The Cameroon Gender and Environment Watch (CAMGEW) has increased its efforts in the prevention and management of Bushfires in the Kilum Ijim Forest area.
In a chat with the CAMGEW Team Head Mr Wirsiy Emmanuel Binyuy this reporter learnt that concrete measures were already being put in place to effectively prevent and manage bushfires during the Dry season.
He said the Bushfire prevention Methods presently being used in the field by CAMGEW included the following measures:
- -Fire
Tracing and back burning.
- -Constant
Patrols
- -Sensitisation
against bushfires
- -Developing
a Communication Strategy
--Making known various punishments that await defaulters
- -Developing
Agroforestry Systems in farms around forest peripheries
- -Creating
Green Fire Breaks that separate the forest from the farm with evergreen
vegetation.
- -Signing
letters of commitment on Bushfire Prevention and Management measures with every
forest user organisation like Honey
Cooperatives and users like Bee Farmers and herbalists.
- -Organising
Community Bushfire Management Training Programmes.
- -Banning
of smoking in the forests and farms around the forest.
- -Developing other environmentally friendly activities that help fight bushfire like Bee
farming.
-
Meanwhile he explained that Bushfire Management methods presently being used by CAMGEW included
-Trainings on Bushfire Management Techniques
- The use of fire suppression techniques (Confine, Contain
or Control strategies)
- -Fire
line safety and First Aid
- -Fire
Volunteers
- -Use
of water to quench the fire
- -Monitoring
the weather
- -Carrying
away the Beehives from the site close to the fire to safer sites.
- -Turning
on Radio to get latest information.
Mr
Wirsiy Emmanuel further said there was the need to
resound these preventive and management measures especially at a time when the
Dry Season was around the corner. He said “Cameroon Gender Environment Watch is
calling on everyone to be conscious about Bushfires. Solidarity is the key to
fighting Bushfires and we are all each others keeper. Everyone should struggle
from their own end to make sure that Bushfires do not occur. If they occur
people should work like a team to put it off. Bushfires cause a lot of harm to
humans. We are the problem and we can also be the solution. Everyone should be
careful especially during this period from December to April which is the Dry
Season. If problems occur because of Bushfires we should be able to come to the
table to sort things out. We call on those people who cause Bushfires to be
careful because people suffer a lot as a result of Bushfires. There is a lot of
unemployment, suffering and pain and we cannot continue to allow our people to
be suffering when we can do something about it.”
Madam Sevidzem Ernestine Leikeki on her part thanked Green Livelihoods Alliance GLA and Women Engage for a Common Future WECF for their financial donations which she said had gone a long way to help CAMGEW in its sensitisation efforts on Bushfires in the Kilum Ijim Forest Area.
By Francis Ekongang Nzante
EDUCATION
AND DEVELOPMENT NEWS
Email:
edevnewspaper@gmail.com
Tel:
+237696896001/+237671262198/ +237678401408/+237691520771
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