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Environ. Res. Commun. 5 (2023) 055011 https://doi.org/10.1088/2515-7620/accfea
PAPER
Assessment of human activities and its effects on forest
OPEN ACCESS management: a survey of charcoal producers in the Sekyere Central
RECEIVED
13October 2022 District of Ghana
REVISED
31March 2023 JohnBokaligidi Lambon1,∗ , JosephOkaniHonger2 andDavidYakubuAnambam3
ACCEPTED FOR PUBLICATION 1 Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, CSIR-HeadOffice, Accra, Ghana
24April 2023
2 Soil and Irrigation Research Centre, School of Agriculture, College of Basic and Applied Sciences, University of Ghana, Legon, Accra,
PUBLISHED Ghana
22May 2023 3 Department of Agriculture, EjisuMunicipal Assembly, Kumasi, Ghana
∗ Author towhomany correspondence should be addressed.
Original content from this
workmay be used under E-mail: jlambon2000@yahoo.com, johonger@yahoo.comanddanambam@yahoo.com
the terms of the Creative
CommonsAttribution 4.0 Keywords: charcoal production, reconnaisance survey, quadrats, relative abundance, grassland
licence.
Supplementarymaterial for this article is available online
Any further distribution of
this workmustmaintain
attribution to the
author(s) and the title of
thework, journal citation Abstract
andDOI. A survey to assess the effects and sustainability of charcoal production on the local vegetation cover
was conducted in the Sekyere Central District of Ashanti region fromDecember 2017 toApril 2018.
The study involved the use of structured questionnaires, focus group discussions (FGDs), key
informants, secondary data andfield observation by reconnaissance survey. The socio-economic
surveywas to identify who in the district is undertaking charcoal production as an economic venture,
howwidespread the activity is, and the preferred tree species being harvested to produce charcoal. In
thefield survey, the vegetation types in the study areawere identified in a reconnaissance survey as
secondary forests with increasing grassland. The relative abundance of tree species which could be
used for charcoal productionwas also identified and quantified. A 640-meter square plot was
delimited and divided into 64 square plots within each of whichfive-meter quadrats weremarked at
randomand presence or absencewas recorded for the individual tree species. The results of the study
indicated that charcoal production is widely carried out throughout the district especially in the Afram
Plains portion. It is practiced by the Akan and the Sissala ethnic groupswho have very little education.
Female producers (8%)were less than theirmale counterparts.Majority (73%) of the producers was
31 and above years whiles those of 30 years and belowwas 27%. The study revealed thatmost tree
species are becoming rare and are only common in the protected area (Kogyae strict natures reserve)
in the district.
1. Introduction
Forests inGhana and elsewhere play a very important role in the sociocultural, economic and ecological aspects
of life. The forests inGhana are characterized by strong rainfall gradients in general with highest rainfall near the
coast, declining inland towards the savannas. Even thoughGhana has a successful reservation of the natural
forests, a closer look reveals amore degraded forest resource. According toAntwi (1999), forest reservation
started in the 1920s until the 1940s where 16%of the total land area ofGhanawas set aside as forests (266 forest
reserves, 18 terrestrial wildlife reserves and five coastal wetland/Ramsar sites) reserves. In the high forest zone
alone 20%–25%of land is under reservation i.e., 1.7million hectares of which 1.6million hectares are under the
control of the Forest ServiceDivision and about 136,000 ha under theWildlife Division of the Forestry
Commission.Within the forest reserves are permanent protection areas that consist largely of hill sanctuaries,
swamp sanctuaries, shelterbelts, special biological protection areas, provenances and fire protection areas.
© 2023TheAuthor(s). Published by IOPPublishing Ltd
Environ. Res. Commun. 5 (2023) 055011 J B Lambon et al
The importance of forest resources inGhana cannot be underestimated as they provide tangible goods and
ecological services. Themost easily quantifiable of these is the timber industry, which is a key component of the
national economy. It accounts for 11%of total export earnings and 6%ofGrossDomestic Product (GDP) and
offers employment for over 1,000,000 people who provide livelihood for about 2,000,000 people (Appiah 1998).
The forest also contributes to several aspects of rural life providing food, fodder, buildingmaterials and
household items as well asmanymore intangible benefits such as cultural symbols, ritual artifacts and sacred
sites. In addition, trade inNon-Timber Forest Products (NTFPs) is an important economic activity in all parts of
the forest zone, involving a great number of people including gatherers, wholesalers and retail traders (Owusu
et al 1998). The commonNTFPs include fruits, snails, bushmeat,medicines, spices, chewing sticks, cola nuts,
etc. Farms and fallow lands are secondary forests and are important sources of theseNTFPs evenwhen access to
forest resources is good. The forest reserves are entered for rarer products such asmedicines, canes and some
buildingmaterials unavailable on fallow lands and on farms. At themoment there is no accurate data on the rate
of exploitation of wildlife resources for both subsistence and commercial use. Owusu et al (1998) however
indicated that thewildlife division estimated that game is themain source ofmeat protein for about 80%of the
rural population.
Woodfuel (firewood and charcoal) consumption has also increased rapidly in the urban areas as a result of
price hikes in Liquefied PetroleumGas (LPG) and other forms of energy. The natural forest inGhana is themain
source of woodfuels. Earlier reports indicated that it accounted for over 75%–85%of the total energy consumed
inGhana years ago (Dwumfour 1993,Mensah andAgyare 1994,Owusu et al 1998). TheGhana statistical
services in their Ghana living standard survey (GLSS7 2019) indicated that domestic charcoal consumption is
34.1%,firewood is 33.3% and LPG is 24.5%. It has been reported recently thatfirewood or charcoal are themain
cooking fuel for 4.5million households (HHs) and thatwoodfuels are alsowidely used for institutional and
commercial catering, industrial processing, and small enterprises (Hooda et al 2022,World Bank 2022). The
extraction of fuelwood and/or production of charcoal have positive socio-economic considerations in the
country. The production, distribution andmarketing of these products, provided jobs of over 55,000 people
(Nketia 1992). As an off-farming season activity for full-time farmers, fuelwood provide an important
supplementary source of income to farmers. It also provides quite a substantial but unspecified amount of
revenue to the producing district assemblies.
