Anthropogenic Disturbances in Northwestern Virunga Forest Amid Armed Conflict

This study focuses on identifying and assessing the extent of anthropogenic disturbance factors directly affecting the forests of northwestern Virunga. It posits that the army camps within the forest are a hotspot for expanding human activities in the context of armed conflict. A multiscalar approach was used to examine disturbances across multiple levels to capture their complex interaction and to avoid oversimplified interpretations. This approach included an analysis of the dynamics and spatial structure of the forest cover from 2016 to 2023, along with an inventory of the local disturbance factors. The study focused on seven study sites hosting army camps, namely Mikuha, Lahe, Pk26, and Ngite within Virunga National Park, as well as Mamundioma, PK2, and Kinziki in its periphery. The findings show that the installation of army camps did not lead to significant forest fragmentation. Except for Mamundioma, all the other sites showed an increase in forest areas, due to the aggregation of remaining forest patches during periods of insecurity. However, this trend toward passive forest restoration does not offset disturbances. It merely reflects a slowdown in the conversion of forest areas to other land uses. Nine anthropogenic factors contribute to forest disturbances, with cash crops (74.17%), food crops (72.50%), and trees cut down for energy (61.61%) being the most prominent. Other contributing factors include carbonization (31.67%), fire use (30.00%), sawn timber (26.67%), path creation (17.50%), exotic tree species introduction (10.00%), and the establishment of invasive species (11.67%). Spatial analysis provides a partial explanation for such forest disturbances. Its exhaustive description would require a mix of spatial data and field observations.