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Chapter 2 - Zambia’s Changing Environment
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Forest Loss - Mwekera Forest
Mwekera National Forest is located in Kitwe, in
the Copperbelt Province. Established in 1958,
the forest reserve is home to a forestry college,
its staff and their families, as well as staff of
the Aquaculture Centre. Due to an increase
in the population within the college, Fisheries
Department and the surrounding areas, the
forest area has declined from an estimated 17,887
hectares in 1957 to less than 10,000 hectares
in 2005 (Shitima, 2005). From 2005 to 2011, the
forest continued experiencing degradation and
another 10,000 hectares were lost (KCC and ECZ,
2010). Demand for charcoal, land for cultivation,
woodfuel, timber for construction, and sand
mining have exerted pressure on the forest.
Tree cutting for energy
The Post, 2010
Mushroom in the forest
greenstone.org, 1990
Forest cleared due to encraochment
Justin Qian/flickr.com, 2007