Forest depletion has been on the increase over the last three decades. This is however not peculiar toGhana’s
forest but to the tropical forest of theworld leading to threat and loss of biodiversity. A study in Ethiopia
however, found that adopting community-based forestmanagement increased forest cover (Takahashi and
Todo 2012). Records indicate that at the beginning of the last century, Ghana had about 88,000 km2 of forest and
by 1950, the area had been reduced to 42,000 km2. Currently the closed forest is about 15,000 km2. According to
the FAO (2020) the annual deforestation rate inGhana rose to 794,214 ha per annum and if the trend continues
at same rate the forest would have gone by the year 2025. Charcoal production is alleged to be one of the activities
in the country that contributes to the destruction of vegetative cover inGhana. It’s been established that about
80%of the charcoal produced inGhana comes from the forest-savanna transitional areas like Kintampo,
Nkoronza andAtebubu in the Bono East region, Ejura,Mampong, Effiduase in theAshanti region and
sometimes in the Eastern andVolta regions. The other 20% ismainly from the forest zone in theWestern region
and the coastal savanna (Nketia 1992,Mensah andAgyare 1994, Lurimuah 2011). Charcoal production is one of
the rural non-agricultural activities that is growing rapidly in the rural areas (Obiri et al 2013, Brobbey et al
2015). Itsmarketing and consumption has increased in urban and peri-urban areas. About 500,000metric
tonnes of charcoal is said to be produced annuallymainly from felling live trees in forest-savanna transitional
zones (Obiri et al 2013, Brobbey et al 2015, Asante andNketiah 2019). It is also estimated that over 55,000 people
are involved in the industry in the areas of production, distribution andmarketing of charcoal inGhana and that
over 85%of the rural poor and the urban low income earners depend on it as amajor source of energy (Nketia
et al 1988, Obiri et al 2013). The commercial production of charcoal inGhana is by the traditional Earthmound
method (Nketia et al 1988, Lurimuah 2011,Obiri et al 2013). Charcoal as a rural commodity is consumed in the
District capitals and other peri-urban areas but the bulk of it is sent tomajormarketing centers such asKumasi,
Obuasi, Tarkwa, CapeCoast, Accra andTakoradi.With the increase in the prices of the product due to the ever-
increasing prices of crude oil in the internationalmarket, coupledwith rising unemployment of the youth and
poor agricultural outputs and prices in the rural areas,many people are venturing into the industry with its
attendant problems for the forests.
The objectives of the study are to determine the specific group of people who undertake charcoal production
as an economic venture in the Sekyere Central district, determine howwidespread it is in the Sekyere Central
district, determine if there are preferred tree species for the industry in the Sekyere Central district, and
determine the extent it causes to tree species loss in the Sekyere Central District.
2
Environ. Res. Commun. 5 (2023) 055011 J B Lambon et al
Figure 1.Map of Sekyere Central District showing study communities. Source: Amakye (2017).
2.Materials andmethods
2.1.Description of study area
The Sekyere Central District Assembly was created by a Legislative Instrument (LI) 1992 in 2008 from the then
SekyereWestDistrict as a result of the high growing population and the need to spread development to other
parts of theDistrict. TheDistrict is one of the forty-three (43) administrative districts in theAshanti Region of
GhanawithNsuta as its capital. It is located at the northern part of the region, and shares boundaries with
MampongMunicipal, Atebubu-AmantenDistrict, Sekyere East, Sekyere South, and Ejura-Sekyeredumasi
(figure 1). According to the (GSS 2014), the land size of theDistrict is 1,631 km2 and locatedwithin longitudes
0.05 degrees and 1.30 degrees west and latitudes 6.55 degrees and 7.30 degrees north (figure 1).With about 150
settlements, seventy (70) percent is rural in the AframPlains portion of the district where some communities
have less than 50 people. TheDistrict has bimodal rainfall patternwith an average annual rainfall of 1270 mm.
Themajor rainy season starts in April, with a peak inMay/June. There is a slight dip in July and a pick inAugust/
September, tapering off inNovember. The dry season is fromDecember toMarchwhere theweather becomes
dry, hot, and dusty. The average temperature in the district is about 27 °Cwith variations inmeanmonthly
temperature ranging between 22–30 ‘C throughout the year.
2.2. Selection of the communities and interviews
In all thefive charcoal producing communities that were selected for the survey, all respondents weremade to
understand that the surveywas for academic purposes and that information providedwould be confidential
which they agreed before the interview. These communities are Birem, Jeduako, Aframso, Kyeyiase, and
Kyekyebong all in the Aframplains portion of the district (figure 1). These communities were purposively
selected due to the large volumes of charcoal produced there and their proximity to forests, protected areas, and
fallow lands. The questionnaires were pretested at Birembefore themain interviewwas carried out. In all 200
commercial charcoal producers in the district were interviewed (forty producers per community). The
3
Environ. Res. Commun. 5 (2023) 055011 J B Lambon et al
Table 1.Age, gender,marital status, dependants, education and years of experience of respondents.
No. of respon- No. of respon- No. of respon-
Age range (Years) dents/% Gender dents/% Marital status dents/%
16–20 10 (5) Female 16 (8) Married 142 (71)
21–30 44 (22) Male 184 (92) Single 48 (24)
31–40 56 (28) Others 10 (5)
Above 40 90 (45)
Total 200 (100) — 200 (100) — 200 (100)
No. of dependants No. of respon- Education No. of respon- No. of years of No. of respon-
dents/% dents/% experience dents/%
1–5 94 (47) No schooling 92 (46) 1–5 94 (47)
6–9 54 (27) Basic level 80 (40) 6–10 42 (21)
Above 10 52 (26) Secondary 28 (14) Above 10 64 (32)
Tertiary 0 (0) 0 (0)
Total 200 (100) Total 200 (100) 200 (100)
Source: Field survey 2017/18
interviewswere conducted on a communal labor day of each community (a day set up to clean the community).
This was tomake it possible for the respondents to have time for the exercise. All respondents were interviewed
individually in their homes and in the local dialect (Twi). The questionnaire comprised closed and open
questions to provide qualitative and quantitative data. In each community at least 20 producers (focus group)
weremet as a group to discuss the issues concerning the activity and noteswere taken to be incorporated in the
findings.
2.3. Reconnaissance survey
Adaywas spent in each of the communities to carry out a reconnaissance survey. The aimof the surveywas to
assess and identify the vegetation types (i.e. primary or secondary forest), the land use systems includingmixed
cropping, land rotation, agroforestry systems, etc, and their effects on the vegetation cover in each community.
Each recce survey consisted of about four kilometers walk using the bush paths created by farmers and hunters.
A volunteer farmer in each community led the process using a chosen direction away from the village. As the
walking progressed and observationwent on, notes were taken and questions asked and answers were also taken
till the end of thewalk back to the community.
