Technologies To Sustain Forest Resources

March 1984

OTA-F-515

NTIS order #PB92-182104
Recommended Citation:

Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources (Washington, D. C.: U.S. Congress,

Office of Technology Assessment, OTA-F-214, March 1984).

Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 84-601018

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents

U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402
Foreword

The United States has a stake in the sustained economic development of tropical

nations for humanitarian, political, and economic reasons. To a great extent, the

development of these nations depends on increasing production from their potentially renewable soil, forest, and water resources. But tropical forest resources, which

cover nearly one-half of the tropical nations’ land, are being consumed at a rate

that may make them nonrenewable. They are exploited for timber and cleared for

pasture and cropland with little regard for their abilities to produce—in a longterm sustainable fashion—important goods, maintain soil productivity, regulate

water regimes, or regenerate themselves. Much of the recent deforestation occurs

where the new land uses cannot be sustained and it causes productivity losses that

tropical nations and the world can ill afford.

International recognition of the importance of tropical forests, and efforts to

sustain the productivity of these resources, have increased significantly in the last

decade. In 1980, the House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs, Subcommittee on International Organizations, held hearings on tropical deforestation.

The committee then requested the Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) to conduct a more thorough assessment of the problem, the technologies that could help

sustain tropical forest resources, and possible options for Congress. The Subcommittee on Insular Affairs of the House Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs

and the Subcommittee on Environmental Pollution of the Senate Committee on

Public Works endorsed the request. The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural

Resources asked that the assessment specifically address forest resources of the

U.S. insular territories in the Caribbean and western Pacific. The report and its

two background papers (Reforestation of Degraded Lands and U.S. and International Institutions) identify and discuss in-depth some of the constraints and opportunities to develop and implement forest-sustaining technologies.

OTA greatly appreciates the contributions of the advisory panel and workshop

participants assembled for the study, the authors of the commissioned technical

papers, and the many others who assisted us, including liaisons from other Government agencies. As with all OTA studies, however, the content of the report is the

sole responsibility of OTA.

iii
Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources Advisory Panel

Leonard Berry, Panel Chairman

Center for Technology, Environment, and Development

Clark university

Eddie Albert

Conservationist

Hugh Bollinger

Vice President

Native Plants, Inc.

Robert Cassagnol

Technical Committee

CONAELE

Robert Cramer

Former President

Virgin Islands Corp.

Gary Eilerts

Appropriate Technology International

John Ewel

Department of Botany

University of Florida

Robert Hart

Winrock International

Susanna Hecht

Department of Geography

University of California

Marilyn Hoskins

Department of Sociology

Virginia Polytechnic Institute

John Hunter*

Michigan State University

Norman Johnson

Vice President, North Carolina Region

Weyerhaeuser Co.

Jan Laarman

Department of Forestry

North Carolina State University

Charles Lankester

U.N. Development Programme

Robert Owen

Chief Conservationist (retired)

Trust Territory of the Pacific IsZands

Christine Padoch

Institute of Environmental Studies

University of Wisconsin

Allen Putney

ENCAMP

West Indies Lab

Jeff Romm

Department of Forestry

University of California

John Terborgh

Department of Biology

Princeton University

Henry Tschinkel

Regional Office for Central American Programs

Agency for International Development

U.S. Department of State

*Resigned in July 1982.

iv
OTA Staff on Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resourses

H. David Banta* and Roger Herdman, * * Assistant Director, OTA

Health and Life Sciences Division

Walter E. Parham, Program Manager

Food and Renewable Resources Program

Analytical Staff

Susan Shen, Forester

Alison Hess, Resource Economist

Chris Elfring, Science Journalist

Eric Hyman, Environmental Planner***

Denise Toombs, Resource Policy Analyst***

Jim Kirshner, Resource Policy Analyst***

Bruce A. Ross-Sheriff, Geographer,

Project Director

Administrative Staff

Phyllis Balan, Administrative Assistant

Nellie Hammond, Secretary

Carolyn Swarm, Secretary

OTA Publishing Staff

John C. Holmes, Publishing Officer

John Bergling Kathie S. Boss Reed Bundy Debra M. Datcher

Joe Henson Glenda Lawing Linda A. Leahy Cheryl J. Manning
Technology Transfer Workshop

Anil Agarwal

Centre for Science and Environment

New Delhi, India

Jose Roberto Castillio

Farmer/Businessman

Mexico

Merrill Conitz

Ron Stegall, Chairman

Development Consultant

Washington, D.C.

Gerald Murray

Pan American Development Foundation

Haiti

Gunnar Poulsen

Tropical Forestry Consultant

Denmark

David Richards

Agency for International Development Appropriate Technology International

Nairobi, Kenya Washington, D.C.

Robert Fishwick Skip Stiles

World Bank Office of Congressman George E. Brown, Jr.

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C.

Marilyn Hoskins

Virginia Polytechnic Institute

Blacksburg, Va.

Systems Analysis Workshop

Donella H. Meadows, Chairwoman

Resource Policy Center, Dartmouth College

Jeffrey Gritzner John Terborgh

Board on Science and Technology Department of Biology

for International Development Princeton University

National Academy of Sciences Frank Wadsworth

Jeff Romm Institute of Tropical Forestry

Department of Forestry Puerto Rico

University of California

vi
Chapter Page

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ........... 3

I. Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. .. .. ... ... ... .... . 9

Z. Importance of Tropical Forests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

3. Status of Tropical Forests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

q. Causes of Deforestation and Forest Resource Degradation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

5. Organizations Dealing With Tropical Forest Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105

6. U.S. Tropical Forests: Caribbean and Western Pacific. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127

--&. Technologies for Undisturbed Forests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............... 159

 8. Technologies to Reduce Overcutting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177

9. Forestry Technologies for Disturbed Forests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195

 1O. Forestry Technologies to Support Tropical Agriculture. ., . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219

 11. Resource Development Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243

12. Education, Research, and Technology Transfer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257

13. Forestry Technologies for U.S. Tropical Territories. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275

14. Options for Congress. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301

Appendix Page

A. Status of Tropical Forests: Tables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323

B. Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 332

C. Commissioned Papers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336

Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 341

vii
Introduction

●
Introduction
4 ● Technology to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Figure I.—Trend of Change Among Tropical Forest Land Uses

SOURCE: Office of Technology Assessment

Figure 2.–Conceptuai Diagram indicating Land Use Changes Typical of Tropical Asia

100

f-l

land

Crop land,

grazing land

manmade forest,

— Time –

SOURCE: Office of Technology Assessment.

If nothing were done to change the system,

the point at which the amount of undisturbed

forest land and unproductive land stabilize for

a given region would be, in theory, where the

cost of clearing the next acre of undisturbed

forest equals the cost of reclaiming an acre of

unproductive land. Since that cost is high for

known technologies, this equilibrium implies

little accessible undisturbed forest, a great deal

of unproductive land, and extremely low levels

of production. The actual equilibrium maybe

delayed until even more undisturbed forest is

cleared because costs and benefits accrue to

different groups of people, skewing both motivations to invest and to exploit.

Many technologies exist but are not fully

used to prevent conversion of productive land

to unproductive land, to increase yields on intermediate lands, or to harvest from undis-
/introduction ● 5

turbed forest without converting it to a less

sustainable land type. There are also social

changes both possible and desirable to reduce the driving forces behind conversion to

unsustainable uses.

Because different countries or regions of

countries fall at different points along the

curves in figure 2, the actions needed to halt

this degradation would be most effective if designed for the urgency of the situation in each

country. For example, regions with low rainfall and/or dense populations probably follow

this process more rapidly than countries with

moist forest and large areas of currently inaccessible land. Categorization of countries or

major regions to indicate the urgency for actions to address loss of tropical forest resources

and degradation of land productivity might

take the form indicated in figure 3:

Ž Countries where the problem is latent but

not compelling: A considerable amount

of original forest land remains, but without appropriate measures, population

pressures and development needs can be

expected eventually to propel these countries into the next categories.

● Countries where the problem is critical:

Much original forest land has been converted into the four intermediate uses, in-

●

eluding most of the land capable of sustaining continuous agriculture. Further

clearing is occurring and technologies to

sustain productivity on these lands generally are not applied.

Countries where emergency measures are

required—the ratio of unproductive land

to original undisturbed forest is high and

increasing, severe shortages of locally produced forest products are occurring, and

the amount of intermediate land types is

declining rapidly because technologies are

not adequately used to sustain land productivity.

An improved division of countries into categories might account separately for urgency of

human needs (e.g., food, fuelwood, materials

for shelter, fodder, etc.) and urgency of ecological need (e.g., loss of genetic diversity). The

Food and Agriculture Organization has categorized countries by need for action to ameliorate fuelwood deficiencies, but scales to

measure other dimensions of forest resource

value have not been created.

The loss of tropical forest resources is not

new, and its effects are not restricted to those

who live within the forests. Part I of this report

describes the Background of tropical forest

resource changes, including who is affected,

I — Time — I

SOURCE: Office of Technology Assessment.
6 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropics/ Forest Resources

the current status, the visible agents and underlying causes of change, and the organizations-United States, national and international—involved. This section also describes the

tropical lands of most direct concern to the

U.S. Congress: the U.S.tropical territories.

Part H of this report, Technology Assessment, discusses various technologies for resource-sustaining development of tropical forest lands. The technologies considered cover

a broad range. Some are techniques to manage

the forests-undisturbed and disturbed-and

some are technologies to use forests to protect

related resources such as agriculture and water. Others are techniques to prepare people for

the various tasks involved in sustaining tropical

forest resources, such as resource development

planning, education, research, and technology

transfer.

- Within each technology discussion, actions

are suggested to promote development of sustainable tropical forest use. In general, actions

can enhance the stability and productivity of

tropical lands if they:

• reduce degradation of the resource base,

● reduce demand on the ecosystems,

Žprovide more timely and accurate information to decisionmakers or reduce the

time necessary to implement decisions.

A final chapter in this section discusses application of the various kinds of technologies to

the U.S. tropical forests.

Part 111 describes Issues and Options for

Congress to promote development and use of

technologies that can sustain tropical forest resources globally and within U.S. tropical territories. The organization of options for the

Congress does not indicate the relative importance of the various measures. If long-term actions are not taken to build institutions concerned with the sustainable use of tropical forests, short-term actions will be overwhelmed.

And conversely, if short-term measures are not

taken, development of institutions to manage

the forest resources in the long term may be

pointless.
Chapter 1

Summary
Page

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Importance of Tropical Forest Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Status of Tropical Forests. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Technology Assessment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Technologies for Undisturbed Forests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Maintaining Sample Ecosystems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Making Undisturbed Forests More Valuable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Technologies to Reduce Overcutting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Industrial Wood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Fuelwood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Technologies for Disturbed Forests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Management of Secondary Forests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Reforestation of Degraded Lands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Forestry Technologies to Support Tropical Agriculture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Agroforestsry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Watershed Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Resource Development Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Education, Research, and Technology Transfer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Technology Transfer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Issues and Options for Congress . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Expand and Coordinate Development Assistance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Encourage Resource Development Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Improve Tropical Forest Research and Market Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Protect Biological Diversity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Expand U.S. Expertise in Tropical Forest Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

U.S. Tropical Forests.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

The U.S. Caribbean Territories: Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands . . . . . . . 28

The U.S. Western Pacific: Micronesia and American Samoa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Issues and Options for Congress . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

List of Tables

Table No. Page

1. Estimates of Closed Forest Areas and Deforestation Rates in

Tropical Africa, America, and Asia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

List of Figures

Figure No. Page

4. Global Areas of Tropical Woody Vegetation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

5. Areas of Woody Vegetation in 76 Tropical Nations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

6. A Typical Biosphere Reserve . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

7. Location of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

8. Location of the U.S. Western Pacific Territories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Chapter I

Summary

INTRODUCTION .

Forests of various kinds cover 42 percent of

the tropical nations’ land (fig. 4). To support a

population of 2 billion, these nations must use

the natural resources found in these forests:

soil, water, plants, and animals. The productivity of these resources can be renewable, but

only if tropical people use resource-sustaining

technologies.

Some tropical nations are experiencing severe shortages of forest products and services.

Figure 4.–Global Areas of Tropical Woody

Vegetation

Land surface of the Earth

Land surface of the 76 countries studied

Conifer -

\

forests Plantations

To avoid even more acute problems, they need

to restore resource productivity. Other nations,

even those with adequate forests, need to sustain their forest resources to avoid future problems. In just 30 years, the population of tropical

nations is expected to double to 4 billion people. Thus, the importance of tropical forest productivity is increasing as more and more people depend on forest products and services for

basic needs such as fuel, materials for shelter,

and a reliable water supply.

Substantial institutional activity is occurring

worldwide that directly or indirectly benefits

tropical forest resources. The U.S. Agency for

International Development (AID), the United

Nations agencies, the multilateral development

banks, and others have increased their attention to forestry in recent years. Private corporations and nonprofit organizations also have

been involved in the search for solutions to

tropical forest problems. Most importantly,

tropical nations’ governments have come to

recognize that deforestation and forest resource degradation constrain their economies

and their development options.

The large number of organizations that have

some responsibilities in forestry might imply

that an adequate level of activity is under way.

But the total amount of expertise and funding

available to forestry still remains small relative

to the scope of the problem. International development assistance organizations cannot

fund enough forest conservation to offset deforestation because the underlying institutional

causes can only be resolved by the tropical

countries themselves.

9

25-287 0 - 84 - 2
10 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

IMPORTANCE OF TROPICAL FOREST RESOURCES

For tropical nations, forests and shrublands

provide wood for lumber and paper, building

materials, and fuel, and are an important

source of foreign exchange. Forests help maintain soil quality, limit erosion, stabilize hillsides, modulate seasonal flooding, and protect

waterways and marine resources from accelerated siltation. In addition, many millions of

people living in and near the forests depend

directly on them for food, medicines, and other

basic needs.

The benefits from tropical forests are not limited to tropical nations. World trade in tropical

wood is significant to the economies of both

the producing and consuming nations, The

United States is the second largest importer of

tropical wood products, and U.S. demand for

tropical wood has been growing at rates well

above our population and gross national product growth rates. Tropical forests also provide

a broad array of nonwood products such as

oils, spices, and rattan that are valuable for

both subsistence and commerce. The annual

world trade in rattan, for example, is estimated

to be $1.2 billion. Thus, industrial wood and

other forest product exports earn substantial

foreign exchange for nations that trade with

the United States.

The productivity of renewable resources in

the Tropics affects both the economic viability of U.S. investments overseas and political

stability in the tropical nations. Many development projects funded by the U.S. Government or the U.S. private sector are being undercut by flooding, siltation of reservoirs, pest outbreaks, and other problems associated with deforestation. Food and jobs, both critical for political stability in developing nations, can be

reduced by the consequences of deforestation.

The highly diverse tropical forests contain

plants, animals, genetic material, and chemicals that have great potential value for medicine, agriculture, and other industries. The

Tropics are thought to contain two-thirds of the

world’s approximately 4.5 million plant and animal species. An estimated 2.5 million of the

tropical species are yet unknown to science.

Considering the value to society that has come

from those tropical species that have been studied (e.g., many major agricultural crops, anticancer drugs, insects used in integrated pest

management), it is very likely that some of the

remaining unstudied species offer potentially

important resources, particularly for pest control, plant breeding, genetic engineering, and

other biotechnologies. Biologists are already

using new techniques for cloning plants and

micro-organisms to screen for their production

of useful chemicals.

Tropical forests also provide habitats for

many of the world’s migratory birds and various endangered species. About two-thirds of

the birds that breed in North America migrate

to Latin America or the Caribbean for winter.

Some of these migratory birds play an important role in controlling agricultural pests in the

United States.

STATUS OF TROPICAL FORESTS

Some 76 nations located entirely or largely

within the tropical latitudes contain about half

the world’s population (approximately 2 billion), These nations are characterized by rapidly growing populations, low per capita incomes, and predominantly agrarian economies. Near forest lands, much of the agriculture is subsistence farming, often in upland

areas where soils are dry or have low fertility.

Commercial agriculture, on the other hand,

generally is sited on the more fertile and often

irrigated alluvial plains of major river valleys.

Both types of agriculture are strongly affected

by the 1.2 billion hectares* of moist tropical

*One hectare equals 2.47 acres.
Ch. 7—Summary ● 11

forest and 800 million hectares of drier open

woodlands.

The type and distribution of forests vary considerably across regions in the Tropics (fig. 5).

Two-thirds of the closed forests* are found in

tropical America, while Africa has two-thirds

of the open forests.** Even within regions,

*Closed forest means that trees shade so much of the ground

that a continuous layer of grass cannot grow.

* *Open forest has trees that cover at least 10 percent of the

ground but still allow enough light to reach the forest floor so

that a dense, continuous cover of grass can grow.

forest types are unequally distributed among

countries.

Data on the extent and condition of tropical

forests are widely scattered and often inaccurate, Overall figures for deforestation* mask

*Deforestation is the conversion of closed or open forest to

nonforest. A distinction should be made between deforestation

and degradation; the latter refers to biological, physical, and

chemical processes that result in loss of the productive potential of natural resources in areas that remain classified as forest.

