Residents Perception on a Review of Forestry and Woodlots Policy and Practice in Three Selected Local Government Areas of Adamawa State, Nigeria

Forestry is the art and science of managing the forest land for the benefit of mankind. Over the time, pressure from the growing populations together with the effect of economic and political changes have frequently and greatly reduced the availability of forest resources, many of the system for controlling access and use have at the same time been severely weakened and fragmented altogether increasing pressure on the resources that remains led to their progressive degradation. Forest reserve lands in most Nigerian cities have disturbed, encroached and converted to a different land use. The objective of this study is to investigate the nature of the forests woodlots and plantation; analyzing the pattern of the changes such as forest disturbance of felling trees and encroachment of forest land, as well as the result of 300 research instruments administered from the State Forestry, local and rural communities within the study areas on the review of forest policy. Descriptive analysis of mean and standard deviation was adopted. The result revealed notable increase and change pattern as poverty is the major drivers, fuel wood becomes market business of making money, existing policy, law, ordinance on forest resources need to be review. A notable increase and change pattern was observed. Hence the population to a continual demand for fuel wood, lumbering, construction and farming in the study’s area landscape was observed to be changing rapidly. The study concludes that in other to minimize such problems in future, planning recommendations were made for the development of legal document legislation review; enforcement of policies, bye-laws and practice of forestry and woodlots in Maiha, Mubi North and Mubi South local government areas of Adamawa state particularly the North-Eastern part of Nigeria.