2.4.Determination of the relative abundance of tree species
The frequencymethod defined as the chance of finding a species in a particular area in a sample, was used to
determine the relative abundance of species in the study sites. Two sites eachmeasuring about one hectare
were used. The experimental site was a forest area which is used for charcoal production and the adjacent
forest area not used for charcoal production served as a control site. In each site an area of 640 meters square
was delimited and divided into 64 square plots within each of which four 5 meters’ quadrats weremarked at
random and presence or absence of trees in quadrats were recorded for the individual tree species. The
frequencies and the relative abundance of tree species were calculated using the formulae according to Grig-
Smith (1983):
Frequency=Number of quadrats with species x/Total number of quadrats used.
Percentage (%) relative abundance= Frequency of species xX100/Sumof frequency values of all species.
These percentages were then expressed asDomin value according to Braun-Blanquet (1932) cited by
Dogbe 2001.
3. Results
3.1. Age, Gender,Marital statuses, number of dependents, education and years of experience of respondents
The study revealed that awide range of age groupswere involved in the charcoal production business as shown
on table 1. The respondents in their teens (16–20 years old)wasmade up of only 5%,while those from21–30
years oldwere about 22% and that of 31–40 years and those above 40 years old formed 28%and 45%
respectively. Female producers were 8%as compared to theirmale counterparts with 92%. This data therefore
suggest thatmoremen in the study area are into the charcoal production business as compared to their female
counterparts. Seventy-one percent weremarried as against 24%whowere single. In terms of dependents of
4
Environ. Res. Commun. 5 (2023) 055011 J B Lambon et al
Table 2.Ethnic group, religious affiliation,major and supplementary occupation of respondents.
Ethnic group No. of respondents/% Religious affiliation of respondents No. of respondents/%
Akan 60 (30) Traditional 18 (9)
Sissala 64 (32) Christianity 106 (53)
Others 76 (38) Islam 76 (38)
Total 200 (100) Total 200 (100)
Major occupation of respondent No. of respondents/% Minor occupation of respondent No. of respondents/%
Farming 92 (46) Farming 32 (16)
Charcoal production 86 (43) Charcoal production 118 (59)
Petty trading 22 (11) Petty trading 50 (25)
Total 200 (100) Total 200 (100)
Source: Field survey, 2017/18.
respondents, the results variedwith 47%having between 1–5 dependents, 27%with 6–10 dependents andmore
than 10 dependents was 26%of the respondents.
Results from the questionnaires showed thatmajority (46%) of the producers do not have basic education,
while 40%have basic educationwith only 14%having secondary education (table 1). This result affirms a report
byGhana Living Standard Survey (GLSS 2014) that people with low level of formal education aremore in the
environmental resource exploitation business than thosewith high level of formal education. It was also
established that respondents have varying number of years of experience in the charcoal production business
where 42%have 1–5 years of experience, 27%was thosewith 6–10 years while 26%was thosewithmore than 10
years. Information gathered showed that the industry is very old in the district with the aged deeply involved
in it.
3.2. Ethnic groupings, religious affiliation.Major and supplementary occupation of respondents
The people engaged in the charcoal production activity as shown by the survey indicated that the Sissalas
dominated the venture forming 32%, followed by theAkans ethnic group (table 2)More than 50%of the
respondents engaged in the venture areChristians followed by thosewho profess the Islamic faith. The results as
presented in table 2 showed that the Sekyere Central District is about 70% rural with agriculture (farming) as the
predominant occupation.However other activities are carried out to supplement the income of the people
especially during the off-farming season.Majority of the respondents (46%)were farmers and 43%being full-
time charcoal producers while 59%are into charcoal production as part-time occupation. Farming and trading
had 16%and 25% respectively as part time jobs.
3.3. Frequency of charcoal production, source of labor and tree fellingmethods
Production frequency, source of labor and tree fellingmethods are crucial in charcoal production and for that
matter tree resource utilization and conservation. Fifty-nine percent (59%) of the respondents produce charcoal
every twomonths, while 28%produce occasionally and only 13%produce charcoal onmonthly basis (table 3)
Cost of labor, contributes to the high cost of the business, and so producers who rely on hired labor formed 13%
and thosewho use family labor constituted 41%with thosewho combine both family labor and hired labor
making 46% (table 3). In terms of tree fellingmethod, 25%of the respondents use chainsaw onlywhile 21%use
the axe and cutlass only. Fifty-four percent (54%)use axe, cutlass and chainsawwith a reduction in cost by 50%
(table 3).
3.4. Production level,method of production, total expenditure, total income, types and source of raw
materials of respondents
Themethod of charcoal production by respondents is very important in commercial charcoal industry, as there
aremany economic and health implications associatedwith it. The results indicated that all respondents (100%)
use the traditional Earthmoundmethod (table 4). Respondents who produce between 200–500maxi bags
year−1 were 21%, 45%produce 600–1000maxi bags and thosewith over 1000maxi bagswere 34%. In terms of
average expenditures, 33% spend up to three thousand cedis (GHC3000.00)while thosewho spend between
three thousand one hundredGhana cedis (GHC3100.00) andfive thousandGhana cedis (GHC5000.00) formed
the largest group (50%) and 17%of the respondents spend over five thousand cedis per production. The survey
also brought to light that up tofive thousand cedis (GHC5000.00) is realized as income per production by 46%
of the respondents. Thirty-six percent (36%) get between five thousand one hundredGhana cedis and ten
thousand cedis (GHC5100-GHC10,000.00)while thosewho get above ten thousand cedis ismade of 18%of the
respondents.
5
Environ. Res. Commun. 5 (2023) 055011 J B Lambon et al
Figure 2.Relative abundance of tree species in the study site.
The types of rawmaterials used for charcoal production varied from locality to locality. Sixty-two (62%)
percent use live trees while 38%use dead trees. In terms of source of the rawmaterials, 81%of the respondents
use both live and dead trees on fallow lands outside the forest reserves as against 19%whousewood from farms
after farmers have burnt the trees for farming.
The information gathered from the charcoal producers and other informants in all the study communities
identified some tree species as preferred for charcoal production due to certain qualities as presented on table 5
below.
3.5. Knowledge of conservation practices, commondegradations and their perceived causes in the
communities
Sixty-nine percent (69%) of respondents selectively fellmature trees and 16%use controlled burning in order
not to destroy the vegetation and 3%adopt fallowing to allow natural regeneration (table 6). This study reveals
that natural regeneration is themain strategy of forest conservationwhich affirms a report on Forest Depletion
inGhana byAmoah andKorle (2020) that land degradation is increasing at alarming rate due to lack of tree
planting culture butmore reliance on natural regeneration. Eleven percent (11%) of the respondents does not
6
Environ. Res. Commun. 5 (2023) 055011 J B Lambon et al
Figure 2. (Continued.)
practice any conservationmethod. In respect of types of degradation in the communities, 43%of the
respondents believe deforestation tops all forms of degradation, 29% indicated soil fertility decline leading to
low yields of their crops. Eleven percent (11%) complained of drying up ofwater bodies while 13% recognized
soil erosion and 4%acknowledged the presence of all the degradationsmentioned above.
