• The government set to form a multi-Agency team to among others, undertake an independent mapping, verification and valuation of all mature and over mature forest plantations.
• The is required to submit its report to the government within four months
Image: FILE
The government has extended the ban on logging and extraction of timber in all public and community forests for another year.
Environment CS Keriako Tobiko made the announcement yesterday in a statement to newsrooms.
"The moratorium imposed by the government on logging in Public and Community Forests (and which was due to end on 24th November 2019) has been extended for a further period of twelve months," Tobiko said.
Saw millers have expressed displeasure at the move by the government.
Yesterday, the Timber Manufacturers Association organising secretary John Kosgei condemned the move, saying it has subjected them to suffering.
"We have suffered for the last two years because some of us have machinery that cannot be converted to do any other work," he said.
Kosgei said they are now incurring huge losses. "Some of us had paid to KFS while others took loans," he said.
He said some of the saw millers tried to go to Uganda but higher taxes and fewer trees meant they would not pitch tent there.
Kosgei said trees are ready for harvesting in Kericho, Koibatek, Uasin Gishu and the Mount Kenya region.
The ban on logging and extraction of timber in all public and community forests was initially imposed on February 24, 2018, but was extended to November 24.
Tobiko said a multi-agency team shall be constituted to undertake an independent mapping, verification and valuation of all mature and over mature forest plantations.
The team will submit its report to the government within four months.
This ban comes amid reports that it is depriving the government of money running into billions.
A source familiar with the development said the government is losing between Sh60 to Sh65 billion as a result of the ban.
"Hundreds of trees have since rotten," he said.
KFS normally plants eucalyptus trees away from water bodies as they consume a lot of water. When the trees mature, KFS audit and plantations team marks them for sale to saw millers.
Registered saw millers — who are about 800 — pay for the trees by depositing money to the National Treasury account and are issued with receipts.
With the receipts, saw millers head to the various forest station officers and harvest the matured trees under supervision.
This cannot, however, happen presently because of the active moratorium.
The moratorium was placed in early 2018 after a task force report showed that Kenya Forest Service management and the board were responsible for the depletion of forest cover in the country.
The team headed by the Green Belt Movement chairperson Marion Wakanyi noted that KFS is marred by corruption and incompetence.
Moreover, the task force said, the Kenya Forest Service is characterised by a lack of accountability, unethical behaviour and limited capacity.
As a result of illegal settlement of squatters in some forests, the report said, the country was fast losing its indigenous trees such as cedar.
However, KFS chief conservator of forest Julius Kamau has assured that reforms are on course at the agency.
Kamau told the Star that KFS will restructure next year as part of the reforms.
He said that loopholes that had been identified by the task force were also being addressed.
(edited by O. Owino)