforestation. Also, the country itself is political in turmoil.

Shell Oil Company built oil pipelines through people’s farmlands and property that leaked and caused not only death to the vegetation but to the surrounding land. These large amounts of carbon dioxide burning in the air can cause serious problems for younger children and even those with asthma problem. Its operations in Nigeria have contaminated the land with oil and brought about the devastation of acid rain to the land.   Nigerian collecting Fuel Wood

 Along with economic issues, deforestation has made it so that the land is incapable of agricultural production which is part of many people’s survival. Issues such as these and the subject of the environment itself has contributed to many conflicts in the country even the execution of environmental activist such as Ken Saro-Wiwa, a nobel prize nominee who was executed for his critics of the nigerian government. He too was a environmental activist and was very outspoken.

 Ken Saro-Wiwa

 The current state of the environment has been allowed by the State Department of Forestry who have not implemented any forest management policies in efforts to curb deforestation since the 1970s. Without any conservation efforts or education, the society is not aware of how to properly treat finite natural resources. Very few steps have been made to try and lower the deforestation rates and to stop illegal logging.

 As of 2005, Nigeria has the highest rate of deforestation in the world according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations(FAO). Between 2000 and 2005 the country lost 55.7% of its primary forests, and the rate of forest change increased by 31.2% to 3.12% per annum. Forest has been cleared for logging, timber export, subsistence agriculture and notably the collection of wood for fuel which remains problematic in western Africa.

 <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 150%;">Deforestation in Nigeria

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 150%;"> In 2005 12.2%, the equivalent of 11,089,000 hectares had been forested in Nigeria. Between 1990 and 2000, Nigeria lost an average of 409,700 hectares of forest every year equal to an average annual deforestation rate of 2.38%. Between 1990 and 2005, Nigeria lost 35.7% of its forest cover in total, or around 6,145,000 hectares.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 150%;"> Nigeria is home to 1417 known species of fauna and at least 4715 species of vascular plants according to figures from the World Conservation Monitoring Centre. Although national parks and reserves have increased in the country only 3.6% of Nigeria is protected under IUCN categories I-V.