Tropical forests are crucial in terms of biodiversity and ecosystem services, but at the same time, they are major sources of revenue and provide livelihoods for forest-dependent people. Hopes for the simultaneous achievement of conservation goals and poverty alleviation are therefore increasingly placed on forests used for timber extraction. Most timber exploitation is carried out unsustainably, which causes forest degradation. Two important mechanisms have emerged to promote sustainable forest management: certification and community-based forest management (CFM). We synthesize the published information about how forest certification and CFM perform in terms of environmental, social, and economic variables. With the caveat that very few published studies meet the standards for formal impact evaluation, we found that certification has substantial environmental benefits, typically achieved at a cost of reduced short-term financial profit, and accompanied by some improvement to the welfare of neighboring communities. We found that the economic and environmental benefits of CFM are understudied, but that the social impacts are controversial, with both positive and negative changes reported. We identify the trade-offs that likely caused these conflicting results and that, if addressed, would help both CFM and certification deliver the hoped-for benefits. (Resume d'auteur)

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A Critical Comparison of Conventional, Certified, and Community Management of Tropical Forests for Timber in Terms of Environmental, Economic, and Social Variables

Beyond “Landscape” in REDD+: The Imperative for “Territory”

Eucalypts for planting

Supporting pathways to prosperity in forest landscapes – A PRIME framework

Jayne Belnap (USA), Laura K. Brown (Canada), Ernesto Brugnoli (Uruguay), Jana E. Compton (USA), Richard H. Coupe (USA), Marcello Hernández-Blanco (Costa Rica), Forest Isbell (USA), Julie Lockwood (USA), Juan Pablo Lozoya Azcárate (Uruguay), David McGuire (USA), Anibal Pauchard (Chile), Ramon Pichs-Madruga (Cuba), Ricardo Ribeiro Rodrigues (Brazil), Gerardo Arturo Sanchez-Azofeifa (Costa Rica/Canada), Alvaro Soutullo (Uruguay), Avelino Suarez (Cuba), Elizabeth Troutt (Canada)

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Chapter 4: Direct and indirect drivers of change in biodiversity and nature’s contributions to people

Species of the genera Eucalyptus, Cupressus, and Pinus are the most widely planted tree species in the country in general and in Chilimo dry Afromontane forest in particular. Eucalyptus covers 90% of the total planted forest area in the country. However, only limited information exists in the country regarding aboveground biomass (AGB), belowground biomass (BGB), growth, and yield. This study was conducted to assess the variables on 25 and 30 years of age for three planted species: Cupressus lusitanica, Eucalyptus saligna, and Pinus patula in Chilimo plantation forest, in the Central Highlands of Ethiopia. A two-times inventory was conducted in 2012 and 2017. A total of nine square sampled plots of 400 m2 each, three plots under Cupressus lusitanica, 3 Eucalyptus saligna, and 3 Pinus patula were used for data collection. Data on height, diameter, soil, and tree stumps were collected. Percent C, % N, and bulk density was performed following chemical procedure. The aboveground biomass ranged from 125.76 to 228.67 t C ha−1 and the basal area and number of stems from 3.76 to 25.50 m2 ha−1 and 483 to 1175 N ha−1, respectively. The mean annual basal area and volume increment were between 0.97 and 1.20 m2 ha−1 year−1 and 10.79 and 16.22 m3 ha−1 year−1. Both carbon and nitrogen stock of the planted forest was non-significant among the tree species. The aboveground biomass, growth, and yield significantly varied among the species. Cupressus lusitanica had the highest aboveground biomass, volume, and basal area, while Eucalyptus saligna had the lowest value .To a depth of 1 m, total carbon stored ranged from 130.13 to 234.26 t C ha−1. The total annual carbon sequestration potential was 12,575.18 t CO2 eq. Eucalyptus has the highest carbon stock density and growth rate than other species.

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Aboveground biomass, growth and yield for some selected introduced tree species, namely Cupressus lusitanica , Eucalyptus saligna , and Pinus patula in Central Highlands of Ethiopia

