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By Stephen Adeleye.
The Kogi Government on Saturday vowed to sanction anyone caught in indiscriminate and illegal felling of trees in the state’s forests.
Mr Sanusi Yahaya, the state Commissioner for Environment and Natural Resources, gave the warning when he inspected the state’s forest plantation at Okura in Dekina Local Government.
Yahaya warned the people to desist from such act, saying “the government will deal decisively with anyone found cutting down trees illegally for charcoal production or other uses.”
According to him, the benefits of forest as a reservoir for atmospheric gases such as oxygen and carbondioxide for renewable energy were vital to humans and the socio-economic value of the state.
He stressed the need to maintain a balance between tree felling and planting of trees in order to ensure a balanced ecosystem.
He, therefore, appealed to the people and other relevant stakeholders to support the state’s afforestation programme by planting more trees.
He added that government needed volunteers in planning, planting, communication and community sensitisation on tree planting.
The commissioner commended the effort of the ministry’s director of forestry and his officials in maintaining the forest reserve, urging them to do more for sustainability.
Mr John Echu, the Director Forestry, who conducted the commissioner round the plantation, thanked him for the visit, adding that the forest officials had done a lot to keep the plantation intact.
Echu pledged to continue to do his best to ensure the state’s afforestation programme for 2018 succeeds.
The commissioner also inspected the Ofijiji 20 hectares of forest plantation planted in 2017 by the ministry.
(NAN)
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