Namungo Forest

This is a privately owned lowland tropical rainforest, 40 hectares in size, about 300 years old, and surrounded by the large, government-owned Lwamunda forest. Dominant trees in the forest include Pseudospondias macrocarpa, Bosquiea phoberos, and Trichilia prieuriana. Tree density is about 355 tree per hectare, with mean dbh of 24.48 cm, and height of 17.60m. A total of 63 tree species were found in the sample area of this forest. The sapling population is representative of the tree population, and regeneration does not appear to be a problem.

50 people live less than 5Km from the forest edge. The main user group is Namungo’s family/Kawambo dairy. All users in the group are agricultural laborers on Namungo’s farm, none of who own land apart from Namungo. Namungo allows user rights to workers on his farm for fuelwood and non-wood products. However none have rights to charcoal and timber and there is evidence of illegal timber extraction and charcoal burning. Mr. Namungo conducts selective harvesting of timber, but also attempts to maintain a balance between conservation and exploitation. He has converted a small (5 hectares) portion of his property into a Eucalyptus woodlot. Users see the condition of the forest as good and feel that the level of conservation is adequate. However both managers and users are concerned about tree poaching for charcoal and timber.