IUCN Forest Conservation Programme Kenya's Indigenous Forests Status, Management and Conservation Peter Wass Editor E !i,)j"\|:'\': A'e'±'i,?ai) £ ..X S W..T^ M "t "' mm~:P dmV ../' CEA IUCNThe World Conservation Union Kenya's Indigenous Forests Status, Management and Conservation IUCN — THE WORLD CONSERVATION UNION Founded in 1948, The World Conservation Union brings together States, government agencies and a diverse range of non-governmental organizations in a u nique world partnership : over 800 members in all, spread across some 130 countries. As a Union, IUCN seeks to influence, encourage and assist societies throughout the world to conserve the integrity and diversity of nature and to ensure that any use of natural resources is eq uitable and ecologically sustainable. A central secretariat coordinates the IUCN Programme and serves the Union membership, representing their views on the world stage and providing them with the strategies, servi- ces, scientific knowledge and technical support they need to achieve their goals. Through its six Com- missions, IUCN draws together over 6000 expert volunteers in project teams and action groups, focu- sing in particular on species and biodiversity conservation and the management of habitats and natural resources. The Union has helped many countries to prepare National ConseNation Strategies, and demons- trates the application of its knowledge through the field projects it supervises. Operations are increa- singly decentralized and are carried forward by an expanding network of regional and country offices, located principally in developing countries. The World Conservation Union builds on the strengths of its members, networks and partners to enhance their capacity and to support global alliances to safeguard natural resources at local, regional and global levels. IUCN'S FOREST CONSERVATION PROGRAMME IUCN's Forest Conservation Programme coordinates and supports the activities of the IUCN Secreta- riat and members working with forest ecosystems. The goal of forest conservation is achieved through promoting protection, restoration and sustainable use of forest resources, so that forests provide the full potential range of goods and services. The programme makes contributions to policy at various levels and uses field projects to derive lessons to feed into the policy debate. The principles of Can'ng for the Eartb, published jointly by IUCN, WWF and UNEP in 1991, are applied to these projects, which combine the needs of conservation with those of local communities. One major activity is to develop coherent and informed policies on forest conservation in order to advocate the translation of policies into effective actions. IUCN frequently advises major development institutions on forest issues, to ensure that conservation priorities are ade- quately addressed in their projects and programmes. The Forest Conservation Programme receives generous financial support from the Government of the Netherlands. IUCN Forest Conservation Programme Kenya's Indigenous Forests Status, Management and Conservation Editor Peter Wass IUCN - The World Conservation Union Overseas Development Administration (UK) 1995 Published by : IUCN, Gland, Switzerland, and Cambridge, UK in collaboration with ODA !U,CN CFA Copyright : (1995) International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources Reproduction of this publication for educational or other non-commercial pur- poses is authorised without prior written permission from the copyright holder. Reproduction of this publication for resale or other commercial purposes is pro- hibited without prior written permission of the copyright holder. Citation : Wass, Peter (Ed.) ( 1995). Kenya 's Indjgenous Forests.' Status, Management and Consenution. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland, and Cambridge, UK. xii + 205pp. ISBN : 2-8317-0292-5 Printed by : SADAG, Bellegarde-sur-Valserine, France Cover design by : James Butler Cover photo : An Okiek Dorobo gathering honey in the South West Mau Forest. Kenya's tra- ditional forest dwellers have practised sustainable utilisation for many decades. Adrian Arbib Available from : IUCN Publications Services Unit 219c Huntingdon Road, Cambridge CB3 ODL, UK or IUCN Communications and Corporate Relations Division Rue Mauverney 28, CHJ196 Gland, Switzerland The presentation of material in this document and the geographical designations employed do not imply expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of IUCN or of other participating organisations concerning the legal status of any country, territory or area, or concerning the delimitation of its fron- tiers or boundaries. The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of IUCN or the other participa- ting organisations. The text of this book is Pn'nted on chlon'ne-free