Deforestation in forest-savannah transition zone of Ghana: Boabeng-Fiema monkey sanctuary
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Date
2020-12-23
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Global Ecology and Conservation
Abstract
Forests provide many resources, ecosystem services and absorb carbon dioxide, which
helps in climate regulation. In spite of the enormous benefits of forests, the issue of
deforestation is still ongoing. There has been a continuous decline in forests globally and
the forest area of Boabeng Fiema Monkey Sanctuary (BFMS) in Ghana is facing a similar
threat. The aim of the study is to determine the different forest cover types and changes in
the forest of BFMS. Satellite images for the years 1992, 1998, 2004, 2010, 2016 and 2018
were downloaded. Unsupervised and supervised classification were performed to determine
the different forest cover types and remote sensing software was used to detect the
changes in the forest cover. The forest cover was classified into six classes; closed forest,
open forest, savannah woodland, savannah, farmlands and built-up area. Available data
suggests that between 1992 and 2018, closed forest decreased by 242.19ha, open forest
increased by 122.85 ha, savannah woodland increased by 7.47ha, savannah increased by
6.48 ha, farmland increased by 39.39ha and built-up area increased by 65.7ha. The changes
in closed forest, open forest, farmland and built-up were all significant. Decreasing forest
cover of BFMS is a threat to sustainable ecotourism since the forest serves as a habitat and
food source to the monkeys. This research serves as guide to other researches aiming at
determining forest cover changes in forest-savannah transition zones. In addition, the
results have produced an inventory of the forest, which will help forest resource managers
sustainably manage the forest.
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Afua Amponsah Amankwah, Jonathan Arthur Quaye-Ballard, Bennetta Koomson, Richard Kwasi Amankwah, Alfred Awotwi, Bright O. Kankam, Nana Yeboaa Opuni-Frimpong, Douglas Siaw Baah, Stephen Adu-Bredu, Deforestation in forest-savannah transition zone of Ghana: Boabeng-Fiema monkey sanctuary, Global Ecology and Conservation, Volume 25, 2021, e01440,