Impact of War on Biodiversity Conservation in the Western Area Peninsula Forest Reserve, Sierra Leone

Abstract

Some of the world‘s richest biodiversity hotspots have been the epicentres of major conflicts in the last five decades. Sierra Leone‘s Western Area Peninsula Forest Reserve (WAPFR), located in the westernmost end of the Upper Guinean Forests biodiversity hotspot of West Africa, is no exception. The study assessed the impact of war, by investigating both the changes in threat to biodiversity and changes in conservation capacity over time and space, as affected by Sierra Leone‘s decade-long civil war (March 1991 – January, 2002). The study used semi-structured interviews, surveys, and focus group discussions with different stakeholders in communities surrounding the reserve to collect empirical data. It adapted the Threat Reduction Assessment (TRA) in a unique way to assess retroactive changes in threat over a long period, and allowing for new and worsening situations. The study also made a novel use of the randomised response technique (RRT) to quantify illegal resource use, to analyse the spatial distribution of hunting and hunting methods that posed the greatest pressure. Threat levels to biodiversity in the Reserve differed significantly among communities, stakeholders and the types of threat. Overall, the war period was not detrimental to conservation. However, the slow recovery in terms of weak conservation capacity and internal displacements of people led to increased levels of threat following the end of the war. Long-term planning should include strategies for a swift recovery from sudden surges in threats, and strategies to manage large influxes of displaced people, increase in conservation capacity, co-ordination and horizontal integration between conservation and relief agencies, and support for government initiatives. Many aspects of hunting, including the proportion of people involved, methods used, and categories of hunters, did not change significantly over time. However, the prominent use of snares, increased numbers of hunters, changes in species targeted, and increased perceived animal rarity, all point to possible unsustainable hunting practices in the WAPFR. Conservation measures recommended to halt the wildlife decline include alternative livelihood strategies for bushmeat dependants, strengthening conservation capacity, and adoption of an adaptive management approach to conservation, which can adjust management strategy as threats shift in intensity and spatial distribution over time. Conservation capacity and resource extraction dropped during the war. The currently practised fortress type of conservation has not been effective and significant increases in capacity should be sought and other governance options considered, to assist conservation monitoring and evaluation both within Sierra Leone and elsewhere.