Transcript Deforestation - University of Edinburgh

Group 6 - Deforestation
LOOKING BACK
Looking Forward
Sam Melling, Scott McGee, Antoine Lamarche, Michael Hanning, Sarah Hazzard and Fraser Moore
Possible solutions
What is Deforestation?
Political
In Brazil relocation was aggressively promoted by
the government through the military.
Developing countries are eager to utilise their
natural recourses to gain political power over
developed countries.
Provide more efficient farming methods and education
on the use of land. And also the use of the resources of
the forest in general.
The FAO defines deforestation as the alteration of the existing
forest where tree crown cover is depleted by 10% of its
original value.
Increase consumer awareness of certified sustainable
products as opposed to illegally logged wood or
unsustainably sourced palm oil as an ingredient to food.
Another example would be the use of sustainability
sourced timber as a building material, which can be
used for carbon sequestration.
What is Sustainable Forestry?
In general terms sustainability is “providing for the needs of
the present without compromising the ability of future
generations to meet their own needs”. It is difficult to
determine sustainability in terms of forestry but there must be
a balance struck between social, economic and
environmental issues.
Social
Exponential population growth in developing
countries results in relocation from inner city
areas to forest areas to improve quality of life.
Labour Supply is required in areas for industry and
have been relocated to areas like the Amazon.
Fig 2
The Effects of Deforestation
Environmental
Environmental
In the past sustainable policies in forestry only
went so far to sustain timber yields but not
biodiversity. Those who deforest often do not
have a choice and environmental conservation
has not been a high priority.
Deforestation:
•Disrupts the hydrological cycle and leads to complex changes in local rainfall as well as on an
international scale.
•Leads to desertification as water stored in forest biomass is lost.
•Could account for the loss of as many as 100 species a day as habitats are destroyed.
•Accounts for approximately 12-20% of CO2 emissions as carbon stored in forest biomass is released as
it is removed.
Economic
Deforestation fuels the economic growth
providing quick capital and rapid debt relief.
Social
Due to large cattle ranches locating in the Amazon, shifting cultivators have been forced to reuse the same land
Agriculture has proven more profitable than
more often, reducing its fertility.
selling wood products due to the demand for beef
Many ranches become unprofitable within 10 years because productivity of grassland declines. The land is then
in developed countries.
abandoned and will never grow back to what it was.
As a result of financial incentives 1Ha of land in
North-East Brazil costs the same as 15Ha in the Technology has allowed farmers to use the land more intensively, thus becoming less self sufficient.
Amazon
Political
Other industries, such as tourism, can be effected
negatively as a result of deforestation.
Fig 2) http://www.fao.org/forestry/
Fig 3
Fig 3) Last updated, 12 May 2008 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7360258.stm
Bring USA into the Kyoto Protocol and ensure the 2nd
term of commitment in 2012-2016 is effective but
realistically achievable. This will ensure that large
countries like India and China continue to make efforts to
reduce CO2 emissions.
Endangered species need to be identified/located in
forests. The Red List is an ongoing effort in this area.
Economic
Fig 1) gapminder.com (United Nations Statistics Division . http://data.un.org 2008, data.un.org and FAO.org – United nations food and
agriculture organisation
The UK government has already taken steps towards
this providing £3.5 Billion initial funding for deforestation.
The poverty-reducing potential of forests should be
utilised. This can be done by community forestry, and
agro-forestry
The Amazon conservation team has partnered with the
Brazilian government as well as 14 tribes to manage 7.5
million acres of rainforest.
References
In order for Sustainable Forest Management to be a
success, considerable funding is required, which is
unlikely to be secured without the involvement of
developed countries. They must take further
responsibility to reduce deforestation for example,
through Carbon trading schemes and the establishment
of more protected areas.
Sustainable forestry need to be made more attractive to
land owners e.g. carbon financing, bio- prospecting
and possibly better timber prices.
Governments are forced to change their policies as a result
of pressure applied from environmental bodies.
Using the revenue from deforestation as a short term fix is
in-sustainable in that the money is not re-invested to
future use of the land.
Economic incentive for reducing carbon dioxide levels,
through the use of forestry. For example REDD provides
economic incentives to reduce deforestation.
Fig 1
Clarify forest management/ownership - At the moment
the forest communities are disorganized in comparison
to wealthy landowners or groups seeking to make a profit
of the land. By uniting and organizing them there will be
more transparency of information and less wasted
resources.
1) FAO.org “state of the world’s forests 2009”
2) “Postnote October 2009 Number 344
Deforestation”www.parliament.uk/parliamentary_offices/post/pubs2009.cfm
3) C. H. Wood and R. Porro “Deforestation and Land Use in the Amazon”
4) Sven Wunder “The Economics of Deforestation”,