Banana plantations in the Kilimanjaro region

Much of the rainforest around Kilimanjaro is used to grow coffee, bananas and other crops. These and other introduced plant species such as the cypress Cupressus lusitanica are displacing native tree species .

There is much debate among scientists about the melting of the Kilimanjaro Ice Sheet . The ice covered 12 km2 in 1912 and now (2005) only 2 km2 remain. At this rate , the ice is expected to disappear by 2020 .

Originally assumed to be a consequence of climate change , the explanation of more recent studies is more likely to be found in regional deforestation.

Willem Vandenameele