Implementation of REDD+ in sub-Saharan Africa: state of knowledge, challenges and opportunities

Deforestation and forest degradation represent an important part of global CO2 emissions. The identification of the multiple drivers of land-use change, past and present forest cover change and associated carbon budget, and the presence of locally adapted systems to allow for proper monitoring are particularly lacking in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Any incentive system to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD+) will have to overcome those limits. This paper reviews the main challenges to implementing effective REDD+ mitigation activities in SSA. We estimate that SSA is currently a net carbon sink of approximately 319 TgCO2 yr−1. Forest degradation and deforestation put the forest carbon stock at risk (mean forest carbon stock is 57,679 TgC). Our results highlight the importance of looking beyond the forest sector to ensure that REDD+ efforts are aligned with agricultural and land-use policie

Chapitre 1. Les stocks de carbone des sols d’Afrique de l’Ouest

Introduction Les sols jouent un rôle primordial dans notre environnement de par leur capacité d’échange d’éléments nutritifs et de régulation. Le changement climatique est aujourd’hui la crise environnementale la plus importante et les sols y jouent un rôle prépondérant, essentiellement de régulation via le cycle du carbone. Le dioxyde de carbone (CO2) est, de loin, le plus grand contributeur d’origine anthropique à l’effet de serre et au changement climatique. De plus, environ les deux tiers..

Évaluation du stock de carbone et de la productivité en bois d'un parc à karités du Nord-Cameroun

In the sudanian zones of northern Cameroon, the steady influx of migrants is causing much land clearance in large swathes of savannah lands. Creating denser stands of relict tree populations would be of value at once for agronomic, economic and environmental reasons. A method for evaluating the carbon stored in aerial biomass is proposed here for a village area of shea trees (Vitellaria paradoxa). The aim is to introduce agroforestry projects that will be eligible for the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) as from 2012. In addition, an evaluation of fuelwood productivity in the area, using pollarding methods, was conducted for about thirty trees over a three-year period. A series of allometric equations was developed (for six shea specimens and one specimen each of Anogeissus leiocarpus and Combretum nigricans), establishing a ratio between aerial biomass and the diameter of the trunk (at chest height or at the branch base) or the surface area of the crown. This provided an estimation of carbon stocks per tree, and then per plot. Given the human pressure exerted on the tree zone, it was established that an 8-year rotation between pollarding operations would offer a healthy trade-off between the various interests involved. These studies offer a preliminary approach that will need to be consolidated with hindsight. Keywords: Vitellaria paradoxa, Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), pollarding, fuelwood productivity, carbon, agroforestry, sudanian zone, Cameroon

Object-Based Similarity Assessment Using Land Cover Meta-Language (LCML): Concept, Challenges, and Implementation

Land cover (LC) is an essential variable for environmental monitoring in many application domains. The detection of changes in LC can support the understanding of environmental dynamics. However, LC legends present a high degree of inconsistencies that significantly reduce their usability. This study investigates the effectiveness of ISO standard 19144-2, better known as Land Cover Meta-Language (LCML), to improve the standardization and harmonization of different LC taxonomies and maps. LCML vocabulary and syntactic rules facilitate the integration of natural resources information. LC classes are represented by a sequence of "Basic Elements" and attributes defined as "Properties" and "Characteristics." Such elements are formalized in a Unified Modeling Language class diagram. This study presents first, a method to evaluate and score the "similarity" of different LCML legends, second, an application of the similarity assessment criteria to an area located in Bangladesh for translating its specific LCML legend into a different taxonomy, i.e., the System of Environmental Economic Accounting, and third, a Python implementation to be incorporated in new or already existing tools. The results obtained show that when class similarity assessment is carried out by Basic Elements only, the process performs well for simple classes. When classes are characterized by similar basic elements (e.g., biotic elements) structure, the introduction of class properties is needed to disambiguate complex situations. The findings indicate that the proposed methodology can exploit LCML land feature semantic representation. Moreover, it can be used for translating LCML classes into different taxonomies, for facilitating class comparison and change detection

Evaluating the Potential of Commercial Forest Inventory Data to Report on Forest Carbon Stock and Forest Carbon Stock Changes for REDD+ under the UNFCCC

In the context of the adoption at the 16th Conference of the Parties in 2010 on the REDD+ mitigation mechanism, it is important to obtain reliable data on the spatiotemporal variation of forest carbon stocks and changes (called Emission Factor, EF). A re-occurring debate in estimating EF for REDD+ is the use of existing field measurement data. We provide an assessment of the use of commercial logging inventory data and ecological data to estimate a conservative EF (REDD+ phase 2) or to report on EF following IPCC Guidance and Guidelines (REDD+ phase 3). The data presented originate from five logging companies dispersed over Gabon, totalling 2,240 plots of 0.3 hectares.We distinguish three Forest Types (FTs) in the dataset based on floristic conditions. Estimated mean aboveground biomass (AGB) in the FTs ranges from 312 to 333 Mg ha-1. A 5% accuracy is reached with the number of plots put in place for the FTs and a low sampling uncertainty obtained (± 10 to 13 Mg ha-1). The data could be used to estimate a conservative EF in REDD+ phase 2 and only partially to report on EF following tier 2 requirements for a phase 3

Guidelines for documenting and reporting tree allometric equations

Given the pressing need to quantify carbon fluxes associated with terrestrial vegetation dynamics, an increasing number of researchers have sought to improve estimates of tree volume, biomass, and carbon stocks. Tree allometric equations are critical tools for such purpose and have the potential to improve our understanding about carbon sequestration in woody vegetation, to support the implementation of policies and mechanisms designed to mitigate climate change (e.g. CDM and REDD+; Agrawal et al. 2011), to calculate costs and benefits associated with forest carbon projects, and to improve bioenergy systems and sustainable forest management (Henry et al. 2013)

Restoring Degraded Landscapes through An Integrated Approach Using Geospatial Technologies in the Context of the Humanitarian Crisis in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh

The influx of nearly a million refugees from Myanmar's Rakhine state to Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, in August 2017 put significant pressure on the regional landscape leading to land degradation due to biomass removal to provide shelter and fuel energy and posed critical challenges for both host and displaced population. This article emphasizes geospatial applications at different stages of addressing land degradation in Cox’s Bazar. A wide range of data and methods were used to delineate land tenure, estimate wood fuel demand and supply, assess land degradation, evaluate land restoration suitability, and monitor restoration activities. The quantitative and spatially explicit information from these geospatial assessments integrated with the technical guidelines for sustainable land management and an adaptive management strategy was critical in enabling a collaborative, multi-disciplinary and evidence-based approach to successfully restoring degraded landscapes in a displacement setting