The Darfur conflict in Sudan has devastated the environment in the region, stripping forests and destroying farmland, according to a report by the UN鈥檚 Environment Program (UNEP).
People caught up in the five-year crisis have cut down large areas of woodland, partly to feed a booming war-fuelled construction industry.
Tree cover has become so sparse in some areas that Darfuris often have to travel more than 75 kilometres from their camps to find enough wood to sell or use for fuel, the report added.
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鈥淲e鈥檙e now seeing extreme stress on the environment around many of the camps and the major towns in Darfur,鈥� said UNEP鈥檚 Sudan country director Clive Bates in a statement. 鈥淲e need to plant millions of trees and introduce new technologies for construction and energy as quickly as humanly possible.鈥�
Destructive construction
The UNEP report said demand for wood in Darfur鈥檚 three main towns 鈥� El Fasher, Nyala and El Geneina 鈥� had increased an estimated 鈥渢wo to three times鈥� since the conflict started in 2003.
Numbers of saw-mills and wood-fired brick kilns have rocketed in the region鈥檚 main towns to keep up with rising demand for building materials for new peacekeeping bases, displacement shelters and accommodation for UN staff, the report added.
It said brick-making kilns alone were burning up an estimated 52,000 trees a year, which meant 鈥渢he current form of brick-making is having a disastrous impact on Darfur鈥檚 fragile environment鈥�.
鈥淭he brick kilns are occupying and in many cases destroying valuable agricultural land by digging up clay soils around towns,鈥� the report added.
Humanitarian effort
Farmers driven from their fields by the conflict often found the timber trade was the only business left open to them after taking shelter in displacement camps, said the report, entitled 鈥淒estitution, distortion and deforestation鈥�.
International experts say more than 2.5 million people have been driven from their homes since mostly non-Arab rebels took up arms against the government in 2003, accusing the Sudanese government in Khartoum of neglecting the remote western region.
Most of the displaced have taken shelter in dusty camps clustered around major towns and peacekeeping camps, supported by the world鈥檚 largest humanitarian effort.
The UNEP report said the move of people from the countryside to the cities had 鈥渢riggered a sudden and large increase in demand for firewood鈥�.
Avoidable tragedy
There were also signs militias and government soldiers had started earning money from collecting and selling mahogany and other hardwood trees for the furniture trade.
Nyala鈥檚 famous Kunduwa hardwood forest had been destroyed by extensive logging from 2005 to 2007 said the report, adding 鈥渋ts destruction is regarded by many as a tragedy that could have been avoided鈥�.
The report called for development organisations to launch environmental awareness campaigns in the region, and to pilot the use of alternative fuel sources and building materials.
