Tropical forest degradation in the context of climate change: increasing role and research challenges. [K-2215-01]

While developed countries in temperate regions faced their forest transition about 100 years ago or more, “tropical forest rich” nations still largely depend on forest resources or land clearing for their development. Hence, tropical forests are retreating at an alarming rate from advancing cash crops, such as oil palm, soybean, or cattle ranching. Beside tropical deforestation, tropical forest degradation resulting mostly from human-induced causes (e.g. predatory or illegal logging, non-timber forest product extraction, fuel wood extraction) significantly contributes to greenhouse gas emissions and loss of biodiversity. If deforestation is an obvious ecosystem change, forest degradation is more difficult to discern and quantify. Degraded forests have become a major component of today's tropical landscapes, representing up to 50 % of all tropical forests. For example, almost half of standing primary tropical forests, up to 400 million ha, are designated by national forest services for timber production. The portion of tropical forests managed for timber extraction, hereafter referred to as “managed forests”, will therefore play key roles in the trade-off between provision of goods and maintenance of carbon stocks, biodiversity, and other services. However, so far, most of our understanding of tropical forest arise from studies carried out in old-growth undisturbed forests, or secondary forests (i.e. regrowth forests) while the ecology of degraded forests at the regional and continental scale remains poorly studied and their role to mitigate climate change still very poorly known. However, understanding the functions played by degraded forests in providing goods and environmental services in the context of climate change is crucial. We will first discuss the complex concept of forest degradation in the tropics and then define degraded forests. We will show their importance in providing timber while maintaining high levels of biodiversity and carbon stocks. We will further demonstrate that implementation of sustainable forest management can promote long term provision of ecosystem services. Finally, the potential of tropical degraded forests in mitigating climate change will be discussed along with future research challenges on this issue. (Texte intégral

‘Yes-in-my-backyard’: Spatial differences in the valuation of forest services and local co-benefits for carbon markets in México

Forests provide many and large benefits, including cost-efficient climate change mitigation. However international carbon markets have not stimulated the demand for forestry offsets. Domestic market-mechanisms are emerging inmany countries and forests could be highly valued through these policies asmost of the benefits produced by forests are enjoyed locally. Here, a choice experiment explores drivers of valuation and willingness to pay for forest carbon services in voluntary markets in Mexico by comparing the valuation of citizens from four regions to test geographical preference for projects (n = 645). Findings from multinomial-logit models show valuation of forest carbon services is transferable and citizens would pay more for offsets from projects closer to their homes. Proximate forests provide a range of co-benefits to local users, including environmental services and opportunities for recreation. Factors related to valuation include sense of responsibility, previous knowledge of carbon emissions, previous visits to the sites, regional identification and the valuation of local environmental services (e.g. improvements in local air quality). Knowledge of spatial heterogeneity in valuation of the use of forest services can help to design market-based instruments by identifying highly valued areas for environmental services programs and carbon markets

From failure to value: Economic valuation for a selected set of products and services from Mediterranean forests

Aim of study: the paper estimates the economic value of a selected range of forest products and services, i.e. roundwood, nonwood forest products (NWFPs), and carbon-related services. Area of study: the research covers 21 Mediterranean countries, distinguished into four sub-regions. Material and methods: data have been gathered from official statistical sources (e.g. FAOSTAT), scientific literature and technical reports. Different estimation approaches based on market-price have been used for different products/services. Main results: the estimated value ranges between \u20ac10,512 and \u20ac11,158 million (M). Wood products represent more than 85% of the total value. Within them, industrial timber is the most relevant component (65%). Figures for NWFPs are likely to be underestimated because data are available only for some products and countries. When using alternative estimates for pine nuts, pine resin and cork, figures show a \u20ac36.8-572 M increase. In geographical terms, the economic value of Mediterranean forests is highly concentrated: North-West Mediterranean countries account for 70%, and nearly 90% is in just four countries (France, Spain, Turkey and Italy). Research highlights: enhancing the offer of Mediterranean forest products and increasing their role in the rural economy could help to reduce the costs of forest protection: a well-structured forest economy ensuring stable flows of incomes can provide a fundamental set of public non-market services and social values to both local people and the whole community. Understanding the true value of natural resources, then, is an essential step for promoting their protection and sustainable use

Economic potential of forest resources of Nepal

Nepal's forest resources underpin the livelihoods of rural people in important ways. During the country's 'planned development' over the past 50 years, the government, donors and policy makers have viewed these resources as a key vehicle for ushering in economic growth and for meeting basic needs. They underscore the potential value of forest resources for achieving conservation and socio-economic objectives. To what extent have economic incentives been generated to effectively harness these resources to meet the said objectives is an open question. To address this question, this paper reviews briefly and broadly the economic potential of the country's forest resources in terms of forest goods and services. Estimates of economic potential of timber and non-timber forest products and environmental services have been assessed. A number of recommendations for realizing the potential for achieving development and poverty reduction objectives is provided

Forest owners’ collective action against the risk of forest fire: a game theoretical approach

This paper is a follow up on a earlier one (Mendes, 1998) where I proposed a series of models for forest owners associations represented as organisation made up of two groups of strategically interacting players: the forest owners who are members of the association and the board of directors they have elected. The directors decide on the amount of services provided by the association which can be public goods (collective representation of the members, promotion of their common interests, diffusion of general information about forest programmes and best forest management practices, etc.) and private goods and services (silvicultural works preventive of forest fires, technical advice, etc.). The models were set up as games in strategic form with complete information and no payoff uncertainty. Here I pick up the second of, what is called in that previous paper, the 'Portuguese' models and extend it in the following directions: - there is payoff risk for the forest owners due to exogenous hazards (forest fires or others); - forest owners can buy private services from the owners which contribute to reduce the losses resulting from those hazards. The main focus in this paper is to derive the comparative static results about the demand of these private services by the forest owners.forest owners’ associations, public and private goods joint supply, game theory

