Over 15 billion trees lost annually- Environmentalist 

By Kiyimba Bruno

Kiyimba.bruno@gmail.com

“Planet Earth is currently losing over 15 billion trees each year which makes it 56 acres of forest every minute.”

Those were the words of the Communications Officer for energy without Boarders Ismail Muyinda in his remarks ahead of  the world earth day Uganda.

Muyinda said that Earth Day Network is working hard to reverse that trend by supporting global reforestation projects across the world.

 In Uganda, Forest cover has declined from 24% in 1990 to 9% in 2015 (UNREED). Deforestation in Uganda has mainly been due to a rapid increase of a population currently estimated at slightly over 40 million people and about 86.70% of this population live in rural areas with 93% of this population exploiting biomass as the only source of energy.

According to Muyinda, this has led to the indiscriminate clearing of forest reserves, wetlands and numerous tree species

“The reality of the deforestation is that it ushers in changing climate and its threat to life, sustainable development of communities and especially grassroots women and children.” Said Muyinda

Organized by Energy without boarders from 17^th to 22^nd February 2018 at KCCA grounds Lugogo, there shall be an exhibition where various stakeholders shall showcase the best ways of utilizing forest products in the best ways possible without losing any tree.

 The Earth Day celebrations focus on Climate and environmental literacy in Uganda.

Theme of The Day the Earth Day will focus mostly on climate and environmental literacy and among the topics we shall focus on is plastics. Plastics litter our cities, environment, lakes, rivers and springs and contribute to several health problems in humans and animals.