7
Environ. Res. Commun. 5 (2023) 055011 J B Lambon et al
Table 3.Charcoal production frequency, labour source and tree fellingmethod of respondents.
Production No. of respon- No. of respon- Tools used in No. of respon-
frequency dents/% Sources of labour dents/% tree felling dents/%
Monthly 26 (13) Family 82 (41) Chain saw 50 (25)
Bi-monthly 118 (59) Hired 26 (13) Axe/cutlass 42 (21)
Occasionally 56 (28) Family andHired 92 (46) Cain saw and 108 (54)
Axe/cutlass
Total 200 (100) Total 200 (100) Total 200 (100)
Source: Field survey, 2017/18.
Table 4.Production level,method of production, total expenditure, total income, types and source of rawmaterials of
respondents.
Production level (50 kg/bag) No. of respondents/% Productionmethod No. of respondents/%
200–500 42 (21) Traditional 200 (100)
501–1000 90 (45) Improved (kiln) 0 (0)
Above 1000 68 (34)
Total 200 (100) Total 200 (100)
Total expenditure (GHC) No. of respondents/% Total income (GHC) No. of respondents/%
Up to 3000 66 (33) Up to 5000 92 (46)
3100–5000 100 (50) 5100–10 000 72 (36)
Above 5000 34 (17) Above 10 000 36 (18)
Total 200 (100) Total 200 (100)
Types of rawmaterials used No. of respondents% Sources of rawmaterials used No. of respondents%
Dead trees 124 (62) Farms 38 (19)
Dead and Live trees 76 (38) Fallow lands 162 (81)
Timbers waste 0 (0) Timber concessions 0 (0)
Total 200 (100) Total 200 (100)
Source: Field survey, 2017/18.
Table 5. List of preferred tree species for charcoal production.
Scientific name Common/local name
Terminalia avicenioides Ongo
Terminalia ivorensis Sese
Holarrhenawulfsbergii Emire
Tetrapleura tetraptera Prekese
Erythrophleum guineense Potrodum
Anogeisus leiocarpus Kane
Daniellia oliveri Senya
Afzelia bella Papao
Manilkeriamultineruis Brekankum
Lophira alata Kaku
Piptadeniastrum afriacana Dahoma
Strombosia glauescens Afena
Amphimas pterocarpioides Yaya
Combretodendronmarcrocarpum Esia
Dialium aubrevllei Duabankye
Pentandethramacrophyilla Ataa
Parinari excels Ofam
Nesogordonia papaverifera Danta
Khaya anthotheca Dubini (mahogany)
Khaya senegalensis Esereso dubini
Khaya ivorenis Dubini nua
Klainedoxa gabonensis Koroma
Celtis malbraedii Esa
Vitellaeia paradoxa Nkudua (shea tree)
Parkia biglobosa Dawadawa tree
Source: Field survey, 2017/18.
8
Environ. Res. Commun. 5 (2023) 055011 J B Lambon et al
Table 6.Conservation practices, types of degradation identified, perceived causes of degradation and bushfires andways to avoidfires in the
communities.
Conservation type No. of respondents/% Degradation type No. of respondents /%
Selective felling 138 (69) Deforestation 86 (43)
Replanting 2 (1) Soil fertility decline 58 (29)
Fallowing of land 6 (3) Drying ofwaterbodies 22 (11)
Controlled burning 32 (16) Soil erosion 26 (13)
None of the above 22 (11) All the above 8 (4)
Total 200 (100) Total 200 (100)
Perceived causes of degradation No. of respondents/% Perceived causes of bushfires No. of respondents/%
Over extraction of trees 32 (26) Charcoal production 12 (6)
Farming activities 14 (7) Fulani herdsmen 52 (26)
Chainsaw operations 18 (9) Gamehunting 64 (37)
Timber extraction 8 (4) Farming activities 12 (6)
Annual bushfires 52 (26) All the above 50 (25)
All above 56 (28)
Total 200 (100) Total 200 (100)
Suggestedmeasures to control No. of respondents/% Responses on Banning of Charcoal No. of respondents/%
bushfires Production
Severe punishment 88 (44) Yes 14 (7)
Education of people 86 (43) No 186 (93)
Banning of certain activities 26 (13)
Total 200 (100) Total 200 (100)
Source: Field survey 2017/18.
Respondents’perception regarding the cause (s)of the degradation showed that 26%were of the view that
fuelwood cutting and charcoal production activities contribute to the degradation (table 6). Another 26%perceive
annual bushfires are the cause,while 9%, 7%, and 4%of the respondents blamedchainsawoperators, farming
activities and timber contractors respectively. Therewas a last group (28%) that believed all the activities and
operationsmentioned above cause thedegradation.All respondents (100%) confirmed the existence and
seriousness of all the aforementioned activities. Charcoal production as a cause offireswas by 6%,while 26%and
37%of themattributed the bushfires to Fulani herdsmenandhunters respectively. Some respondents (6%)believe
farming activities is themain contributor to thefires andfinally 25%of them say all the activities above are the cause
to thebushfires. The respondents suggestedmeasures to reduce/prevent annual bushfires in their communities.
Forty-fourpercent (44%)of the respondents advocated for severe punishment of offenderswhile 43%and 13%of
themprescribed educationof the general public and banning of some activities respectively (table 6). Only 7%of
the respondents suggested banning of the tradewhile 3%didnot support the idea saying itwouldbring about
increased crime in the villages since charcoal production is amajor occupation and a source of income formany.
3.6. Forest types, land use system and the relative abundance of tree species on the study site
During the reconnaissance survey in all the communities; the vegetationwas predominantly secondary forest
with patches of primary forests along somewater bodies as reported byGhana Statistical Service (2014). Other
places with primary forests were shrines and sacred groves and theKogyae Strict Nature’s Reserve under the
management of theWild LifeDivision (WD) of the Forestry Commission (FC). Common tree species in the
communities includeAnogeisus leiocarpus, Ceiba petandra,Mitrogyna spp, Vitellaria paradoxa, Senna samea,
Parkia biglobosa, Bombax brevicuspe, the Albezias, etc. Large portions surrounding the communities were grasses
as continuous farming and the exploitation of wood has changed the vegetation. Grasses such as the Elephant
grass (Pennisertum purpureum), Spear grass (Imperata cylinderica), Northern gamba grass (Andropogon
gayanus), the Seameweed (Chromolaena odorata), etc dominatedmost places (ibid).
