COMMUNITIES SURROUNDING OIL REFINERY NEED ASSISTANCE ON TREE PLANTING
Planting tree
By: Kato Paul
Since oil developments started in the Albertine region, a lot of the tree cover have been cleared away to pave for the oil activities especially in Kabaale-Buseruka sub county Hoima district where a lot of the developments are taking place. The oil developments contributed to the clearance of the forest cover in the Kabaale, Buseruka include the Oil roads, the Refinery and Hoima international Air Port and others.
The communities of Nyahaira, Nyakasenene villages and other surrounding the land acquired to host a proposed oil refinery in Kabaale sub county ,Hoima District ,fear that before long they will experience harsh weather changing patterns due to indiscriminate tree clearing in the Area.
This is likely to affect negatively their farming activities since most of the oil affected persons are farmers. For long time, Kabaale Buseruka has been know of having the scattered tree covers and during the dry season ,it has been experiencing a lot of sunshine compared to other places in Hoima District. Sometimes animals have been dyeing due to lack of pasture caused by the too much sunshine in the Area.
The situation is likely to become very tuff on the oil affected persons because of the fumes that are expected to be produced from the oil refinery. The government technocrats should advised the affected people about the tree species they should plants to absorb the fumes that will be billowing and plunging from the oil refinery and the atmosphere respectively so that the can sink the greenhouse gas for a healthy life and environment.
In my opinion, the government of Uganda needs to encourage the affected people to plant the trees that can with stand the climate of the area and the same time absorb the gas emissions expected from the oil developments. The tree species include Ficus called “Omutoma” in Runyoro , prynas,tanaira and Fagara recommended for carbon credits and best for carbon sequestration .
These indigenous trees will also help to absorb 102 million metric tonnes of gas emmisions that are expected to be produced from the other three oil project per year. Kingfisher, EACOP and Tilenga are expected to produce 35, 34 and 45 million metric tonnes of gas emissions respectively.
Therefore , I call on the government of Uganda to advise on the tree species that can planted by oil affected people and provide the tree seedlings for planting in order to save the environment and people ‘s livelihoods from being affected by the resource that will bring in the petrodollar and at same time absorb gas emissions
Kato Paul– Research Associate at Africa Institute for Energy Governance (AFIEGO).
Katop.adyeeri@gmail.com
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