This distinction explains some of the confusion in estimates of

change in forest resources.

Figure 5.—Areas of Woody Vegetationa in 76 Tropical Nations (thousands of hectares, 1980 estimates)

Tropical America

Plantatio

forests

4,620

Open

f

sed fore

fallow

108,612

‘St

61,650 Open woodlands

216,997

Tropical Africa

Tropical Asia

‘Closed forest

fallow

61,64 6

Closed forestl

fallow

69,22 5

Sh

Plantation Open woodland

Plantation forests fallow

forests 5,111 3,990

1,780

d s
12 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

considerable differences among the rates at

which individual countries are using and altering their forest resources (table 1). If present

trends were to continue, nine tropical countries would eliminate practically all of their

closed forests within the next 30 years and

another 13 countries would exhaust theirs

within 55 years.

Estimates of overall deforestation rates also

conceal significant differences in the types of

tropical forest affected. The loss of species is

probably greatest in the broad-leaved humid

lowland forests as these are biologically the

most complex and diverse. But the tropical

conifer forests cover much smaller areas and

have been severely degraded by logging and agriculture. Direct impacts on people are greatest

in dry regions where degradation of open forests leads to severe shortages of wood for fuel.

But the loss of mountain watershed forest may

affect even more people by making river flows

more erratic.

Each year approximately 11.3 million hectares of the Earth’s remaining tropical forests

—an area roughly the size of Pennsylvania—

are cleared and converted to other uses. Where

cleared land is developed for sustainable agriculture, deforestation can be beneficial. But

most land being cleared cannot sustain farming or grazing with available technologies. So

it is abandoned after a few years. Often, commercially valuable trees do not grow back

quickly because of highly weathered soils,

harsh climates, and recurring fires. Thus, productive but underused forest resources are giving way to low productivity grasslands and

deserts.

Deforestation and degradation of tropical

lands are not new. Losses of forest resources

have been reported as early as 450 B.C. in the

African Sahel and 1000 A.D. in South China.

For centuries, tropical deforestation has been

associated with poverty and with patterns of

economic development that result in inequitable access to farmland. People displaced by

development in the lowlands often have been

the direct agents of deforestation because they

have little choice if they are to survive.

The main agents of tropical deforestation and

forest resource degradation continue to be subsistence agriculturalists, livestock raisers, fuelwood collectors, and people who set fires to

facilitate clearing or gathering activities. Commercial agriculture plays a smaller role in deforestation today than it has in the past, although in some areas (e.g., Central America

and Brazil) clearing tropical forests for cattle

ranching causes a large part of the forest resource loss. Commercial logging is also an important cause of forest degradation.

Both subsistence and commercial use of forest lands can cause deforestation. Combined,

they form particularly pernicious relationships.

For example, loggers build roads through undisturbed forests to remove timber. Slash-andburn cultivators use the roads to gain access

to the forests and clear patches for temporary

agriculture. Ranching or commercial agriculture may follow the farmers, exploit the land’s

remaining productivity, then move on into new

areas. These agents of tropical forest change

vary in prominence among tropical America,

Africa, and Asia.

Alternative techniques exist that could be

substituted for these destructive practices.

However, sustainable forestry and agriculture

practices generally are not being developed

and applied. The underlying causes of this failure lie in political, economic, and social forces

(e.g., undefined property rights) that cause people to use forests in ways that are inappropriate

to ecological conditions. Deterioration of the

forest resources seems likely to continue until

combinations of improved technologies and enforced resource development policies make

sustaining the forests more profitable than destroying them.
Ch. I—Summary ● 1 3

Table 1. —Estimates of Closed Forest Areas and Deforestation Rates in Tropical Africa, America, and Asia

Closed forest Percent Closed forest Percent

area deforested area deforested

Country (1,000 ha) per yeara

(1 ,000 ha) per yeara

Tropical Africa:

Ivory Coast. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Nigeria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Rwanda. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Burundi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Benin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guinea-Bissau . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Liberia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guinea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Kenya . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Madagascar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Angola . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Uganda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Zambia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ghana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Mozambique . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sierra Leone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Tanzania . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Togo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sudan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Cameroon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ethiopia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Somalia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Equatorial Guinea . . . . . . . . . . .

Zaire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Central African Republic . . . . .

Gabon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Congo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Zimbabwe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Namibia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Botswana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Mali . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Upper Volta . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Niger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Senegal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Malawi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Gambia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

4,458

5,950

120

26

47

660

2,000

2,050

1,105

10,300

2,900

765

3,010

1,718

935

740

1,440

304

650

500

17,920

4,350

1,540

1,295

105,750

3,590

20,500

21,340

200

b

b

b

b

b

220

186

65

6.5

5.0

2.7

2.7

2,6

2.6

2.3

1.8

1.7

1.5

1.5

1.3

1.3

1.3

1.1

0.8

0.7

0.7

0.6

0.4

0.4

0.2

0.2

0.2

0.2

0.1

0.1

O.l

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

Totals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216,634 0.61

Tropical America:

Paraguay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4,070 4.7

Costa Rica.... . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,638 4.0

Haiti . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

El Salvador . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Jamaica . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Nicaragua . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ecuador . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Honduras . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guatemala . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Colombia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Mexico . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Panama . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Belize . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Dominican Republic . . . . . . . . .

Trinidad and Tobago . . . . . . . .

Peru . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Brazil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Venezuela . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Bolivia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Cuba . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

French Guiana . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Surinam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guyana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Totals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Tropical Asia:

Nepal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sri Lanka . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Thailand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Brunei . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Malaysia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Laos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Philippines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Bangladesh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Viet Nam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Indonesia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Pakistan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Burma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Kampuchea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Bhutan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Papua New Guinea.. . . . . . . . .

Totals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

48

141

67

4,496

14,250

3,797

4,442

46,400

46,250

4,165

1,354

629

208

69,680

357,480

31,870

44,010

1,455

8,900

14,830

18,475

678,655

1,941

1,659

9,235

323

20,995

8,410

9,510

927

8,770

113,895

2,185

31,941

7,548

51,841

2,100

34,230

305,510

3.8

3.2

3.0

2.7

2.4

2.4

2.0

1.8

1.3

0.9

0.7

0.6

0.4

0.4

0.4

0.4

0.2

O.l

b

b

0.6

4.3

3.5

2.7

1.5

1.2

1.2

1.0

0.9

0.7

0.5

0,3

0.3

0.3

0.3

0.1

0.1

0.6
14 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT

This report discusses various technologies to

develop tropical forest resources. Some are

techniques to manage forests—undisturbed and

disturbed—and some are technologies to use

forests to protect related resources such as agriculture and water. Others are techniques to

prepare people for the various tasks involved

in developing and implementing technologies

to sustain the resources.

Technologies for

Undisturbed Forest

Undisturbed forests produce many valuable

products and services, usually with little or no

human management. One way to reduce the

rate at which undisturbed forests are converted

to other, nonsustainable uses is through systematic preservation of sample ecosystems in

parks and protected areas. Another approach

is to enhance the value of the forest by developing its resources other than timber—the nonwood products and forest food sources. For

either approach to succeed, willing involvement of local people and political commitment

from government decisionmakers are essential.

Maintaining Sample Ecosystems

Parks and protected areas can be managed

for direct income (e.g., tourism) and for indirect

benefits, such as preventing siltation of reservoirs. Some of these benefits can be estimated

for resource allocation decisions. Other major

benefits provided by protected areas—e. g.,

preservation of biological diversity—cannot be

measured in dollars. Thus, in the past, the locations of protected areas have been determined

more for watershed protection or tourist potential than for conserving of biological diversity.

A marked disparity exists in the worldwide

distribution of parks and protected areas, with

some types of ecosystems well represented and

others not represented at all. Many legally protected areas lack firm commitments from local,

national, and international agencies. Consequently, they receive little actual protection or

are inadequately managed.

Strict preservation with total exclusion of

economic activity is not practical for many

sites where protection of undisturbed forests

is important. Recognizing the growing demands to develop rural land, protected area

planners and managers have begun to pay

more attention to socioeconomic and institutional factors. They seek participation from

both the people who will affect or be affected

by forest resources and the people and agencies that must support management programs.

Some innovative plans that include the surrounding biophysical and socioeconomic setting have been developed for protected areas.

One such activity is the UNESCO Man and the

Biosphere (MAB) program’s worldwide network of biosphere reserves (fig. 6). The management of these reserves considers the needs

of local populations and seeks ways to make

benefits available to local people. More field

experience and monitoring are needed to evaluate the successes of existing biosphere reserves. However, the MAB effort is constrained

by a lack of strong, consistent commitments

from U.S. and other governments.

Making Undisturbed Forests

More Valuable

Few deliberate attempts have been made to

harvest forest products other than timber and

fuelwood in a sustainable, organized way. Incentives to maintain unlogged forests would

be greater if methods were developed to use

forest resources other than timber more fully–

either by discovering new, valuable products

or by encouraging collection and processing

of existing products.

Products obtained from animals and from

wood, bark, leaves, or roots of trees and other

forest vegetation offer significant opportunities

for tropical countries to develop cottage industries. Employment and incomes for people living in or near forests could be improved while

encouraging maintenance of the natural ecosystems. Improved assessment of the role of
Ch. l—Summary ● 1 5

Figure 6.—A Typical Biosphere Reserve

SOURCE M. Batisse, “The Biosphere Reserve: A Tool for Environmental Conservation and Management, ” Environmental Conservation, vol. 9, summer 1982.

forest products in subsistence economies and

development of markets for nonwood products

could help decisionmakers recognize the value

of undisturbed forests. U.S. scientific and

managerial expertise could be applied to this

problem, especially from the fields of ecology,

botany, business, and forest management.

Few technologies exist today that can extract

selected renewable resources from a tropical

forest while leaving the forest nearly intact.

Crocodile and butterfly farming are two examples that are being implemented. The development of other such resource-conserving systems is needed.

Technologies to Reduce Overcutting

Much resource degradation is caused in

closed tropical forests by inappropriate wood

harvesting methods and in mountain and dry

forests by cutting more wood than grows each

year. Development of improved wood processing technologies and markets for more of the

many tree species and sizes growing in the

closed forests would reduce the area that must

be logged to satisfy timber demand. Where too

much wood is being cut, it may be necessary

to reduce demand by increasing the efficiency of woodstoves and charcoal kilns or by substituting alternative energy sources.

Industrial Wood

Intensive forest harvesting could give increased output per unit area, thus reducing demand to cut elsewhere. But this approach can

have both positive and negative impacts. It can

make reforestation planting more feasible. On

the other hand, it increases the potential for

damage to the site from poor road engineering, inadequate site protection, and tardy restoration of forest stands. Intensive harvesting

would require strict enforcement of regulations

to prevent adverse impacts on the land’s longterm productivity.

Intensive harvesting depends on the availability of profitable technologies to extract, process, and market a wider range of tree species

and sizes. Grouping species according to their

uses (e.g., construction material) is an approach

that has been successful in Africa. However,

many unused species have sizes, shapes, or

wood characteristics that make them difficult

to harvest and process and that limit their usefulness.

The use of smaller trees would require costly replacement of existing equipment, which

has been designed for large logs. Portable sawmills and small units that could be carried easily and set up to mill logs at the stump could

make logging much more efficient. Such technologies might minimize adverse environmenta1 effects from hauling logs but might encourage logging of currently inaccessible areas.

The greatest progress toward making intensive harvest profitable has occurred where multispecies wood chips are produced for wood

pulp or fuel. The “press-dry paper process”

developed at the U.S. Forest Products Labora-
16 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

tory promises to increase the world market for

hardwood chips. However, chipping can have

adverse impacts because in moist tropical forests most of the plant nutrients are located in

the trees rather than in the soil. Thus, wood

chip harvesting that removes most trees can

severely reduce the fertility of the site.

For little known but potentially marketable

lumber species, cost-effective preservation and

drying technologies are needed to improve use

characteristics. Many types of wood are susceptible to attack by termites, other insects, or

fungi under tropical conditions. Although

wood preservatives are available, they generally are costly. Some less expensive techniques

exist but their effectiveness has not been

proven.

Fuelwood

Approximately 80 percent of the estimated

1 billion cubic meters of wood removed annually from tropical forests is used for fuel. The effects of excessive fuelwood cutting are seen

first near cities and towns where fuel demand

is concentrated. But overcutting does not

always remain a local problem. Mangrove

forests of Thailand and dry forests of Kenya,

for example, are overcut to produce charcoal

that is transported by ship to other nations.

Most wood fuel is used in homes for cooking, though tobacco drying and other rural industries also consume substantial quantities.

Common domestic stoves waste much of the

wood energy, as do traditional methods of making charcoal. Therefore, it should be possible

to reduce fuelwood demand significantly and

consequent overcutting by disseminating more

efficient stoves and charcoal kilns.

Attempts to introduce such technologies in

tropical nations have had mixed success. Improved stoves are not quickly and widely accepted. Though cheap by U.S. standards, they

often cost too much. Some reduce the range

of fuels that can be used. Further, improved

charcoal production sometimes does not lead

to less wood cutting because charcoal makers

may use the time or profits they gain to make

even more charcoal. Techniques to reduce demand require especially careful planning,

monitoring, and evaluation.

Nonwood fuels such as kerosene can sometimes be used to reduce wood demand temporarily while fuelwood plantations are established and while natural forests recover from

exploitation. But the costs of obtaining and

distributing nonwood fuel substitutes are often

prohibitive, especially to the rural poor. Smallscale, renewable energy technologies such as

solar dryers have more potential for long-term

use, but their adoption is inhibited by financial and managerial constraints.

Substituting plantation-grown wood for natural forest wood clearly is an important option in many tropical regions. Investment in

plantations is constrained, however, where ac-
Ch.1—Summary ● 1 7

cess to “free-for-the-taking’ forest wood is not

restricted. Thus, regulatory controls on fuelwood gathering from the natural forest must

be enforced if the fuelwood plantation option

is to be used before all the accessible natural

forests are destroyed. Where fuelwood has

commercial value above the cost of cutting and

transportation, there is a possibility that farmers and business will invest in planting trees.

Securing future wood supplies is a social,

political, and economic problem. Investments

of land, labor, and capital in tree growing are

constrained by problems with land ownership,

laws, and social organization. Until these are

resolved and woodfuel supplies are being effectively replenished, measures to reduce demand

will fail to reach the root of the problem. Demand reduction creates no incentives for increased supply; it may achieve the reverse.

Technologies for Disturbed forests

An estimated 400 million hectares of potentially productive secondary forest* exist in

closed tropical forest areas. Approximately 2

billion hectares of tropical lands are in various

stages of degradation. Investment in the improvement of secondary forests and reforestation of degraded lands offers opportunities to

meet needs for materials, substitute domestic

production for imports, and provide new

sources of employment in wood production

and processing.

Management of Socoadary Forests

Many tropical countries could sustain production of all the wood they will need for decades if adequate investments were made to develop and manage cutover secondary forests.

However, such investments are seldom made.

Land tenure can be a constraint, but even

where the forests are clearly owned and controlled by government forestry agencies or

private landowners, investments are usually inadequate. Technologies for sustained forest

*Secondary forest includes both residual forest that has been

cut once or several times during the past 60 to 80 years and second growth forests that invade after periodic cultivation.

production exist, but for most of these the time

lag before payback begins is too long and return on the investments is too low to attract

adequate private and public capital. Opportunities to improve this situation include:

●

●

●

●

resolution of land tenure issues,

public and private investments in research

and development to make sustainable secondary forest management more profitable,

increased technology transfer of profitable

resource-sustaining forest management

methods, and

implementation of resource use regulations, tax laws, or subsidies to make investments in secondary forest management more profitable.

SimpIy reducing logging damage by using appropriate or improved harvesting equipment

can increase the number of trees available for

a future crop as well as increase natural regeneration and facilitate enrichment planting. But

to ensure that this occurs, regulations to control logging practices must be enforced.

Reforostation of Dograded Lands

Technologies are available to reforest certain

degraded lands. But tree planting sometimes

does not compete well, in economic terms,

with other land uses. The solutions to this dilemma include reducing reforestation costs, reducing plantation failure rates by enlisting support of local people, increasing plantation

yields, and developing methods to quantify the

indirect benefits of reforestation.

Reforestation costs can be reduced if land

preparation is used to reduce weed invasion

and ensure a favorable environment for seedling growth. Plantation yields can be increased

by selecting high-yielding, fast-growing, soilenriching, and stress-tolerant tree species.

Developing and implementing tree breeding

and improvement programs can produce varieties with high yields and other desired characteristics. Careful provenance testing—matching the appropriate variety to a particular

site—should improve species performance and

reduce mortality.
18 • Technoogies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

To achieve successful reforestation, several

constraints must be overcome:

● shortage of planting stock and lack of quality control in seed and clone production,

. inadequate knowledge of tropical site conditions, and

. lack of information dissemination.