The landuse systems in the studied communities and for thatmatter thedistrict are similar in all aspects as there
ismigrationof people between these communities andother settlements in the areaby settler farmers and even the
indigenouspeople (ibid). Themain landuse system is agriculture as it is themajor occupationof thepeople in the
district (ibid). TheKogyae StrictNature’sReserve occupies a significant land that is protected.There are also a
number of public andprivate forest plantations of teak (Tectona grandis) in all these communities.Woodlotswere
also established in someof the communitieswith the support of someNon-GovernmentalOrganizations (NGOs)
such asADRA-GHANAand theWORLDVISAON-GHANA.Theother important landuse system identifiedduring
the reconnaissance survey is pastoralism in all the communities practicedbyFulani herdsmenwhohavemigrated
fromthenorthernpart ofGhana and evenBurkinaFaso. Few indigenouspeople doowncattle but their grazing is
restricted to along themain roads and farm tracks. Finally, charcoal productionhas also taken roots in these
communities by the Sissala ethnic group, othermigrant farmers and some indigenouspeople. Fellingof tress such as
9
Environ. Res. Commun. 5 (2023) 055011 J B Lambon et al
Potrudum (Erythrophleum ivorensis), theDawadawa tree (Parkia biglobosa), the sheanut tree (Vitellaria paradoxa), etc
for charcoal is common in these communities appendixA (figuresA2 andA5). The frequencyor otherwise of tree
species in the study sites showed that the control plots hadmore tree species as opposed to the experimental plots as
shownasdomain values infigure 2.
4.Discussion
4.1.Demography of the respondents
The charcoal producers in the area who are in their teens are very few in the industry. This is probably due to the
fact that this category is school going age, since theymake up only 5%of the respondent. Thosewithin 21–40
years are 50%while those over 40 yearsmake up a 45% (table 1), which is in keepingwith the report by Ahmed
et al (2021) inNigeria where they realized that charcoal productionwas a source of livelihood for the youth. The
21–40 years’ age group is a strong and active group in every sector of the economy. Those over 40 years are also
significant since theymake up 45%. The large percentage of the 21–40 years’ age group could be due to the fact
that the industry has become lucrative since the products are not perishable like agricultural goods, and any
delay in the sale would not affect the quality and price. The other factor could be due to the poor agriculture
production in recent times, coupledwith poor prices and high agriculture input prices, thereforemost of the
youth group have taken ‘refuge’ in this sector for a living. Unlike in the early days where only old people were
involved, the study has proven that charcoal production is not really for the aged now confirmingAhmed et al
(2021), where the youth see the venture as a source of livelihood. A respondent at Birem said hewas seriously
producing charcoal to accumulatemoney for his tertiary education since he has nofinancial support. It is amale
dominated enterprise as fewwomen are involved due to several factors including the drudgery in it (Ahmed et al
2021,World Bank 2022), which contradicts observation by RiçercaCooperazione (2011)which reported that
over 80%of commercial charcoal andfirewood producers inGhana are women. Incidentally, all the female
respondents were Akans, and quite grown. It was realized that in the Sissala communities, females do not involve
much in charcoal production on their own. They only provide foodwhen themen are working or assist themen
in carting charcoal from the production sites. However, there aremorewomen into themarketing of the
product (charcoal) at themarkets and in the towns at bothMampong andNsuta (the district capital). Theymake
up over 80%of the dealers in thesemarkets. As indicated on table 1,majority of the respondents weremarried
with families as such one can confidently say that the charcoal production plays a significant socioeconomic role
in the district as it is either amain source of income or serves as a supplementary income source formany rural
households (World Bank 2022). This also confirms earlier works that found out that 41%of charcoal producers
earn up to the nationalminimumwage inNigeria (Ahmed et al 2021). In terms of themajority of the
respondents being illiterates or semi-literates, it agrees with Ahmed et al (2021)where 68%of producers had no
education.. Only 14%of the respondents had up to secondary educationwith none up to the tertiary level. This
means that the industry is not attractive to educated people but to the less privilegedwhofind the job attractive,
as reported byNketia et al (1988).With regards to number of years of experience, all respondents have produced
charcoal for at least one year. A good number (42%) of respondents have had one tofive years of experience
which indicates thatmore people are entering the industry whichmeansmore extraction of trees for the trade.
Some of the youth say there are no jobs and therefore almost every young ableman in theAframPlains portion
of the district produces charcoal especially during the dry season.
4.2. Ethnic groupings and religious affiliation or believes
It has been found out from the study that unlike in the previous times, the Akans are now into the charcoal
production seriously as they formed 30%of all respondents. This is an indication that the business is nomore
Sissalas’ ormigrant farmers’ affair as was in the past (Nketia et al 1988,World Bank 2022). The implication here
is that since indigenous people are now involved, and have relatively easy access to land, adoptingmeasures to
maintain the tree resource base byway of replanting trees or observing other conservational practices should not
be a problem. They need encouragement andmotivation to ensure the adoption of forest vegetation
conservation. The Sissalas stillmake a significant portion of the charcoal producers especially thosewho
produce hundreds of bags and cart to the urban centers for sale. According toAgyei et al (2018), charcoal
productionwas historically dominated by people of the Sissala ethnic group fromUpperWest Region ofGhana ,
whomoved from village to village to produce charcoal. Anecdotal reports fromKintampo South district of the
Bono East region ofGhana indicates that charcoal even became known as ‘Sissala cocoa’ (UDS Survey, 2022 cited
inWorld Bank 2022). Other ethnic groupsmostly settlers are also into the business and hence the high
proportion of non-indigenous people of 70%of the respondents which have negative implications since these
people do not own land andmay notmake any serious efforts to conserve the vegetation as reported byNketia
et al (1988).Mensah andAgyare (1994) have stated that settler/migrant farmers or producers do not have
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Environ. Res. Commun. 5 (2023) 055011 J B Lambon et al
interest in planting trees after extraction and production of charcoal which is impacting seriously against the
forest cover. The study revealed thatmajority (53%) of the respondents wasChristians and 38%Moslems
whereas only 9%were Traditional believers. It has been found that Sissalas and othermigrant settlers involved in
charcoal business are predominantlyMoslems, while Akans are also predominantly Christians.What itmeans is
that certain cultural believes such as tabooswhichwere used asmeasures for the conservation of natural
resources in the pastmay not bewell observed now.