Reflecting on twenty years of forest landscape restoration

In many tropical countries noncompliance of forest-related laws and the poor governance are a main driver of forest destruction. Wrongdoing in forests can take a number of forms; poaching is one facet, illegal logging and associated trade another. It involves the ignorance of rules and regulations for forest conservation and forest management, harvesting of forest products, and broader issues, such as the application of corrupt practices and the abuse of power. The present chapter offers a holistic overview on forest crime by first structuring the term in four different categories and by briefly describing estimation techniques and trends in illegal logging. It also deals with policies addressing forest law enforcement and governance and the role of actors in enforcing forest laws and governance. The chapter concludes with a short forest sector law compliance outlook. Even well-designed SFM and REDD+ schemes will fail unless there is firm political commitment to address insufficient law compliance, corruption and the lack of transparency. Forest Crime in the Tropics Introduction Forest Crime is about wrongdoing in tropical forests. Wrongdoing can take a number of forms. Poaching, wildlife trade, and bushmeat trade is one facet (also referred to the term “wildlife crime”). Another facet of forest crime relates to illegal use of forest land and forest resources, generally referred to with the terms “illegal logging,” “illegal logging and [related] trade,” or more generally “forest illegality.” Measures to combat forest crime are generally described under the terms of “forest law compliance” and “forest law enforcement and governance.” The particular facet of illegal logging and forest law compliance is the subject of the present chapter. It involves the ignorance of rules and regulations for forest conservation (both, flora and fauna) and forest management, harvesting of forest products, particularly timber; and national and international rules of forest products’ trade and also broader issues, such as the application of corrupt practices and the abuse of power. It also comprises the illegal conversion of forests into other land uses (“undue deforestation”) and the unsustainable use of forests in general (“forest degradation”). Forest crime is an ongoing problem that spans across the humid tropical forests from the Amazon Basin, and Mesoamerica, over West Africa and the Congo Basin to Southeast Asia and the Pacific. Although the extent of illegal forest activities is notoriously difficult to quantify, their economic cost is likely to be large. The World Bank (2009) estimates, for example, that illegal logging alone causes annual losses in global market value of more than US$ 10 billion and in government revenue of as much as US$ 5 billion. Other estimates of the monetary value of the illegal logging business vary from US$ 10–15 billion (Goncalves 2012) to US$ 30–100 billion (Nellemann 2012). While (Douglas and Simula 2010) estimate that approximately 40% of trade in illegal timber is attributable to G8 country imports, other estimates indicate that 80% of the illegal wood is sold to the US, the European Union, China, and *Email: juergen.blaser@bfh.ch Tropical Forestry Handbook DOI 10.1007/978-3-642-41554-8_302-1 # Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2015

https://link-springer-com-443.webvpn.jmu.edu.cn/content/pdf/10.1007%2F978-3-642-41554-8_302-1.pdf

Forest Crime in the Tropics

Quantifying the amount of carbon pools in forest ecosystems enables to understand about various carbon pools in the forest ecosystem. Therefore, this study was conducted in the Chilimo dry afromontane forest to estimate the amount of carbon stored. The natural forest was stratified into three forest patches based on species composition, diversity, and structure. A total of 50 permanent sample plots of 20 m × 20 m (400 m2) each were established, laid out on transects of altitudinal gradients with a distance of 100 m between plots. The plots were measured twice in 2012 and 2017. Tree, deadwood, mineral soil, forest floor, and stump data were collected in the main plots, while shrubs, saplings, herbaceous plants, and seedling data were sampled inside subplots. Soil organic carbon (SOC %) was analyzed following Walkely, while Black’s procedure and bulk density were estimated following the procedure of Blake (Methods of soil analysis, 1965). Aboveground biomass was calculated using the equation of Chave et al. (Glob Chang Biol_20:3177–3190, 2014). Data analysis was made using RStudio software. To analyze equality of means, we used ANOVA for multiple comparisons among elevation classes at α = 0.05. The aboveground carbon of the natural forest ranged from 148.30 ± 115.02 for high altitude to 100.14 ± 39.93 for middle altitude, was highest at 151.35 ± 108.98 t C ha−1 for gentle slope, and was lowest at 88.01 ± 49.72 t C ha−1 for middle slope. The mean stump carbon density 2.33 ± 1.64 t C ha−1 was the highest for the middle slope, and 1.68 ± 1.21 t C ha− 1 was the lowest for the steep slope range. The highest 1.44 ± 2.21 t C ha−1 deadwood carbon density was found under the middle slope range, and the lowest 0.21 ± 0.20 t C ha−1 was found under the lowest slope range. The SOCD up to 1 m depth was highest at 295.96 ± 80.45 t C ha− 1 under the middle altitudinal gradient; however, it was lowest at 206.40 ± 65.59 t C ha−1 under the lower altitudinal gradient. The mean ecosystem carbon stock density of the sampled plots in natural forests ranged from 221.89 to 819.44 t C ha−1. There was a temporal variation in carbon pools along environmental and social factors. The highest carbon pool was contributed by SOC. We recommend forest carbon-related awareness creation for local people, and promotion of the local knowledge can be regarded as a possible option for sustainable forest management.

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Temporal variation of ecosystem carbon pools along altitudinal gradient and slope: the case of Chilimo dry afromontane natural forest, Central Highlands of Ethiopia

In complex tropical forest frontier landscapes, ecosystem service (ES) models are essential tools to test impacts of different land schemes on people. Considering several factors of supply, demand ...

Jürgen Blaser

Papers

Aboveground biomass, growth and yield for some selected introduced tree species, namely Cupressus lusitanica , Eucalyptus saligna , and Pinus patula in Central Highlands of Ethiopia

Reflecting on twenty years of forest landscape restoration

Forest Crime in the Tropics

Temporal variation of ecosystem carbon pools along altitudinal gradient and slope: the case of Chilimo dry afromontane natural forest, Central Highlands of Ethiopia

Quantifying local ecosystem service outcomes by modelling their supply, demand and flow in Myanmar’s forest frontier landscape