CHAINSAW MILLING IN GHANA: CONTExT, DRIVERS ... - Fornis.net

Chainsaw milling in Ghana: context, drivers and impactsChapter 2Evolution of chainsaw policy2.1 Historical developmentUntil 1998, chainsaw milling (CSM) was a legal activity regulated by law. Since then,CSM — including transportation and trade of its products — has been illegal. Table 3summarises the definition of legal timber in Ghana.Chainsaws were introduced in Ghana in the 1960s and gradually replaced the use ofmanual saws for felling and crosscutting trees. Chainsaw milling became widespreadin the early 1980s as sawmill operations decreased along with a nationwide economicdecline. As chainsaw milling increased in the commercial sector, it was recognisedas an important socio-economic activity and government attempted to regulate it.This led to the promulgation of the Trees and Timber (chainsaw operations) Regulationof 1991 (LI 1518), which allowed District Assemblies (DAs) to register chainsawsand, in collaboration with District Forestry Offices (DFOs), to issue permits for thefelling and milling of trees. DAs also registered chainsaws and processed andapproved applications for felling. DFOs received applications, conducted inspectionsand made recommendations to the DA on the suitability of the application. TheForest Product Inspection Bureau (FPIB), who conducted road checks, received copiesof registrations and permits.The decentralization of regulating operations led to the indiscriminate felling of trees,abuse of permits by both DAs and operators and a lack of cooperation between theDA and the DFO (Kotey et al. 1998; Adam et al. 2007a). The resulting depletion offorest resources and increasing environmental degradation became a public concern,prompting policy interventions.6