Browsing by Author "Wahabu, S."
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Item Impact of Charcoal Production on Physical and Chemical Properties of Soil in the Central Gonja District of the Northern Region, Ghana.(Journal of Environment and Natural Resources Research, 2015) Wahabu, S.; Fosu-Mensah, B. Y.; Nyame, F. K.Charcoal production, is one of the major drivers of land-cover change in Ghana. The trade has in recent time increased in the Central Gonja District of northern Ghana known to be one of the major food baskets of the country. This study assessed the impact of charcoal production on soil properties in the Central Gonja District of Ghana. Composite and core samples (60 samples) from ten (10) randomly selected sites were taken from 0-30 and 30-60 cm depths at the charcoal production site (CPS) and its adjacent field soils, which served as the control (CS). The samples were analyzed for soil texture, exchangeable bases, organic matter, percent carbon, total nitrogen, saturated hydraulic conductivity and electrical conductivity. The results showed that charcoal production site (CPS) had significantly (p < 0.01) higher content of sand, potassium, hydraulic conductivity and electrical conductivity than the control site (CS) within 0 – 30cm depth. Magnesium, calcium, sodium and percent carbon content decreased by 45.7, 2.7, 15.4 and 46.7% respectively in CPS when compared to CS within the top soil 0 -30cm. Hydraulic conductivity significantly (p < 0.01) increased from 0.5±0.3 (CS) to 1.8±1.0 h-1 (CPS), which is an increase of about 72 % in CPS due to soil heating. Soil organic matter in CPS decreases by 44% when compared with the CP site. There is a need for further research on the impact of charcoal production on soil nutrient, hydrology and crop production.Item Impact of Charcoal Production on Soil Properties and Vegetation in the Central Gonja District of the Northern Region, Ghana(University of Ghana, 2013-10) Wahabu, S.; Nyame, F.K; Fosu-Mensah, B.Y; University of Ghana, College of Basic and Applied Sciences, Institute for Environment and Sanitation StudiesThis study assessed the impact of charcoal production on soil properties, vegetation and the perception of charcoal producers on the environmental impacts of their activities in the Central Gonja District of the Northern Region, Ghana. Data acquired suggest significant differences in the proportions (or fractions) of clay and sand in soils sampled within 0-30 cm depth at sites of charcoal production referred to simply (as burnt sites) and sites with no observable indications of charcoal production (or unburnt sites). Soil silt fractions from 0-30 cm and 30-60 cm depths were, however, quite similar at both burnt and unburnt sites. The hydraulic conductivity of soils from 0-30 cm and 30-60 cm depths at burnt and unburnt sites also exhibited distinct differences (P < 0.001) and (P < 0.029) respectively. Soil chemical properties such as potassium (P < 0.002) and magnesium (P < 0.011) showed significant difference at 0-30 cm between burnt and unburnt. There was, however, no significant difference between burnt and unburnt sites within the 30-60 cm for same soil chemical properties, potassium (P < 0.274) and magnesium (P < 0.076). In terms of land use and (land) cover change in the Central Gonja District, analysis and interpretation of Remote Sensing and GIS data from Landsat TM images of 1990, 2000 and 2010 suggest reduction in the pristine or original guinea savannah (woody) vegetation of the area from 22,662 to 11,739 ha over the twenty-year period from 1990 to 2010, with grass/herbaceous and built-up areas increased from 23,088 to 95,148 ha and 6,355 to 81,702 ha, respectively. Even though charcoal production and marketing/trade are important economic activities for people in the district, providing income to the charcoal producers especially women, it appears to have had several environmental challenges in terms of deforestation, impact on soil parameters especially at burnt sites, bushfires and soil erosion. Keywords: Charcoal production; environment; land degradation; soil properties