PaPer. PREFACE AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This book provides a summary of the existing information about Kenya's indigenous forests, and is the product of work carried out by the Forestry Department of the Government of Kenya, under the KIFCON Programme (Kenya Indigenous Forest Conservation Programme) led by Daniel Mbengei as Programme Manager (Kenya Government) and myself as Programme Coordinator (ODA). Colleagues from numerous collaborating institutions participated in this work, notably Kenya Wildlife Service, National Museums of Kenya, Kenya Forestry Research Institute, Kenya Forestry Master Plan, and the Forestry and Wildlife Resources Department at Moi University. Members of several NGOs, as well as local and international consultants and other knowledgeable individuals also gave valuable assistance. The text has been through several drafts. The first was compiled by Peter Jones of Edinburgh University. A substantially revised and updated version, prepared by Keith Campbell of the UK Natural Resources Institute, was widely circulated amongst collaborating institutions for comment, leading to a workshop in April 1994 when the draft was extensively discussed and valuable comments were made. Responsi- bility for preparation and editing of the final version has been mine, ably assisted by Nick Hodgson, who was responsible for preparing the camera-ready layout. Main contributors to substantial sections of the book were: Nick Hodgson and Josphat Ndua (maps, basic data on physical resources, forest areas, environmental services and population distribution); Hugh Blackett (forest inventory data, estimates of wood products, and aspects of forest management); Glyn Davies and members of the NMK Centre for Biodiversity (forest biodiversity); Michael Rayner, Lucy Emerton, Hezron Mogaka, Michael Thomson and Liz Wily (forest utilisation, economics and socio- economics); Judy Oglethorpe and Anthony Githitho (policy, legislation, institutions, forest manage- ment, and management guidelines); and Wankje Ferguson (mangroves). Especially helpful in supply- ing additional information, making suggestions, and commenting upon drafts were: Daniel Mbengei, John Mbaya, Gideon Gathaara, Clement Kahuki, Titus Njagi, Bernard Kigomo, Charles Kimotori, E.A. Ochieng, Crispus Kamanga, Raymond Omwami, Olavi Luukkanen, John Fanshawe, Ann Robertson, Quentin Luke and Edward vanden Berghe. To all the people referred to either collectively or individually above, I extend my gratitude. Mention is also appropriate here of the steadfast support that KIFCON received throughout its life from its UK linkman John Makin, Assistant Director of the Natural Resources Institute, Chatham. Undoubtedly many aspects of Kenya's forests demand more detailed treatment than is provided here. Nevertheless I believe that this volume represents a significant step forward and provides a basic refer- ence document which will be of value to anyone responsible for, or concerned about, Kenya's priceless heritage in its remaining indigenous forests. Peter Wass Gij;in', Nairobi July 1995 KIFCON The Kenya Indigenous Forest Conservation Programme (KIFCON) was funded by the Overseas Development Administration (UK) and ran from 1991-94. Its overall mission was: to promote and support the conservation of biodiversity, maintenance of ecological services and sustained productivity of the indigenous closed-canopy forests of Kenya. In pursuit of this mission, major fields of work included: surveys of the status and patterns of change in natural forests; initial piloting of new approaches to management which incorporate community participation; and support to institutional strengthening and development for forest conservation and management. ± vi CONTENTS INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY 1 A BRIEF GUIDE TO THE BOOK'S CONTENTS I SUMMARY OF CONCLUSIONS 2 1. GEOGRAPHICAL BACKGROUND 7 1. 1 Landform 7 1.2 Climate 7 1.3 Climax Vegetation Cover 7 1.4 Present Vegetation Cover and Land Use 8 2. FOREST TYPES AND AREA ESTIMATES 11 2.1 Forest Regions 11 2.2 Gazetted Forests and Other Forest Areas 11 2 .3 Estimates of Forest Cover 13 2.4 Size and Distribution of Forest Estate 14 3. CHANGES IN DESIGNATED FOREST AREA 15 3.1 The Gazetted National Forest Estate 15 3.2 Degazettement of Forest Land 15 3.3 Limitations of the Degazettement Process 17 3.4 Other Forest Losses 17 4. FOREST BIODIVERSITY 19 4. I The Importance of Forest Ecosystems 19 4.2 Minimum Viable Populations 20 4.3 Biogeography of Forest Biodiversity 21 4.4 Biological Currencies 21 4.5 Identifying Biodiversity Conservation Priorities 23 4.6 Threatened and Forest-dependent Species 24 4.7 Endemism of Threatened Forest Species 27 4.8 Effects of Forest Exploitation on Biodiversity 28 4.9 Forests Identified for Priority Biodiversity