Are Agricultural Production and Forest Conservation Compatible? Agricultural Diversity, Agricultural Incomes and Primary Forest Cover Among Small Farm Colonists in the Amazon

2004 ◽  
Vol 32 (6) ◽  
pp. 957-977 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen G. Perz
Keyword(s):  
Agricultural Production ◽  
Forest Conservation ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Primary Forest ◽  
Small Farm ◽  
Agricultural Diversity

scholarly journals Effectiveness of Protected Areas in the Pan-Tropics and International Aid for Conservation

Geomatics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 335-346
Author(s):  
Do-Hyung Kim ◽  
Anupam Anand
Keyword(s):  
Protected Areas ◽  
Forest Conservation ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
International Aid ◽  
Asian Countries ◽  
Forest Cover Change ◽  
Average Effect ◽  
Tropical Countries ◽  
Conservation Policies ◽  
The Tropics

Evaluation of the effectiveness of protected areas is critical for forest conservation policies and priorities. We used 30 m resolution forest cover change data from 1990 to 2010 for ~4000 protected areas to evaluate their effectiveness. Our results show that protected areas in the tropics avoided 83,500 ± 21,200 km2 of deforestation during the 2000s. Brazil’s protected areas have the largest amount of avoided deforestation at 50,000 km2. We also show the amount of international aid received by tropical countries compared to the effectiveness of protected areas. Thirty-four tropical countries received USD 42 billion during the 1990s and USD 62 billion during the 2000s in international aid for biodiversity conservation. The effectiveness of international aid was highest in Latin America, with 4.3 m2/USD, led by Brazil, while tropical Asian countries showed the lowest average effect of international aid, reaching only 0.17 m2/USD.

scholarly journals Haiti’s biodiversity threatened by nearly complete loss of primary forest

2018 ◽  
Vol 115 (46) ◽  
pp. 11850-11855 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Blair Hedges ◽  
Warren B. Cohen ◽  
Joel Timyan ◽  
Zhiqiang Yang
Keyword(s):  
Tropical Forests ◽  
National Parks ◽  
Mass Extinction ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Secondary Growth ◽  
Complete Loss ◽  
Primary Forest ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Primary Forests ◽  
Agricultural Organization

Tropical forests hold most of Earth’s biodiversity. Their continued loss through deforestation and agriculture is the main threat to species globally, more than disease, invasive species, and climate change. However, not all tropical forests have the same ability to sustain biodiversity. Those that have been disturbed by humans, including forests previously cleared and regrown (secondary growth), have lower levels of species richness compared with undisturbed (primary) forests. The difference is even greater considering extinctions that will later emanate from the disturbance (extinction debt). Here, we find that Haiti has less than 1% of its original primary forest and is therefore among the most deforested countries. Primary forest has declined over three decades inside national parks, and 42 of the 50 highest and largest mountains have lost all primary forest. Our surveys of vertebrate diversity (especially amphibians and reptiles) on mountaintops indicates that endemic species have been lost along with the loss of forest. At the current rate, Haiti will lose essentially all of its primary forest during the next two decades and is already undergoing a mass extinction of its biodiversity because of deforestation. These findings point to the need, in general, for better reporting of forest cover data of relevance to biodiversity, instead of “total forest” as defined by the United Nation’s Food and Agricultural Organization. Expanded detection and monitoring of primary forest globally will improve the efficiency of conservation measures, inside and outside of protected areas.

scholarly journals Mexican agricultural frontier communities differ in forest dynamics with consequences for conservation and restoration

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Madelon Lohbeck ◽  
Ben DeVries ◽  
Frans Bongers ◽  
Miguel Martinez-Ramos ◽  
Armando Navarrete-Segueda ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Temporal Variation ◽  
Forest Conservation ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Secondary Forest ◽  
Forest Loss ◽  
Secondary Forests ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Agricultural Frontier ◽  
Forest Regrowth ◽  
Land Availability

Forest regrowth is key to achieve restoration commitments, but we need to better understand under what circumstances it takes place and how long secondary forests persist. We studied a recently colonized agricultural frontier in southern Mexico. We quantified the spatiotemporal dynamics of forest loss and regrowth and tested how temporal variation in climate, and spatial variation in land availability, land quality and accessibility affect forest disturbance, regrowth and secondary forest persistence. Marqués de Comillas consistently exhibits more forest loss than regrowth, resulting in a net decrease of 30% forest cover (1991-2016). Secondary forest cover remained relatively constant while secondary forest persistence increased, suggesting that farmers are moving away from shifting cultivation. Temporal variation in disturbance and regrowth were explained by the annual variation in the Oceanic El Niño index combined with dry season rainfall and key policy and market interventions.Across communities the availability of high-quality soil overrules the effects of land availability and accessibility, but that at the pixel-level all three factors contributed to explaining forest conservation and restoration. Communities with more high-quality soils were able to spare land for forest conservation, and had less secondary forest that persisted for longer. Old forest and secondary forests were better represented on low-quality lands and on communal land. Both old and secondary forest were less common close to the main road, where secondary forests were also less persistent. Forest conservation and restoration can be explained by a complex interplay of biophysical and social drivers across time, space and scale. We warrant that stimulating private land ownership may cause remaining forest patches to be lost and that conservation initiatives should benefit the whole community. Forest regrowth and secondary forest persistence competes with agricultural production and ensuring farmers can access restoration benefits is key to success.

scholarly journals Realities of rarity: climatically and ecologically restricted, critically endangered Kandian Torrent Toads (Adenomus kandianus) breed en masse

