SPATIAL DYNAMICS OF THE GROVE AND ITS ENVIRONMENTAL IMPLICATIONS ON THE LANDSCAPE OF WESTERN HIGHLANDS OF CAMEROON
Journal Title: Present Environment and Sustainable Development - Year 2013, Vol 7, Issue 1
Abstract
In order to assess the evolution of the grove within the Central Highlands of West Cameroon, population-based human investigations, remote sensing data and surveys on transects were used. Analyses of data thus generated shows that in its urbanization process, the city of Bafoussam continuously caused systematic destruction of the grove at each place of the process; the suburbs bearing the effects each time. This reality is clearly visible on the sets of aerial photographs for the years 1949 and 1964 that cover the North and South of the city. Particularly, Baleng and Bafoussam chiefdoms are the most affected. Away from this suburban environment, the landscape change is affecting just every human activity sector. Due to lack of maintenance of the coffee trees and the abandonment of formerly cultivated plots, a mosaic of resulting vegetal cover now portrays a type of mature vegetal cover. This type of rapid tree and shrub growth is demonstrated by their present heights and crown sizes that resemble those of 50 years old trees. Of note also is the fact that some groves have over the years spontaneously integrated themselves into the compound vegetation. Such adjustments are just like those along the lines of trees where the forest pioneer species seem to have found ecological conditions conducive to their establishment and growth. On more localized transects, observations show that colonization of the forest has also made significant growth progress in areas where hedges were glued to lowland gallery forests. Afforestation of anthropogenic valuable timber trees, fruit trees and shrubs as well as ornamental shrubs has also contributed to the increase in the rate of afforestation in these rural areas of the Central Highlands of West Cameroon
Authors and Affiliations
Frédéric Chamberlin Lounang Tchatchouang, Joseph Youta Happi, Emmanuel Ngwa Nebasina, Adrian Grozavu
Keywords
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