The coordination of collection, certification,

and international distribution of high-quality

seeds in commercial quantities needs to be improved. Information on proven silvicultural

techniques must be disseminated to the local

people.

These technical problems can be solved

given adequate funding and time. A more subtle problem is to get local people to maintain

tree plantations. First of all, they must clearly

understand the reasons for planting trees. The

trees should produce products local people

want, and the people must be convinced that

substantial benefits from the trees will accrue

directly to them. Often this means using species selected by local people rather than species

selected by foresters.

Photo credit: J. Bauer

Mahogany seed. Shortage of planting stock and lack of

quality control in seed production are constraints to

reforestation. Systematic collection, certification, and

distribution of seeds in commercial quantity

could facilitate tree planting

Forestry Technologies to Support

Troical Agriculture

Medium- and long-term maintenance of tropical forest resources may depend more on sustaining the land already under cultivation than

on refining use of the remaining forest. Introducing woody perennials into farming and pastoral land (agroforestry) and improving farming techniques for upland watershed areas

could help sustain the productivity of lands

under cultivation and so reduce the need to

clear additional forest lands.

Agroforestry

Agroforestry encompasses many well-known

and long-practiced land-use methods. The aim

is to create productive farming systems able to

supply a higher and more sustainable output

of basic needs and saleable products than occurs without trees. Agroforestry is most important on lands with serious soil fertility problems and lands where inadequate rural infrastructure makes it vital for people to produce

most of their own basic needs for fertilizers,

food, fodder, fuel, and shelter.

Agroforestry is a newly recognized field and

could benefit from a critical examination of

practices and quantification of information.

Since agroforestry cuts across several disciplines, its research and development requires

an interdisciplinary approach. Because of fragmented institutional jurisdiction, however,

agroforestry is not receiving adequate support

from either forestry or agricultural institutions.

Great technological potential for agroforestry

seems to lie in genetic improvement (systematic breeding and selection) of multipurpose tree

and shrub species. Selection of appropriate

provenances, subspecies, and varieties can

greatly enhance the success of agricultural

systems designed for particular land requirements.

The potential for farmers and pastoralists actually to adopt agroforestry system improvements is more difficult to assess. Peasant farmers can ill afford the risks of innovation. Large-
scale adoption of new agroforestry systems

would require creating incentives for people

to implement new practices in spite of the initial risks and delayed returns.

Watershed Manegement

The greatest problems in tropical watersheds

occur where subsistence farmers and their livestock move onto steep uplands. Excluding

farmers and livestock from such areas can allow vegetation time to recover, but enforcing

such policies is difficult. Mechanical structures

and replanting methods can restore water flow

stability from some deforested slopes. Further,

conservation practices exist that allow farming and grazing on many moderate watershed

slopes. However, the watershed management

techniques are unlikely to become widespread

until farmers and herders in upland areas have

incentives to stop destructive land-use practices. To provide upland farmers with nondestructive land-use alternatives necessitates:

●

●

●

developing methods of land use that are

more profitable to the local community

and at the same time improve control of

water flows;

developing improved techniques to measure and predict tradeoffs of different management actions; and

testing new technologies and getting the

useful ones adopted by the local community. Subsidies from downstream beneficiaries of the watershed protection may be

necessary. Sociological studies could help

define the type of incentives needed to obtain farmers’ cooperation.
20 Ž Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Rosource Development Planning

Most conversions of tropical forests to other

land uses take place without adequate consideration of whether the natural and human resources available can sustain the new land use.

Sometimes, destructive forest conversions are

an unplanned result of some other, narrowly

planned development. For instance, poorly

sited logging roads can open highly erodible

forest land to unplanned clearing for slash-andburn agriculture.

This problem can be ameliorated through the

use of resource development planning techniques that match land development activities

to the natural and human capabilities of specific sites. These techniques can identify which

sites can sustain crop production, grazing, reservoirs, new settlements, intensive forestry or

agroforestry, and which will be most productive if retained as natural forest.

Ideally, resource development planning includes four components: biophysical assessment, financial (investor’s viewpoint) and economic (society’s viewpoint) assessment, social

assessment, and project monitoring and evaluation. Biophysical assessment is used more

often than the others, although it still is underused. Furthermore, the techniques commonly

are used to find the best site for a particular

development purpose rather than to develop

a comprehensive strategy for all sites in a

region.

Use of each of the four planning components

is constrained by a lack of information on

cause-and-effect relationships. Economic assessment encounters difficulty measuring nonmarket values. Further, the analyses may consider the forest values only of a small site,

disregarding the interrelationships between

that site and the surrounding area. For example, loss of the genetic resources in a small

patch of a large forest may seem unimportant

because nearby forested areas contain the same

biological diversity. Consequently, individual

economic analyses may justify clearing the forested region piece by piece without accounting

for the overall genetic loss incurred.

Finally, even well-planned development may

prove unsustainable if planning stops after implementation begins. Most planning is done before projects begin when least is known about

biophysical and human resources at the site.

Continuous planning, monitoring, and evaluation are necessary during and after the project.

The major development assistance organizations have begun to institute such procedures

but have not yet determined how to use the results.

Opportunities to enhance the use of resource

development planning include improving data

availability, more demonstration of the techniques’ potentials, better communication of

planning successes, increasing the number of

trained planners, improving techniques for

economic and social analysis, and assuring that

projects remain open to redirection after implementation begins.

Education, Research, and

Technology Transfer

Forest resource development is constrained

in most tropical nations by a shortage of professional and technical personnel who know

about appropriate technologies and who also

understand the institutional, economic, and

cultural aspects of forest resource systems. In

the near term, expatriates, including U.S. professionals, can provide some expertise. But this

is not likely to be sufficient because the scope

of tropical forest resource problems is so large

and the number of expatriate experts is few.

Further, expatriates lack the political and cultural ties necessary to influence policy. Sustaining tropical forest resources requires development of indigenous expertise in all aspects of

resource development. Education, research,

and technology transfer are the means to develop expertise both in the United States and

in tropical nations.

U.S. universities can act to sustain tropical

forests in two ways: educating professionals

who will work in tropical forestry related fields
Ch.1—Summary ● 21

and strengthening tropical nations’ universities. However, tropical forestry is peripheral to

the interests of most U.S. forestry schools and

the experts are scattered widely among institutions. Consequently, efficient mechanisms

must be developed to bring together multidisciplinary teams of researchers and educators

and connect them with students, foreign universities, and others seeking to develop tropical

forest expertise.

Twinning, which creates associations between tropical nation institutions and individual developed nation institutions, has worked

with a few university forestry schools. Consortia of U.S. universities can provide tropical institutions access to a wider range of expertise

and experience than twinning arrangements.

However, this approach still does not resolve

several of the fundamental deficiencies that reduce the effectiveness of U.S. institutions. U.S.

forestry schools lack a tropical setting for

teaching and research. Further, their curricula

do not prepare students to solve the social and

institutional problems that confront tropical

forest resource development.

The development of one or more U.S. centers of excellence in tropical forestry might

resolve these deficiencies. For example, a

center of excellence in Puerto Rico could focus

on Latin American forest development needs,

providing the necessary tropical setting as well

as benefiting the U.S. tropical forests.

A major objective of U.S. efforts to enhance

tropical forest education could be to strengthen

schools in the Tropics. Some 138 universities

and 220 technical schools in tropical nations

provide forestry education and training. Nearly all these schools are new. Most are small and

produce few graduates each year. Thus, substantial support is needed to provide in-service

faculty training, to produce locally relevant

course materials, and to modernize basic education facilities such as herbarium, library collections, and computers.

Resource development professionals, the scientists who develop technologies, and the technicians who implement them are ineffective

without strong support from the many people

who make decisions about the use of natural

resources. Environmental education aims to

change people’s attitudes and behavior by providing them with the motivation and the knowledge necessary to make decisions and take actions that will sustain natural resource productivity.

Environmental education efforts can be directed at the general public using mass media

or programs in primary and secondary schools.

Or the efforts can be directed more narrowly

at higher level decision makers, Unfortunately, the behavioral science basis for environmental education is not well established, so the

techniques must be developed by unscientific

trial and error. This development could be accelerated if significant investments were made

to evaluate, document, and communicate the

environmental education efforts that are under

way. Having neither a strong scientific foundation nor substantial documentation of the

causes of program success and failure, environmental education projects have a difficult

time competing with other projects for funds

and personnel.

Technologies intended to develop renewable

resources are likely to fail if they are based on

inadequate knowledge. Thus, both fundamental and applied research are necessary components of any strategy to sustain tropical forest

resources. Fundamental research is the foundation for applied research, while applied research is needed to improve existing forestry

technologies and develop new ones.

Many experts conclude that sustaining tropical forests is not so much a technical problem

as it is an institutional problem. Thus, research

is especially needed to determine the interactions between the social and biophysical factors of tropical forest systems. Some knowledge

about social and institutional factors is being

used in resource development projects supported by U.S. agencies. However, this knowl-
22 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

edge usually is based on personal experience,

not on careful research. A substantial increase

in truly interdisciplinary research could enhance the likelihood that institutional changes

would result in sustainable forest resource

development.

The techniques used to manage tropical forest resources are generally based on trial-anderror experience gained in past centuries. They

have benefited little from the rapid advances

in fundamental and applied biology that have

occurred recently. For most tropical forest

types, techniques have not been developed

that can:

●

●

●

produce the products, environmental services, and employment opportunities that

local people need, and

sustain the productivity of the resource

base, and

be profitable enough to motivate people to

risk their scarce capital, labor, and land.

Applied research to improve existing technologies probably will not suffice to meet these

goals. Innovations based on new fundamental

research will also be necessary.

Low levels and short periods of funding are

major constraints on fundamental research in

tropical areas, but these are not the only reasons why basic knowledge is inadequate to sustain tropical forests. Most fundamental research in tropical biology has been designed

to develop evolutionary theory, and relatively

little work has been done or is being done on

ecological theory.

Another problem is poor communication

among researchers and between researchers

and technology users. Most forestry and biology research organizations reward scientists,

including those working on applied research,

for publishing in journals that technology users

seldom read. In fact, few journals exist that are

designed to communicate research results to

resource developers. The U.S. Forest Service

periodical The Caribbean Forester once served

this purpose but has been discontinued. As a

result of poor communication, the pace of innovation is slower than it needs to be, techniques are reinvented, some mistakes are continually repeated, and potentially successful

technologies spread slowly, if at all.

Technology Transfer

The experience of U.S. forestry organizations

shows that many potentially profitable techniques languish for lack of effective technology

transfer among scientists, between scientists

and technology users, and among technology

users. Thus, it is appropriate that international

development assistance organizations focus

their efforts not on promoting particular technologies but rather on building local institutions’ capacities to choose, receive, adapt, and

deliver technologies appropriate to local circumstances.

An important constraint on development assistance effectiveness in forestry is the lack of

coordination among many bilateral and multilateral projects. Coordination of resource development projects so that each project contributes the appropriate actions at the appropriate

time to accomplish long-range plans should be

the responsibility of tropical governments. But

donor agencies usually fund the projects they

identify rather than projects identified in some

longer term planning process. One approach

to improve planning and coordination of technology transfer is the use of ad hoc international committees that are separate from the

policies and problems of individual government agencies or development assistance organizations. Committees such as the newly instituted Coordination for Development in Africa could assist tropical governments in developing long-range plans and in identifying

and recommending projects for the various international organizations.

The OTA assessment identified a number of

necessary conditions for successful technology

transfer. * For most technologies, the lack of

these conditions seems to be constraining

wider adaptation and adoption:

● Technology is transferred most effectively by direct people-to-people actions. People who are to adapt and apply the tech-

*These conditions were a result of discussions among OTA

staff; Roger Moeller, AID; and Gary Eilerts, Appropriate

Technology International,
Ch.1—Summary ● 2 3

nology need to learn it directly from people who have experience applying it.

The technology needs to be adapted at the

users’ end to local biophysical and socioeconomic conditions.

Well-qualified people with knowledge

about the technology are needed on the

source end of the transfer, and receptive,

capable people are needed on the receiving end. These people may be local transfer agents or they may be the end users.

Another type of actor, the “facilitator,” is

also necessary. Facilitators understand the

technology transfer process, including the

market for the technology and its products

and the political, social, and economic

constraints and opportunities that affect

all the other actors.

Users and transfer agents should be involved in choosing the technologies and

in planning and implementing the transfer

process so that the technology and the

transfer meet actual needs and are appropriate for the local situation.

All parties involved—source, transfer

agents, facilitators, and end users—must

feel that they are winners and must, in

fact, be winners. Each actor’s self interests

should be identified at the start of the technology transfer process so that they can

be addressed.

Each participant must be aware of subsequent steps in the transfer process so his

or her actions are appropriate to the later

steps. This requires early definition of

roles for each person involved.

The environment for technology demonstrations should be similar to the environment that will exist during subsequent

steps of the transfer process. Pilot transfer

projects should not be unrealistically easy.

The initial commitment of resources to the

process should be sufficient to carry the

technology transfer until it is self-supporting.

The transfer process must include mechanisms through which all participants can

contribute effectively to interim evaluations and improvements.

ISSUES AND OPTIONS FOR CONGRESS

Tropical forest resources represent a great

opportunity for sustained development because

they are fundamentally renewable. However,

too little such development is occurring. Instead, the productivity of the forests continues

to be diminished. The U.S. Congress has already helped to sustain tropical forests by

directing AID and the U.S. representatives to

international organizations to give forest resource development higher priority in development assistance programs. To expand this

progress, Congress could take actions that

would enhance tropical governments’ abilities

to plan and coordinate resource development

projects.

The underlying causes of forest resource deterioration are institutional, social, and economic. Consequently, the reforms needed to

support sustainable resource development can

only come from the governments and people

of the tropical nations. However, the United

States can help stimulate such reforms. Some

U.S. technologies, such as Landsat imagery, already supply vital information to improve resource development decisions. U.S. diplomacy—for example, supporting the United Nations Environment Program and UNESCO’s

MAB program—also can help to foster understanding of resource problems and coordinate

international efforts to resolve them.

Congress can address technical constraints

more directly. U.S. and international organizations that Congress can influence have the capability to: 1) develop technologies to produce

goods and services for local people while conserving forest productivity, and 2) assist tropical organizations and individuals in developing, adapting, and implementing such technologies. U.S. agencies that are applying this type
24 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

of expertise include AID, the Forest Service,

the National Academy of Sciences, the National Park Service, the Fish and Wildlife Service,

and the Soil Conservation Service. Some commercial firms, private voluntary organizations,

and U.S. universities also have expertise relevant to sustaining tropical forest resources.

Congress has ways to influence multilateral

banks and U.N. agencies, some obvious (e.g.,

through allocation of funds) and some subtle

(e.g., using the prestige of Congress to give

credibility to a new idea). The final chapter describes opportunities for congressional action

to:

●

●

●

●

●

expand and coordinate development

assistance,

encourage resource development planning,

improve tropical forest research and development efforts,

protect biological diversity, and

expand U.S. expertise in tropical forest resources.

The U.S. tropical forests are discussed separately in this summary.

Expand and Coordinate

Development Assistance

Issue (Prjects)

Development assistance progress is slow

and the gains are insufficient to sustain tropical forest resources. Many opportunities exist to enhance gains already made, but congressional vigilance is necessary to ensure

that forestry projects receive an appropriate

share of U.S. development assistance funds

and that other types of projects complement

the forestry efforts.

The Foreign Assistance Act directs development assistance organizations in which the

United States participates to give higher priority to protecting against the loss and degradation of tropical forests. Accordingly, AID, the

World Bank, the U.N. Food and Agriculture

Organization (FAO), and some other multilateral organizations have increased funding in

recent years for forest related projects. However, many opportunities for use of development assistance to sustain tropical forest resources are not being pursued adequately. Examples of such opportunities are:

●

●

●

●

emphasize agroforestry, innovative crops,

and other techniques to sustain permanent

agriculture on relatively poor soils;

promote reforestation and management of

natural forests to sustain environmental

services and produce fuelwood, construction wood, polewood, and nonwood products;

stress institution-building to enable tropical governments to exercise improved control over timber concession operators; and

support livestock projects that do not result in deforestation or forest degradation.

Option

To encourage expanded support for forestry

projects, committees of Congress could continue oversight hearings requesting AID officials

and U.S. representatives to multilateral development assistance organizations to testify on

the extent to which assistance practices accomplish the objectives set forth in section 118 of

the Foreign Assistance Act.

Issue (Coordination)

Development assistance agencies generally do not coordinate their projects effectively at the country or regional level. To improve

their effectiveness, projects could be organized as steps in comprehensive strategies de

signed to develop sustainable forest resource

use systems. Individual development assistance agencies have neither developed nor coordinated such strategies.

The reasons why host governments and international assistance organizations do not

coordinate activities more effectively are complex. But coordination could play a key role in

improving the cost effectiveness of U.S. assistance. If the Congress decides that improving

cost effectiveness is worth relinquishing some

degree of U.S. control over what projects are

funded, it could mandate increased U.S. effort
Ch. l—Summary ● 2 5

to enhance the tropical nations’ abilities to

coordinate the work of development assistance

organizations.

