scholarly journals Effects of conservation policy on China’s forest recovery

2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. e1500965 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrés Viña ◽  
William J. McConnell ◽  
Hongbo Yang ◽  
Zhenci Xu ◽  
Jianguo Liu
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Biodiversity Conservation ◽  
Climate Change Mitigation ◽  
Forest Conservation ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
National Level ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Forest Recovery ◽  
Forest Loss ◽  
Change Mitigation

Forest loss is one of the most pervasive land surface transformations on Earth, with drastic effects on global climate, ecosystems, and human well-being. As part of biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation efforts, many countries, including China, have been implementing large-scale policies to conserve and restore forests. However, little is known about the effectiveness of these policies, and information on China’s forest dynamics at the national level has mainly relied on official statistics. In response to international calls for improved reliability and transparency of information on biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation efforts, it is crucial to independently verify government statistics. Furthermore, if forest recovery is verified, it is essential to assess the degree to which this recovery is attributable to policy, within the context of other relevant factors. We assess the dynamics of forest cover in China between 2000 and 2010 and evaluate the effectiveness of one of the largest forest conservation programs in the world—the Natural Forest Conservation Program (NFCP). Results indicate that forest cover has significantly increased in around 1.6% of China’s territory and that the areas exhibiting forest gain experienced a combined increase in net primary productivity (ca. 0.9 Tg of carbon). Among the variables evaluated at county level, the NFCP exhibited a significantly positive relation with forest gain, whereas reduction in rural labor showed a negative relationship with both forest loss and gain. Findings such as these have global implications for forest conservation and climate change mitigation efforts.

scholarly journals Land Change Modelling to Inform Strategic Decisions on Forest Cover and CO2 Emissions in Eastern Madagascar

2018 ◽  
Vol 46 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer Hewson ◽  
Julie Hanta Razafimanahaka ◽  
Timothy Max Wright ◽  
Rina Mandimbiniaina ◽  
Mark Mulligan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Agricultural Intensification ◽  
Climate Change Mitigation ◽  
Forest Conservation ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Forest Loss ◽  
Infrastructure Development ◽  
Land Change ◽  
Change Mitigation

SummaryDecision-makers need readily accessible tools to understand the potential impacts of alternative policies on forest cover and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and to develop effective policies to meet national and international targets for biodiversity conservation, sustainable development and climate change mitigation. Land change modelling can support policy decisions by demonstrating potential impacts of policies on future deforestation and GHG emissions. We modelled land change to explore the potential impacts of expert-informed scenarios on deforestation and GHG emissions, specifically CO2 emissions, in the Ankeniheny–Zahamena Corridor in eastern Madagascar. We considered four scenarios: business as usual; effective conservation of protected areas; investment in infrastructure; and agricultural intensification. Our results highlight that effective forest conservation could deliver substantial emissions reductions, while infrastructure development will likely cause forest loss in new areas. Agricultural intensification could prevent additional forest loss if it reduced the need to clear more land while improving food security. Our study demonstrates how available land change modelling tools and scenario analyses can inform land-use policies, helping countries reconcile economic development with forest conservation and climate change mitigation commitments.

Determined Action to Tackle Health Determinants: A Collaborative Response to the Challenge of Climate Change Mitigation in Practice Settings

2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
pp. 195-200 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roslyn Elizabeth Morgan
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Climate Change Mitigation ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Determinants ◽  
Climate Mitigation ◽  
Policy Debates ◽  
Change Mitigation

The physical environment has long been understood as a major determinant of health and well-being. In recent years, the relationship between health and the environment has become particularly pronounced, with the impacts of climate change identified as having the potential to reverse the last 50 years of public health advancement (Watts et al., 2015). Increasingly, professional bodies within health care are called upon to frame climate change as a health issue. Despite this, studies have found that nurses report feeling ill-equipped to respond to environmental changes and the resulting health impacts (Anåker, Nilsson, Holmner, & Elf, 2015; Lewis, 2018; Polivka, Chaudry, & Mac Crawford, 2011). This article recognizes some of the barriers facing concerned health-care professionals who wish to introduce climate mitigation activities within their sphere of professional operation. The Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (Victorian Branch) was approached by nurses, midwives, and carers, to become more involved in policy debates surrounding climate change and to provide stronger support to members in responding to environmental issues. The result is top-down and bottom-up responses working in synergy for climate change mitigation, by empowering nurses to make changes to their professional practice.

scholarly journals The Manokwari Declaration: Challenges ahead in conserving 70% of Tanah Papua’s forests

