Deforestation and Degradation

Forest Cover and Deforestation Patterns in the Northern Andes (Lake Maracaibo Basin): A Synoptic Assessment using MODIS and Landsat Imagery

Background

South America has the highest deforestation rates in the tropics. Yet, the science is often questioned when determining these rates. For example, Venezuela, which has the second highest rate in the region, produces government reports on deforestation that are continually questioned by third parties. This paper stresses the need for more accurate and consistent data on forest cover and greenhouse gase emissions from deforestation. 

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Reforestation of mangroves after severe impacts of herbicides during the the Viet Nam war: the case of Can Gio

Background

Due to years of armed conflict and the extensive use of toxic chemicals in Vietnam in the 1960s, tens of thousands of hectares of mangrove forests were destroyed. In 1978, the People's Committee of Ho Chi Minhi City recognized this lost and began investing in reforestation efforts.  

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Increasing Drought Sensitivity and Decline of Atlas Cedar (Cedrus atlantica) in the Moroccan Middle Atlas Forests

background

Since the 1980s, severe droughts have influenced Atlas cedar mortality in Morocco. This study looked at relative contributions of tree characteristics and stand structure on the increment-growth and decline of Atlas cedar trees (Cedrus atlantica) in stands affected by past logging and heavy grazing.

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The Cultural Context of Forest Degradation in Adjacent Purépechan Communities, Michoacán, Mexico

Background

This study aims to understand the relationship between cultural and ecological drivers contributing to change in forest land use patterns by comparing two adjacent indigenous communities in the volcanic plateau region of Michoacán, Mexico. The study suggests that both cultural and ecological processes must be studied together to best understand the cultural causes of forest change and accurately assess ecological consequences.

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Effects of Fragmentation of the Atlantic Forest on Mammal Communities in South-Eastern Brazil

Background

The author presents a detailed analysis of the community of large and medium-sized mammals present in six remnants of the low Atlantic forest in Brazil. The six remnants had varying sizes: small (200 ha), medium (2,000 ha) and large (20,000 ha). The study seeks to (1) identify the mammal species richness and the relative abundance of individuals surviving in each reserve, and (2) analyze changes in the structure of the mammal community contrasting the relative abundances of orders and dietary categories between reserves of differing sizes.

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The Recovery of the Lower Montane Cloud Forest in the Mucujún Watershed, Mérida, Venezuela

Background

Given the recovery of degraded forests in some landscapes throughout the tropics, the authors analyze land use change and land cover change in a mountain region of the andes of venezuela during a period of 50 years.

Research Goals & Methods

The study relies on aerial photographs taken between 1952 and 2009 of a peri-urban watershed. 

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Análisis de cambios de paisaje: Tournavista – Campo Verde y su área de influencia pérdida y fragmentación de bosques: 1963 – 2000 (Landscape change analysis: Tournavista – Campo Verde and its area of influence, forest fragmentation and loss 1963)

Español

​El estudio analiza los efectos causados por la colonización en Tournavista, Peru, a partir de 1963 y estima los impactos y degradación provocados usando métodos de teledetección.

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Taungya in the Philippines

background

This book chapter provides a description of the ecological effects of deforestation in the Philippines and a history of the failed social forestry programs that began in the 1970s.

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Restauração florestal: do diagnóstico de degradação ao uso de indicadores ecológicos para o monitoramento das ações (Forest restoration: from the diagnostics of degradation to the use of ecological indicators in the monitoring of actions)

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Reforestation project using native species in Maringa-Lopori-Wamba region (Democratic Republic of Congo): establishment of the Bonobo Peace Forest.CDM-AR-PDD

Background

Bonobos are endemic to the forests of the Democratic Republic of Congo and are at a high risk of extinction. Specifically, the UN has drawn attention to the speed at which infrustructure growth is infringing on bonobo habitat. Thus, it developed a program to halt these trends and conserve the bonobos. 

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