Deforestation and sustainability in Ghana: the role of tropical forests

Commercial timber operations in the forests of Ghana have not left the remaining forest resource ecologically bankrupt in the sense of deforestation. The integrity of the remaining forests is considered for sustainable timber resources. About 35% of Ghana's land is tropical forest. Following high deforestation rates in the early 1980s, about 22% of the original forest remains-virtually all in forest reserves. Slash-and-burn agriculture is restricted to land outside the reserves, and is practiced mainly on already-abandoned farmland rather than on natural forests. Reserve forests (about 720 km super(2)) are legally protected from any exploitation. Efforts by Ghanian professional foresters to practice sustainable forestry are discussed. The economic role of forestry in Ghana, and environmental and economic constraints on the wood-processing industry are examined.