Copyright © 2000 Post Express (Lagos)
November 16, 2000

Our forests are fast going . Trees are now cut down just for the sake of fuelwood. Nobody waits for trees to mature, dry and even show signs of old age before logging. Studies show that over 55 percent of logged woods are for fuelwood since the latest fuel hike.

In Port Harcourt and Onitsha, several tonnes of wood are hauled into the city by land and water on a daily basis. The demand for fuelwood by bakers, hoteliers and people below average in both cities have made the wood market to be so organised that it attracts buyers from Akwa Ibom, Abia Imo, Calabar and Yenagoa. For Onitsha in particular, markets are soaring. Lorries are lined up for loading to various bustling towns of Asaba, Makurdi Ogoja and Northern Cameroon.

Investigations at Port Harcourt city revealed that cheap and steady supply of fuelwood had made business moguls resort to its' use than other sources of energy that supply domestic assistance in cooking. "Businessmen prefer firewood to gas or Kerosene because they are not sure of constant supply," says Mr. Edwin Okoro, a fuelwood dealer in Igwuruta market, near Port Harcourt.

Fuelwood business has become a sanctuary for men and women who cannot be absorbed elsewhere. In Port Harcourt, timber waterside and Igwunta markets are the two main firewood depots. Here logs of wood brought in from Buguma, Etche, Patani and other remote parts of the area are chopped or split into various sizes depending on the intending use before they are transported to various destinations in Port Harcourt and beyond.

In Lagos, the story is the same with advanced mechanism of products and marketing networks. What obtains in the West (Lagos in particular) is charcoal that is woodcoal.

Hard-nosed pilot reconnaissance put the sequence straight. For states of Ogun, Osun, Edo and Oyo where available forest resources abound are the major sources. In these states, according to investigations, woods are logged in the high forests only to be cut to sizes and thereafter heated underground with powerful high temperatures to produce ashless charcoals.

According to a dealer near Oshodi, "these logs are heated under high temprature for days in the dug out earth holes," adding that they are exhumed and loaded in big sacks for distribution to here in Lagos and even Ibadan, Cotonou."

In the course of interview, the charcoal dealer observed that charcoal exportation is now booming en route Tincan Port, Apapa, since this year. "At least a 40 feet container load fetches the exporter over N200 thousand after all possible deductions," he says.

On the environmental cost of their business to Nigerian forests, he stated that allied authorities are aware of their activities adding that he as a person fears the faith of these depleting forest by next 20 years considering the rate of growth of the business." Since early 90s when petroleum products started their abracadabra by way of No fuel, Yes fuel, Yes kero, NO kero, No oil, No gas and all that, demand of fuelwood have encouraged the business" he observes adding that "nearly every household in Lagos now has coal-pot." Coal- pot is a specially constructed stove that uses charcoal as fuel and has a powerful efficiency edge over kerosine or even gas stove both by time and safety, studies reveal.

Environmental impact of fuelwood consumption are too many to express. The rising use of fuelwood in the country, experts allege, is bringing serious ecological setbacks. According to Dr. Mike Ijioma, formally, co-ordinator of School of Environmental Studies, Abia State University, Uturu, "fuelwood as a source of energy encourages wanton destruction of vegetation and habitats of useful plants and animals."

This, he said, has led to the disappearance of some plants and many animals with both medicinal and aesthetic values. He warned that " If immediate action is not taken to check further indiscriminate felling of tress across Nigerian forests for mere cooking purposes by log dealers, plants that provide cures for terminal diseases will vanish completely are this would be a great loss to mankind in the face of globalisation madness."

It has been established by the World Bank that over 70 percent of deforestation in the developing countries are due to the increasing demand for fuelwood. Deforestation, according to Dr. Ijioma, exposes the earth (bare) surface to adverse weather and climatic condition. Earth surfaces when exposed, he says are subject to environmental hazards like erosion and flooding, leaching and dryness due tot excessive evaporation which encourage constant loss of water to the atmosphere without adequate replacement.

The use of fuelwood in urban environment exposes the society to serious environmental risk like fire outbreak, weakening of the body resistance system by blood poisoning and other urban health hazards.

Dr. Ijioma considers the damage to cities aesthetic values by soots, carbondioxide, sulphur dioxide and carbon monoxide (smoke) to be the main reason the authorities should discourage as far as possible, the use of fuelwood in urban centres. He observes the thickening and blackening of city walls and house tops by smoke and soot's as damaging the nations image.

On the effects of fuelwood on human health, Dr. Yusuf Malik, medical officer in Rivers clinic, Port Harcourt, says that using fuelwood or charcoal exposes individuals, families and society to serious health hazards. "The smoke emitted from wood and other fossil energy contributes significantly to the formation of acid rain and depletion of ozone layer and subsequent global warming" says Dr. Malik. The gases often released in the form of smoke, he added, deplete the ozone (atmospheric protective blanket of the earth) layer making the ultra-violet radiation to hit the earth surface directly thus causing skin cancer, respiratory track problems in man and gene distortions among lower animals.

According to Dr. Malik, the inhalation of smoke especially the unburned carbon and particulate matter into the system cause black lung disease as in the case of coal miners. Also the non-particulate matters emitted from unburned carbon react with haemoglobin to form carboxy-haemoglotion (CH) which is injurious to the body. The CH according to him, when in the blood system renders haemoglobin useless. It also acts as a suffocating agent. This is particularly noticed when wood is burned in an enclosed apartment, which many users adopt. He however indicated that the effect of emitted gases from fuelwood on human health depends on the type of wood and the chemicals added to the wood.

Other diseases that can result from inhaling of smoke emitted from fuelwood are bronchitis. The particulate matter can cause eye problems ranging from conjunctivitis, peterigyium and so on, "Inhaling of fire smoke can result in heat exhaustion and heat induced stroke in extreme cases," he says, adding that "people working under fuelwood or using fuelwood or charcoal in their apartments are susceptible to tuberculosis and pneumonia due to the weakening of their body system by the inhaled poisonous gases."

Above all, can the majority of Nigerians who are being currently knocked around by pinching poverty, stop the use of fuelwood and charcoal, considering the open that governments, past and present have failed to make petroleum products cheap and available?

Nigerians are tired of policy pronouncement without practical follow up by the government. "Workable environment policies are hardly implemented by our leaders," says Dr. Mike Ijioma. This has a hand in depleting our remaining forests via fuelwood and charcoal exportation, now booming along our shores and urban centres. Error: Unable to read footer file.