Options

One way to begin such a fundamental shift

in the development assistance process would

be to direct the Department of State to assess

whether various tropical nations are able and

politically ready to develop long-term action

plans for sustained forest resource development. Another mechanism is to create ad hoc

committees of experts from donor nations and

tropical nations to work together to identify

problems and plan regional forest development

strategies.

Encourage Resource DeveIopment

Planning

ISSue

Although resource development planning

technologies can improve the sustainability

of tropical forest development, they are seldom applied to their full potential.

Resource development planning techniques

can be used to identify development activities

that match the available human and natural resources. The techniques can give decisionmakers a clearer picture of the social, economic,

and environmental implications of a particular

type of development on a particular site. Also,

they can be used to determine the best locations

for protection of natural areas to maintain biological diversity while providing tangible benefits. But the application of planning is hampered by shortages of information on how biophysical, social, and economic factors interact.

Options

To encourage the use of resource development planning, Congress could maintain the

availability of low-cost Landsat images to tropical governments. Congress also could direct

AID to expand its Environmental Profiles to

include macro-level land classification and collection of information for social and institutional analyses. Further, Congress could direct

U.S. representatives to multilateral development banks to promote environmental assessments at an early stage of project planning.

This request could be followed up with hearings to determine whether the banks are using

environmental assessment procedures effectively.

Improve Tropical Forest Research

and Market Development

Issue (Research)

Fundamental research, applied research,

and technology implementation related to

tropical forests are not well coordinated.

Moreover, interactions among factors that

constrain forest resource development are

poorly understood. Consequently, resource

development projects often fail and technologies that seem to succeed in trials fail to

spread beyond demonstration areas. Research on tropical forest resources needs to

be more interdisciplinary and more closely

related to technology implementation.

Much work remains to develop profitable

technologies that can supply local people’s

needs while simultaneously sustaining forest

productivity. New techniques need to be based

on improved understanding of the biological,

economic, and cultural factors affecting forest

resources. This calls for interdisciplinary research based on an adequate understanding of

the needs of technology implementors.

Options

Initially, Congress could conduct hearings to

determine whether the research organizations

that receive U.S. funds give adequate priority

to interdisciplinary tropical forestry that links

research and development. Special attention

should be paid to disseminating research results. Congress could increase support for

agencies where such research and development is stressed.

The other approaches would be for Congress

to appropriate funds specifically to support

UNESCO’s MAB program or to amend the Foreign Assistance Act to include funds for the

25-287 0 - 84 - 3
26 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

United Nations University. Both promote interdisciplinary research. Additionally, Congress could amend the existing legislation that

allocates funds for tropical agriculture to include tropical forestry and agroforestry explicitly. Congress also could determine the feasibility of establishing a forestry research program at existing Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) institutions. Congress could establish a trust fund for

the Forestry Department of FAO of the United

Nations specifically to support improved communication among researchers and technology

implementors.

Issue (Market Development)

In many areas sustaining tropical forest resources will depend on local markets for forest products. People seldom attempt to sustain the productivity of natural resources

used for subsistence products because these

appear to be “free.” Government agencies

typically are not aware of the natural forest’s

potential to support rural communities.

Tropical forest ecosystems house complex

associations of vegetation, wildlife, and other

potential resources that could be developed.

Development of markets, along with research

on ways to manage the unused resources for

sustained yields, could help motivate local people and local resource agencies to manage the

forests effectively. It could be possible in some

places to maintain biological diversity and simultaneously support profitable rural development. However, such market development is

likely to reduce subsistence opportunities for

landless poor people.

Options

Congress could direct and fund the U.S. Forest Products Laboratory to develop new products and market information to use tropical

tree species and increase its efforts to transfer technologies. Similarly, AID could be directed to expand its support for synthesis and

dissemination of information on underused

tropical forest resources and to assist in developing markets for those products that can be

produced on a sustainable basis.

Project Biological Diversity

Issue

Benefits from preserving the biological diversity of tropical forests accrue to society as

a whole, including future generations in the

U.S. and elsewhere, yet the costs are borne

by the people of the tropical countries.

Developing new markets and ways of harvesting and using tropical forest species eventually may make it possible to manage natural

forests profitably and sustainably. But until the

markets and technologies are developed, it is

necessary to protect and maintain undisturbed

portions of these biologically diverse ecosystems for future generations.

Optons

Congress could take two approaches to help

maintain biological diversity. First, it could

conduct hearings on its recent amendment to

the Foreign Assistance Act which directs AID,

in concert with other appropriate agencies, to

develop a comprehensive U.S. strategy to maintain biological diversity.

Additionally, Congress could support the

creation of an international fund to subsidize

the establishment and maintenance of tropical

parks and protected areas. Money for such a

fund could be contributed by a variety of

sources, including transfers from existing

assistance agencies (e.g., AID, multilateral

development banks, and U.N. agencies), increased export taxes and import duties on tropical forest products, and donations from private foundations and multinational corporations.

Expand U.S. Expertise in Tropical

Forest Resources

Issue

U.S. tropical forest resource expertise is

widely scattered and is not being developed

or used effectively.

The United States has recognized expertise

(both individuals and organizations) in many

resource fields, including reforestation, water-
Ch. l—Summary ● 2 7

shed management, commercial forestry, resource inventory and mapping, resource development planning, and information collection,

processing, and dissemination. But only a few

of these experts or organizations have the experience or training to apply their skills directly

to the increasingly important field of tropical

forest resources.

options

Congress could modify the organic legislation of those U.S. agencies whose actions affect the tropical nations or the U.S. tropical territories to say that tropical forests are valuable

renewable resources and to direct each agency to conduct its activities without contributing

to the unplanned or unmanaged conversion or

degradation of tropical forests. Further, Congress could direct Federal agencies to encourage employees to participate in international

assistance efforts under existing laws or it

could amend legislation to encourage such interchange. Congress could encourage participation of the U.S. private sector to develop and

implement technologies to sustain tropical forest resources. Congress could contribute to the

United Nations Associate Experts Program

whereby young U.S. professionals can gain

field experience in tropical forestry. Congress

also could designate U.S. centers of excellence

in tropical forest resources to develop and

make available U.S. expertise in tropical resource issues.

Introduction

Less than 1 percent of the world’s tropical

forests fall under U.S. jurisdiction. These forests are located primarily in Puerto Rico, the

U.S. Virgin Islands, Hawaii, and the U.S. western Pacific territories of American Samoa and

Micronesia (which includes Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands,

and the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands).

As Congress becomes more involved in efforts

to sustain tropical forest resources worldwide,

it has reason to pay particular attention to the

tropical forests in territories under its care.

Despite their small total land area, the U.S.

tropical forests are important resources to local

people and economies: they supply food, fodder, fuel, and employment; reduce erosion; and

protect ocean fisheries. Most wood products,

however, are imported to these areas. For example, Puerto Rico imported $400 million

worth of wood products in 1981. Perhaps the

most important value of forests on these tropical islands is regulation of water regimes. For

instance, because of deforestation the U.S. Virgin Islands no longer has permanent streams.

Most other islands also have experienced problems with water quality and quantity,

Only in Hawaii has forestry been made an

integral part of the region’s economic development. To protect watershed values, most forested land in Hawaii is classified under conservation zoning which restricts or prohibits

conversion to land uses other than forest. Nearly half of Hawaii’s designated “commercial forest land” is owned by the State. Since 1962, the

Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources has followed multiple-use programs for

managing water, timber, livestock forage, recreation, and wildlife habitat on these lands. In

addition, two of the three programs of the U.S.

Forest Service Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry are dedicated to research on Hawaiian

forests.

Even though forestry problems still exist in

the Hawaiian islands (e.g., the recent dieback

of native forests, endangered status of numerous native plants and animals) considerable effort has been made to mitigate these problems.

A number of organizations working to sustain

tropical forest resources are based in Hawaii,

including the Nitrogen-Fixing Tree Association, the Bioenergy Development Corp., the

East/West Center, and the College of Tropical

Agriculture and Human Resources at the University of Hawaii. These are among the sources
28 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

of expertise housed in Hawaii that can be applied to the U.S. tropical territories and to the

world’s tropical forest resources.

Forest resources in the U.S. Caribbean and

Pacific tropical territories are not receiving a

similar level of attention. The forests have suffered degradation in the pastas a result of poor

land-use practices. More recently, incentives

for local people to undertake and improve agricultural or forestry activities have been reduced by dependence on U.S. Federal income

supports and by economic development focusing on industrial growth. This has resulted in

a movement away from agriculture and corresponding increases in abandoned agricultural land and unmanaged secondary forests, In

many places, runoff and erosion resulting from

past forest loss threaten water supplies and

coastal marine resources. With forest resource

development technologies, much of the productivity of this degraded and abandoned land

could be restored to support economic growth.

Although current overexploitation of forest

resources is not a problem in most of the territories, the remaining forests are vulnerable

as populations and expectations rise. Future

problems could be averted, however, if sustainable forest use techniques could be integrated

into strategies for regional economic development.

The Caribbean Territories: Puerto Rico

and the U.S. Virgin Islands

The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico is the

largest contiguous tropical area under U.S.

jurisdiction (see fig. 7). At least one-third of its

land area is under forest cover–mostly secondgrowth trees, fruit tree plantations, and shade

trees in coffee-growing regions. Because Puerto

Rico has a relatively large forest area, a relatively well-developed road system, and secure land

tenure, it has significant potential for commercial forestry to supply its domestic economy.

About 200,000 acres in Puerto Rico have been

identified as suitable for commercial forestry.

However, large-scale forestry is hindered by

high land prices and a law limiting the acreage

that can be owned by an individual or corporation.

Opportunities exist to develop small-scale

forest industries to serve domestic markets

using technologies that require comparatively low capital outlay, such as the portable

sawmills now used in Puerto Rican Commonwealth forests. The sawmills are one component of a Puerto Rico Department of Natural

Resources program to bring private landholders into commercial forestry. This program

relies heavily on U.S. Federal cost-sharing programs and on funding from the U.S. Forest

Service’s State and Private Forestry grants. increased support for these activities could encourage plantation forestry and increase Puerto Rican self-sufficiency in forest products.

The U.S. Virgin Islands have little remaining forest and no forest industry but are used

extensively for tourism. Lack of forest management and a growing population in the U.S. Virgin Islands have disturbed local water regimes. “

Thus, water must be shipped from Puerto Rico

or desalinized from sea water at great expense.

Reforestation and management of island watersheds could reduce runoff rates, decrease erosion, and enhance aquifer recharge.

The main constraints to sustaining tropical

forest resources in the U.S. Caribbean are lack

of support for existing forest resource development institutions and lack of a skilled cadre of

local resource managers. The U.S. Forest Service maintains a forestry research station, the

Institute of Tropical Forestry (ITF). It also

manages the Caribbean National Forest and

supports a State and Private Forestry cooperative program with the Puerto Rico Department of Natural Resources and the Virgin

Islands Department of Agriculture. At a time

when U.S. Forest Service research needs to be

expanded to include agroforestry, watershed

protection, and other areas of importance to

landholders and the public, its research funds

and staff size have been reduced.

In the short term, people with general tropical forestry expertise can be attracted to work

in the U.S. Caribbean, but in the long term an
Ch. l—Summary ● 2 9

Figure 7.—Location of Puerto Rico and the U.S Virgin Islands

 Hait i

Puerto

Rico

\

U.S. Virgin

Islands

/

● ✎

Dominican ●

Republic

●

Panama

SOURCE: Off Ice of Technology Assessment.

established method to train people to manage ies with the nature of each island. Few truly

tropical natural resources specific to that region is needed. Increased environmental education, scholarships, and creation of a natural

resource management curriculum at the University of Puerto Rico could help train the necessary resource managers. In the meantime,

adequate Federal support of Puerto Rico and

U.S. Virgin Islands forestry programs through

the State Forestry Grants of the State and Private Forestry Division of the U.S. Forest Service are needed to stimulate development, demonstration, and coordination of desirable forestry practices.

The Western Pacific: Micronesia

and American Samoa

U.S. tropical forests exist on some 2,000

islands spread over 3 million square miles in

the western Pacific (see fig. 8). Forest cover varundisturbed forests exist, but considerable

areas of secondary forest have regenerated. Little of this is managed to provide forest products. Fuelwood and some nonwood forest

products are harvested for local use, but most

wood products are imported.

As in the U.S. Caribbean, the major value of

forest resources in the U.S. western Pacific is

not timber but regulation of water regimes and

protection of biologically rich coastal ecosystems. Island people in this region depend heavily for both subsistence and trade on marine

organisms that feed and spawn in mangrove

habitats, lagoons, and coral reefs. Unplanned

exploitation of upland forests can substantially reduce the productivity of these coastal

areas. This already is occurring on some islands.

Transportation costs, limited land areas, and

insecure or communal land tenure limit the re-
30 • Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Figure 8.— Location of the U.S. Western Pacific Territories

he

Equator

American

 Samo a

gion’s industrial forestry opportunities. How- ple, improved small-scale charcoal production,

ever, small-scale management, harvesting, and if developed and promoted wisely, could inprocessing technologies could be applied to the crease the importance of wood as a sustainable

secondary forests and abandoned coconut energy source in the U.S. Pacific. Production

plantations to increase their provision of food, from existing agroforestry lands could be enfuel, employment, and other goods. For exam- hanced with new techniques. Coconut shell
Ch. l—Summary ● 3 1

Photo credit: C. Whitese//

Opportunities exist for small-scale forestry operations

oriented toward domestic markets. This small sawmill

operates on Ponape, Federated State of Micronesia

charcoal can be used as a filter in various industrial and pharmaceutical uses and could be

exported from these islands.

Any forest development in the U.S. western

Pacific territories, however, will require careful

planning and management to avoid further

degradation of the resources and to ensure the

sustainable production of both goods and services provided by the forests. This requires upto-date and comprehensive data bases on tropical forest resources, their uses, and the potentials for their development. U.S. Federal agencies can play a major role in creating these data

bases.

Integrating forestry into development planning in the U.S. western Pacific will require

personnel with substantial knowledge in tropical resource management and strong local institutions through which they can work. Yet,

no natural resource management education

programs exist in the U.S. western Pacific territories, and few of the students who receive

training at U.S. or other institutions return to

work in their own regions, Actions to help supply needed expertise include creating a natural

resource management curriculum at the University of Guam and increasing scholarships

for potential resource managers.

Additional extension services also could be

useful. Developing a group of local, grass roots

naturalists with generalized training to assist

scientists, spread information on appropriate

land uses, and help integrate new technologies

with local customs could be a joint undertaking of U.S. and local western Pacific organizations.

Issues and Options for Congress

The primary requirement for sustaining tropical forest resources in the U.S. tropical territories is the development of indigenous organizations capable of managing the islands’ resources. Because the territories’ governments

still depend on U.S. support and their natural

resource agencies are generally new, small,

and undersupported, the U.S. retains a substantial role in both the development of the

resource organizations and in the development

and implementation of forest-sustaining technologies.

Option

Congress could direct the U.S. Forest Service to 1) expand the scope of research and

technology development in its research institutions with jurisdiction in the U.S. tropical

territories and 2) increase cooperative efforts

with local governments.

Development of forestry management plans,

in the short run, will require technical assistance provided by U.S. expertise. Similarly,

adaptation of technologies to conditions in the

U.S. tropical territories requires Federal assistance. In the long run Federal aid could be replaced when more people are trained in natural resource management at local institutions.

Development of programs to encourage private

forestry appropriate for each island probably

also will require Federal assistance. The Federal organizations responsible for assisting

forestry development in the U.S. tropical territories are too small and their focus is too limited to give the impetus needed for local development. More research, more forestry technology transfer, and greater response to the

changing needs of the territories are required.
32 . Technolog/is to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Optiona

Congress could support natural resource

agencies in U.S. territories by increasing

funding for the cooperative State and Private

Forestry programs of the U.S. Forest Service

institutes in Puerto Rico and Hawaii. Congress could also create a program of grants

to territorial governments to encourage investment in privately owned forests.

to forest owners. Replacing these subsidies

with a program of grants administered by the

territorial governments would provide the flexibility needed to respond to each island territory’s unique cultural, economic, and ecological characteristics. Furthermore, it would encourage the development of a constituency

concerned with sustaining the forest resources.

The Federal Government subsidizes private

forestry with cost-sharing and direct payments

Chapter 2

Importance of Tropical Forests
Page

Highlights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Social and Economic Context . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Water and Climate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Hydrology in Tropical Regions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Local Climate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Tropical Agriculture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Basic Human Needs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Wood for Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Other Basic Human Needs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Employment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Commercial Forest Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Wood. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Products for Medicine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Other Forest Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

Endangered Species . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

Migratory Animals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

Climate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

Political Implications. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Importance to Future Generations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Chapter p references. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Table

Table No. Page

2. Estimated Annual Person-day Requirements for Various Forestry Operations . . 47

List of Figures

Figure No. Page

9. Tropical Forests and Woodlands Are Located at Latitudes South of 23.5° N

and North of 23.5° S, and at Other Frost-Free Localities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

10. Age-Sex Composition of More Developed

and Less Developed Regions, 1980 and 2000. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

11. The Role of Forests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Importance of Tropical

Chapter 2

Forests

The potentially renewable productivity of

tropical forests will become increasingly important over the next 30 years as the tropical .

nations’ population grows from 2 billion to

4 billion people.

