Vandalism on city trees: a case study from KNUST campus, Ghana

ABSTRACT

Tree vandalism has harmful consequences that impact the performance of trees, affecting the flow of their benefits to society. However, questions about the common forms of tree vandalism and factors contributing to a tree’s vulnerability to vandalism have not been well researched. Using the campus of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology as a case study, the current research identified the common forms of tree vandalism and determined the relationship between these forms and tree species, size, and location. The study area was stratified into three based on land use: Faculty area, Students’ residence, and Lecturers’ residence. Using the Quantum Geographic Information System (QGIS), 100 × 100 m grids were laid on the study area map, and 10% of the grids were randomly selected from each stratum. All trees within the selected grids were identified and assessed. A total of 185 incidents of tree damage were recorded from the 131 trees assessed across the three strata. The highest incidence of damage recorded was broken branches (90), while burnt trees had the lowest frequency of occurrence (6). A total of 61 trees from 19 species were recorded as vandalised according to our classification. Tree size and proximity to the road network did not influence the type of tree vandalism recorded. However, our study suggests that tree vandalism may be location-specific, with trees in highly visible and crowded areas more likely to be vandalised with acts that seek people’s attention, while those in isolated areas are less likely to be vandalised through attention-seeking acts. This study is among the few which has attempted to empirically document a common phenomenon that has received less attention and has been overlooked in several societies.

KEYWORDS:

• Conservation
• degradation
• ecological services
• green spaces
• urban forestry

Acknowledgments

We thank the undergraduate students from the Faculty of Renewable Natural Resources for their assistance in field surveys. We are also grateful for Estate department of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Kumasi for given permission for the study to be conducted on the campus.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

The work was supported by the researchers’ own funds and the Ghana Government Book and Research Allowance.

Notes on contributors

Michael Ansong

Michael Ansong is currently a senior lecturer in the Department of Silviculture and Forest Management- Faculty of Renewable Natural Resources, at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Ghana. His principal area of work is in assessing the effectiveness of methods for controlling species invasion and documenting the gaps in the implementation of forest management prescriptions.

Emmanuel Opoku Yeboah

Emmanuel Opoku Yeboah is a graduate from the BSc (Hons) programme at the Department of Silviculture and Forest Management at the Faculty of Renewable Natural Resources in the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana. His principal area of work is understanding the physiology and ecology of forest plants.

Joana Akua Serwaa Ameyaw

Joana Akua Serwaa Ameyaw is a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Silviculture and Forest Management, Faculty of Renewable Natural Resources, at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Ghana. She is passionate about promoting responsible forested landscape governance through research in transformative forestry education, participatory forest management and forest justice.

Kwadwo Boakye Boadu

Kwadwo Boakye Boadu is a forest biomaterial Scientist at the Department of Wood Science and Technology, working with the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), College of Agriculture and Natural Resources. His objective is to contribute to the sustainable utilization of forest biomaterials in a way best suited for conservation, promoting environmental justice.