The Woman Member of Parliament for Mpigi, Teddy Nambooze, has urged National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) to extend their operations to her district where ecosystems have been invaded by encroachers.

Her call comes following the launch of operations by the NEMA against encroachers on Lubigi swamp in Kampala and Wakiso district last week in an attempt to implement the cabinet directive of restoring all ecosystems under attack across the country.

Over the years, Uganda has been experiencing various forms of natural calamities attributed to environmental degradation, as people are freely encroaching on key ecosystems without following the right procedures and guidance.

Nambooze, cited the ongoing mismanagement of one of the biggest wetland systems of Lwera in the Central part of the country shared by several districts where unregulated sand mining and mega rice growing schemes are being carried out allegedly on NEMA's clearance.

She clearly stated that the big and hard-to-reverse damage to nature is being caused by rich individuals who are cleared by government line authorities to conduct their business from sensitive ecological zones without honoring the guidelines specified in the environmental assessment reports issued to them as per laws guides.

The lawmaker told New Vision that after securing those illegal authorizations they start clearing flora cover and draining water by pouring volumes of marram and digging big trenches to enable them  develop such places while inflicting heavy damages on nature as the above processes involves disruption of the natural set up and functioning of the ecosystems hence negative impacts on the weather and climate patterns on top of calamities.

NEMA was asked to critically review the robust sand mining permits issued in Lwera and rice growing for those companies to be stopped and their permits cancelled as they have done to locals in Lubigi without according them fair hearing. 

" NEMA has to be fair while conducting these operations, over the years, ecosystem in Mpigi has been invaded by so called investors who set up factories on wetlands under the watchful eye of NEMA, we hear some are even given license to carry out these investments on wetlands, we call on the NEMA to address this issue" Nambooze said.

 She added that, without putting the above concerns into consideration nothing will change and all efforts shall end in vain because of political influence and impunity.

The legislator also called on the National Forest Authority, to step up efforts to control the invasion and destruction of national forest reserves in Mpigi.

Nambooze cited the Navugulu central forest reserve which is shared by the two districts of Mpigi and Butambala which is the recent forest reserve to face encroachment from people who have logged down natural trees to plant eucalyptus trees.

" We have also seen the destruction of very many forest reserves in the district, a case in Point the Navugulu central forest reserve, which is the recent forest reserve to suffer huge encroachment " she added.

Many ecosystem cites in Mpigi district are under attack by the so called investors who either clear wetlands to set up factories, grow rice, or sand mining.

The central forest reserves, like Navugulu, Mpanga, Gangu and Kyansonzi central forest reserves, have lost their greenery to encroachers.

 The government of Uganda through the NFA, introduced the collaborative forest management where community members are issued with license to work from the central forest reserves to help in restoration of the greenery.

However, community members deviate from the agreed principles in the license they are issued and instead continue to cut down trees from these forests.