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Madhava Meegaskumbura ◽  
Nayana Wijayathilaka ◽  
Nirodha Abayalath ◽  
Gayani Senevirathne
Keyword(s):  
Forest Cover ◽  
High Elevation ◽  
Habitat Associations ◽  
Egg Laying ◽  
Primary Forest ◽  
Isolated Populations ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Suitable Habitats ◽  
Wide Geographic Distribution ◽  
Forest Habitats

Endemic to Sri Lanka, genus Adenomus contains two torrent-associated toad species whose ecology and natural history in the wild is virtually unknown. Adenomus kelaartii is relatively common, with a wide geographic distribution. Its sister species, A. kandianus, however, is restricted to two isolated populations in fast-disappearing montane and sub-montane forests. Formally declared extinct after not being recorded for over a century, a few A. kandianus were rediscovered in 2012 and redescribed as "the world's rarest toad". Here we report the results of a two-year study of the occurrence, habits and habitat associations of adult and larval A. kandianus using both general surveys and quadrat sampling. We show this to be a secretive species with a patchy distribution. Non-breeding female toads dwell in primary-forest habitats, but after heavy and sudden downpours they form large mating congregations in large streams. Amplexed pairs swim synchronously, enabling them to traverse fast currents. Egg-laying sites remain unknown, but the ability to dive and vocalize underwater, and characteristics of the eggs, suggest that they lay eggs in dark recesses of the stream. Tadpoles show microhabitat partitioning within the stream, with the greatest diversity of stages in slow-flowing rocky areas. The more robust stages possessing sucker discs exploit rocky-rapids, while metamorphic stages inhabit stream margins. We use DNA-barcoding to show the existence of two disparate toad populations. Distribution modeling with forest-cover layers added, predict a very small remaining area of suitable habitats. Conservation of this climatically and ecologically restricted species hinge largely on the preservation of high-elevation primary and riparian forests and unpolluted torrents.

scholarly journals Forest conservation incentives and deforestation in the Ecuadorian Amazon

2016 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 56-65 ◽  
Author(s):  
KELLY W. JONES ◽  
MARGARET B. HOLLAND ◽  
LISA NAUGHTON-TREVES ◽  
MANUEL MORALES ◽  
LUIS SUAREZ ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Focus Group ◽  
Forest Conservation ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Buffer Zone ◽  
Economic Incentives ◽  
Private Governance ◽  
Focus Group Interviews ◽  
Conservation Incentives ◽  
Ecuadorian Amazon ◽  
Group Interviews

SUMMARYForest conservation incentives are a popular approach to combatting tropical deforestation. Here we consider a case where direct economic incentives for forest conservation were offered to newly titled smallholders in a buffer zone of a protected area in the northeastern Ecuadorian Amazon. We used quasi-experimental impact evaluation methods to estimate changes in forest cover for 63 smallholders enrolled in Ecuador's Socio Bosque program compared to similar households that did not enroll. Focus group interviews in 15 communities provided insight into why landowners enrolled in the program and how land use is changing. The conservation incentives program reduced average annual deforestation by 0.4–0.5% between 2011 and 2013 for those enrolled, representing as much as a 70% reduction in deforestation attributable to Socio Bosque. Focus group interviews suggested that some landowners chose to ‘invest’ in conservation because the agricultural capacity of their land was limited and economic incentives provided an alternative livelihood strategy. Interviews, however, indicated limits to increasing enrollment rates under current conditions, due to lack of trust and liquidity constraints. Overall, a hybrid public–private governance approach can lead to larger conservation outcomes than restrictions alone.

Primary forest cover loss in Indonesia over 2000–2012

2014 ◽  
Vol 4 (8) ◽  
pp. 730-735 ◽  
Author(s):  
Belinda Arunarwati Margono ◽  
Peter V. Potapov ◽  
Svetlana Turubanova ◽  
Fred Stolle ◽  
Matthew C. Hansen
Keyword(s):  
Forest Cover ◽  
Primary Forest ◽  
Forest Cover Loss

scholarly journals Paying the forest for electricity: a modelling framework to market forest conservation as payment for ecosystem services benefiting hydropower generation

2011 ◽  
Vol 38 (4) ◽  
pp. 473-484 ◽  
Author(s):  
MAURICIO E. ARIAS ◽  
THOMAS A. COCHRANE ◽  
KEITH S. LAWRENCE ◽  
TIMOTHY J. KILLEEN ◽  
TRACY A. FARRELL
Keyword(s):  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Forest Conservation ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Net Present Value ◽  
Economic Life ◽  
Payment For Ecosystem Services ◽  
Forest Protection ◽  
Scheme Design ◽  
Modelling Framework ◽  
Erosion Modelling

SUMMARYThe operation and longevity of hydropower dams are often negatively impacted by sedimentation. Forest conservation can reduce soil erosion, and therefore efforts to maintain upstream forest cover within a watershed contribute to the economic life span of a hydropower facility. The cost of forest conservation can be viewed as an investment in hydropower and be financed via a payment for ecosystem services (PES) scheme. A novel modelling framework is used to estimate payments for forest conservation consisting of: (1) land-use change projection; (2) watershed erosion modelling; (3) reservoir sedimentation estimation; (4) power generation loss calculation; and (5) PES scheme design. The framework was applied to a proposed dam in Cambodia (Pursat 1). The estimated net present value of forest conservation was US$ 4.7 million when using average annual climate values over 100 years, or US$ 6.4 million when considering droughts every eight years. This can be remunerated with annual payments of US$ 4.26 ha−1 or US$ 5.78 ha−1, respectively, covering forest protection costs estimated at US$ 0.9 ha−1 yr−1. The application of this type of PES represents a rational option that allows for conservation and development of hydropower watersheds susceptible to erosion and sedimentation.

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