Tree Planting Exercise At Masinga Buffer Zone
TARDA launched a tree planting exercise in December 2020 that was aimed at rehabilitating the buffer zone whose resources have been over exploited. There has been wanton destruction of vegetation and unsustainable exploitation of other natural resources by local community in pursuit of livelihood in Masinga buffer zone. This has caused great concern to the future of the country’s largest multi-purpose water reservoir in terms of energy production. The illegal occupation of the riparian zone by the local community aimed at boosting food crops production, firewood, fodder, poles / posts and overgrazing has resulted in massive soil erosion hence siltation into the reservoir, which results to reduction of the impoundment capacity and less hydro-power generation. Use of pesticides and fertilizers during horticultural crops production has caused great threat to human, livestock and marine life downstream and such activities are highly discouraged.
Therefore, the tree planting activity within the riparian zone will restore the lost functionality of the buffer zone’s macro and micro-ecosystem services such as; amelioration of local weather conditions, trapping of the silt, carbon sequestration, recreation, traditional resources uses and spirituality.