Tropical forests support economic develop- .

ment. They sustain production on land that

rapidly loses productivity if they are removed and they can restore the productivity

of degraded land.

●

Economic development in tropical nations

is important to the people of the United

States for humanitarian reasons and because

of our economic ties with these nations.

Industrial wood and other forest products

earn substantial foreign exchange for tropical nations that trade with the United States.

Tropical forest resources provide food, fuel,

medicines, and other basic human needs for

millions of people who live in and near them.

Where fuel wood is not available, agricultural lands are damaged as people have to burn

crop residues and manure that would otherwise be used as fertilizer.

The highly diverse tropical forests contain

plants and animals that have great potential

value for medicine, agriculture, and other

industries. These will be more valuable as

industries come to rely more on biotechnology.

SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC CONTEXT

Tropical nations face a dilemma. Forests

must be cut and cleared to increase production

in the near term, but the loss of forests can

reduce productivity in the long term.

About 76 nations, containing about half the

world’s population (2 billion), are located entirely or largely within the tropical latitudes

(fig. 9). These nations are characterized by fastgrowing populations, low per capita incomes,

and agrarian economies. Some of their agriculture is subsistence farming in upland areas

where soils have low fertility or are dry. Some

is commercial agriculture on the more fertile

and generally irrigated alluvial plains of major

river valleys. The success of both types of agriculture is linked to the status of 1.2 billion hectares (ha) of moist tropical forest and 800 million ha* of drier open woodlands.

● This report refers to land area in hectares (ha), One hectare

equals 2.47 acres. One square kilometer equals 100 ha. One

square mile equals 259 ha. Thus 1.2 billion ha of moist tropical

forest is 3 billion acres or 4.6 million square miles.

Because the population structure in tropical

countries is dominated by young people, food

and other needs are growing faster than population (fig. 10). For example, food production

in developing nations needs to increase by

about 4 percent per year, while population is

growing at about 2 percent. The age structure

also means that population growth has a builtin momentum that will prevent the numbers

from stabilizing until well into the next century, if then (80).

Part of the needed gains in agricultural production can come from improved irrigation,

crop breeding, and technical inputs that enhance agricultural yields. But average yields

probably cannot increase every year by 4 percent. Two percent gains may be possible, but

to sustain even that rate over several decades

will be very difficult. Consequently, the amount

of land farmed and grazed will have to be

expanded and people will continue to clear forests to produce food and other goods.

37
38 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources
Ch. 2—Importance of Tropical Forests . 39

I I I 1 I I I I

I

o

o

0
40 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Population growth rates and the number of

young people in tropical populations also result

in a rapidly growing labor force. But in most

tropical nations, it does not seem likely that

industry and commercial agriculture will be

able to sustain growth of over 2 percent per

year in job opportunities. Thus, substantial

numbers of people will turn to the forests—

either clearing them for conventional farming

and grazing, or managing them for forestry and

agroforestry production.

The need for food and jobs is direct and compelling, while the environmental services provided by tropical forest resources affect tropical people indirectly and forest loss becomes

apparent slowly. In the long term, tropical people need the watershed protection, preservation of habitat and genetic diversity provided

by the forests (fig. 11).

One approach to accommodate the conflicting needs of tropical people is to accelerate economic development of resources outside the

forest to provide food, goods, jobs, and foreign

exchange. This would reduce the need to exploit and clear tropical forests. While this may

have the greatest effect in the long run, these

types of technologies (e.g., improving tropical

agriculture) are outside the scope of this

assessment.

A second approach is to direct the use of forest resources so that both sets of needs—provision of food, jobs, and national income and

maintenance of the forests’ environmental

services—are fulfilled.

WATER AND CLIMATE

Hydrology in Tropical Regions

Most rainfall in the Tropics occurs where the

northeast and southwest trade winds converge.

This Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone is intrinsically unstable, oscillating to the north and

south of the Equator, causing an erratic rainfall pattern with sharp seasonal contrasts (49).

When tropical rains do fall, storms are more

violent than those in temperate areas. More

water falls per storm, quickly saturating the

soil. Consequently, a larger proportion of the

rainfall runs off the soil surface. Furthermore,

in tropical storms raindrops are larger, thus

having great kinetic energy and high erosive

power (1,59). For example, in areas of the

Amazon Basin where annual rainfall averages

2,100 millimeters per year and land slope is

about 15 percent, erosion removes only about

360 kilograms of soil per hectare per year from

forested land. But after the forest is cleared,

erosion increases 100 times (43).

Tropical forests protect soil and modulate

water flows in several ways. The canopy of

leaves intercepts rainfall and provides temporary water storage. In addition, organic litter on

the soil surface and the porous topsoil store

water. The organic litter in closed tropical forests is typically 10 to 30 centimeters thick and

the topsoil has a high organic material content

(49,61). These mechanisms minimize the impacts of intense rainstorms, reduce peak stormflows, and help mitigate flooding.

The effects of forest cover on streamflow

have been measured in tropical regions. In a

moist montane forest in Kenya, for example,

water measurements were taken on two adjacent 600 ha valleys for over 25 years. When one

valley was cleared for a tea plantation—leaving

the steeper slopes and riverbanks under forest

—the immediate effect was a fourfold increase

in peak stormflow. Even after installing conservation practices (e.g., contour planting, cutoff drains, cover crops), stormflows remained

double that measured in the undisturbed forest,

although the total flows were small (49). Similarly, an experiment was conducted in India

on a forest which had been reduced to wasteland by fuelwood cutting and overgrazing.

When the severely eroded Siwalik hills of
Ch. 2—importance of Tropical Forests • 41

Figure Il.—The Role of Forests

1.. Ecological effects

SOURCE: World Bank, Forestry Sector Policy Paper (Washington, D. C.: World Bank, 1978).

25-287 0 - 84 - 4
42 • Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Chandigah were reforested, the peak rate of

flow from the watershed was reduced 73 percent and total flow was reduced 28 percent (73).

In dry environments where tree canopies are

open, forests are less effective in protecting the

soil and modulating water flows, but their influence is still beneficial. Open forests provide

shade and act as windbreaks. They reduce soil

surface temperatures and wind erosion and stabilize streambanks. They can anchor shifting

sand dunes that can otherwise destroy croplands and irrigation systems, In coastal plains,

trees can prevent the rise of saline ground water. Trees in arid areas, however, may through

evapotranspiration leave less water available

for human uses (49).

Local Climate

Tropical forests also can affect local climate.

In moist forests with closed canopies, transpiration of water extracted from the soil and

the direct evaporation of intercepted rainfall

cool the surrounding air. The resulting cooling effect is pronounced, increasing the occurrence and persistence of mists. Thus, the heat

flux from a closed tropical forest in the dry season is only half that from similar land covered

with subsistence crops or rough pasture (49).

Crops cultivated in and near the forest are likely to enjoy greater soil moisture content than

those on cleared land, provided that they are

planted beyond the root-spread of the trees.

Similarly, windbreaks and shade trees can improve microclimates for crops in dry areas.

Some mountain forests in low rainfall areas

collect useful amounts of water by condensation

from mists and release the water as “drip-fall,”

sometimes giving rise to perennial streams (49).

However, the belief that forests actually cause

rain is questionable. (One recent study in the

Amazon reports that a significant part of the

rain falling there is water evaporated from the

forest, but the results have not been verified

by other studies.) The dessication that is so frequently a consequence of large-scale forest destruction is due to the hydrological damage

caused by loss of infiltration and underground

storage. In general, forests thus have a critically

important influence on the reception of rainfall, but not on its generation (49).

TROPICAL AGRICULTURE

The populations of tropical nations generally

are concentrated on the coastal plains and in

the valleys of the great rivers. Most forests in

these areas already have been cleared for croplands. Much of this land is irrigated by old

systems that control the drainage of seasonal

floodwaters. Land that is irrigated with newer

systems uses large dams to store excess floodwater and can produce more than one crop per

year,

The most productive tropical agriculture is

based on annual flooding, but it fails when the

floods are severe. New high-yielding crop varieties of the Green Revolution are shortstemmed and so require precise control of

water levels. Excessive flooding also can result

in shortages of reservoir water for irrigation

in the following dry season. Further, the accelerated siltation that accompanies abnormal

floods can fill reservoirs, canals, and stream

channels, reducing the precision of water control in subsequent years. Thus, the Green Revolution not only increased production from the

best tropical croplands but also increased susceptibility to damage by floods and siltation.

This makes watershed protection provided by

tropical forests even more important.

Unfortunately, recent decades have been a

time of rapid deforestation in many tropical nations. Consequently, river flows have become

more erratic, flood damage to crops and structures has been severe, and siltation of waterways and reservoirs has increased (49).

The modulating effect of forests on streamflow and the consequences for agriculture are
most evident when the protective forests have

been destroyed. In Pakistan, for example, some

70 million people depend on 14 million ha of

irrigated land in the Indus Basin for food. The

irrigation depends on river flow, but deforestation on the Indus’ headlands has resulted in increased peak flows during the monsoons, followed by water shortages during the dry season, With World Bank funding, two dams, the

Mangla and the Tarbella, were constructed for

hydropower, flood control, and irrigation.

Careful studies of sedimentation rates had

indicated that these dams would repay construction costs by providing benefits for many

decades. However, parts of both watersheds

have suffered uncontrolled deforestation and

these reservoirs are filling with sediment at

twice the expected rate (49]. Similarly, siltation

is expected to reduce the lifetime of the Hirakud reservoir in India from 110 years to 35

years (57).

In India, the area of agricultural land damaged each year by floods continues to increase

as deforestation occurs. The area of moist forest cleared each year is about 147,000 ha (29),

and the area flooded has risen 18 percent over

the past 10 years, from 22 million to 26 million

ha (72). Clearing of forests over the past 20

years in India has caused flood and erosion

damage estimated at U.S.$36 billion in 1982.

This estimate includes loss of topsoil, loss of
44 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

nutrients, loss of property to floods, and shortened reservoir lifetimes (57).

Flood control and irrigation also are important in Central America. By the year 2000,

Costa Rica and Panama plan to expand their

irrigated areas by 180 percent and 340 percent,

respectively (45). Yet, in these countries deforestation is rapid and uncontrolled. In many

Central American locations, water needs for

irrigation, consumption, industry, and navigation are reaching the limits of low-season flows.

Half of the region’s forests have been cleared in

the past 25 years and water flows are becoming

more erratic as deforestation continues (26,45,

77]. Similarly, in Africa along a broad belt bordering the equatorial humid tropical forest and

along the Gulf of Guinea, the forests are being

destroyed. Consequently, several nations in the

region are expected to suffer agricultural water

shortages before the end of the century (77).

In addition to watershed protection for the

current year’s crops, forests have longer term

values for agriculture. Farmers throughout the

world are using more high-yielding crop varieties. In fact, about half the increase in agricultural production in recent decades can be

attributed to plant breeding (81). The reliance

on high-yielding varieties has reduced the genetic diversity of agricultural systems and so

increased the risk of catastrophic damage from

diseases, pests, and other stresses. Yet, no great

increase in crop failures has occurred. This is

due to new methods of crop protection and the

ability of crop breeders to respond to threats

quickly by breeding new traits into the crops—

traits sometimes obtained from wild relatives

in the tropical forests. For example, a recent

improvement in resistance of peanuts to leafspot was derived from breeding crop varieties

with wild forms from the Amazon region. The

estimated benefit from this one improvement

is $500 million per year (47).

The peanut is just one of many crops with

ancestors in tropical forest areas (58). Other

cultivated tropical plants include plantains,

yams, tare, cassava, sugarcane, potatoes, and

cowpeas. Tree crops with tropical forest ancestors and relatives include oil palm, rubber,

coffee, cocoa, and many important fruits.

These tropical plants account for at least half

the calories consumed by people in the Tropics

(47), as well as many commodities important

to the U.S. economy. Future gains in productivity from breeding these important agricultural crops may depend on the genes in their

wild progenitors and, thus, on the continued

existence of tropical forests and associated natural areas.

For the people of the Tropics, damage from

increased flooding and siltation and the potential loss of crop breeding opportunities mean

poorer nutrition, slower economic progress,

and less prospect of achieving prosperous,

stable economies. For the United States, this

means the affected nations are less able to trade

internationally. The developing nations already

are a major market—and the fastest growing

market—for U.S. exports. Their purchases

from the United States in 1982 were valued at

$82.7 billion, over one-third of all U.S. exports

(82).

BASIC

Wood for Fuel

Wood is the most important source of

Brazil and Mexico, where oil and gas provide Fuelwood, however, is becoming harder and

a greater share of total fuel than wood). One harder to find. Some 100 million people already

and one-half billion people in developing coun- are experiencing acute fuelwood scarcity and

tries meet 90 percent of their energy needs with another billion are affected by lesser shortages
Ch. 2—lmpotance of Tropical Forests Ž 45

Photo credit: R?. C. Ghosh

Collecting firewood in the dry, open forests of Madhya

Pradesh, India is arduous labor for women. Because the

quantity collected is greater than the annual growth,

finding enough wood takes more and

more time each year

(30). In some countries, it can take up to 300

person-days of work to satisfy one household’s

annual fuelwood needs—forcing some dramatic changes in lifestyle. For example, many families in Upper Volta eat only one cooked meal

each day, and in Senegal, quick cooking cereal

(e.g., rice) has replaced more nutritious, but

slower cooking, foods (e.g., millets) (64). Fewer

families can avoid the “luxury” of boiling their

water (76) and some are forced to keep children

out of school to search for wood.

Fuelwood shortages are forcing increasing

numbers of people to burn animal dung and

agricultural wastes, with adverse impacts on

land productivity. It has been estimated that

if the cow dung burned for fuel in Asia, Africa,

and the Near East were used for fertilizer, grain

production could increase by 20 million tons

a year (4).

Other Basic Human Needs

The exact number of people living in and

near tropical forests, relying on the productivity of forests to supply their basic needs, is not

known. The U.N. estimates that about 28 million people practice shifting cultivation in the

closed tropical forests of Asia, 20 million in

Africa, and 40 million in Latin America—totaling some 88 million people (31). This means

some 3 to 4 percent of the total agricultural

population in Asia, about 10 percent in Africa,

and 35 percent in Latin America, work inside

the closed forests. These estimates include ethnic populations practicing shifting cultivation

as a traditional way of life. They do not include

nonagricultural people who are purely hunters

and gatherers, nor people who recently moved

into forests. This can be significant, since in

tropical Asia, at least, squatters probably outnumber shifting cultivators.

Many millions of additional people live in

drier, mixed tree and grassland environments

(open woodlands). These people are typically

livestock herders and dryland farmers; yet, they

too are directly dependent on the woodland environment. Their livestock feed on trees and

Photo credit: U.S. Agency for Intemational Development

As fuelwood becomes more scarce, the burning of animal

dung increases, depriving the land of nutrients
46 Ž Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

bushes, especially during dry seasons when

grasses provide poor fodder. People living in

open woodlands use wood for cooking, boiling

water, heating, drying crops, and as fuel for

small industries. Open woodland dwellers, like

the people of the closed forests, use trees and

wild plants for medicines, soaps, and many

other basic needs (86).

Food from the forests—both closed and

open—meets a significant part of the world’s

nutritional needs. Meat from wild animals,

fruits, nuts, honey, insects, fungi, and foliage

are all important forest food sources. At least

500 species of edible leaves are used in Africa

alone (42). “Bush meat,” including rodents and

reptiles as well as wild ungulates and other

mammals and birds, supply as much as 75 percent of the animal protein consumed in some

tropical regions (20).

Forest trees and vegetation are the main materials used in the Tropics to build homes and

buildings. In many rural societies, wood frequently is preferred even when other materials

are available (91). Local wood also serves as

poles, fences, stakes, furniture, tools, and utensils. Substitutes for these products are rarely

available in subsistence cultures. Various fibers

derived from forest vegetation are also important, especially for household use. Rattans, for

example, are climbing palms used for cane furniture, baskets, mats, and similar uses.

In the northwestern Amazon forest alone, at

least 1,300 plant species have been used by

native people as medicines and drugs (62). Traditional healers in Southeast Asia use some

6,500 plants as treatments for malaria, stomach

ulcers, syphilis, and other disorders, and also

as sedatives and emetics (50). A number of

these plants identified and tested by native people through generations of trial and error yield

exceptionally promising compounds when

screened in modern laboratories (21,24).

