Recently, the District Representative of District number two in Sinoe County, Honorable Romeo Quiah piece in which he proposed a de-gazettment of the Liberia’s Prime Treasure, the Sapo National Part. As the guardian of our nation’s environment and natural heritage, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) strongly opposes this proposal. As the country’s largest protected area and one of the most intact tropical rainforest ecosystems in the world, the SNP not only provides habitat for many rare and unique species but also represents an essential ecological infrastructure that directly and indirectly supports local and national well-being. Removing it from our protected area network would result in an irreversible loss from an environmental, social, cultural, and economic perspective, and reduce our resilience to climae change  as a country. We have summarized some of the important reasons why we cannot de-gazatte the SNP.

Ecological Importance. The park has approximately 125 species of small and large mammals, more than 200 species of birds, and at least 350 species of butterflies. The park is an area of high plant diversity, with over 500 vascular plants, more than 300 woody tree species, and many more plants that are yet to be discovered by science. It functions as an ecological source for the landscape, with its population supporting the viability of nearby areas and stabilizing the wildlife that local communities depend on. As a regional center of endemism, it serves as the last refuge for many rare and endemic species, including elephants, chimpanzees, leopards, pygmy hippos, and tortoises, to which communities have strong cultural attachment.

Payment for Ecosystem System Services:The park and surrounding forested landscape are at the core of the largest remaining portion (>40%) of the Upper Guinean Forest of West Africa, which uniquely positions the country to benefit from opportunities arising in a world facing global climate change. As the EPA under the auspecies of the National Climate Change Steering Committee is currently dialoguing the Liberia’s Carbon Trading Policy and Climate Change Law, the park is at the core of economic benefits for surrounding communities and Liberia. As a global carbon sink, Liberia is joining Congo, Braizil and other forested nations to advocate for the establishement of standing forests at the upcoming United Nations (UN) Conference of the Parties (COP)30 in November, in Brazil. Studies have shown that communities living adjacent to protected forests often experience higher resilience and diversified incomes than those facing degraded landscapes, with every $1 invested in a protected area leading to $6 in economic benefit, including from avoided costs through hazard protection.

De-gazettement is a violation of existing laws and international committments. Liberia’s Environmental Protection and Management Law (2003) clearly safeguards national parks and reserves as key parts of the nation’s biodiversity plan. Degazettement would violate this law, as well as the National Wildlife Conservation and Protected Area Management Law (2016) and the Forest Reform Law (2006). Specifically, it would greatly diminish Liberia’s ability to reach its goal of protecting 30% of its forest area as part of a conservation commitment. It will also inhibit Liberia’s ability to meet its commitment to various international agreements, including the Convention on Biological Diversity, the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (2017-2025 – currently under review), and Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement. This would weaken Liberia’s standing in international agreements and undermine our ability to leverage our natural environment as the foundation for sustainable economic growth.

Other Values of the Park. Sapo National Park’s economic value extends beyond immediate income. It provides ecosystem services and is worth millions in avoided costs, including through soil formation, nutrient cycling, water purification, climate stabilization, and flood regulation. For example, with an annual precipitation of 2,596 mm, the park has a positive impact on the surrounding landscape, as this level of precipitation has been shown to support the health of the wider ecosystem. The connectivity of the forests is also crucial in preventing the spread of zoonotic diseases, which are more likely to occur in fragmented landscapes. Research by the FDA and Fauna & Flora shows that local communities attached immense pride to the presence of the park and their association with it.

Degazettement is Destructive: Degazettement or downsizing, as proposed, could lead to greater destruction of valuable habitats, causing a rapid decline in the landscape’s ability to sustain its ecosystem services, which, once lost, can be irrevocable or take a long time to recover. Furthermore, the forest’s microclimate regulation reduces the risks of droughts, floods, and extreme heat in nearby areas, increasing the resilience of these communities to withstand the stress and strains associated with climate change.

Degazettement would undermine Liberia Carbon Market ambition.The park’s dominant ecosystem of broad-leaf evergreen and semi-deciduous forest means its capacity for carbon storage is high. This is particularly important since this area plays a key role in supporting Liberia’s position as a net carbon sink, positioning the country to leverage its forest in a world facing climate change. Degazettement and subsequent exploitation would release substantial emissions, undermining national commitments under the Paris Agreement, impairing our ability to meet NDCs and other targets. Such actions would displace these opportunities linked to intact forests in favor of short-term economic gains, with no certainty that residents, whose welfare is trumpeted as the intended beneficiaries of degazettement, would benefit. For example, the national forest inventory estimates the carbon storage potential of Sinoe, where the vast majority of the park is situated, to be 165.83 tons/hectare, which, with a size of 180,400 hectares, indicates the capacity to store up to 29 million tons of carbon. At the conservative estimated price of $2 per ton of carbon, the development of a robust carbon offsetting and trading program could potentially earn 48 million dollars periodically. Degazetting removes this possibility and eliminates the potential to generate income from trading carbon.

