LAGOS JUNE 25TH (URHOBOTODAY)-Delta State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Chieftain and former  gubernatorial aspirant, Chief Sunny Onuesoke has appealed to Delta State Government to set up Forestry and Conservation Commission to tackle deforestation, forest degradation and develop the forest assets.

Onuesoke who decried the effects the  loss and degradation of forest  is having on the people pointed out that the Commission if inaugurated  will reverse the trend, harness the forest wildlife resources to promote conservation of the ecosystem and take charge of the ungoverned spaces in the forest.

The PDP Chieftain who made the call when some loyalists paid him a visit in his office at Oto-Udu in Udu local government area of Delta State  expressed worries over the devastating impacts of poachers, illegal logging activities and arsonists, especially herdsmen, who allegedly set fire in the forest to allow for fresh pasturing grasses.

According to him, “Deforestation and forest degradation is happening at an alarming rate, resulting in many wildlife habitats being destroyed, farmlands opened to flooding, loss of biodiversity, greenhouse gases accumulation and loss of forest ecosystem, among others. Delta State  is a low-lying coastal state that is vulnerable to climate change. The trees in the forest are very important for the sequestration of carbon, so we need to conserve the forest.

” Through afforestation, there would be more plants or trees to help absorb carbon dioxide and reduce its content in the air or in the atmosphere. As carbon dioxide is being reduced through the help of trees, then the problems of climate change and global warming will be answered, even in the smallest way. More than the trees, the soil that is being developed as a forest also absorbs the CO2 from the atmosphere three times more than the trees.

“The soil used for the afforestation also gets to be healthy again, and helps in the natural water filtration system. Moreover, afforestation also helps the environment by providing shade for people, habitat for wildlife, and providing food for both human and herbivores.”

He argued that  it is sad  that a state like Delta that is blessed with natural forest  to allow the extinction of peculiar animals and giants African trees enriched with interlocking canopies from the forests, which are potential revenue earners through eco-tourism.

Consequently, he appealed to the state government to introduce afforestation policy  by implementation of Forestry and Conservation Commission  to replace fallen trees in its forest reserve in line with global best practices. He equally urged Deltans  to embrace the culture of tree planting to assist in mitigating global warming as well as for socio-economic development.

“Some of the major causes that are causing flooding  to day is illegal deforestation . There are no wind brakers. Communities are selling natural waterways. The people are cutting down our economic trees. They cut trees in rubber plantations for building houses. They cut palm trees for roofing.  The government need to set up or bring back   Commission of Forestry and Reservation  to curb these illegal activities,” he noted.