The importance of the faith professed by these ethnic groupsmay be enormous in respect to the
conservation of the forest resources. For example, the adherents of the Traditional religious faith conserve
portions of forests as fetish groveswhile Christians especially the Charismatic, consider such sacred areas as
fetish andmust be destroyed. Forests were regarded as sacred natural endowment with all its life forms, playing
significant cultural and religious functionswith intrinsic right to exist (Abenney 1999). As a result, appropriate
sacrifices were performed to honor the ancestral forest deities during festivals, and also to pacify themwhen the
ecosystemwas disturbed by removal of trees likeMilicia excelsa,, Adonsonia digitata, etc (ibid). The use of
cultural symbols as away of traditional conservation (Mpereh 1992), may not be observed bymigrants who do
not have knowledge or appreciate it because of cultural differences and believes. Unfortunately, with the gradual
decline of faith in the traditional religion, some believes and practices are not observed by today’s Christians and
Moslemswhich also have negative effects on traditional conservationmethods.
4.3. Respondents occupations and frequency of charcoal production
Manyof theproducers either dependedmainly oncharcoal production as theirmajor incomeactivity or as a
supplementary incomeactivitywhich is in keepingwithAnang et al (2011),where producers said theywill starve if
charcoal productionwas tobebanned in the area.Most of the Sissalas and someof the youngAkanproducers have
charcoal production as theirmainoccupationwith farming as a supplementary incomeor food source as reported in
earlierfindings (Brefo et al2012,Ahmed et al2021,WorldBank2022).Others dopetty trading such as sale of
provisions, drinks, etc. It has been established that over 80%of the respondents especially the youthwished theyhad
something else to do either than charcoal production.Thismeans if the economy improves and there are jobs, a good
number of the youth in the industrywould greatly decline as foundatGishiegu innorthernGhana (Anang et al2011).
The frequency of charcoal production depends on the availability of rawmaterials, availability of labor and
market of the produce. It was realized that 59%of respondents produce charcoal every twomonths and depend
on the industry for a living especially the Sissalas, and any break in the production cyclemeans no income for the
family for that period as reported by Brefo et al (2012). The producers use different sources of labor such as
family labor and hired labor for the production of charcoal. Hired labor formed a large proportion of the
respondents’ labor source followed by the family labor.Majority of the respondents depend on both family and
hired labor since according toNketia et al (1988) labor contributes 50%of the total production cost. That is
probablywhy producers supplement hired laborwith family labor to reduce cost so as tomaximize profit.
The bulk of the labor is used on tree felling, cutting of trees into billets and packing of the billets in pit to form
the Earthmound.Again, due to high cost of hiring the chainsaw, producers often use axe and cutlass after felling to
chop smaller trees and branches.Others use axe and cutlass especially on farmswhere trees are smaller in size.
Since chainsaw is fast and capable of felling larger treeswith ease, the implication is that large scale producers
would obviously dependon it.Nketia et al (1988)have observed that a production gang of 10men could exploit an
area of 260 acres of land of its suitable tree species in 12months using chainsaws. It is thereforeworrying for the
fast depletion of tree resourceswithout serious efforts put in place for the continuous use of this resource. The use
of axe and cutlass even thoughprimitive, is less destructive as bigger trees are slowly removed and the general
speed of tree removal is slower than chainsaw. The traditional Earthmound is the onlymethodknownandused
by the producers in the district confirming similarfinding byNketia et al (1988) andMensah andAgyare (1994).
About 5%of the respondents either reador heard about the improvedmethods but said they have not had the
opportunity of seeing how it is done. There are three groups of charcoal producers in the district. Thefirst group
which could be considered as small scale ranged from200–500maxi bags of 50 kg. Themajority of the
respondents produce between 600–1000maxi bags and considered asmedium scale, while the large scale
producers of charcoal are thosewhoproduce over 1000maxi bags.With these huge volumes produced from the
forests in the district, onemay be concerned about its impact of the forest vegetation.
4.4. Types and sources of rawmaterials
The type of rawmaterials and their sources for charcoal production according tomajority of respondents are
fromboth dead and live trees farms, fallow lands and forests confirming earlier reports (Lurimuah 2011, Riçerca
Cooperazione 2011). It was revealed by informants that some producers even cart over 1000 bags of charcoal per
trip to Accra. It is therefore significant to note that a large volume of trees (wood) are being used to produce the
charcoal in the district and ifmeasures were not taken the resource basewould be endangered. A study
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Environ. Res. Commun. 5 (2023) 055011 J B Lambon et al
conducted in the then SekyereWest district which this district was part byKass-Yerenchi (2002), indicated that
about 2,070maxi bags per daywere carted fromMampong alone to the cities. It did not include figures for local
consumptionwithin the district. As an industry where entry and exit are not regulated and does not need so
much know-how or training to start, one cannot deny that it plays amajor socioeconomic role in the district as it
employs a lot of youngmen andwomen especially those selling at themarkets. The life wire of every industry is
marketing of its products, and the charcoal industry in the district has no problemwithmarketing. Unlike
agricultural commodities with post-harvest problems, charcoal has no shelve life and is also enjoying a favorable
demand as a result of the current price hikes of crude oil internationally and locally. It is easy to store and handle
for long distanceswithout losing its quality. Therefore 33%of the producers interviewed cart the charcoal to the
cities wheremarket is higher than at the local level. This is keepingwithNketia et al (1988) andAnang et al (2011)
where they reported that the bulk of the commodity sold inAccra, Kumasi, Obuasi, Tema, etc are from the
Savanna and the transitional zones. The local demand is nowhigher sincemanyworkers cannot afford the
continuous use of Liquefied PetroleumGas (LPG) and have to totally depend on the charcoal for domestic use.
For the industry to remain viable, tomeet the needs of the increasing population in the district and the country
as awhole, stakeholdersmust ensure the sustainable wood exploitation for the production of charcoal.
It is worth saying that field observations during the study period, revealed that charcoal producers usemore
of the live trees (Lurumuah et al 2012) than dead trees since dead trees are scarce except where the trees are burnt
for farming purposes. However, producers knowing the adverse effects of their activities would deny using live
trees including economic and fruit trees. It was realized that trees such as themango, the dawadawa, the sheanut,
etc and other timber species were being used secretly by producers as reported byNketia et al (1988) andObiri
et al (2014). In the present study,majority of respondents get their rawmaterials from fallow lands. Again,
observations and information from the Forest ServiceDivision suggests that some producers illegally fell trees in
the reserves and are sometimes arrested and their produce seized and auctioned to the public. Nketia et al (1988),
Owusu et al (1998) andMensah andAgyare, (1994), andWorld Bank (2022) confirmed this practice by charcoal
producers.
