Volume 1, Issue 2, July - December, 2024

An assessment of forest degradation in Taraba Central Zone, Nigeria

Oruonye ED, Bashir Babanyaya Mohammed, Anger RT, Ahmed YM

Department of Geography, Taraba State University, Jalingo, Nigeria

ABSTRACT

This study assesses forest degradation in the Taraba Central Senatorial District of Nigeria over a 30-year period, utilizing Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) data to analyze changes in vegetation cover. The results reveal a significant decline in areas of dense vegetation, from 2,560.28 km² in 1993 to 1,972.29 km² in 2003. Similarly, areas of less dense vegetation decreased from 3,496.37 km² in 1993 to 3,312.98 km² in 2003. By 2013, both dense and less dense vegetation had completely disappeared from the study area. Concurrently, areas of sparse vegetation exhibited a progressive expansion, increasing from 4,264.16 km² in 1993 to 4,511.94 km² in 2003, 4,911.01 km² in 2013, and further to 6,322.44 km² by 2023. These findings underscore the extensive degradation of forest resources in Taraba Central Senatorial District, emphasizing the urgent need for sustainable forest management practices and effective policy interventions to mitigate further environmental deterioration.

Keywords: Degradation, Dense vegetation, Forest, NDVI and sustainable forest management.

Discovery Nature, 2024, 1(2), e7dn1029

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.54905/disssi.v1i2.e7dn1029

Published: 07 September 2024