Mount Kenya Conservation Forum
Mt. Kenya forest experiences episodes of wild fires every year. Two high fire seasons are experienced on Mt. Kenya-January to March and August to September. The fire seasons coincide with the dry spells. Forest fires are a major cause of degradation of Kenya's forests. While statistical data on effects of forest fires in the country are weak, forest areas prone to fires are known. On Mt. Kenya, the fire prone areas stretch across the lower western forests to the north eastern moorlands in Gathiuru, Nanyuki, Ontulili, Marania, Mucheene and Meru forest stations in the dry seasons of January to March and June to September. Statistics on forest fire-caused damage on Mt. Kenya ecosystem are lacking or inadequate. In the absence of proper data, it is difficult to arrive at the accurate losses emanating from the forest fires. Forest Fires cause wide ranging adverse ecological, economic and social impacts. Effects of forest fires include:
loss of valuable timber resources and depletion of carbon sinks; degradation of water catchment areas resulting in loss of water; loss of biodiversity and extinction of plants and animals; loss of wildlife habitat; loss of natural regeneration and reduction in forest cover and production and proliferation of invasive species. Effective fire management is constrained by inadequate fire disaster preparedness, lack of adequate fire fighting facilities/equipment, lack of fire management training, inadequate personnel, and poor coordination of various agencies and/or groups fighting forest fires, inadequate funding and lack of forest fire management strategy.