scholarly journals Forest Cover Change and the Effectiveness of Protected Areas in the Himalaya since 1998

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (15) ◽  
pp. 6123
Author(s):  
Changjun Gu ◽  
Pei Zhao ◽  
Qiong Chen ◽  
Shicheng Li ◽  
Lanhui Li ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Protected Areas ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Forest Degradation ◽  
Google Earth ◽  
Forest Cover Change ◽  
Natural Conditions ◽  
Positive Role ◽  
Forest Cover Changes ◽  
Matched Samples ◽  
The Himalaya

Himalaya, a global biodiversity hotspot, has undergone considerable forest cover fluctuation in recent decades, and numerous protected areas (PAs) have been established to prohibit forest degradation there. However, the spatiotemporal characteristics of this forest cover change across the whole region are still unknown, as are the effectiveness of its PAs. Therefore, here, we first mapped the forest cover of Himalaya in 1998, 2008, and 2018 with high accuracy (>90%) using a random forest (RF) algorithm based on Google Earth Engine (GEE) platform. The propensity score matching (PSM) method was applied with eight control variables to balance the heterogeneity of land characteristics inside and outside PAs. The effectiveness of PAs in Himalaya was quantified based on matched samples. The results showed that the forest cover in Himalaya increased by 4983.65 km2 from 1998 to 2008, but decreased by 4732.71 km2 from 2008 to 2018. Further analysis revealed that deforestation and reforestation mainly occurred at the edge of forest tracts, with over 55% of forest fluctuation occurring below a 2000 m elevation. Forest cover changes in PAs of Himalaya were analyzed; these results indicated that about 56% of PAs had a decreasing trend from 1998 to 2018, including the Torsa (Ia PA), an area representative of the most natural conditions, which is strictly protected. Even so, as a whole, PAs in Himalaya played a positive role in halting deforestation.

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 Qualifying Land Use and Land Cover Dynamics and Their Impacts on Ecosystem Service in Central Himalaya Transboundary Landscape Based on Google Earth Engine

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 173
Author(s):  
Changjun Gu ◽  
Yili Zhang ◽  
Linshan Liu ◽  
Lanhui Li ◽  
Shicheng Li ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Ecosystem Service ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Google Earth ◽  
Forest Cover Change ◽  
Sacred Landscape ◽  
Lulc Changes ◽  
Google Earth Engine

Land use and land cover (LULC) changes are regarded as one of the key drivers of ecosystem services degradation, especially in mountain regions where they may provide various ecosystem services to local livelihoods and surrounding areas. Additionally, ecosystems and habitats extend across political boundaries, causing more difficulties for ecosystem conservation. LULC in the Kailash Sacred Landscape (KSL) has undergone obvious changes over the past four decades; however, the spatiotemporal changes of the LULC across the whole of the KSL are still unclear, as well as the effects of LULC changes on ecosystem service values (ESVs). Thus, in this study we analyzed LULC changes across the whole of the KSL between 2000 and 2015 using Google Earth Engine (GEE) and quantified their impacts on ESVs. The greatest loss in LULC was found in forest cover, which decreased from 5443.20 km2 in 2000 to 5003.37 km2 in 2015 and which mainly occurred in KSL-Nepal. Meanwhile, the largest growth was observed in grassland (increased by 548.46 km2), followed by cropland (increased by 346.90 km2), both of which mainly occurred in KSL-Nepal. Further analysis showed that the expansions of cropland were the major drivers of the forest cover change in the KSL. Furthermore, the conversion of cropland to shrub land indicated that farmland abandonment existed in the KSL during the study period. The observed forest degradation directly influenced the ESV changes in the KSL. The total ESVs in the KSL decreased from 36.53 × 108 USD y−1 in 2000 to 35.35 × 108 USD y−1 in 2015. Meanwhile, the ESVs of the forestry areas decreased by 1.34 × 108 USD y−1. This shows that the decrease of ESVs in forestry was the primary cause to the loss of total ESVs and also of the high elasticity. Our findings show that even small changes to the LULC, especially in forestry areas, are noteworthy as they could induce a strong ESV response.

Opportunities for Reaping the Benefits of REDD+ in Sikkim Himalaya for Conservation and Enhancement of Carbon Stock

2017 ◽  
Vol 40 (3) ◽  
pp. 209-215
Author(s):  
Mohommad Shahid ◽  
◽  
L.K. Rai ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Carbon Sink ◽  
Forest Degradation ◽  
Forest Cover Change ◽  
Change Analysis ◽  
Carbon Sequestration Potential ◽  
Sequestration Potential ◽  
Article 5

Paris Agreement recognized the role of forests as carbon sink for mitigation of climate change, under Article 5 as REDD+, i.e., reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation and role of conservation, sustainable management of forests and enhancement of forest carbon stocks. Forest cover change analysis was done between two time periods 2005 and 2015 to assess the forest degradation. Carbon sequestration potential of the forests of Sikkim for mitigating climate change is also estimated. Benefits of implementing of REDD+ in Sikkim involving local communities as stakeholder to conserve and sustainably manage the forest is assessed. Gaps and challenges faced by the stakeholder in implementing REDD+ at project level are also highlighted.

