By Kebba Ansu Manneh
Lamin Sunno, President of Malayina Peck Association has expressed dismay that Nyambai Forest Park in Brikama is gradually turning into a dumping ground for unscrupulous people residing around the forest park. An activity he said is unacceptable and not to stop immediately if the forest park is to be of any benefit to people who depends on forest resources for survival.
He made this observation at the Kabafita Forest Park where the Association embarked on the planting of over five thousand (5000) different trees. The planting exercise was meant to replace the lost cover of the forest thus mitigating the impact of climate change and global warming.
“It is very sad and disheartening to see Nyambai forest turning into a dumping ground by people who bear the responsibility to protect and preserve the forest cover for future generations. Our forest parks are not dumping grounds, they are a source of living for thousands of Gambians and non-Gambians who depends on the forest resources as a means to their livelihoods,” President Lamin Sunno disclosed.
He added that they will not seat idle seeing people indiscriminately engaging in indiscriminate dumping at the Nyambai forest, Kabafita, or any other forest park in the country. This is why we are now working in tandem with forestry officials to be engaged in monitoring of the forest parks and anyone found wanting will face the full force of the law.
According to him, most of the waste products accumulated inside the forest parks are handyworks of people residing around the forest parks, motorists, donkey carts and passers-by are also culpable for the indiscriminate dumping of waste at the nation’s forest parks.
“The situation cannot continue like this unabated because indiscriminate dumping in the forest is a threat and hazardous to the survival of many species of flora and fauna in the forest parks. We are therefore calling on all the residents of Brikama, Farato, Jambur, Jalangba, and Kabafita to serve as their community policemen and intercept anyone indiscriminately dumping waste at their forest parks,” Lamin Sunno appealed.
While dilating on the recent tree planting activity embarked upon by the Malayina Peck Association, he revealed that the activity is an annual exercise that would restore the lost forest cover of the country, with the view of mitigating the impact of climate change and global warming.
“Since our establishment, we embark upon tree planting exercise annually but this year we have done massive tree planting activity as inscribed in our constitution. We also engaged in a series of cleaning exercises within and outside the forest parks over the years to keep the parks protected against fire outbreaks,”
The president of the association, therefore, called on all Gambians and forestry associations to also emulate their footsteps to plant more trees.
