Sustainable Forest Management Practices And Biodiversity Conservation In Calabar Education Zone Of Cross River State, Nigeria

The study examined the relationship between sustainable forest management practices and biodiversity Conservation in Calabar Education Zone of Cross River State, Nigeria. Two research questions were posed and Two null hypotheses were formulated and tested at .05 level of significance. Review of literature was carried out according to the sub-variables of the study. The study adopted survey research design. The population of the study comprised of 1,812,801 inhabitants, comprising 897,312 males and 915,489 females base on 2023 population projection, among residents of the seven local government areas of zone the sample of the study comprised 606 respondents drawn from the calabar education zone of cross river state.. The instrument for data collection was 25 items structured questionnaire develop by the research and supervisor. The instrument was titled: Sustainable Management Practices and Biodiversity Conservation Questionnaire (SMPBCQ) questionnaire was used to collect data. Face and content validity of the instrument was done by the supervisor and three experts in measurement and evaluation department. Cronbach Alpha coefficient was used to determine the reliability of the instrument. From the administered questionnaire, data was organized and analyzed using Pearson Product Moment Correlation. The finding of the study revealed that the selective exploitation and Taungya system c contribute to sustainability of forest resource management in Calabar Education Zone. Based on the findings, the researcher recommended among others things that, government and forestry officials should enforce selective exploitation practices to enhance biodiversity conservation in Calabar Education Zone of Cross River State, Nigeria.