scholarly journals Value Chain of Charcoal Production and Implications for Forest Degradation: Case Study of Bié Province, Angola

Environments ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (11) ◽  
pp. 113 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vasco Chiteculo ◽  
Bohdan Lojka ◽  
Peter Surový ◽  
Vladimir Verner ◽  
Dimitrios Panagiotidis ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Forest Degradation ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Natural Forests ◽  
Forest Cover Change ◽  
Charcoal Production ◽  
Order Of Magnitude ◽  
Alternative Sources ◽  
Urban Consumption

Forest degradation and forest loss threaten the survival of many species and reduce the ability of forests to provide vital services. Clearing for agriculture in Angola is an important driver of forest degradation and deforestation. Charcoal production for urban consumption as a driver of forest degradation has had alarming impacts on natural forests, as well as on the social and economic livelihood of the rural population. The charcoal impact on forest cover change is in the same order of magnitude as deforestation caused by agricultural expansion. However, there is a need to monitor the linkage between charcoal production and forest degradation. The aim of this paper is to investigate the sequence of the charcoal value chain as a systematic key to identify policies to reduce forest degradation in the province of Bié. It is a detailed study of the charcoal value chain that does not stop on the production and the consumption side. The primary data of this study came from 330 respondents obtained through different methods (semi-structured questionnaire survey and market observation conducted in June to September 2013–2014). A logistic regression (logit) model in IBM SPSS Statistics 24 (IBM Corp, Armonk, NY, USA) was used to analyze the factors influencing the decision of the households to use charcoal for domestic purposes. The finding indicates that 21 to 27 thousand hectares were degraded due to charcoal production. By describing the chain of charcoal, it was possible to access the driving factors for charcoal production and to obtain the first-time overview flow of charcoal from producers to consumers in Bié province. The demand for charcoal in this province is more likely to remain strong if government policies do not aim to employ alternative sources of domestic energy.

scholarly journals Effects of Protected Areas on Forest Cover Change and Local Communities: Evidence from the Peruvian Amazon

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan Jose Miranda ◽  
Leonardo Corral ◽  
Allen Blackman ◽  
Gregory Asner ◽  
Eirivelthon Lima
Keyword(s):  
Protected Areas ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Local Communities ◽  
Peruvian Amazon ◽  
Forest Cover Change

20 years of forest change in Natura 2000 protected areas network

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marinela-Adriana Chețan ◽  
Andrei Dornik
Keyword(s):  
Protected Areas ◽  
Satellite Data ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Natura 2000 ◽  
Temporal Analysis ◽  
Mean Value ◽  
Google Earth ◽  
Forest Change ◽  
Forest Protection ◽  
Forest Area Change

<p>Natura 2000 network, the world's largest network of protected areas, is considered a success for habitat and biodiversity protection, in the last decades. Our objective is to develop an algorithm for satellite data temporal analysis of protected areas, and to apply subsequently this algorithm for analysis of all Natura 2000 sites in Europe. We have developed an algorithm for satellite data temporal analysis of protected areas using JavaScript in Google Earth Engine, which is a web interface for the massive analysis of geospatial data, providing access to huge amount of data and facilitating development of complex workflows. This work focused on analysis of Global Forest Change dataset representing forest change, at 30 meters resolution, globally, between 2000 and 2018. Our results show that at least regarding forest protection, the network is not very successful, the 25350 sites losing 35246.8 km<sup>2</sup> of forest cover between 2000 and 2018, gaining only 9862.1 km<sup>2</sup>. All 28 countries recorded a negative forest net change, with a mean value of -906.6 km<sup>2</sup>, the largest forest area change recording Spain (-5106.4 km<sup>2</sup> in 1631 sites), Poland (-4529 km<sup>2</sup> in 962 sites), Portugal (-2781.9 km<sup>2</sup> in 120 sites), Romania (-1601.4 km<sup>2</sup> in 569 sites), Germany (-1365.7 km<sup>2</sup> in 5049 sites) and France (-1270.9 km<sup>2</sup> in 1520 sites). Among countries with the lowest values in net forest change is Ireland (-17.4 km<sup>2</sup> in 447 sites), Estonia (-104.1 km<sup>2</sup> in 518 sites), Netherlands (-132.3 km<sup>2</sup> in 152 sites), Finland (-268.6 km<sup>2</sup> in 1722 sites) and Sweden (-341.6 km<sup>2</sup> in 3786 sites).</p>

scholarly journals Securing tropical forest carbon: the contribution of protected areas to REDD

Oryx ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 44 (3) ◽  
pp. 352-357 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jörn P. W. Scharlemann ◽  
Valerie Kapos ◽  
Alison Campbell ◽  
Igor Lysenko ◽  
Neil D. Burgess ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Protected Areas ◽  
Tropical Forests ◽  
Carbon Emissions ◽  
Protected Area ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Forest Degradation ◽  
Protected Area Management ◽  
Forest Loss ◽  
The Tropics