Forests also protect both inland and coastal

waters, providing another important benefit to

people. After deforestation, increased runoff

accelerates erosion and carries excessive

amounts of sediment to nearby lakes, reservoirs, and streams. For example, as early as

1904 erosion resulting from deforestation was

responsible for clogging the once-navigable Rio

das Velhas in Brazil to such an extent that even

canoes ran aground (87). Today, deforestation

is much more widespread in Brazil, and other

navigable rivers such as the Cuiaba and Sa ̃o

Francisco have large parts filled with silt from

eroded forest soils (3,8). Inland waterway transportation is further damaged by the seasonal

drying up of local streams that can be a consequence of deforestation (18,88).

Increased erosion caused by deforestation

has accelerated siltation of the Panama Canal’s

system of reservoirs at the same time that accelerated runoff has diminished water storage in

the Canal’s watershed. During a 1977 drought,

the canal was closed to large vessels because

of low water, a situation that experts believe

may occur with increasing frequency unless

watershed forest cover is restored (85).

Another impact of deforestation on tropical

waterways relates to the release of nutrients

from the forest biomass and soil. Organic matter production is sharply reduced under nonforest conditions. Further, the soluble nutrients

from the ash of burned forests and from rapidly

decomposing soil organic matter are easily

leached from soil by heavy rainfall. The resulting increased nutrient content of runoff can

accelerate the growth of noxious plants and

algae in nearby lakes, canals, and rivers. Aquatic weeds block canals and pumps in irrigation

projects. Also, they interfere with hydroelectric

production, waste water through evapotranspiration, hinder boat traffic, increase waterborne disease, interfere with fishing and fish

culture, and clog rivers and canals so that

drainage is severely retarded and floods result.

In India, for example, plants reduce water

flow in some large irrigation projects by as

much as four-fifths. Rafts of water hyacinth

weighing as much as 300 tons float over rice

paddies in Bangladesh during floods. When the

water recedes, the weeds settle and kill the germinating rice. Maintaining forested watersheds would reduce erosion and runoff, reduce

populations of aquatic weeds, and reduce the

cost of maintaining waterways.
Ch. 2—lmpotance of Tropical Forests ● 4 7

Forests also act as a buffer against the force

of typhoons and other violent storms in coastal

zones. Tropical Asia, for example, suffers an

average of 57 typhoons each year, causing

storm damage that averages $2.8 billion (92).

Forests reduce the destructive energy of these

storms by deflecting wind and reducing the

occurrence of landslides and other environmental damage.

Tropical storms are most violent in coastal

areas, typically the areas that are most populated. Yet coastal forests are being eliminated

more rapidly than most other types of tropical

forests, with sometimes devastating effects (45).

For example, Bangladesh has a coastal zone of

20,000 square kilometers that supports 20 million people. This nation’s coastal areas were

extensively cleared in the 1960’s, leaving little

protective forest. When a severe typhoon

struck in 1970, 150,000 Bangladeshis drowned

(35,65). Each year, typhoons and floods together claim the lives of 200,000 people and

destroy many hundred thousand hectares of

crops (92). A portion of these lives and crops

could be saved if forest cover were maintained

and enhanced (45).

About 15.5 million ha of mangrove forests

grow along coastlines and in estuaries in tropical America, Asia, and Africa (31). These forests have several important functions aside

from acting as a coastal buffer against storms,

seawash, and floods. They also process sewage,

absorb nutrients and heavy metals, and precipitate sediments, Most importantly, they provide

ideal breeding and nursery grounds for various

fish, molluscs, and crustaceans. Many valuable

shrimp species breed at sea, after which the

young move into mangroves where they seek

food and protection. Mangroves also provide

nurseries for such commercially important

fishes as mullet, grunts, and milkfish (66).

labor because site preparation usually involves

more cutting and tree removal than does harvest (63). Table 2 is a summary of estimated

annual person-day requirements for various

forest plantation operations in World Bank

projects.

Some tropical governments view tree planting as a way to reduce unemployment (33). For

example, planting programs are planned with

employment as a major benefit in various areas

of Brazil. In the states of Minas Gerais and

Espirito Sante, a large work force plants

100,000 ha/yr by hand, and in the Amazon region two large companies only do hand-planting. Similarly, large-scale, labor-intensive programs have been developed in Colombia, Venezuela, the Philippines, the Republic of Congo,

and other Asian and African countries, and

smaller programs are under way in Guatemala

and Honduras (89).

Forestry and agroforestry require protection

and management and so provide even more

employment opportunities. Using agroforestry

systems including cultivated crops, several tree

crops, and livestock on a 100-ha farm in India,

employment is estimated to rise from 20 to 50

people at the final, sustained yield stage. Thus,

agroforestry systems to reclaim 5 million ha of

India’s degraded lands might employ 2 million

people (57). Furthermore, forest products could

serve as the basis for cottage industries, providing more employment and producing goods for

domestic use and export.

Table 2.—Estimated Annual Person-day Requirements

for Various Forestry Operations

Plantation design

Spacing: 600-2,000 trees per hectare (ha)

(more for energy plantations)

Task Person-days

Employment

Forest management and forest products industries can be a major source of employment

in tropical countries. Industrial wood harvest

in tropical forests takes about 60 person-days

per hectare. Planting trees takes even more

Nursery work/1,000 plants. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-13

Land clearing and burning/haa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-50

Pitting for planting/ha . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-15

Weeding/ha/yr a . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-36

Pruning/ha ., . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-15

Thinning, , . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-11

aThese measures vary greatly according to site conditions.

SOURCE: P.J. Wood, J. Burley, and A. Grainger, “Technologies and Technology

Systems for Reforestation of Degraded Tropical Lands, ” OTA commissioned paper, 1982,
48 • Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Mangroves

Mangrove forests are important-economically and ecologically. However, mangrove ecosystems can be damaged by human activity. Deforestation of watershed areas can accelerate deposition of sand, silt, and clay in alluvial areas; changes in the pattern and volume of freshwater runoff

can be attributed to irrigation, roadbuilding, and other such projects; coastal engineering practices may bring about a change in tidal flushing regimes. Other major stresses include pollutants

such as pesticides and insecticides used in large agricultural projects and recurring oil spills due

to the exploitation and transportation of offshore oil.

Several mangrove species are highly valued as firewood because they burn evenly with little

smoke, and as charcoal because they have high caloric value. Charcoal for commercial sale is the

main mangrove product in several Asian countries. Mangrove poles are used extensively for rural

houses, foundations, and scaffolding of urban construction because the wood of many mangrove

species is durable and resistant to termites (14). In recent years, mangrove has been harvested for

woodchips to be used in chipboard manufacture, newspaper, and as a source of cellulose for rayon

(71). The conversion of mangrove land to aquacuhure ponds also is increasing, which could have

potential to increase fish production. However, improper site selection and poor design could have

substantial negative impacts.

Management of mangrove forests can be complicated. In clearcut mangrove areas, increased

temperatures and evaporation can raise soil salinity so that mangroves are unable to regrow. Hand

planting of seedlings is possible but costly. Selective felling systems that retain trees below certain

diameters often involve rather complicated regulations that may be difficult to administer. Natural

regeneration can be enhanced by clearcutting narrow strips so that nearby trees can provide seeds.

The pressure to clear additional mangrove forest areas for agricultural, industrial, and aquacultural purposes will continue and the demand for fuelwood and poles will increase. Short- and

long-term socioeconomic impacts of all alternative uses of mangrove forest areas must be evaluated to determine the optimum uses. It is only partly known, for instance, to what extent marine

species are affected by removal of mangrove forests. Improved understanding of this important

interaction could have significant forest management payoffs.

COMMERCIAL FOREST PRODUCTS

Wood

The principal commercial products of tropical forests are timber and fuelwood. Tropical

hardwoods are used to produce lumber for construction, poles, pilings, railway ties, props in

mines, and panel products such as plywood,

veneer, fiberboard, and particle board. Hardwood is also important for finished goods such

as furniture and paper products. In addition,

some softwoods from tropical forests are used

for lumber and pulp.

Most tropical forest wood is used within the

country of origin and the economic value of

this domestic consumption is difficult to assess.

Value estimates exist for the 6 percent of the

commercial tropical wood harvest that is exported. The total value of wood and wood product exports from the tropical nations has increased by about 500 percent in the past 10

years (32). Indonesia’s wood exports in 1980

earned some $1.9 billion, The value of wood

exports for Malaysia was $2 billion in 1980; for

the Philippines, $415 million; for Brazil, $8I6

million; for the Ivory Coast, $415 million [32].

World trade in tropical wood is significant

to the economies of both the producing and

consuming nations. The largest single importer

is Japan. Several other large importers—e. g.,

Singapore, Hong Kong, and South Korea—
Ch. 2—lmportance of Tropical Forests ● 4 9

reexport most of the wood to industrialized nations after partial or complete processing.

The United States is the second largest importer of tropical wood products and little of

this wood is reexported. U.S. hardwood imports in 1978 amounted to $682 million, with

tropical countries (principally Southeast Asia)

supplying 82 percent of the total. Imports of

tropical wood (logs, lumber, plywood, and veneer) averaged $430 million annually from 1974

to 1978, Although the dollar value of these imports seems high, on a volume basis they account for only 1 to 2 percent of all wood used

in this country (85). U.S. demand for tropical

wood has been growing at rates well above our

population and the gross national product

growth rates.

Both in the Tropics and in the importing nations, industrial hardwood is used mostly in the

housing industry, so industrial demand for

tropical wood has grown at a rate that generally

follows housing starts. The paper industry is

the other major wood user, but it primarily uses

softwoods, for which the United States and

Canada are major producers. Many tropical nations import paper, and the papermills located

in the Tropics still import most of their softwood pulp from the temperate zone. Some

tropical nations have begun to use their own

natural pine forests, pine plantations, and, in

a few cases, hardwoods as a source of pulp.

But tropical forests still produce no more than

10 percent of the world’s paper and paperboard.

This is likely to change in the next few decades. New technologies, some developed by the

U.S. Forest Products Laboratory and U.S. forest industry, make it possible to produce highquality paper pulp from 100 percent hardPhoto credit: H. Bollinger

Wood, a major export item for Malaysia, is no longer restricted to sawlogs. Here 8-year-old Albizia falcataria trees

(a legume species) are harvested for export to the Japanese pulp and paper market
50 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

woods and from a mixture of many hardwood

species (84). International demand for tropical

hardwood chips is expected to rise substantially as the new technologies are installed in

papermills in wood-scarce Japan and in Europe, where wood shortages are anticipated.

Japan already uses hardwood chips for over

half of its pulpwood needs (46).

Demand for hardwoods for paper production

also will increase within those tropical nations

that have growing economies. As income increases, demand for paper products rises rapidly among relatively poor consumers as long as

wood supplies are abundant (17).

Fuelwood and charcoal enter commerce for

both household use and industry. Wood fuels

have become much more important for industries in tropical nations since the rapid rise in

fossil fuel costs. Wood is the least expensive

energy source available for many cottage industries and charcoal the highest quality local

source for some uses. For example, Brazil has

1.5 million ha of eucalyptus plantations established to supply charcoal to the iron and steel

industry in the state of Minas Gerais (31).

The Philippine Government is planning two

large wood-consuming industrial facilities in

the province of Ilocos Norte. The first of a number of 3-megawatt “dendrothermal” electric

powerplants dependent on wood from fastgrowing trees as boiler fuel is under construction. Another project that will involve two large

pig-iron blast furnaces and will rely on charcoal from local wood is being planned (36).

Products for Medicine

The importance of the tropical forests, especially the moist forests, as a source for medicines is largely a result of their high biological

diversity. Some of these forests contain communities of species that have existed for 60 million years, making them the oldest continuously established land ecosystems known. Their

great age and ecological stability have allowed

evolution to proceed in a relatively undisturbed

manner, and it is probably due to this stable

history that tropical moist forests developed

their extreme biological richness (45).

Because tropical moist forests contain so

many species, each species must compete with

and defend itself against many potential enemies, and one way to do this is by developing

alliances (e.g., symbiosis) with other species.

Thus, tropical forest species are highly interactive. The millions of plant and animal species

also have had time to develop complex chemicals that help them interact with other species.

It is because of these “biologically active”

chemicals that the tropical forests are considered Earth’s richest storehouses of potential

drugs.

Today, medical science is highly dependent

on chemicals produced naturally by plants.

One-fourth of all U.S. prescriptions contain

ingredients from higher plants (27). In 1974, the

United States imported $24.4 million worth of

medicinal plants to produce about $3 billion

worth of drugs. The commercial value of these

products is over $8 billion per year. When nonprescription items are included, the value

doubles (28).

Although chemical screening has been done

on less than 1 percent of the tropical species,

already some 260 South American plants have

been identified as having potential for fertility

control. Some 1,400 tropical forest species are

believed to have anticancer properties (7,16,

21,68,70). The National Cancer Institute has

screened about 35,000 higher plant species for

activity against cancer. As of 1977, about 3,000

of these had demonstrated reproducible activity and a smaller number were appropriate for

clinical trials (23). Rotenoids from the roots of

tropical trees, for example, are being tested

clinically in the United States as antitumor

drugs.

One tropical plant, the rosy periwinkle, has

had a profound effect on treatment of leukemia. In 1960, people suffering this disease

faced one chance in five of remission. But because of two drugs developed from the rosy

periwinkle, the chances of remission are now

four in five (41). Tabebuia serratifolia, Jacaranda caucana, and Croton tiglium are tropical

trees, and each produces a unique anti-cancer

compound whose effectiveness has been

proved in the laboratory (51).
Ch. 2—lmportance of Tropical Forests ● 5 1

Tropical forest plants are significant in treating other medical problems, notably hypertension (2,41,44,67). D-tubocurasine, made from

the South American vine Chondrodendron tornentosum, is widely used as a muscle relaxant in surgery in the United States, Chemists

have been unable to produce it synthetically

in a form having all of the characteristics of

the natural product (52). The drug’s supply,

therefore, continues to rely on extracts from

wild plants.

Tropical forest animals are also necessary to

medical science. Primates are the most important group. They are used widely in medical

research and pharmaceutical trials.1 Tropical

primates are especially important because of

their similarity to humans. For example, research into malaria, cardiovascular diseases,

cancers, hepatitis, and other diseases commonly uses rhesus monkeys, longtail macaques,

squirrel monkeys, chimpanzees, African green

monkeys, and owl monkeys.

Some 34,000 primates were imported into the

United States in 1977 for drug safety tests and

drug production (5). Virus-free polio vaccine

perhaps is the most important of the drugs produced this way, using many thousands of tropicaI forest African green monkeys, The Central and South American owl monkey is the

only known nonhuman animal suitable for malaria chemotherapy and immunology studies

(5). Few of these important animals are raised

in captivity; most are captured, and they are

becoming scarce as their forest habitat is being destroyed.

Other Forest Products

Tropical forests provide abroad array of nonwood products.z Some are produced in plantations of selected tree species. Others are gathered in natural forests and brought to market

through a diffuse system of collectors and

middlemen. These are often called “minor forest products, ” although their importance frequently is greater than that term implies. For

example, tropical forests provide essential oils,

exudates, gums, latexes, resins, tannins, sterols,

waxes, esters, acids, phenols, alcohols, edible

oils, rattans, bamboos, flavorings, sweeteners,

spices, balsams, pesticides, and dyestuffs.

Few nations have collected data on the commercial value of these nonwood forest products. One exception is India, where nonwood

forest products are worth about $135 million

per year, equivalent to one-fifth of the value of

industrial timber (48,69). Indian forests also

produce a substantial quantity of animals used

for food, scientific research, and other purposes. In Indonesia, rattans generate an export

trade worth up to $5 million per year. The

world trade in rattan end products now totals

$1.5 billion (22,37).

World trade in essential oils and spices from

tropical forest plants, such as camphor, cassia,

cardamon, citronella, and cinnamon, exceeds

$1 billion per year. The United States now imports about 10,000 tons per year of these kinds

of oils and spices, with a value of over $100

million (24,54,55). A systematic investigation of

the many nonwood forest products used by the

forest-dwelling people of the Tropics might

lead to increased use of these materials and further enhance the economic importance of the

forests.

‘See ongoing OTA assessment “Alternatives to Animal Use

in Testing and Experimentation. ”

‘See Workshop Proceedings on Plants: The Potentials for Extracting Protein, Medicines, and Other Useful Chemicals (Washington, D. C,: U.S. Congress, Office of Technology Assessment,

OTA-BP-F-23, September 1983), for additional information.
52 Ž Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Endangered Species

Tropical habitats contain a significant number of the world’s endangered species. As discussed earlier, tropical moist forests are both

the most biologically complex and species-diverse* biome on Earth. The complexity is both

dynamic (highly interactive) and stable (able to

maintain itself for long periods). Yet the stability depends on an important provision—that

external forces do not exceed certain critical

thresholds. Human intervention may easily exceed these thresholds.

Because of geographic confinements and

specialized ecological requirements, tropical

moist forest species are unusually susceptible

to extinction (46). Many species are found in

only one small area, so even a limited amount

of deforestation can exterminate entire species.

