Page 1 of 7
Journal for Studies in Management and Planning
Available at
http://edupediapublications.org/journals/index.php/JSMaP/
ISSN: 2395-0463
Volume 04 Issue 08
August 2018
Available online: http://edupediapublications.org/journals/index.php/JSMaP/ P a g e | 44
Forest Conservation Activities in Mount
Brackett (A Sacred Mountain) in South West
Mau Forest, Kenya
Clifford Kipngeno Langat1; Eric Koech1; Andrew Kiplangat2 & Yuda
Odongo Owino1*
1Department of Agroforestry and Rural Development, University of Kabianga, P.O.Box 2030 –
20200, Kericho, Kenya.
2Department of Environmental Planning and Management, University of Eldoret, P.O. Box 1125
Eldoret, Kenya
*Corresponding author: E-mail: yuda.odongo@yahoo.com
Abstract
The study investigated forest conservation
activities in Mount Bracket (a sacred
mountain) in South West Mau Forest.
South West Mau Forest is found within
central coordinates of 35°
38. 88ˈ
E and 0°
33. 00ˈ
S and an altitude of 1800 – 3000 m
above sea level. Mt. Brackett was
purposively chosen for study due to its
religious and cultural benefits. Three
transects were laid at 0-2 Km, 2-5 Km and
over 5 Km parallel to the forest edge and
one study site selected from each transect.
225 household questionnaires were
administered during the data collection by
randomly identifying the first household
(HH) in each study site and there after
systematically selecting a HH after every
third HH at an approximate distance of
300 m. The data was analyzed using SPSS
Version 12 package at significant test
levels of P < 0.05. Sensitization on forest
conservation (57.3%), research and
policing (59.7%) and tree planting
(64.0%) were the main forest conservation
activities in the area. Chi-square test
demonstrated that there was no significant
association (P > 0.05) between forest
conservation activities in Mt. Brackett
forest and the study sites in all the
transects. The paper recommends that
households adjacent to forests need to be
sensitized and educated on forest
conservation especially through
Community Forest Associations (CFAs).
Keywords: Conservation, Sacred, Forest,
Mt. Brackett, Forest adjacent communities
1. INTRODUCTION
Forests play a vital role in the life and culture of
people around the world (Langat et al., 2018). The
reverence and adoration of trees has a strong
psychological and social foundation in most human
cultures. The variety of cultural values and
symbolic functions ascribed to forests are as
numerous and diverse as the communities and
cultures (Mogaka et al., 2001). Forests feature in
all aspects of culture includes languages, history,
art, religion, medicine, politics and even social
structure. In Kenya, natural and plantation forests
occupy about 3.47 million hectares amounting to
6% according to the United Nation Food and
Agriculture Organization, (FAO, 2010).
In some regions of the world also, there exist a
relationship between forests and spiritual realm.
Buddha would sit alone in the depths of the forest
in meditation and it was in the midst of a forest that
He was shown the four great truths. The Dai
people of Yunan province in China believe that the
forest is the cradle of human life and that forests
are at one with the supernatural realm (Casey et al.,
2006). The forests in European culture were also
considered to be more positive sites of miracles, the
search of great spiritual awakenings and the forest
Page 2 of 7
Journal for Studies in Management and Planning
Available at
http://edupediapublications.org/journals/index.php/JSMaP/
ISSN: 2395-0463
Volume 04 Issue 08
August 2018
Available online: http://edupediapublications.org/journals/index.php/JSMaP/ P a g e | 45
itself was held to be a form of primitive church or
temple. African traditional religion recognizes that
a divinity creates, sustains, provides for and rules
all created reality (Mbiti, 1991). Traditional
African cultural values emphasize harmony not
only among humans but also between humans and
their animal, plant and inanimate environment in
their day to day lives. Indigenous African people
have numerous cultural beliefs and practices which
control all aspects of their lifestyle (Mbiti, 1991).
In this respect, the way they perceive the
environment and forests in particular, its role and
importance in their lives, forms of its utilization
and their efforts at managing it for sustainable
utilization for themselves and posterity, guides how
they relate to the environment.
The Kenya’s Forest Act of 2005 has provided for
the recognition Community Forest Associations
(CFA) and spells out their roles in forest
management. The Act enables members of the
forest community to enter into partnership with
KFS through registered CFAs. Some of the user
rights granted to these association include
collection of medicinal herbs, harvesting of honey,
harvesting of timber or fuel wood, grass harvesting,
collection of forest produce for community - based
industries, ecotourism and recreational activities,
on resident cultivation and contracts to assist in
carrying out specified silvicultural operations
(Ongogo et al., 2008; Owino et al., 2018).
In the developing countries, people living around
forest areas are trained on the ecology of forest- dwelling species, the significance of forests both
locally and internationally, and appropriate
conservation measures. This has been used in
creating awareness among communities to engage
in Participatory Forest Management (Langat et al.,
2018; Mogaka et al., 2001; Olson et al., 1993).
Sacred groves are the site of ritual and secret
society initiations, a locale where social and
political values, morals, secrets, and laws are
passed on to the younger generation. Sacred groves
house the most important religious and ritual relics.
