|
|
|
Betampona Natural Reserve faces growing
pressures each year even as we are discovering
the extraordinary extent of forest's
biodiversity. The reason is the sad
truth that rural Malagasy families are very poor
and those who live in villages near the Reserve
struggle to make ends meet in an ever-degrading
landscape. Over the past 20 years slash and burn
rice farming practices (tavy) and deforestation
for timber and firewood have caused the
relatively large tracts of forest near Betampona
to disappear. With an average population growth
rate of 3% , the resources required to support
the current yet alone the expanding population
is inadequate. Villagers
recognize that Betampona is a
vital watershed which requires protection
but are left with few
alternatives other than the illegal cutting of
wood within the Reserve limits and the
cultivation of land encompassed in the Zone of
Protection.
|
|
The Edge
Effect
Betampona is an example of
habitat fragmentation, one of the most
significant factors driving animal and plant
extinction rates. In addition to the obvious
consequence of lost acreage, fragmentation
changes forest dynamics. The climate and soil
conditions along a forest's edge are different
from those in the forest's interior, a
phenomenon that creates environments suited to a
greater diversity of plant and animal species.
A forest's edge is subject to the brunt of
weather conditions such as rain, dir ect
sunlight and cyclones, encroachment of invasive
plants, pollution and human disturbances.
Degradation of the edge creates a new edge
leading to a cycle of forest loss.
Therefore,
maintaining Betampona's Zone of Protection is an
essential component of a larger conservation
strategy. |
|
In 2006
the MFG began investigating
the potential of developing a reforestation
program to recreate Betampona's Zone of
Protection. The process included meetings
with villagers, governing agencies,
NGOs and other stakeholders as well
as experts from different
disciplines to gain a perspective on
the villagers' interest in
participating in the project .
The MFG had already
Villager's interest in the program was no doubt facilitated by
their participation in past and ongoing
MFG programs such as farmer workshops,
the Saturday School for their children and
environmental festivals. Through classes, workshops
and demonstrations of alternative
farming practices children and adults were
introduced to ecological and agroforestry
concepts. In addition, the MFG's tree
nursery in Rendrirendry had already supplied some villagers with
starter saplings for various community
projects thus the prospect of villagers
receiving the resources and training necessary
to build and maintain their own community nurseries was
welcomed. With such positive feedback
the MFG moved forward with
developing an action plan and submitting
proposals to fund the program.
|
|
The basic plan was to reforest the Zone and
village communal areas with a mosaic of native
and non-invasive exotic trees that would benefit
villagers while also fulfilling ecological
services such as erosion control, nitrogen
fixation, improving soil nutrients and
protecting the Reserve. In
late 2007 the MFG was awarded a grant from the European
Association of Zoos and Aquariums' (EAZA)
Madagascar Conservation Campaign after which the
work began in earnest in 2008. MFG
staff held another series of meetings with
villagers to explain the specific goals of the project
and ask for their feedback.
|
|
One of the MFG's goals was to plant 50% native and 50%
commercially useful trees thus it was important
to compile a list of trees the villagers
considered most valuable . The meetings
were also used to finalize important logistics
of the program such as who would manage the
nursery to be established at each village and
what was the best location for the nursery.
MFG staff explained the conditions a villager
had to meet in order to be eligible to receive
seedlings including an agreement that they would
take all necessary steps to plant trees properly
and follow up with appropriate care. Those
who agreed with the terms were asked to sign a
contract. To increase the probability of
success the MFG team made multiple visits during
which they provided participants with
personalized training.
|
|
To further encourage participation a friendly
competition was set up to award participants
prizes based on predetermined criteria. A
team comprised of MFG and MNP staff and members
of the villages' steering committees established
the criteria, which included planting the
greatest number of surviving trees, and the
methods that would be used to evaluate
reforestation activities and progress.
To gain
the greatest amount of attention and thereby
encourage other families in the participating
communities and new communities to join the
program the MFG announced the winners and
awarded prizes at locally held festivals.
|
|
At the end of 2009, four tree
nurseries had been established, 107
participants signed contracts,
30,000 seeds from 23 tree species
were collected for planting from
which 7907 endemic and 3281
commercial plant species were
distributed and 31 hectares of land
were reforested.
|
|
