Engage oil affected women in environmental conservation activities
Empower Oil Affected Women with Environmental Conservation Activities
By Kato Paul
Worth Noting:
- The oil affected persons especially the women needs to be empowered on how to do the environmental conservation activities such as planting of both indigenous and fruit trees which will help them on food and income generation and at the same time absorb the emissions that are expected from the oil and gas sector, attract the rainfall which will support agriculture sector which is under a big threat by the climate change, carry out bee keeping, poultry and fish rearing among others.
- In addition to that they need also to be supported in the use of clean energy for instance the solar and energy server stoves to reduce the pressure imposed on the forests and the wetlands for firewood.
Last week I had an engagement meeting with the oil refinery affected women in Buseruka –sub county Hoima district to equip them with knowledge and skills of environmental conservation efforts, human rights and climate mitigation and adaption as well. The meeting was organized by Oil Refinery Residents Association (ORRA) to prepare the oil affected persons for the expected negative impact of climate change that are likely come from the oil and gas sector.
I found out that oil affected women in Buseruka sub-county are the most vulnerable groups of the people already grappling with the negative impacts of the climate change since they are the mothers of the families and leading the home activities like farming and up bring of the children among others.
The negative impacts of the climate change were evidenced by the dried the crops like maize and beans, army worm which had attacked the maize and too much sunshine which was in the area and shortage of enough firewood used for cooking and the loss of animal lives due to shortage of enough water and pasture.
During the interactions, the women noted out that they were facing serious climatic changes such as prolonged drought, flooding of the lake Albert and army worm and others resulting from the massive destructions of the wetland and forest in the sub county by local people carrying charcoal burning, rich business men planting eucalyptus trees which consumes a lot of water in the wetlands and also the oil companies carrying out the oil developments and the oil related activities like oil roads, airport and others.
These human activities have contributed much to the destruction of the critical eco-systems in the area.
The oil affected persons especially the women needs to be empowered on how to do the environmental conservation activities such as planting of both indigenous and fruit trees which will help them on food and income generation and at the same time absorb the emissions that are expected from the oil and gas sector, attract the rainfall which will support agriculture sector which is under a big threat by the climate change, carry out bee keeping, poultry and fish rearing among others.
In addition to that they need also to be supported in the use of clean energy for instance the solar and energy server stoves to reduce the pressure imposed on the forests and the wetlands for firewood.
It is noted that the only biggest forest in Buseruka sub-county is a government artificial forest called Bujawe with only eucalyptus trees which consumes a lot of water from the soil, has allelopathy on the ground vegetation, a negative impact on biodiversity, exhausts oil from nutrients and others. These have also contributed to the climate change and losses in the agriculture sector.
Therefore , I call on the government of Uganda, oils companies, environmental activities and all the civil society organization to empower the oil affected persons especially the youth and women in the environmental conservation activities like planting of indigenous and fruit trees, fish rearing, bee keeping and others activities that’s supports environment.
Kato Paul- Oil Refinery affected person.
Katop.adyeeri@gmail.com.
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