Faculty of Arts and Humanities

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Browsing Faculty of Arts and Humanities by Author "Akello, Gertrude"

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    The energy potential of harvested wood fuel by refugees in Northern Uganda
    (The Scientific World Journal : Hindawi, 2022-02-22) Barasa, Bernard; Turyabanawe, Loy; Akello, Gertrude; Gudoyi, Paul Makoba; Nabatta, Claire; Mulabbi, Andrew
    For the last three decades, Uganda has lost considerable natural vegetation cover in the refugee settlements and buffer zones due to the high demand for wood fuel and timber. It is worthy to note that the supplies of wood fuel are more likely to dwindle in the near future. This study explored the determinants of harvested wood-fuel choices and their energy potential. It also examined the implemented energy conservation measures and constraints faced by the refugees both in Palorinya and Imvepi refugee settlements in Northern Uganda. The data were collected by conducting household interviews and collection of wood species samples for energy potential laboratory analysis. Findings indicate that the major sources of wood fuel were firewood, charcoal, briquettes, and biomass fuels. The major refugee choices that determined wood-fuel collection included the family size of the house hold, culture, method of cooking, type of food cooked, high poverty levels, and availability of family labour (). The sampled wood tree species had the highest energy potential were Celtis durandii (5,837 kcal/kg), Parkinsonia aculeata (5,771 kcal/kg), Delonix regia (5,153 kcal/kg), and Bligihia unijugata (5,034 kcal/kg). Access to wood fuel by the households was mainly constrained by limited household income levels, long distances trekked, and inadequate awareness about wood fuel sources and availability. To conserve wood fuel, the refugees deploy several measures including the use of mobile solar gadgets for cooking and lighting, taking up agroforestry, use of briquettes, adoption of energy-saving cooking stoves, and establishment of new woodlots. Therefore, to reverse this trend, the Ugandan government and development partners should prioritise energy investments by supporting cheaper energy alternatives such as mobile solar gadgets and energy-saving cooking technologies, and establishment of woodlots.
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    Interpreting the effects of sand mining in Lwera wetland using landscape metrics and testing a rehabilitation approach
    (Kyambogo University(Unpublished work), 2018-12) Akello, Gertrude
    Wetlands are one of the most valuable ecosystems but are fast getting degraded. Increasing threats of environmental degradation to wetlands has driven adoption of ecological rehabilitation as one of the tools for conservation. Rehabilitation has further been emphasized to compensate for the biodiversity values lost in carrying out development projects in fragile ecosystems. For a mined wetland at Lwera, an attempt was made to: (i) study the spatial patterns of wetland fragmentation using landscape metrics computed from satellite-based land cover classification, and (ii) test differences in establishment of the dominant wetland vegetation in the area (Cyperus Typha angustifolia and Phragmiles). To assess the mining footprint, the active mining wetland area was mapped and constrained around some area for landscape analysis using sensor data. To test a rehabilitation strategy, a northerly transect was selected with random intervals at pits where experimental pits were set. In each of the pits, six replicate plots were set up, that is, for each species two arrays of four platforms, one arranged parallel and the other conterminous at the edges. The platforms were each lined with perforated sisal bags anchored on supports at the platform corners. Rhizomes of the plants were then planted on the platforms where wetland soil material had been placed. The results of landscape analysis showed fragmentation of the wetland, mostly by mining activities. For instance, using a representative metric, namely vegetation patch number, it was shown that the number of patches under vegetation increasesd from 400 in 2016 to 620 in 2017 and then to 7 10 in 2018, depicting a discontinuous and patchy landscape and with this was a change in landscape structure. Further, the results on testing establishment of the native wetland species showed that the species rapidly established, but Papyrus was particularly more successful growing up to a shoot length of 94cm as compared to Typha (80. I 4cm) and Phragmites (64cm). It was also shown that the distance from the lake had a significant effect on establishment of the three species tested (P S 0.05). The results were beneficial in reporting the effects of mining on the wetland and demonstrated the possibility of using remote sensing to quantify spatial changes in the wetland. It was however clear that expansion dynamics of the planted species cannot be studied in a short period of time which calls for a long term study.