Further, species are highly interdependent. For

example, Brazil nuts are probably the most

commercially significant food gathered from

forests. The nuts will grow only where a particular type of bee lives, as only this bee can

pollinate Brazil nut flowers. The bee, in turn,

lives only where a particular type of orchid is

found, because it must obtain a chemical from

the orchid to attract its mate. Thus, the tree has

not been domesticated away from the forest

where the bees and the orchids are found. Further, for some of the nuts to serve as seeds, the

nuts must be chewed by a rodent to soften the

fruit, allowing seed germination. Thus, Brazil

nut tree reserves must be large enough to support a breeding population of this rodent. Such

complex systems of interdependence are

another reason why entire species can be

threatened by small changes (75).

At least three-quarters of the projected extinctions worldwide until the end of the century are expected to occur in tropical moist

“Biological diversity includes two related concepts, genetic

diversity and ecological diversity. Genetic diversity is the amount

of genetic variability among individuals in a single species,

whether the species exists as a single interbreeding group or as

a number of populations, strains, breeds, races, or subspecies.

Ecological diversity (species richness) is the number of species

in a community of organisms. Both kinds of diversity are fundamental to the functioning of ecological systems (17).

forests. Degradation and destruction of tropical forests and woodlands could precipitate a

fundamental shift in the course of evolution

(45). Of more certain concern is the loss of

potential resources, not only chemicals and

animals that may be used directly in medicine,

agriculture, and other industries but also genetic information with great potential for biotechnology development.

Migratory Animals

Tropical forests provide habitats for many of

the world’s migratory and endangered species.

About two-thirds of the birds that breed in

North America migrate to Latin America or the

Caribbean for winter (74). In general, forest

habitats are more important for migratory

species than was previously thought. Many migratory species winter in tropical highlands—

areas that have been rapidly preempted for

agriculture. Since migratory species concentrate often in smaller areas in winter, the effects of clearing 1 ha of forest in Mexico probably are equivalent to clearing 5 ha in the

Northeastern United States (74).

Migratory species have economic, environmental, and esthetic values in the United

States. For instance, some migratory birds play

an important role in integrated pest management systems for agriculture in the Eastern

United States, yet they could become more

scarce as their wintering grounds in the Tropics are lost to deforestation.

Climate

The question of whether tropical deforestation can disrupt the stability of world climates

is highly controversial. The scientific understanding of the climate effects of deforestation

is still theoretical. When forests are removed,

more solar heat is reflected back into space (the

“albedo” effect). Some scientists believe that

this can lead to changes in global patterns of

air circulation, with potential impacts on agriculture (53,60).
Ch. 2—Importance of Tropical Forests . 53

Another effect of forests on global climate is

their role as a carbon reservoir in the carbon

cycle. As large areas of forest are converted to

nonforest, the carbon that had been stored in

wood and in organic material in the topsoil is

released to the atmosphere as carbon dioxide.

When croplands, grasslands, or degraded

brush replace moist forest, the new vegetation

stores much less carbon, Thus, net annual deforestation adds carbon dioxide to the atmosphere (90).

The concentration of carbon dioxide in the

atmosphere has been increasing for several

decades, apparently more from burning fossil

fuels than from deforestation, Scientists agree

that continued increases in atmospheric carbon dioxide will produce a “greenhouse effect”

leading to a global warming trend. Doubling

of the atmospheric carbon dioxide would probably raise the average global climate by several

degrees centigrade. Some scientists hypothesize that increased cloud cover and other environmental change will confound the greenhouse effect. The effects of such trends on

agriculture or on the world’s hydrological systems are unknown. Likewise, the role of the

world’s forests and the effect of substantial

deforestation are still uncertain. Some scientists consider deforestation to be a significant

factor in the concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide, while others do not (10,12,15,19,

34,90).

POLITICAL IMPLICATIONS

Stability of the renewable natural resource

base in tropical countries affects both the economic viability of U.S. investments overseas

and the political stability of the host nations.

Foreign assistance projects funded by the U.S.

Government and development projects funded

by the U.S. private sector are being undercut

by flooding, siltation of reservoirs, pest outbreaks, and other problems associated with deforestation. For example, the reservoirs used

to operate the Panama Canal are rapidly filling

with silt (85), as are hydroelectric reservoirs in

Pakistan, Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia,

and many other nations (49).

Food and jobs are critical for political stability in developing nations and both are reduced

by inappropriate deforestation. Food supplies

and employment can be increased in the long

run, however, by reforestation of degraded

land and by forest management. Frontiers of

human settlement, with relatively untapped

supplies of natural resources, historically are

a source of new employment opportunities. Today, however, the remaining frontiers are mostly infertile or dry lands unable to support large

numbers of people using current technologies.

Thus, many rural unemployed persons migrate

to the cities. As unemployment climbs, changes

in the distribution of income within societies

further aggravate social inequities and political

stresses (11).

One consequence of the inability of developing country governments to create sufficient

jobs is that people emigrate to countries with

slower population growth and greater per capita resources. The flow of refugees from Haiti

to Florida is sometimes cited as an example of

the economic and social disruption caused, in

part, by tropical deforestation and consequent

environmental deterioration (9).

IMPORTANCE TO FUTURE GENERATIONS

Tropical forests have particular importance without expensive inputs of irrigation water or

to future generations. With few exceptions fertilizers. But scientific study of natural

present agriculture systems cannot accomplish ecosystems, in concert with applied research

sustained productivity on infertile or dry sites to develop technologies, possibly can discover
54 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

how sustainable agriculture can be achieved

on this land. Such research has hardly begun

and it is a slow process. Thus, the tropical

forests serve future generations by the information they reveal to science and by maintaining the quality of the land until sustainable

systems for more intensive use are developed.

The Tropics are thought to be the repository

of two-thirds of the world’s approximately 4.5

million plant and animal species, only about

500,000 of which have been named. That

means that about 2.5 million of the tropical

species are yet unknown to science (58). * These

unknown species are resources of incalculable

importance for the future. Undoubtedly, new

sources of food, drugs, fuel, and products lie

undiscovered in tropical forests.

Although vertebrates are generally thought

to be well known on a worldwide basis, only

about 60 percent of the estimated 5,000 species

of fish in the fresh waters of South America

have been scientifically described and named,

even though these comprise a large proportion

of the diet of local people. A principal source

of meat for Paraguayan farmers is a peccary,

made known scientifically only in 1977 (58).

Tropical forests offer potential resources for

plant breeding, genetic engineering, and other

biotechnologies. Because farming environments are constantly changing as pests or plant

diseases threaten or as weather changes, agriculture relies on the continued input of genetic diversity for plant improvement. Germplasm

is the resource to which plant breeders turn for

desirable characteristics—resistance to pests or

stress, or improved growth qualities. A Peruvian species, for example, contributed “ripe

rot” resistance to American pepper plants and

a wild melon in India was the source of resistance to powdery mildew that threatened destruction of California’s melon crop (47). A

wild relative of the potato from Peru has been

known for decades to be highly resistant to in-

*No one knows how many species exist. Some estimates put

the figure as low as 2 million; many converge on a figure of 5

million to 10 million; if tropical insect species are included, the

number could be closer to 30 million (40).

sects because of sticky hairs on its leaves, but

this resistance has not been useful to agriculture because the wild plant cannot be crossed

with domesticated kinds of potatoes. Now the

sticky-hair characteristic is expected to be

transferred with new biotechnology methods.

If it works, the result could be new potato

strains that have a much reduced need for pesticide applications. This implies substantial

gains in production of this important food and

attendant environmental benefits from reduced

insecticide use, It is not possible to predict with

accuracy what germ plasm will be needed in

the future.

With the gradual consumption of fossil fuels

and other nonrenewable resources, the United

States and other nations are expected to turn

increasingly to biological systems for industrial

and chemical feedstocks and for solutions to

pollution and other environmental problems

(78,79). Some complex chemicals and some

more simple biological processes can be invented in the laboratory, but most have to be

found in nature.

Genetic materials and basic systems found

in nature can be reproduced or adapted with

bioengineering techniques. New techniques for

cloning plants and micro-organisms already

are enabling laboratory biologists to screen existing organisms for their production of useful

chemicals much more rapidly and efficiently

than in the past. The newly developing techniques for genetic manipulation offer opportunities to adapt existing organisms to new

uses (79).

For example, tropical forests have a greater

proportion of alkaloid-bearing plants than any

other biome (6,39,56). Many of the plant species

contain hydrocarbons as well as carbohydrates

in their tissues. These plant tissues can be renewable sources for many chemicals, including fuels, now derived from nonrenewable fossil sources (13,38). Since tropical forest species

usually are restricted to small geographic areas,

opportunities are lost wherever the forests are

removed before their unique biota has been

identified, screened, and assessed for usefulness (83).
Ch. 2—Importance of Tropical Forests . 55

Political Interests U.S. Stake

The United States has strong commitments

to world peace, economic and social stability, and maintenance of the Earth’s basic

life-support systems, commitments that

require concern about the integrity and

long-term productivity of the global natural

resource base, including the tropical forest

component.

The United States is party to a broad array

of international resolutions, strategies, and

agreements that call on all participating nations to promote and undertake improved

management of the forest resource.

U.S. public institutions and private firms

in Tropical Forests

●

●

programs are being affected adversely by

deforestation-related problems.

The United States and other nations have

raised humanitarian concerns about indigenous populations whose cultures and very

existence may be threatened by destruction

of the forests.

The United States increasingly is being

requested by governments and internal

tional development organizations to provide technical assistance and financial support for forest-related activities in developing countries.

Environmental Interests

●

●

●

U.S. public institutions have statutory and

policy responsibilities to protect and manage wisely the environment and natural

resources of our Nation, as well as those of

other areas within and outside U.S. jurisdiction in which U, S.-sponsored or U. S.-

assisted activities are carried out.

The United States shares, with South and

Central America and the Caribbean area,

hundreds of species of migratory animals,

including birds, insects, marine turtles, and

mammals, whose survival depends to varying degrees on tropical forests.

The United States is committed to helping

preserve the world’s flora, fauna, and vulnerable ecosystems by virtue of domestic

legislation and national policies, and by

being party to a large number of international conventions and agreements. Principal among these measures are the Endangered Species Act of 1973, the Convention

on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna, and the Convention on Nature Protection and Wildlife

Preservation in the Western Hemisphere.

Large-scale destruction of the Earth’s rain

forests runs a risk of triggering global climate change, with uncertain but potentially

adverse consequences for world food production and human well-being,
56 Ž Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

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Highlights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The Data Base. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Extent of Remaining Tropical Forest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Closed Forest.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Open Forests and Shrublands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Forest Fallow. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Forest Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Forest Legislation and Policy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Forest Ownership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Wood Production . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Natural Forest Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Plantations .. .. .. .. .. .. .. . . $ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Destruction of Forest Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Deforestation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Resource Degradation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

projection of Changes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 3 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

List of Tables

63

63

64

64

67

68

69

70

70

73

74

75

75

78

79

82

Table No. Page

3. Estimates of Per Capita Closed Forest Areas and Deforestation Rates in

Tropical Africa, America, and Asia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

5. Annual Deforestation, 1981-85 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

6. Forest Area Projections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

List of Figures

Figure No. Page

12. Classification of Woody Vegetation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

13. Areas of Woody Vegetation in 76 Tropical Nations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

14. Overall Area of Tropical Woody Vegetation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

15. Comparative Production of Wood, 1980 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

16A. Wood Production in Tropical Africa, 1969-80 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

16B. Wood Production in Tropical America, 1969-80 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

16C. Wood Production in Tropical Asia, 1969-80 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

17. Plant Nutrient Loss Caused by Logging in Tropical v. Temperate Forests.. . . 80
Chapter 3

Status of Tropical Forests

●

●

●

●

HIGHLIGHTS

The area planted with trees in tropical regions each year is only about one-tenth of

the forest area cleared.

Gradual resource degradation, especially in

the drier open forest areas, may have a

greater long-term impact on human welfare

than deforestation.

Landsat imagery has greatly improved

knowledge of closed tropical forests and this

is enhancing forest management. However,

data on open forests and forest resource

degradation are still imprecise.

Forest data aggregated by region may suggest that no global problem exists. However,

country-by-country analyses show that rates

of deforestation are high and forest area per

capita is already low in many tropical nations.

Ž

●

●

The acreage within tropical forests that is

fallowed or abandoned is growing rapidly.

Some of this will naturally return to forest

cover, but most of it does not regain productivity without a concerted reforestation

effort.

Most tropical forest is owned by national or

State governments, but locally recognized

rights to use the resources greatly complicate

management efforts.

Tropical forestry historically has tended to

neglect the basic needs of people who live

in and near the forests. This is changing as

laws, policies, and forestry professionals’ attitudes give more attention to fuelwood, and

to relationships between forestry and agriculture.

THE DATA BASE

Data on the extent and condition of tropical

forest areas are abundant but widely scattered

and frequently inaccurate. Some of this information is based on old, imprecise measurements or estimates that have been updated

through simple extrapolation. Accuracy is further impaired by lack of standard definitions

and classifications of forest types; thus, the data

are difficult to compare across studies. Microlevel studies of project areas or watersheds contain some of the most reliable and detailed information on forest resources and land use, yet

this information is hard to obtain because it is

poorly distributed,

A comprehensive synthesis of data about the

world’s tropical forest resources was conducted by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) with the assistance of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) (3,4). The FAO/UNEP study

is the first where the definitions of forest types

and conditions are consistent across countries.

It covers 76 nations; 73 nations are tropical or

partly tropical, and 3 nations are outside the

Tropics but are directly influenced by tropical

monsoons. It does not include the tropical

regions of China, Australia, islands off the

coasts of Africa, the Pacific islands, or Puerto

Rico. Some of the forests included are in places

where the climate is more temperate than tropical.

The FAO/UNEP study relies mainly on data

supplied by governments. Most measurements

and estimates in various categories of forest

were made in the 1970’s. Then, using the

estimated rates of change from one category

to another, the figures were projected to represent the situation in each nation as of 1980.

63
64 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Several nations did not have complete data,

and for 13 of these FAO commissioned new

Landsat analyses. Some of the government

estimates used by FAO are also based on Landsat data.

Data gathered from the U.S. Landsat program has greatly enhanced the accuracy of information on the extent of forests. By using

computers to study Landsat data, investigators

can distinguish primary forests from secondary forests, closed forests from open forests

and grasslands, and dominant types of trees

(e.g., broadleaved, coniferous, mangroves).

forest cover over time. Hence, only a few of

the estimated deforestation rates given in the

FAO/UNEP study, presented later in this chapter, are based on remote sensing data. The rest

are mainly subjective estimates. In addition,

since expertise and computers to analyze Landsat data are not available in some tropical nations, many analyses have relied on visual interpretation of images, This method is more

subjective and less sensitive to small-scale

changes in forest area boundaries. In some

cases, images cannot be used because of cloud

cover,

Unfortunately, Landsat data have not been

collected long enough to reveal trends in the

EXTENT OF REMAINING TROPICAL FOREST

Closed Forest

Tropical nations contained some 1.2 billion

hectares [ha) of closed forest at the end of 1980,

Tropical America has 57 percent of the world’s

closed tropical forests, while Asia has 25 percent, and Africa has 18 percent (fig. 13). These

forests are unevenly distributed among the

tropical nations, Brazil alone has nearly twofifths of the world’s total closed tropical forests

and Indonesia and Zaire each account for nearly another tenth (table A-1 in app. A).

The condition of closed tropical forests may

be divided into several categories: undisturbed,

logged, managed, physically unproductive, and

protected areas. Table A-2 in appendix A

shows the percent of forest in each category

for each of the 76 nations.

Over half (56 percent) of the total tropical

closed forest is classified as undisturbed forest.

This forest has commercial potential, but most

of it is relatively inaccessible to human populations. When Brazil and Zaire with their enormous remote forests are excluded, the remaining tropical nations have two-fifths (41 percent)

of their closed forest in the undisturbed category.

Another 14 percent of the total closed forest

is productive forest that has been logged but

is not under active forestry management. Ivory

Coast, Togo, Benin, Sri Lanka, and Belize all

have at least 60 percent of their closed forest

in this condition. Some other countries have

had extensive logging but register little forest

in the logged condition because farmers quickly convert the logged forest to temporary or

permanent cropland. A prime example is Thailand, which has had extensive logging but

shows no forest in the logged condition.

Only about 3 percent of the total closed tropical forest is classified as managed. Much of

this is in logged-over condition, but significant

investments are being made to manage natural

regeneration. India classifies 63 percent of its

closed forest as managed; Burma and Malaysia

each classify about 12 percent as managed. Excluding these three countries, only 0.3 percent

of the rest of the tropical closed forest is

classified as managed. Most of that is in Ghana,

Uganda, Kenya, Sudan, and Zambia.

