Uproar in Nyandarua over logging in Aberdare Forest

There is uproar in Nyandarua County over ongoing logging activities inside the Aberdare Forest. Residents and local leaders say tens of lorries have been making their way into the forest and carting away logs, raising fears of environmental degradation and the possible loss of a critical water catchment area.

However, forest authorities and sawmillers have defended the harvesting, maintaining that the felling of mature and over-mature plantation trees is lawful and forms part of standard plantation management. So, what exactly is happening inside the Aberdares?

At Geta Forest Station, Nyandarua, there is a lot of activity. We find lorries emerging from the forest, their cargo beds filled with logs.

Drivers struggle to manoeuvre their way to the main road, navigating dusty, pothole-ridden access roads. The scale of the harvesting has sparked concern among conservationists, Kenyans on social media and residents of Nyandarua.

James Matoro, a resident of Geta, says: “Mimi sijawai ona uharibu kama vile naona tangu nizaliwe kwanza Geta Forest…miti inakatwa kukatwa bila plan, wakimaliza kukata miti hakuna benefit yoyote tunapata kwa sababu hiyo barabara wanapitisha miti ni mbovu na wanapita na magari zao kubwa.”

Residents fear the continued harvesting of trees could have far-reaching consequences for the Aberdare ecosystem, particularly its role as a critical water catchment area.

Their concerns are shared by Nyandarua leaders, who are calling for greater involvement of local stakeholders in decisions on forest harvesting.

Nyandarua Governor Kiarie Badilisha says: “Sisi tuna wasiwasi kwa sababu ya maji ya watu wetu ya kunywa sababu ya vyakula na tuko na wasi wasi mwingi sana, juzi nimetembea katika Aberdare na zile intakes ambayo watu wetu walikuwa wanapata maji sasa ile vijito vidogo vidogo vimekauka.”

Kipipiri MP Wanjiku Muhia added: “The ban was there, it was lifted to where, it lifted to when? How many trees should they be cutting? So I have raised this through a statement in Parliament but we feel we may use our constitutional right to stop the truck from entering our forest.”

Responding to the concerns during the Mazingira Day tree-planting exercise at Njabini Kiburu forest station, one of the areas where harvesting has been taking place, Nyandarua County Forest Conservator Daniel Mkung dismissed claims of deforestation.

He said 50 sawmillers had been authorised to harvest mature and over-mature trees from designated plantations, maintaining that the exercise was part of routine forest management and not destruction of the forest.

“There are things being said in the media but everything has a work plan, we know when to cut, how much to cut…we can’t go beyond that and it is only restricted kwa ile miti ya kizungu ile inapandwa kuvunwa, hatukati miti ya kiasili,” said Mkung.

With Kenya having approximately 152,000 hectares of industrial plantation forests managed for commercial timber production, sawmillers operating in Nyandarua  County are authorised to harvest trees from 250 hectares annually, an exercise regulated to ensure sustainable forest management.

“These areas that we harvest support 10,000 people…wale wanategemea msitu kwa ukulima…last year we collected Ksh.217 million for the exchequer,” added Mkung.

In a statement shared on their social media pages, Rift Valley, Central and Eastern Association of sawmillers defended the ongoing harvesting, describing it as a necessary part of commercial plantation management.

The association says the exercise gives the government revenue from mature trees, prepares the land for the next planting rotation and maintains a steady supply of timber to the local market.

They say the timing is intended to ensure logs can be transported before El Nino rains disrupt access to forests.