VEGETATION DYNAMICS IN COMMUNITY RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AREAS: A MEASURE OF PROGRESS

Ghana’s Community Resource Management Areas (CREMAs) are established to reduce biodiversity degradation through the promotion of communal responsibility to conserve resources for sustainable benefits. This study was conducted to assess vegetation dynamics in three CREMAs in the northern savanna zone of Ghana through the application of remote sensing techniques and field observation. The findings showed the vegetation cover of all the three study areas improved over the period between 1990 and 2010. There were indications of successions from lower tier vegetation classes to higher ones. The riparian vegetation of the study sites changed from open savanna woodland to closed savanna woodland mainly through the grazing activities of the hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibious) and management practices that restrict farming, livestock grazing, charcoal production and suppress wildfires. The suppression of wildfires has resulted in considerable amount of fuel load which must be managed to prevent severe-intensive-fires in the future. Notwithstanding the general improvement in vegetation cover, there were also considerable increased coverage of bare surface/built up areas indicating economic activities also moved up over the period.