Landowners' participation in the sector has been commonly linked with litigation and lawsuits over allegations of non-compliance with logging agreements, and disputes over landownership. As a result, many small forestry conservation activities remain hidden from public view. This analysis of small-scale community forestry conservation activities simultaneously addresses forestry conservation issues and a variety of community development needs such as disposable incomes, housing, water, food, health, education, and so on. In recent times, the highlands region has experienced shortages of fuel wood for cooking and heating, and this has resulted in a booming firewood trade in the villages and along the roads. Fuel wood sells for K2 a small bundle and up to K10 for a large bundle.
Many families buy fuel wood to supplement supplies from their own trees.
The shortage of fuel wood has resulted from factors such as coffee cash cropping, that utilises land which was previously used to grow trees for firewood. Now, there is less land available for growing non-cash crop trees such as fuel wood. Also, the highlands provinces have always been densely populated. Western medicine, education, and new lifestyles have resulted in further increases in population, and this has increased pressure on the ways that land and forests are used. For example, garden land was traditionally given longer periods of fallow time which allowed trees to regenerate naturally.