Measuring the Consistency of Phytosanitary Measures

The paper presents a model for quantifying quarantine-related phytosanitary measures by combining the two basic components of pest risk assessment, probability of establishment and economic effects, into a single management framework, Iso-Risk. The model provides a systematic and objective basis for defining and measuring acceptable risk and for justifying quarantine actions relative to acceptable risk. This can then be used to measure consistency of phytosanitary measures. The Iso-Risk framework is applied using a database of USDA phytosanitary risk assessments. The results show that the USDA risk assessment system produces assessments that are not consistent across a range of intermediate values for consequence or likelihood of occurrence.Iso-Risk, phytosanitary risk assessment, pest risk assessment, Agricultural and Food Policy, Crop Production/Industries, Environmental Economics and Policy, Farm Management, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Land Economics/Use,

Factors influencing adoption of agroforestry among smallholder farmers in Zambia

Agroforestry technologies have been extensively researched and introduced to smallholder farmers in Zambia for over two decades. Despite the research and extension effort over this period, not many farmers have adopted these technologies. The purpose of this paper is to determine why agroforestry technologies are not being taken up by examining factors that influence the adoption of agroforestry practices. Based on data obtained from 388 farming households, statistical analysis show an association between adoption of both improved fallows and biomass transfer technologies with knowledge of the technology, availability of seed, and having the appropriate skills. In addition some household characteristics are found to be linked to the incidence of adoption. However, the strength of association between these variables is low, giving an indication that there might be other factors at play limiting agroforestry adoption. It is anticipated that these findings will point to other areas beyond the household and community level that need further exploration in order to understand factors limiting agroforestry adoption.Agroforestry adoption, smallholder farmers, limitations to adoption, chi-square tests of independence analysis, Zambia, Agricultural and Food Policy, Community/Rural/Urban Development, Crop Production/Industries, Environmental Economics and Policy, Land Economics/Use,

Forestry policy and poverty: the case of community forestry in Nepal

Common forests in developing countries are valuable sources of raw material supplies, employment and income generation, particularly for low income households. This paper looks at the effect on income and employment when common forest resources have external policies that constrain their use. Using a mixed-integer linear programming model, this study examines the impacts of conservation-oriented community forest policies in Nepal on three household income groups. The results show that current community forest policies, which focus on environmental outcomes through forest use restriction for environment conservation and timber production, result in a large reduction in employment and income of the poorest households and largely explain the recent increase in poverty of rural areas.Forestry policy, poverty, Nepal, Agricultural and Food Policy, Community/Rural/Urban Development, Crop Production/Industries, Environmental Economics and Policy, Farm Management, Land Economics/Use, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,

Potential of Forest Resources to Alleviate Poverty and Unemployment in Rural Nepal

The study examines the importance of community forest resources for income and employment in rural areas of Nepal by studying the effect of current forestry policy on forestland use. Using data from 259 households in six community forest user groups in three hilly districts (Dolakha, Kavre and Nuwakot), the results show that the resources available from private lands and community forests with current policies are inadequate to fully utilize the family labour force of many rural households and are insufficient to meet the bare survival income of the poorest households. Current government policy dictates the use of all community forestland for limited timber production and environmental conservation, and provides little scope for fodder and firewood production. The study shows that community forestland management with an agroforestry model could overcome rural unemployment problems and increase incomes.Community welfare model, livelihood, community forestry, incomes, Community/Rural/Urban Development, Consumer/Household Economics, Food Security and Poverty, Labor and Human Capital, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,

Alternative to Comprehensive Ecosystem Services Markets: The Contribution of Forest-Related Programs in New Zealand

Due to the public goods characteristics of many ecosystem services and their vital importance to human welfare, various mechanisms have been put in place to motivate private landowners in the provision of ecosystem services. A common approach is to try to develop a comprehensive ecosystem services market where landowners can receive payments from beneficiaries of ecosystem services. Much research has been directed at developing methods for valuing the range of ecosystem services so that they can be incorporated into ecosystem services markets. However, valuation methods are difficult, expensive and time consuming. Other approaches to the provision of ecosystem services such as payments for ecosystem services usually focus on a single service like water or biodiversity. However, in the provision of a particular ecosystem service, there are spill-over effects of providing other ecosystem services, and thus studying those spill-over effects may provide a simple and cost-effective way of ensuring the provision of a wide range of ecosystem services. In New Zealand, there are a variety of forestry programs which provide incentives to landowners to plant trees on their lands to meet particular objectives, but which also produce other ES. This research aims to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of the provision of a wide range of ES by these approaches, the New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme, the East Coast Forestry Scheme, and the QEII National Trust.ecosystem services market, spill-over effect, cost-effectiveness, New Zealand, Environmental Economics and Policy,