Degazettement would invoke harmful practices. Instead of improving the economic well-being of local communities, degazettement would promote unregulated exploitation facilitated by harmful land uses, leading to unsustainable resource depletion and increased rural poverty. Experience across Liberia shows that these measures often favor elite interests at the expense of broader communities, as demonstrated by the misuse of the Private Use Permit (PUP) framework that was created to support the economic development of local communities. Degazettement can also be the first step down the slippery slope of environmental deregulation, where long-term planning is abandoned for short-term gain.

Evidence from the landscape indicated that it would lead to unregulated exploitation by commercial interests, undermine local rights, and increase illegal activities and the appropriation of communal land. The community forests next to the SNP provide a helpful illustration of how this could unfold, with communities left with a depleted forest stock and a long list of unfulfilled promises from logging companies. This experience aligns with research findings that show when forests are opened to industrial use, local people are often displaced or marginalized, while short-term profits go to outside actors.

Long-Term Conservation Benefits outweith short-term degazettement for economic gains. We are confident that the long-term socio-ecological and legal costs of degazetting the SNP far outweigh any short-term economic benefits. The Environmental Protection Agency strongly recommends maintaining the park’s current status and exploring the expansion of integrated conservation and development interventions that support both the conservation of the landscape and sustainable livelihood opportunities for park fringe communities. We are ready to collaborate with Hon. Thomas Romeo Quiah and the Legislature, the Forestry Development Authority and other government agencies, development partners, and local communities to strengthen participatory governance, promote sustainable livelihoods, and improve the management of this vital ecosystem for current and future generations.

There is a need for improved and alternative livelihoods for local people. It is undeniable that the economic benefits for nearby communities need to be more substantial, especially given the noticeable lack of viable social services and infrastructure. However, this issue exists despite—not because of—the park’s presence, as the need is also present in other communities without a park, and in some cases, there is active extraction of timber through logging or minerals through mining. Beyond its ecosystem value, we cannot overlook the current tangible benefits associated with the park’s existence. For example, over 90% of the park staff are members of local communities, and their employment directly supports their families. Additionally, those employed on temporary contracts or as guides for visitors benefit directly from ongoing park-related activities.

Unlock the park full potential. To maximize the park’s economic benefits, efforts should focus on unlocking its full potential by leveraging existing capacity to increase financial support for initiatives that provide tangible benefits to local communities. This means protecting the park while developing ways to enhance the benefits it offers to local communities. The claim that Sapo National Park does not adequately benefit local communities should not be an argument for degazettement, but a call for rallying investment, advancing policy reform, and initiating a process of more inclusive governance. It is essential to recognize that degazettement would eliminate all future opportunities related to the presence of the forest. Instead of rushing to end these possibilities, we must preserve the option to utilize the biological riches of SNP to transform local socio-economic conditions.

The challenge of governacne is not Sapo alone. The issues facing the SNP reflect governance challenges in a post-conflict setting related to funding and capacity. These weaknesses suggest broader institutional problems and should not be interpreted as a failure of conservation. Therefore, instead of degazetting or downsizing the park, efforts should focus on improving its economic performance, reforming its governance structure to encourage greater community participation and local benefit-sharing, and boosting operational support and law enforcement capacity. Degazettement would undermine Liberia’s environmental integrity, compromise resilience to climate change, and jeopardize a pathway toward sustainable development.

Additional recommendations: Recognizing the governance and operational challenges facing SNP, and in the spirit of advancing a conservation program that works for people and the environment, we are proposing the following actions:

1. Immediately increase the budgetary allocation to the park to enhance its operation and address security concerns that have led to a degradation of the ecological integrity of the park;
2. Leverage the park’s global ecological value to initiate a fundraising program to finance its operations and support interventions aimed at advancing community development and social infrastructure;
3. Strengthen ongoing processes aimed at involving communities in the collaborative management of the park as a necessary step toward community-led conservation of the landscape;
4. Conduct a feasibility study on the carbon sequestration potential of Sapo National Park toward the development of long-term sustainable financing options through carbon and biodiversity credits that will fund park protection and community development interventions;
5. Facilitate a negotiated process that clarifies the 2003 extension of the park boundary, toward a settlement that works for the community and the park. As a first step, flagging the proposed extended boundary will be critical in determining what is practical in terms of local land use and ecological protection.

Signed:

Dr. Emmanuel K. Urey Yarkpawolo

Executive Director/CEO

Environmental Protetion Agency