17 Rupununi loggers trained in reduced-impact logging practices

Seventeen loggers from five North Rupununi, Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo) villages have completed a two-week Reduced Impact Logging Course as part of efforts to strengthen sustainable forest management practices in the district. The Natural Resources Ministry on its social media page said the training was implemented through the Sustainable Landscape Project by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in collaboration with the Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC) and the Protected Areas Commission (PAC).

The participants came from the villages of Aranaputa, Kwaimatta, Rewa, Surama and Wowetta. The course was conducted by the Forestry Training Centre Inc. at its Mariwa Training Site. According to the Ministry, the training combined theoretical and practical instruction in key areas of forest management and logging. Participants received training in Forest Management Planning, Pre-harvest Inventory, Tree Identification and Directional Felling, as well as Occupational Health and Safety best practices.

The capacity-building exercise, the Ministry said, is part of the agencies’ ongoing efforts under the Sustainable Landscape Project to strengthen local knowledge and promote sustainable practices in forest-dependent communities.