Building Biodiversity through Soil Rejuvenation

David Shipingana (left), a Forest and Safety Officer at the Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF), who has worked on the soil research projects there, together with Matti T. Nghikembua (right), the Senior Ecologist and Forestry Steward at CCF.

How richer microbial activity and soil diversity return after bush thinning

“Data has shown that if you restore your habitat you will increase grazing capacity. That will also translate to more economic benefits because you are able to increase your wildlife or cattle carrying capacity. But there are also other benefits, like the water infiltration capacity on your land will increase, meaning you get more water in your boreholes”, says Matti T. Nghikembua, the Senior Ecologist and Forestry Steward at the Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF).

CCF classifies scientific research as the backbone of its conservation activities. According to Matti, “We study everything from soils to reptiles and small mammals to predators. It’s about understanding the ecosystem in which cheetahs live.”

Another focus area of research is to understand how bush encroachment affects biodiversity, says Matti. “We have done soil studies looking at soil conditions in an area that is encroached and again after you’ve done a harvest (bush thinning). We also looked at what the benefits were to trees and shrubs.” CCF, with study areas all over its property, is investigating how bush encroachment affects biodiversity. Its research projects include studies on habitat restoration and biomass technology development such as its Bushblock, a clean burning fuel log.

CCF’s Research on Soil and Grass Biodiversity

The findings regarding soil and grass biodiversity are especially interesting. As Matti says, “Soil is such a complex thing, but what we found is that when you do thinning, changes will occur in the soil’s microbial activities.”

CCF Forest and Safety Officer David Shipingana, a former student at the Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST), worked on the soil research projects. He explains, “We started studying the soil at CCF in 2017. We looked at the impact that thinning has on the soil composition, how it affects the soil’s chemical and nutrient composition.”

Soil provides a home for nutrients, beneficial bacteria, fungi and more. The CCF team found in its research that the “soil community changes, and you find much richer microbial activity after you have thinned”, Matti says. He adds that initially there will be a brief dip in soil activity, but afterwards activity will improve to a state better than before thinning was done. “You then start finding more species and increased microbial diversity. This is what grasses are looking for in their habitat because each species provides a service in the soil, and the more diversity, the more services in the soil.”

A Balance for optimal Productivity

The team also found that there is a balance point which induces optimal productivity on the land when the habitat is not clear-cut but thinned in moderation, leaving some bushes behind. “Clear-cutting disrupts the soil composition and there will be an imbalance in the chemical composition of the soil”, David says.

“I like data because it shows that”, Matti adds. We also have publications which show that bush thinning increases prey availability. For example, species such as gemsbok like open habitats. If you clear bushes, their numbers go up, they reproduce more. You are increasing the activity of those animals, and that is good not only for tourism but also for wildlife as the predators, especially the cheetahs, can hunt freely.”

Economic and Ecological Benefits

“There are benefits in the restoration process”, David says. “When people realise it’s beneficial either way, economically and also ecologically, we can do so much more.”

Elaborating on the ecological benefits, Matti adds, “There will be an increase in biodiversity because you are also diversifying the habitat. A species like kudu, for example, prefers thick bush. If your farm is uniformly thick with bush you are probably only farming with kudu and leopard, because they like to be concealed.”

Productivity of the land is essential, Matti emphasises. “If you restore the habitat, there will be enough room for wildlife to come back. Wildlife will go where the habitat is productive. We have also been engaged with communal areas and conservancies in the Greater Waterberg Landscape where predators are causing a lot of economic losses, simply because the habitat is so degraded. There is an overabundance of bush, and the grass is overgrazed. Where the livestock go, because the soil is productive, is also where the predators go.”

Matti goes on to explain, “You will wait a very long time if you wait for ecological processes to occur. With bush thinning, however, you help bring productivity back to the land, in a very short period of time.”

The Future for Biomass

When asked what is needed going forward, Matti says, "I would say that it is possible for us to restore rangelands, but we need to learn from past mistakes and we need to collaborate. Projects of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and the Namibia Biomass Industry Group (N-BiG) help, and people need to know about these initiatives because they have become information hubs for our country.”

In David’s opinion “the biomass future in Namibia can be very promising, there is potential and opportunity, if people all pull together.”

CCF's mission is to ensure the long-term survival of cheetahs and their ecosystem through a multi-disciplined and integrated conservation program of research, management and education. By understanding the cheetah’s biology and ecology, and by sharing this knowledge, CCF has become a champion of the Namibian biomass industry.

Read about the CCF Bushblock program here: www.cheetah.org/bushblok/about-bushblok/

Kirsty Watermeyer