Impact Of Deforestation On Ecosystem: A Case Study Of The Fresh Water Swamp Forest In Onne, Niger Delta Region, Nigeria

Abstract

The Niger Delta region of Nigeria is endowed with the freshwater swamp forest, which is one of the richest ecosystems of the world. The ecosystem through its species diversities play pivotal role at local and global levels by shaping the environment, and influence local climate conditions. The coastal vegetation has been beleaguered by deforestation at an alarming rate. This paper takes a look at the impact of unregulated and uncontrolled removal of vegetation due to human economic activities in Onne freshwater swamp forest. In this study, the mean area of land covered by flood waters was 0.55 ha for the deforested land compared to the non-deforested land which had a mean of 0.25 ha. Similarly, the mean air temperature for the deforested portion was 28.48⁰C while that of the non-deforested area was 23.47⁰C respectively. This study revealed that the rate of deforestation of the natural freshwater swamp forest in Nigeria has led to situation whereby the rich  ecosystem is
threatened by devastating floodwaters and rising air temperatures.