They are often the site of ancestral burials or places
where people can communicate with their
ancestors. (Amoah, 1998) describes sacred groves
in Côte d’Ivoire, noting that they are places where
moral values are taught and passed on from one
generation to the next. The trees within these
groves are viewed as sacred trees, housing spirits,
and providing links to ancestors. In some areas,
sacred groves are the only forested areas that
remain (Tomalin, 2009).
Mount Brackett in Kenya is regarded as a sacred
mountain by the Kipsigis communities living
around it. Several distinguished persons around this
forest like the late Senior Chief, Arap Tengecha
and the late Sigilai Arap Lelgo attempted to have
the mountain set aside for the Kipsigis based on its
values to the community. He met Kenyan political
authorities and impressed upon them the value of
the mountain to the Kipsigis Community (Adam et
al., 2009; Kimani. 2011; Langat et al., 2018;
Tomalin, 2009).
This was to investigate the forest conservation
activities around Mt. Brackett (a sacred mountain)
in South West Mau Forest, Kenya. It is imperative
to formulate conservation principles and guidelines
for the protection and management of Indigenous
cultural and religious heritage places and values in
forested areas of the South west Mau, including
consultation and decision-making protocols.
2. MATERIAL AND METHODS
This study adopted descriptive survey design to
ascertain the forest conservation activities in Mt.
Bracket of South West Mau forest which is part of
the Mau Forest complex (MFC) in Rift valley,
Kenya. It lies within central coordinates of 35°
38.
88ˈE and 0°
33. 00ˈ
S and an altitude of 1800 – 3000
m above sea level.
South-West Mau Forest Complex was gazetted as a
forest reserve in 1932, vide legal Notice No. 44.
The forest occupied an area of 83,395.5 hectares
and is the largest portion of the Mau Forest
Complex (171, 251.5 hectares). This area has since
been reduced to only 111,517.77 hectares after
several excisions (KFS, 2009).
Mt. Brackett (Tulwab Kipsigis) is situated in
Kedowa location. It is approximately two
kilometres opposite Londiani Junction on Kericho -
Nakuru road. Mt Brackett is inhabited by the
Kipsigis community. This mountain is of enormous
importance to the Kipsigis for they regard it as a
sacred mountain and has a total of 515 households
living around the forest (Adam et al., 2009, Kenya
Bureau of Statistics, 2010).
The forest topography is mainly rolling terrain with
some steep portions. Soils are mainly of fertile soils
of volcanic origin, well drained shallow to
moderately deep dark reddish brown, friable,
gravelly, clay loam to clay with acid humic topsoil.
The temperature of the area ranges from 16 °C to a
maximum of 20 °C with average rainfall varying
between 1400 mm and 2000 mm per annum. The
area lies within Agro ecological zone LH3 which is
wheat/maize (barley) zone and supports a wide
range of social economic activities such as
production of wheat, maize, poultry in addition to
providing medicinal plants and grazing for
livestock (Jaetzold et al., 2010)
Page 3 of 7
Journal for Studies in Management and Planning
Available at
http://edupediapublications.org/journals/index.php/JSMaP/
ISSN: 2395-0463
Volume 04 Issue 08
August 2018
Available online: http://edupediapublications.org/journals/index.php/JSMaP/ P a g e | 46
2.1 Data Collection and Sampling
Methods
Mt Brackett was purposively selected for the study
because of its cultural and religious benefits. Three
transects were laid at 0-2 Km, 2-5 Km and over 5
Km parallel to the edge of forest. One study site
was selected from each transect giving a total of
three (3) study sites that were used in the study
(Figure 2).
Figure 2: Layout of the Transect (0-2 Km, 2-5
Km and over 5 Km away from Mt. Brackett
forest in South West Mau Forest Complex, in
the northward direction.
The sample size was calculated based on Israel
(2009) equation (equation 1) at 0.5 margin error
............................................ (1)
Where n = Sample size
e = margin error = 0.05 corresponding to
95% confidence level
N= total population size = 515 households
Therefore: =
225.13661202 = 225 households.
Household questionnaires were then administered
to 75 respondents per transect.
Random sampling technique was used to identify
the first household (HH) in each study site and
there after systematic sampling was done by
selecting a HH after every third HH at an
approximate distance of 300 m. The data was
analyzed using SPSS Version 12 package at
significant test levels of P < 0.05.
3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
The study focused at various forest conservation
activities within Mt. Brackett. These activities were
mainly centred on sensitization, policing, research
and tree planting activities. Observation made
during data collection also provided information on
utilization of forest products and control over forest
fires.
3.1 Forest Conservation activities as
rated along Transect 1, 0-2 Km from
the edge of the forest: Study site 1:
Mt Brackett.
The results showed that respondents at Mt Brackett
rated forest conservation activities in South West
Mau Forest Complex in the order of: tree planting
(66 %) > research and policing (60 %) >
sensitization (54 %) on forest conservation policing
(Figure 3).
Figure 3: Forest conservation activities as rated
by respondents at Mt. Bracket study site, within
0-2 Km from the forest edge of Mt. Brackett
Mt. Brackett-Study site 1
Kenya Forest Service
Block- Study site 2
Nukiat - site 3
Transect 1: 0- 2
Km
Transect 3: Over 5
Km
Transect 2: 2- 5 Km
