Human factors and health status of the highland forest ecosystems in North Shewa Zone, Central Ethiopia

Abstract

The main purpose of this study was to evaluate anthropogenic factors and ecological health status of the forest ecosystems in the north Shewa zone (NSZ), Ethiopia. Tree cutting, grazing, cultivation, and fires were the major anthropogenic factors that led to deforestation and loss of biodiversity. The ecological analysis showed that the sites of Mehal-Wonz, Mehal-Tsebel, and Abogedam forests were very heavily disturbed, while Debdebo and Zego forests were heavily and moderately disturbed, respectively, implying the severe degradation of most forests in NSZ. Therefore, to restore the degraded forest areas of the zone, in-situ and ex-situ community-based conservation strategies were recommended.