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 148 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rodrigo Cámara-Leret ◽  
Andre Schuiteman ◽  
Timothy Utteridge ◽  
Gemma Bramley ◽  
Richard Deverell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Costa Rica ◽  
Biodiversity Conservation ◽  
Climate Change Mitigation ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
New Guinea ◽  
Global Impact ◽  
Se Asia ◽  
Impact On Biodiversity ◽  
Change Mitigation

The Manokwari Declaration is an unprecedented pledge by the governors of Indonesia’s two New Guinea provinces to promote conservation and become SE Asia’s new Costa Rica. This is an exciting, yet challenging endeavour that will require working on many fronts that transcend single disciplines. Because Indonesian New Guinea has the largest expanse of intact forests in SE Asia, large-scale conservation pledges like the Manokwari Declaration will have a global impact on biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation.

scholarly journals Impacts of global climate change mitigation scenarios on forests and harvesting in Sweden

2016 ◽  
Vol 46 (12) ◽  
pp. 1427-1438 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eva-Maria Nordström ◽  
Nicklas Forsell ◽  
Anders Lundström ◽  
Anu Korosuo ◽  
Johan Bergh ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Change Mitigation ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
National Level ◽  
Intergovernmental Panel ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Biomass Resources ◽  
Supply Potential ◽  
Change Mitigation

Under climate change, the importance of biomass resources is likely to increase and new approaches are needed to analyze future material and energy use of biomass globally and locally. Using Sweden as an example, we present an approach that combines global and national land-use and forest models to analyze impacts of climate change mitigation ambitions on forest management and harvesting in a specific country. National forest impact analyses in Sweden have traditionally focused on supply potential with little reference to international market developments. In this study, we use the global greenhouse gas concentration scenarios from the Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change to estimate global biomass demand and assess potential implications on harvesting and biodiversity in Sweden. The results show that the short-term demand for wood is close to the full harvesting potential in Sweden in all scenarios. Under high bioenergy demand, harvest levels are projected to stay high over a longer time and particularly impact the harvest levels of pulpwood. The area of old forest in the managed landscape may decrease. This study highlights the importance of global scenarios when discussing national-level analysis and pinpoints trade-offs that policy making in Sweden may need to tackle in the near future.

Harnessing carbon markets for tropical forest conservation: towards a more realistic assessment

2000 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 300-311 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. SMITH ◽  
K. MULONGOY ◽  
R. PERSSON ◽  
J. SAYER
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Tropical Forests ◽  
Climate Change Mitigation ◽  
Forest Conservation ◽  
Sustainable Use ◽  
Energy Sector ◽  
Limited Area ◽  
Policy Dialogue ◽  
Tropical Forestry ◽  
Change Mitigation

The proposed Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) of the Kyoto Protocol paves the way for financial and technological transfers to support forestry projects that sequester carbon or protect carbon stocks. From its inception, the concept has been highly controversial. It has been enthusiastically supported by those who believe that conservation of tropical forests will be difficult unless forest owners and managers are compensated for the environmental services of their forests. Others believe that financial transfers supporting ‘carbon farming’ would ignore social concerns and the full range of goods and services of forests. This paper examines the implications of CDM for forest conservation and sustainable use, by drawing on recent literature and the results of a policy dialogue with CDM stakeholders. We conclude that initial estimates of the contribution tropical forestry could make to both climate change mitigation and to forest conservation need to be scaled down. CDM payments for tropical forestry are likely to be received in a far more limited area than initially expected. The cost-effectiveness of forestry projects relative to projects in the energy sector may have been overestimated. In particular few estimates have adequately accounted for the likelihood that the duration of CDM forestry projects is unlikely to be as long as the residency time of carbon in the atmosphere. Also political realities and investor priorities may not have been sufficiently understood. CDM funding for forestry may also decline in future as economically viable clean technologies are increasingly developed in the energy sector. Tropical forests are likely to be an intermediate climate change mitigation strategy for buying time, until more permanent options become available. The most important justification for including forests in CDM may lie in the contribution CDM could potentially make to forest conservation and sustainable use. An analysis of the implications of CDM for forests reveals the importance of involving forest stakeholders more closely in the CDM debate. To prevent perverse outcomes and reduce the risk of ‘leakage’ of emission reduction to areas outside project boundaries, CDM projects may need to be limited to niches which meet certain political and institutional preconditions and where sufficient understanding of local decision-making and the broader context is available. CDM may be more effective if used to remove non-economic impediments to forestry activities that are economically viable and meet local needs. Lessons from the forestry sector in relation to plantations, natural forest management, forest conser- vation and non-timber forest products are discussed to illustrate the dangers of misusing CDM and also to give examples of how CDM could be harnessed for better use of forests. CDM should be seen as one more tool for enhancing the effectiveness of more conventional ways of promoting forest conservation and sustainable use.

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