Bush Fires Ravage Food Farms In The North

Bush fires suspected to have been set by hunters are rapidly spreading through farms and destroying large acres of mango and cashew plantations in some parts of the Northern Region.

Some shea-nut trees have also been affected.

Owners of some of the destroyed farms who spoke to the Daily Graphic called for immediate action or the fires could lead to a massive destruction of other properties and even lives.

The actual extent of destruction is yet to be known but the farmers attributed the fires to the annual cycle of bush burning by hunters in pursuit of game.

They called on the government and agencies such as the Ghana National Fire Service and the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) to intensify efforts at educating people on bush fires, particularly at the onset of the harmattan.

They drew attention to last year’s experience when more than 500 mango trees cultivated with support from the Integrated Tamale Fruit Company (ITFC) were destroyed by fire, leading to huge losses to the farmers and the company.

Mr Louis De Bruno Austin, General Manager of the ITFC, the company which provides financial support for most of the mango plantations, proposed the enactment of a national fire law which would make the burning of bushes a criminal act.

He proposed that such a law should have provisions that placed the responsibility of preserving bushes from being set on fire in the hands of chiefs and communities to make it possible to apportion blame when there was a fire.

Mr Austin said such a move would also engender community ownership of the vegetation to promote environmental governance and management. Share Your Thoughts on this article Name Email Location Comments Graphic Ghana may edit your comments and not all comments will be published