Land Use Change and Trends
Reforestation Strategies Amid Social Instability: Lessons from AfghanistanBackgroundThis study evaluates recent reforestation programs in Afghanistan in anticipation of larger scale programs needed to address watershed-scale degradation. Research Goals & MethodsIt surveys reforestation programs in rural upper watershed areas in Afghanistan in order to provide insight for similar problems in insecure regions elsewhere, especially where reforestation may help reverse degradation and assist with social stabilization efforts. Open access copy available |
Is There a Forest Transition? Deforestation, Reforestation, and DevelopmentBackgroundThis paper explores the relationship between economic development and forest transitions, both deforestation and forest regrowth. research goals & methodsThis paper performs a regression analysis on three variables gleaned from multi-national historical statistics between 1922 and 1990: forest cover, rural-urban population distribution, and population growth. Available with subscription or purchase |
Appropriate Measures for Conservation of Terrestrial Carbon Stocks: Analysis of Trends of Forest Management in Southeast AsiabackgroundThe ASEAN countries of Southeast Asia have seen rapid deforestation and subsequent carbon losses in the past few decades, as lands are cleared for other land uses. This study analyzes the implications of different land management scenarios on carbon stocks. Open access copy available |
Forest Recovery after Swidden Cultivation across a 40-year Chronosequence in the Atlantic Forest of Southern Bahia, BrazilbackgroundSecondary forest with a range of ages was compared to old growth forest in the Serra do Conduru State Park in Southern Bahia, Brazil in terms of species composition and structure. Open access copy available |
Impacts of Native Trees on Tropical Soils: A Study in the Atlantic Lowlands of Costa RicabackgroundThis article describes the results of a study in Costa Rica that compared the soil fertility in a 2.5 year-old plantation of 6 native tree species, grass pasture, and 20 year-old secondary forest. Research Goals & MethodsSoil extractable Ca, Mg, K, P, Fe, Mn, Cu and Zn, the pH, exchangeable acidity, organic matter and total N were measured in three plots. Available with subscription or purchase |
Emerging Threats and Opportunities for Large-Scale Ecological Restoration in the Atlantic Forest of BrazilbackgroundThis article presents a policy model known as the Atlantic Forest Restoration Pact (AFRP) and discusses the vital role the Brazilian Forest Act and other legislation has played in preventing deforestation and encouraging reforestation. Available with subscription or purchase |
Landscape Rehabilitation of Degraded Tropical Forest Ecosystems: Case Study of the CIFOR/Japan Project in Indonesia and PerubackgroundThe CIFOR/Japan project on tropical forest restoration involves three principal components: 1) evaluation of logging impacts on forest systems, 2) development of methods for the restoration of logged and degraded forests, and 3) development of silvicultural practices for degraded forests. Open access copy available |
Soil Responses to restoration of a tropical pasture in Veracruz, South-Eastern Mexico.BackgroundChanges in land use and land cover may affect soil properties and processes. Conversion of forest to pasture is assumed to result in a decrease in soil nutrients. Restoration to healthy grassland or forest may lead to an increase in soil nutrients. This paper reports on a study on soil responses to restoration of a tropical pasture in Veracruz, Mexico. Available with subscription or purchase |
The Tree Planting and Protecting Culture of Cattle Ranchers and Small-Scale Agriculturalists in Rural Panama: Opportunities for Reforestation and Land RestorationbackgroundThis study examines the relationship between farmers and trees in the tropical dry forest in two rural communities of Panama, focusing on the uses and values that small landholders assign to local tree species, both native and exotic. Available with subscription or purchase |
Rehabilitation of Degraded Forest Ecosystems in Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand and Vietnam: An OverviewbackgroundThis document describes reforestation policies and actions in the four countries of the lower Mekong river: Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand, and Vietnam. Open access copy available |