Intention of preserving forest remnants among landowners in the Atlantic Forest: The role of the ecological context via ecosystem services

Unravelling the psychological processes determining landowners' support towards forest conservation is crucial, particularly in rural areas of the tropics, where most forest remnants are within private lands. As human–nature connections are known to shape pro‐environmental behaviours, the intention of preserving forest remnants should ultimately be determined by the ecological context people live in. Here, we investigate the pathways through which the ecological context (forest cover), via direct contact with forests and ecosystem services and disservices, influence the psychological antecedents of conservation behaviour (beliefs, attitude and intention of preserving forest remnants). We conceptualized a model based on the Reasoned Action Approach, using the ecological context and these three forest experiences as background factors, and tested the model using Piecewise Structural Equation Modelling. Data were collected through an interview‐based protocol applied to 106 landowners across 13 landscapes varying in forest cover in a consolidated rural region in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. Our results indicate that: (a) ecosystem services are more important than disservices for shaping intention of preserving forests, particularly non‐provisioning services; (b) contact with forest has an indirect effect on intention, by positively influencing the frequency of receiving ecosystem services; (c) people living in more forested ecological contexts have more contact with forests, receive ecosystem services more frequently and, ultimately, have stronger intention of preserving forests. Hence, our study suggests a dangerous positive feedback loop between deforestation, the extinction of forest experiences and impairment of human–nature connections. Local demands across the full range of ecosystem services, the balance between services and disservices and the ecological context people live in should be considered when developing conservation initiatives in tropical rural areas

Forest Ecosystem Services: An Analysis of Worldwide Research

The relevance of forests to sustain human well-being and the serious threats they face have led to a notable increase of research works on forest ecosystem services during the last few years. This paper analyses the worldwide research dynamics on forest ecosystem services in the period from 1998 to 2017. A bibliometric analysis of 4284 articles was conducted. The results showed that the number of published research articles has especially increased during the last five years. In total, 68.63% of the articles were published in this period. This research line experiences a growing trend superior to the general publishing trend on forest research. In spite of this increase, its relative significance within the forest research is still limited. The most productive subject areas corresponded to Environmental Science, Agricultural and Biological Sciences and Social Sciences Economic topics are understudied. The scientific production is published in a wide range of journals. The three first publishing countries are United States, China and the United Kingdom. The most productive authors are attached to diverse research centres and their contributions are relatively recent. A high level of international cooperation has been observed between countries, institutions and authors. The findings of this study are useful for researchers since they give them an overview of the worldwide research trends on forest ecosystem services

Does degradation from selective logging and illegal activities differently impact forest resources? A case study in Ghana

Degradation, a reduction of the ecosystem’s capacity to supply goods and services, is widespread in tropical forests and mainly caused by human disturbance. To maintain the full range of forest ecosystem services and support the development of effective conservation policies, we must understand the overall impact of degradation on different forest resources. This research investigates the response to disturbance of forest structure using several indicators: soil carbon content, arboreal richness and biodiversity, functional composition (guild and wood density), and productivity. We drew upon large field and remote sensing datasets from different forest types in Ghana, characterized by varied protection status, to investigate impacts of selective logging, and of illegal land use and resources extraction, which are the main disturbance causes in West Africa. Results indicate that functional composition and the overall number of species are less affected by degradation, while forest structure, soil carbon content and species abundance are seriously impacted, with resources distribution reflecting the protection level of the areas. Remote sensing analysis showed an increase in productivity in the last three decades, with higher resiliency to change in drier forest types, and stronger productivity correlation with solar radiation in the short dry season. The study region is affected by growing anthropogenic pressure on natural resources and by an increased climate variability: possible interactions of disturbance with climate are also discussed, together with the urgency to reduce degradation in order to preserve the full range of ecosystem functions

WILLINGNESS TO PAY FOR ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES AMONG SLASH-AND-BURN FARMERS IN THE PERUVIAN AMAZON: IMPLICATIONS FOR DEFORESTATION AND GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL MARKETS

A Contingent Valuation survey shows that the possibility of trade in carbon sequestration services exists between utility companies and slash-and-burn farmers in the Amazon and that farmers positively value the environmental services of the forest. Global environmental markets could enhance the effectiveness of traditional forest conservation efforts while benefitting resource-poor farmers.Environmental Economics and Policy,

Hedging Strategies in Forest Management

The paper focuses on forests management strategies for natural hazards of nonindustrial owners, in the case where the forest provides nontimber services. We introduce a basic two-period model where the private owner manages natural hazards on his forest thanks to the accumulation of savings on his individual income, or to the adoption of sylvicultural practices. We show that: 1/ the harvesting rule, in the presence of amenity services and a random growth rate for forest, is smaller than the one predicted under the Faustmann's rule; 2/ savings and sylvicultural pratices may be seen as perfectly substitutable tools for the management of natural hazards. However, our analysis predicts that the harvesting rule displays a specific sensibility to price effects and/or changes in the distribution of natural hazards, depending on whether forest owners opt for the financial strategy or undertake sylvicultural practices.Risk; Forest; Amenities; Savings and Sylvicultural Practices