4.5.Quality of tree species for charcoal production and conservation practices against degradation in the
district
According to the producers, suitable tree species used for charcoal productionmust have some qualities
including but not limited to the ability to catchfire easily, high calorific value, produces less ash, produces less
smoke and does not explode aswas reported by theMinistry of Energy (2019a). Some of the trees these produce
high quality charcoal and aremostly fruit and/ or timber species which are protected by national or traditional
laws (Lurimuah 2011, Lurumuah et al 2012) . Producers in the district interviewed listed some of the common
trees they use for the charcoal production as shown in table 5.
All land users whether farmers or charcoal producers have some level of knowledge of conservation practices
that replenishes the used tree resources. It is therefore not surprising that 67%of the respondents claimed they
practice selective felling ofmature trees. Controlled use offire is adopted by some respondents (13%) and
fallowing by 9%.Unfortunately, 11% said they do not practice any of these consciously with the aim to
conserving the resources. This is in keepingwithNketia et al (1988)who reported that tenants do not want to
spendmoney on conservation practices on landwhich their continuous stay is not guaranteed. Again as said
earlier, because farming is quite becoming unpopular in the district due to poor yields, poor prices of farm
produce and high production costs, in addition to the ever increasing rate of unemployment in the country
many people in the communities resort to charcoal production since it does not need somuch capital to start
and has less risks. Observations and responses from informants indicate a low farmoutput in recent years due to
soil degradation. The emergence of notorious weeds such as the spear grass (Imperata cylindrica) is a clear
manifestation of fertility decline inmost parts of the district.Water bodies continue to dry every dry season as
riparian vegetation has been removed thereby accelerating soil erosion leading to siltation of thesewater bodies.
Its consequence has been shortages of water for the rural people and their livestock.
There are certain perceived causes of these degradations as given by the respondents in the district. Charcoal
production and annual bushfires were identified by 52%of the respondents as themain causes of these
degradations as presented on table 6. Chainsaw operation, farming activities and timber loggingwere perceived
to be the cause of degradation by few respondents (20%). Therewas a last group (16%) that believed all the
activitiesmentioned contributemuch to the forest degradation. They attributed annual bushfires as amenace
throughout the district and that charcoal production is the principal cause of thesefires which agrees with earlier
reports which identified charcoal production as one of themain causes of bushfires and nutrient depletion in
Ghana (Anang et al 2011), and deforestation in Ethiopia (Damte andKoch 2011). Some respondents (12%)
accused Fulani herdsmen (nomadic herdsmen) and hunters as the cause ofmost bushfires with only a few (4%)
of the respondents blaming farming activities. However, Nketia et al (1988),Mensah andAgyare (1994), and
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Environ. Res. Commun. 5 (2023) 055011 J B Lambon et al
Kass-Yerenchi (2002) in their earlier works blamed charcoal producers for the bushfiresmenace. In the present
study during personal observations and from informants it could be concluded that charcoal producers and
hunters are the key starters of bushfires. For instance, carbonization of thewood in the Earthmound sometimes
take two to threeweeks and strong harmattanwinds in the dry season could carry the fire from the Earthmound
to any nearby vegetation. Themeasures to prevent or reduce the annual bushfires varied among respondents as
indicated on table 6.Majority (50%) of the respondent prescribed severe punishment for offenders while 43%
believed education of the general public could help solve the problem. Some even advocated for the banning of
certain activities such as group hunting. In respect of banning commercial charcoal production,majority (93%)
did not subscribe to that as earlier reported byAnang et al (2011), while only 7%of the respondents agreed to the
banning as ameasure to reduce bushfires and further degradation of the forest.
4.6. Problems associatedwith the charcoal industry
Therewere threemajor problems identifiedwhich affect the industry. Forty-seven percent (47%)were of the
view that rawmaterials base is exhausted and one has to go to far and less accessible sites for suitable tree species
as reported by Brobbey et al (2015). This they say increase the cost of production thereby reducing their profit
margin. They observed that over exploitation of suitable tree species for charcoal and farming activities
contribute to this problem. According to the study, producers are therefore forced tomix poor quality tree
species with the few suitable species they get to increase the quantumof the charcoal as reported byNketia et al
(1988), Chauchau (1993a) andKass-Yerenchi (2002). Inadequate finances/lack offinancial support were
another problem respondents considered crucial. Theywished they had assistance to establish andmaintain tree
plantations orwoodlots to replenish the exploited trees. The third group of respondents said both rawmaterials
and thefinances are equally serious problems affecting the business. These views as genuine problems and could
be attributed to lack of education of the producers to sustainably exploit the rawmaterials and to adopt simple
businessmanagement like record keeping, savings withfinancial institutions especially rural banks, formation of
cooperatives, etc to enable them secure loans.
4.7. Forest types and land use system, relative abundance of tree species in the district
The vegetation in the study area has virtually turned to secondary forest as a result of over exploitation of the
forest, and other land uses such as agriculture, pastoralism, etc (GSS 2014). The effects of these activities could
have been exacerbated by the rapid increase in population due tomigration, increase in birth rate, etc (ibid). The
vegetation is dominated by grasses, due to the persistent fires and the removal of trees therebymaking conditions
favorable for the pioneer species to invade the area (figure A5). As indicated by the respondents, the decline in
soil fertility encourages noxiousweeds to take overmany of the lands in the district. Trees likeAnogeisuss
leiocarpus,Erythrophleum guineense,Mitrogyna spp., etc are commonbut under pressure as charcoal producers
over exploit them as earlier reported byChidumayo andGumbo (2012) andAdeniji et al (2015). In the Afram
Plains part of the district, yam farming is on very large scale, andwhen the vegetation cover is cleared to giveway
for the yamfields charcoal producers take advantage and cut down all dead trees as revealed during the study. As
indicated byHall and Swaine (1981), a notorious weed,Chromolaena odorata, awind dispersed plant colonizes
the vegetation; smother seedlings and saplings of trees and serve as a fuel during the dry season for bushfires.
This impedes natural regeneration of the suitable tree species that are heavily exploited for charcoal.
The land use systems that have negative implications for forestmanagement in the district are farming,
charcoal production and group hunting commonly called ‘floata’. Farming systems throughout the district as
are generally similar. As a rural district, farming is themajor occupationwith shifting cultivation as a common
system aimed to replenish soil nutrients during the fallow periods. The study revealed that due to population
pressure on thefix land as a result ofmigrants to the area, per capita land size has decreased, fallow periods
reduced. Earlier works suggested that inGhana, fallow periods have reduced from20 years afterWorldWar II to
10 years or less in the 1970s andmore recently to as little as 2–3 years inmany localities (Persson 1997,Ministry
of Food andAgriculture 2021). The private tree plantations andwoodlots have positive implications as it
contributes to the soil andwater conservation through the reduction of erosion and serves as a habitat for
wildlife. The fewNon-Governmental Organizations that are intowoodlots demonstrations for their clients if
well taken by the farmers would contribute to biodiversity conservation.