AbstractForest loss and degradation in the tropics contribute 6–17% of all greenhouse gas emissions. Protected areas cover 217.2 million ha (19.6%) of the world’s humid tropical forests and contain c. 70.3 petagrams of carbon (Pg C) in biomass and soil to 1 m depth. Between 2000 and 2005, we estimate that 1.75 million ha of forest were lost from protected areas in humid tropical forests, causing the emission of 0.25–0.33 Pg C. Protected areas lost about half as much carbon as the same area of unprotected forest. We estimate that the reduction of these carbon emissions from ongoing deforestation in protected sites in humid tropical forests could be valued at USD 6,200–7,400 million depending on the land use after clearance. This is > 1.5 times the estimated spending on protected area management in these regions. Improving management of protected areas to retain forest cover better may be an important, although certainly not sufficient, component of an overall strategy for reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD).

scholarly journals The spatial pattern of forest cover changes in Lithuania during the second half of the twentieth century

2015 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Daiva Juknelienė ◽  
Gintautas Mozgeris
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Agricultural Land ◽  
Moran’S I ◽  
Sources Of Information ◽  
Forest Cover Change ◽  
Moran's I ◽  
Local Patterns ◽  
Forest Cover Changes ◽  
Global And Local

The trends of forest cover change in Lithuanian municipalities are introduced in the current paper. Two sources of information on the forest cover in 1950s and today (2013) were used in this study: (i) a geographic forest cover database developed using historical orthophotomaps based on aerial photography, which was carried out in the period just after the World War II, and (ii) the information originating from the State Forest Cadaster and referring to the year 2013. These two layers were compared using GIS overlay techniques. The data was made available for the analyses aggregated up to the municipality level. The Global Moran’s I statistic and Anselin Local Moran’s I were used to identify global and local patterns in the distribution of forest cover characteristics in Lithuanian municipalities, respectively. The  main finding of this study was that the  proportion of the  forest cover in 1950 was 26.5%, i. e. notably differing from the official statistics – 19.7%. The proportion of the forest cover increased in all municipalities during the period 1950–2013. The largest increase in forest cover proportion was in the areas less suitable for agriculture. The relatively largest areas of new forests were identified in the south-eastern part of Lithuania, the deforestation was relatively slowest around less forested municipalities, while the afforestation was relatively slowest around the agricultural Pakruojis municipality. Deforestation was most commonly associated with the forest transformation into agricultural land, less often into scrublands or waters.

scholarly journals The Trajectories of Perennial Crops Cover Change in Relationship with Forest Cover Change in Bao Lam District, Lam Dong Province

2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Le Quang Toan ◽  
Pham Van Cu ◽  
Bui Quang Thanh
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Forest Cover Change ◽  
Perennial Crops ◽  
Deforestation Rate ◽  
Logistic Regression Models ◽  
Blind Area ◽  
Result Show ◽  
Forest Cover Changes ◽  
Negative Impacts

Abstract: The expansion of perennial crops area plays an important role for supporting the human livelihood in the Central Highlands, so have negative impacts on deforestation and sustainable development. Remote sensing and GIS were used to analyze the trajectories of perennial crops cover change in relationship with deforestation. The Logistic regression models were used to analyze proximate reasons and spatial changing determinants of main land cover changes for the period 2004-2016 of Bảo Lâm district. The result show that the perennial crops changes are indicator for deforestation in Bảo Lâm district with high deforestation rate 0,8% per year caused by the expansion of annual crops, blind area and the expansion of perennial crops. The facile accessed forest and suitable forest area for perennial crops have more destroyed. The trajectories of perennial crops and forest cover changes are important scientific towards sustainable development.  

scholarly journals Mapping Forest Cover Changes using Sentinel-2A Imagery in the Municipality of Zubin Potok, Republic of Kosovo

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 105-119
Author(s):  
Ferat Krasniqi ◽  
Géza Király
Keyword(s):  
Vegetation Index ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Normalized Difference Vegetation Index ◽  
Google Earth ◽  
Covered Area ◽  
Forest Coverage ◽  
Forest Cover Changes ◽  
Sentinel 2A ◽  
Forest Plans ◽  
Band Combinations

This research aimed to investigate the changes in forest cover, utilizing Sentinel-2A imagery data. Annual results of deforestation, non-forest, and forest area in the Municipality of Zubin Potok (Kosovo) between 2016 and 2017 were presented and analyzed by applying the image difference change detection method on a Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) product derived for both years. The study reveals that forest coverage in this municipality has changed due to human activity (harvested and burnt forests). The footprint of changes was evidenced by using Sentinel 2A band combinations and very high resolution (VHR) images available in Google Earth (GE). From the overall forest-covered area of 24,873.61 hectares, the detected changes during the annual period are as follows: 24,423.57 ha or 98.19 % is mapped as forest, 113.75 hectares or 0.46 % as non-forest, and 336.77 or 1.35 % of the area forest is mapped as deforestation. These results can be used to identify human-made deforestation and to develop monitoring forest plans for the coming years.

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