Small forests, big ambitions and a hard reality - Community Forestry in Nepal

Community forestry in Nepal is intended to reduce poverty by sustainable management of forests. Timber is one of the most high-value forest products, especially in the case of Sal (Shorea robusta) forests in the Terai region of Nepal. Despite having several advantages, including high value forests on fertile land, connection with transportation networks, and being close to regional markets, community forests in the Terai region produce little or no timber from their Sal forests. This research looks at what is affecting the production of Sal timber from community forests. Three aspects of community forest user groups (CFUG) are examined using institutional economics, transaction cost economics and micro-economics. First, the scale of CFUG operations is examined in terms of their ability to profitably carry out logging and organise market sales. Second, the capacity of CFUGs to carry out logging in terms of internal physical and human resources, and property rights is examined. Finally, barriers to vertical integration with the market in terms of contracting and cooperation with other CFUGs are investigated. To answer these questions, data was collected from 85 CFUGs and interviews were carried out with 39 key respondents from CFUGs, government agencies, and private firms. The results show that the size of the forest was not an issue for harvesting and marketing logs. However, the organisational capacity of CFUGs was found to be weak because of a lack of financial resources, limited property rights over timber, control over decisions by the District Forest Office, policy constraints, and corruption. In terms of vertical integration, a lack of legal rights to enter into contracts, a high degree of uncertainty about policy and property rights, small and irregular amounts timber harvest, and the interpretation of CFUG rules by the District Forest Office were found to be barriers for the formation of long-term contracts between CFUGs and private firms, and of cooperative developments between CFUGs.Community forest user group, institutional economics, transaction cost economics, cooperatives, contractual arrangement, Nepal, Agricultural and Food Policy, Crop Production/Industries, Environmental Economics and Policy, Farm Management, Land Economics/Use,

Why some community forests are performing better than others: a case of forest user groups in Nepal

Management of many Nepalese forests has been devolved to local communities. Forest products, which are used by the community and which may also be traded, are essential contributors to community well-being. Forests are also important contributors of ecosystem services, such as flood protection and wildlife habitat. Nepalese communities were surveyed to measure flows of forest products from their community forests. A stochastic frontier analysis shows that communities are not producing forest products efficiently and there is potential for improvement. The results shows that forest products benefit and environmental performance are associated products. In addition, analysis reveals that factors such as social capital, support from government and knowledge in management contributes positively to the production efficiency. It is anticipated that these findings will contribute to community forest policy redesign and consequently to the welfare of communities.Community forestry, stochastic frontier, production efficiency, Nepal, Community/Rural/Urban Development, Environmental Economics and Policy, Farm Management, Productivity Analysis,

Planning for Development using Social Impact

Economic development activities change the physical and social environments in which individuals live. For planners, it is important to anticipate the types of changes that might occur, and to put measures in place that mitigate negative impacts and promote positive impacts on people and communities. Social Impact Assessment (SIA) was introduced as a tool for understanding the social impacts of development. There are three factors, however, that limit the use of SIA in developing countries. First, the original SIA tool was designed in a developed country, and as such the list of indicators developed may not suitable for local conditions. Second, there is no specific theoretical underpinning of the SIA tool, and thus no link between the SIA tool and particular theories of social behaviour. Third, there is no particular link between what SIA measures, and what should be done to mitigate the effects of development activities. The purpose of this paper is to address these three issues and in doing so, provide a SIA tool that can be applied usefully and practically in a developing country. The theoretical basis of SIA used in the paper is Actor-Network Theory (ANT). The tool, which was developed using ANT, principles consists of five stages of analysis: identification of principal actors (human and non-human) and the changes due to development; exploration of the ownership of resources (capital) that enables principle actors to change; identification of change agents attached to the capital of principal actors; tracing which interests of actors are aligned to deal with the development; and an analysis of the social change platform (mobilization of actors) based on connections of all principal actors with other actors. Each of these stages provides the basis for determining what should be assessed in SIA, how to structure the assessment, and how to interpret the results of a SIA.Social Impact Assessment (SIA), Actor-Network Theory (ANT), development impact, Community/Rural/Urban Development, Public Economics,

Internationalisation and the valuation of forest assets

The paper looks at the implications of internationalisation of forest ownership on forest valuation. With an increase in the international diversity of forest owners questions are raised about the effect that this has on the methods used to value forests and whether there are substantive differences due to the nationality of the owner. A survey of 30 commercial forest owners in New Zealand and 27 commercial forest owners in Australia was carried out. The survey looked at factors such as the legal structure of the owner, whether it was involved in only forest ownership or forest ownership and wood processing, countries in which forest are owned, main species, predominant age class distribution and target rotation age of forests, and valuation method currently used. The results show that there are substantial differences in how forests are valued in either country, but also that these differences to not appear to be linked to the nationality of the owner

The Existence Value of Peat Swamp Forest in Peninsular Malaysia

Forests form the dominant natural ecosystem in Malaysia. About 55% of Malaysian land area is forested and endows a rich diversity of flora and fauna. Peat swamp forests constitute a significant component of forest and account for about 75% of the country’s total wetlands. Many peat swamp forests have already been converted to new land uses including palm oil plantations, agriculture and housing. The south-east Pahang peat swamp forest (SEPPSF), located at Pahang state is the largest peat swamp forest cover in Peninsular Malaysia and is believed to be the mainland Asia’s largest and intact peat swamp forest. It harbours unique flora and fauna, provides benefits and services of national interest and supports the livelihood of the aborigines (Orang Asli) communities. Many of the benefits and services from peat swamp forests are unpriced and this can lead to faulty land use decision making. Non market valuation can provide important information on the value of many currently unpriced items and enable decision makers to consider the opportunity costs of proposed land use changes. Total economic value (TEV), which includes use and non-use values, is a complex method to determine the estimated total benefits for a tropical forest. This study reports on a contingent valuation study of existence value (non-use value) of the SEPPSF. The economic value is based on the mean maximum willingness to pay of the households in Kuantan (the capital city of Pahang state) to conserve the forest.SEPPSF, economic value, CVM, Agricultural and Food Policy, Consumer/Household Economics, Environmental Economics and Policy, Farm Management, Land Economics/Use,