From the reconnaissance survey in all the communities andwhat was found at the experimental plot where
trees were exploited for charcoal production, therewere fewer number of tree species than the control plot
(whichwas fallow for several years). The species such as Verbanaceae,Miliaceae,, Guttiferaceae and
Erythroxylaceae were scarce as they are suitable timber species and at the same time illegally used for charcoal
production. In all, the tree species on the control fieldweremore than that of the experimental fieldwhich can be
attributed to the extraction of these tree species for charcoal production.
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Environ. Res. Commun. 5 (2023) 055011 J B Lambon et al
5. Conclusion
The study brought to the fore that charcoal productionwill continue as an economic venture for some time as
long asGhanaians continue to depend heavily on charcoal and firewood as ameans ofmeeting their domestic
energy needs (cooking and heating). TheAkans (indigenes)whohithertowere not in the trade have found the
business lucrative and as such have joined the Sissala people who traditionally are known to be involved in
charcoal business.What thismeans is that ifmore of the indigenes (Akans) continue to go into the trade andwith
conscious education on conservationmanagement practices, there should be positive results asmost of them
could be from families owning lands. As it is now, the rate of wood extraction aswell as conservationmeasures
does not allow adequate regeneration of the suitable tree species for the sustainability of the venture.
Unemployment and its associated social issues such as poverty, deprivation, etc are compellingmany people
especially the youth to take up charcoal production as ameans of livelihood. This trend ismost likely to continue
for some time since the agriculture sector is not attractive to the youth due tomany challenges like high cost of
inputs, unreliable rainfall, low prices of farmproduce, etc.
The traditional Earthmound is themainmethod of charcoal production in the district and known towaste a
lot of rawmaterials, less efficient (believed towastematerial), has adverse health effects on the producers and
more likely to cause bushfires especially in the dry season (Lurumuah 2011), and should be of concern to the
general public. Environmentally, loss of vegetation, soil loss andwater quality and quantity are closely
interrelatedwhich affects dry season agriculture (Chidumayo andGumbo 2012), whichmay lead tomore people
entering the charcoal production business. Themajor stakeholders and their roles to promote the industry or
curb the degradations have been identified. These include theDistrict Assembly, the highest authority in the
district to lead and collaborate with the traditional councils and land owners. The other key actor institutions are
the Forest Services Division,Ministry of Food andAgriculture, Department of Cooperatives andNon-
Governmental Organizations with a common vision of educating,monitoring and sponsoring some of the
activities of these producers to ensure the sustainable use of the trees since it is almost impossible to do awaywith
charcoal production in the district.
For now, itmay not be easy to ban charcoal production as an economic venture inGhana and for thatmatter
in the Sekyere Central District as reported in other parts of the countrywhere youth indicated it is theirmeans of
livelihood (Lurumuah 2011). Therefore, there is the need for concerted efforts by all stakeholders to be
spearheaded by theDistrict Assembly to establish a policy framework tomodernize the industry holistically.
This could be achieved by establishingwoodlots/plantations in the state owned lands for the provision of raw
materials, use of improved productionmethods, the adoption of conservationmeasures, etc to protect the
environment.
5.1. Recommendations
Since charcoal continuous to be themajor source of fuel for themajority of Ghanaians, its production especially
in the rural areas will persist so long as there is demand for it. For the sustainable exploitation of our tree
resources the following recommendations aremade:
TheDistrict Assembly and theDepartment of Cooperatives should collaborate and register all producers in
the district and issue themwith production permits or licenses which are to be renewed yearly. This will ensure
the smoothmonitoring of their activities and provision of technical and financial assistance. There should be
collection of fees (royalties) for trees felled, whether on-reserve or off-reserve by the Forest ServiceDivision and a
percentage paid to a reforestation fund to be established by theDistrict Assembly whichwould be used to
promote community woodlots/ plantation projects. Tree planting using fast growing tree species with high
quality wood for charcoal production should be promoted. Agroforestry practices that would replenish declined
soil fertility and at the same time providewood for charcoal should be introduced to the communities by
Ministry of Food andAgriculture.
Chiefs and land owners should be encouraged to release land readily and at concessionary terms to groups
and individuals to establish these woodlots. TheDistrict Assembly should launch an anti- savannization
program in the district and seek funding fromNGOs and development partners to supplement the Assembly’s
share of the royalties collected by the Forest Service Division to assist in the promotion of reforestation. The
use of timber and fruit trees for charcoal production should be outlawedwith severe sanctions to offenders.
Finally, there should be further research on the impact of heat on soil microbes and soil nutrients such as
macro andmicro soil elements at charcoal production sites as well as total ecosystem functions in the
production sites.
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Environ. Res. Commun. 5 (2023) 055011 J B Lambon et al
Acknowledgments
The authors aremost grateful to all respondents and opinion leaders in the selected communities who agreed to
spend their time and interact with the enumerators during the interview.We are also indebted to the
Department of Food andAgriculture of the Sekyere central district for the immerse support in diverseways, not
forgetting the chemical and input dealers we talked to in the district.
Data availability statement
The data that support thefindings of this study are available upon reasonable request from the authors. The data
cannot bemade publicly available upon publication because they are owned by a third party and the terms of use
prevent public distribution. The data that support the findings of this study are available upon reasonable
request from the authors.
Funding support
The researchwork did not receive any funding support from any source as authors funded thework fromown
resources.
AppendixA. Photos from the study site
Figure A1.A community Senna samea (Cassia)woodlot initiated byADRA-GHANA. Source: Field survey, 2017/18.
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Environ. Res. Commun. 5 (2023) 055011 J B Lambon et al
Figure A2.Parkia biglobosa (dawadawa tree) felled for charcoal. Source: Field Survey, 2017/18.
Figure A3.Billets packed to form an Earthmound, Source: Field survey, 2017/18.
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Environ. Res. Commun. 5 (2023) 055011 J B Lambon et al
Figure A4.Charcoal partially exhumed from anEarthmound, Field Survey, 2017/18.
Figure A5.Grassland taking over parts of the area Source: Field survey, 2017/18.
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Environ. Res. Commun. 5 (2023) 055011 J B Lambon et al
Appendix B.Questionnaire for charcoal producers in the Sekyere Central district
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Environ. Res. Commun. 5 (2023) 055011 J B Lambon et al
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Environ. Res. Commun. 5 (2023) 055011 J B Lambon et al
20
Environ. Res. Commun. 5 (2023) 055011 J B Lambon et al
ORCID iDs
JohnBokaligidi Lambon https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3605-4831
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Environ. Res. Commun. 5 (2023) 055011 J B Lambon et al
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