Another one-quarter (23 percent) of the

closed forest is unproductive for physical

reasons. Much of this has not been disturbed
Ch. 3—Status of Troplca/ Forests ● 65

Definitions of Forest Categories

To dicuss; the status of the world's tropical fores? resources, the FAO/UNEP study divides

forests into a number of categories (fig. 12). Those used in this report are:

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

Closed forest includes land where trees shade so much of the ground that a continuous layer

of grass cannot grow. The tree covrer is often multi-storied. Trees may be evergreen, semideciduous, or deciduous. Closed forests grow where the climate is relatively moist. The data

on closed forest areas do not include the land which is forest fallow. which is accounted

for separately. Forest plantations are also separate,

Broadleaf forest is a subset of closed forest, where broadleaf species (dicotyledons or monocotyriedons] predominate. The broadleaf trees (especially the dicotyledons) are often referred

to as "hardwoods.” The FAO/UNEP study makes a separate category for bamboo-dominated

forests, but these are ioncluded with the broadleaf forests in this report.

Conifer forest is another subset of closed forest. It includes only areas where conifer species

(gymnosperms) predominate. These trees are often referred to as “softwoods. ”

Open forest has trees that cover at least 10 percent of the ground but still allow enough light

to reach the forest flour so that a dense, continuous cover of grass can grow. The grass cover

ill creases the likelihood of grazing by livestock and the spread of fires. open forests .generally occur where the climate is relatively dry. The data on open forest areas do include the

land which is forest fallow. For tropical Africa, data are also available to separate the open

forest fallow from the total open forest.

Productive forest is a term used to describe subsets of both closed and open forests. In productive forest, the characteristics of the trees, terrain, and forest regulations potenilly allow

the productiun of wood for industrial purposes (e. g., sawlogs, veneerlogs, pulpwood, and

industrial poles). The distance to consumption or export centers is not taken into account,

so the category includes some forests that are not now economically accessible.

Undisturbed forest is productive forest that has not been logged or cleared in the last 60

to 80 years. The category includes both primary forests and old growth secondary forests.

It is not applied to open forests because nearly all open forests have been subject to cutting,

burning, and grazing.

Logged-over forest is productive forest area that has been logged or cleared at least once

in the last 60 to 80 years but does not fit the criteria for managed forest. This is category is

not appllied to open forests.

Managed forest is productive forest wher harvesting regulations are enforced, silvicultural

treatments are carried out, and trees are protected from fires and diseases.

Unproductive forest for physical reasons is not suitable for industrial wood production

due to rough or inundated terrain or poor growth characteristics of the trees (stunted or

crooked).

Legally protected forest is the category for forest where logging is prohibited by law. It includes a variety of parks and protected areas. Illegal logging does occur in some of these areas.

Forest fallow is land that has been cleared for cultivation and subsequently abandoned so

that it may again have some woody vegetation. This category. also includes patches of land

t hat are being used to grow crops and some patches where forest has not been cleared but

are too small to account for separately. The category is not supposed to include land where

erosion or leaching have so degraded the site that only shrubs or grasses grow after the land

is abandoned. Land in the forest forest fallow category is excluded from the definition of closed

forest but included in the definition of open forest,

Plantations are tree stands that have been established by human activity. The term includes

reforestation (reestablishment of a tree cover on deforested or degraded forest lands) and

replacement of natural forest by a different tree crop.

Industrial plantations are sites wherc trees are planted to produce sawlogs, veneer logs,

pulpwood and pitprops. This category excludes plantation that produce fuelwood forindusttrial use.
66 Ž Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

• Social and environmental plantations are designed for soil and water protection or to produce fuelwood and charcoal, polewood or construction wood for local use, or nonwood products, such as gum arabics. The category excludes plantations for nonwood commodities such

as rubber, palm oil, coconuts, cloves, coffee, and cocoa. It also excludes trees planted to

shade agricultural crops.

● Shrubland has woody vegetation covering at least 10 percent of the ground, but the main

woody plants are bushy species with a height at maturity of 0.5 to 7 meters. Shrubland may

be the natural vegetation under dry or otherwise stressful conditions, or it may result from

severe degradation of open or closed forest land. The data on shrubland areas include some

fallow agricultural land.

Figure 12.—Classification of Woody Vegetation

by cutting; it is either too steep or too wet for

logging or farming, However, this category also

includes forest where the trees have no potential for industrial wood production, in some

cases due to excessive cutting and consequent

resource degradation, Brazil, Indonesia, Peru,

Mexico, New Guinea, and Zaire each have at

least 20 million ha of forest unproductive for

physical reasons. The name of this category is

misleading, since much of’ this forest can be

productive for fuelwood and other nonindustrial products and for essential environmental services such as watershed protection,

Finally, about 3 percent of the closed tropical

forest has been given park or other legal protection status. Again, the percentage of the

total hides an unequal distribution. Over half
Ch. 3—Status of Tropical Forests • 67

Figure 13.—Areas of Woody Vegetationa in 76 Tropical Nations by Region

(thousands of hectares, 1980 estimates)

Tropical America

Plantation 

sed forest

fallow

108,612

61,650 Open woodlands

216,997

Tropical Africa

Tropical Asia

Open woodl

fallow

104,335

Closed forest

fallow

. ,

61,646

Plantatio n

forest s

1,780

Clo

and

sed fo

fallow

69,225

rest

St ands

Plantatio n Open woodland

forests fallow

5,111 3,990

(55 percent) of the protected forests are located land, grassland, or desert primarily depends on

in just four countries—India, Zaire, Indonesia, how dry the climate is and on the moistureand Brazil. Despite the legal status of park holding capacity of the soil. To an increasing

lands on paper, many of these forests in fact extent, however, it also depends on humando not receive much protection (3). caused factors (11).

Generally, closed forests grow where average

Open Forest and ShrubIands annual rainfall is above 1,600 millimeters (mm).

Open forests are found where rain is from 900

Tropical nations contain some 746 million to l,200 mm. In areas with 1,200 to 1,600 mm

ha of open forest and 624 million ha of shrub- of rain, the natural cover may be either open

land. Whether the natural vegetation of a trop- or closed forest, depending on fire history, soil,

ical area is closed forest, open forest, shrub- frequency of drought, and other environmen-
68 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

tal factors. Shrublands grow where rain is

below 900 mm. In transitional areas, fires and

livestock grazing can convert closed forest to

open forest and open forest to shrubland. Conversely, closed or open forests can be reestablished in some places when fire and other pressures are eliminated (4,11).

Open forest and shrubland areas are unevenly distributed among tropical nations. The data

describing these types of forests are much less

accurate than for closed forests. This is partly

because boundaries between open forest,

shrubland, grassland, and fallow agricultural

land are difficult to determine. It is also because there has been less interest in measuring or monitoring open forests and shrubland.

Table A-3 in appendix A shows estimates for

areas of open forest and shrubland in each of

the 76 nations. Together, the African nations

have most (65 percent) of the tropical open forests, but Brazil again dominates with 157 million ha. Zaire has 71 million ha; Angola has 51

million ha.

Shrublands also are mainly (7 I percent)

found in Africa. Sudan has 87 million ha of

shrubland, and other African nations with

large expanses of shrubland include Tanzania,

Central African Republic, Zambia, and

Ethiopia. In tropical America, Brazil has 61

million ha; Paraguay, Bolivia, and Mexico also

have extensive shrublands. Among the tropical

Asian nations, Thailand, Kampuchea, Laos,

and Indonesia all have substantial shrubland

areas.

Since open tropical forests are more easily

penetrable than closed forests, nearly all of

them have been cut, burned, or grazed by

livestock. Hence, no open forests are classified

as undisturbed. Two-thirds of tropical

America’s open forest is classified as

productive—having potential to produce wood

for industry, In Africa, where these forests are

generally drier, only one-third is classified as

productive; just over one-fourth is classified

productive in tropical Asia.

Although few open forests fit the FAO/UNEP

definition for “productive,” these woodlands

are important for nonindustrial products and

services. Much, perhaps most, of the open

forest is used for livestock grazing and

fuelwood collecting. These forests protect soils

and watersheds in the semiarid regions and

their wildlife is important as food. Further,

many of the trees are legumes capable of converting atmospheric nitrogen to fertilizer, and

so they are important for restoring the fertility of abandoned croplands.

Parks and protected areas account for 9 percent of the African tropical nations’ open forests. Tropical America has given protected area

status to just 1 percent, and tropical Asia has

designated 2 percent for protection.

Forest Fallw

The closed tropical forest regions include

some 240 million ha of land in forest fallow.

Overall about 1 in 6 ha in the closed forests are

being used for shifting agriculture. But in many

nations, shifting agriculture has claimed a larger part of the closed forest. Sierra Leone has

five times as much forest fallow as closed forest, Five other nations in tropical Africa, four

in tropical Asia, and four in tropical America

have from 50 to 100 percent as much forest fallow as closed forest, Table A-4 in appendix A

shows the ratio of forest fallow to forest for

each of the 76 nations. It is likely that much

of this fallow land will not be returned to forest

uses. Under unfavorable site conditions and

short fallow periods, much of this land may

eventually become unproductive for agriculture as well.

Estimates of forest fallow areas are not accurate. However, shifting agriculture is by no

means limited to moist areas. In dry regions,

fallow serves to restore moisture as well as

organic matter and plant nutrients to the soil.

The FAO/UNEP report estimates that about

one-fifth of the land reported to be open forest

is in fact forest fallow. Livestock graze on both

the forest fallow and the open forest that has

not yet been used for crops.

Figure 14 shows relative areas of each vegetation type for the 76 nations as a whole.
Ch. 3—Status of Tropical Forests Ž 69

—

Figure 14.—Overall Area of Tropical

Woody Vegetation

Land surface of the Earth

Land surface of the 76 countries studied

Conifer -

\

forests Plantations

SOURCE: Food and Agriculture Organization/United Nations Environment

Programme, Tropical forest Resources Assessment Project (GEMS):

Tropical Africa, Tropical Asia, Tropical America, 4 VOIS. (Rome: FAO,

1981)

FOREST

Forest Logislation and Policy

Forest legislation and policy are evolving in

tropical countries to reflect a growing awareness of the social and environmental implications of forestry decisions. Many tropical nations substantially revised their forestry laws

during the 1960’s and 1970’s. In many cases,

however, the laws look good on paper, but are

not well-enforced (7).

Some issues have become more prominent

in the last 5 to 10 years. For example, many

countries have revised their logging laws and

policies to be more restrictive regarding timber

allocation from public land, lease terms, concession fees and taxes, annual allowable cut

limits, regeneration methods, and export of unprocessed logs.

MANAGEMENT

Other prominent policy issues include accelerating reforestation on degraded lands, protecting watersheds, increasing incentives for

industrial plantations and farm forestry, and

legislative support for reforesting communal

land. Social issues, too, increasingly are being

recognized (e.g., the needs of slash-and-burn

cultivators and nomadic grazers, domestic fuelwood requirements, and release of forest lands

to settled agriculture). Many tropical countries

now view conservation as important to economic development and, thus, are more aware

of the need to sustain multiple-use of forests,

preserve biological diversity, maintain parks

and protected areas, and guard against the loss

of mangroves.

Some gaps, however, still need to be addressed. There is a need to evaluate tropical
70 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

forest resource policy, but no organization has

such a program. The connection between

forests and policies in other sectors such as

land tenure and agrarian reform also needs to

be assessed.

Forest Ownership

In order to understand the use and loss of

forest resources and to devise effective policies

for managing forests, it is important to know

the legal and de facto ownership of forest lands

and trees. The legal status of land may not indicate who has practical control of land use.

For example, owners of large properties may

appropriate adjoining public lands. Also, slashand-burn cultivators and other landless poor

may occupy communal forests. In fact, tree tenure may differ from land tenure.

The FAO/UNEP report (3) summarizes forest

ownership by regions and provides some details at the national level. In tropical America,

forest ownerships may be public, private, or

communal. Most conifer forests in Brazil and

in Central American nations are privately

owned. The much larger broadleaved forests

are public property, but national laws regarding forest ownership often are contradicted by

local practice.

The situation is more complex in tropical Africa where private ownership of forests is rare.

Traditional use rights in most forest areas are recognized for hunting, gathering nonwood products, acquisition of fuelwood and construction

wood, and shifting cultivation or grazing. People may have exclusive rights over trees that

they plant on communal lands. Local community ownership of forest lands in many former British colonies is recognized in national

forestry laws. In former French colonies, local

rights are not recognized at the national level

and all forests are considered state property.

In tropical Asia, 80 to 90 percent of the forest

land is state-owned and under the legal control of the forest departments. However, a large

part of this land is illegally occupied by forest

farmers, both those who practice traditional

shifting agriculture and those who try to use

the forest land for continuous cropping and

grazing. State control over forest lands has

been a gradual process, taking place mainly

over the past 30 years. The central government

in Nepal and some states in India such as West

Bengal took control of all forested land from

the villages in the 1950’s. Papua New Guinea

and most of the Pacific Islands are exceptions

to this general rule. There, forests are owned

by clans and tribes and the government has to

negotiate with them for the right to use forest

resources.

Wood Production

The 76 nations covered by the FAO/UNEP

study of tropical forests produce 1.4 billion

cubic meters of wood annually (measured as

round logs extracted from the forest). As figure 15 indicates, this is about half of all the

wood production in the world, and most (86

percent) of it is used for firewood or charcoal.

The rest is “industrial wood” used for domestic

and export production of sawlogs, veneer logs,

lumber, poles, pulpwood, wood panels, and

other processed products. Figure 16 indicates

changes in wood production for each of the

tropical regions over a 12-year period.

The production of industrial wood varies

with economic conditions. Generally economic

development during the 1970’s, resulted in increasing demand for industrial wood in all the

tropical regions. Industrial wood production

increased most rapidly in tropical Asia and in

West Africa with the growth of markets for

sawlogs and veneer logs from those regions.

More recently, slowing economies have constrained the growth in production. If rapid

economic growth resumes, tropical America

may experience substantial industrial wood

production increases.

Significant investments were made in mills

and infrastructure during the 1970’s, but these

have operated below capacity because of weak

markets. In Asia and West Africa, depletion of

resources is likely to constrain sawlog and

veneer log production, but resurgence of

economic growth should create domestic
Ch. 3—Status of Tropical Forests ● 71

5.—Comparative

Fuelwood

Production of Wood, 1980

/ Other \

3%

Tropical Amer

5010

Tropical Asia

6 %

i c a

Total roundwood

SOURCE: Adapted from Food and Agriculture Organization/United Nations Environment Programme, Tropical Forest Resources, Forestry Paper No

30 (Rome: FAO, 1982)

markets for wood chips to produce pulp and dominance will become greater where ecoother wood products made from a wider varie- nomic growth continues to be slow.

ty of trees,

The increase in total wood production is

driven by a steady increase in fuelwood production. However, the data on fuelwood apparently are obtained by multiplying unchanging

estimates of per capita consumption by each

country’s population. Thus, the growth in production is probably not so steady as figure 16

suggests. Nevertheless, fuel is certainly the

dominant use for wood in the Tropics and that

Looking at figure 16, one might expect that

tropical forestry efforts would be concentrated

mainly on fuelwood production. However, until recently forestry departments in tropical

countries, international assistance agencies,

and multilateral development banks have concentrated most of their efforts on industrial

wood production. Industrial production attracts investment in the forestry sector because

it can earn foreign exchange and concession

fees, and it can be taxed. Thus, industrial wood
72 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Figure 16/L-Wood Production in Tropical Africa, 1969-80

400,000

350,000

Fuelwood Sawlogs and Other Industrial

veneer logs roundwood

I I

300,000 -

250,000 -

200,000 -

150,000 -

100,000 -

50,000 -

0

1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980

Years

SOURCE Adapted from Food and Agriculture Organization/United Nations Environment Programme, Tropical Forest Resources, Forestry Paper No.

30 (Rome: FAO, 1982)

Figure 16 B.–Wood Production in Tropical America, 1969.80

450,000t

I Fuelwood Sawlogs and Other Industrial

veneer logs

400,000

roundwood

350,000

300,000

t

250,000 -

200,000 -

150,000 -

1oo,ooo -

50,000 -

0 -

1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980

Years

SOURCE’ Adapted from Food and Agriculture Organization/United Nations Environment Programme, Tropical Forest Resources, Forestry Paper No,

30 (Rome: FAO, 1982)
Ch. 3—Status of Tropical Forests Ž 73

Figure 16C.–Wood Production in Tropical Asia, 1969-80

700,000 -

600,000

500,000

400,000

300,000

200,000

100,000

o

Fuelwood

[

Sawloas and Other Industrial

veneer logs roundwood

1969I 1970 1971 1972 I 973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1979 1980

Years

SOURCE dated from Food and Agriculture Organlzatlon/United Nations Environment Program me, Tropical Foresf Resources Forestry Paper No

30 (Rome FAO. 1982) -

production probably will continue to dominate

tropical forestry activities.

The problem of ensuring an adequate industrial wood supply for international trade* is

more tractable than problems associated with

fuelwood supply, impacts of deforestation on

soil and water resources, or maintenance of

biological diversity. First, nearly 75 percent of

the world’s industrial wood is now produced

in the temperate zone. Second, industrial wood

supplies have grown at reasonably stable rates

for 30 years (9). And third, a large proportion

of the world’s future consumption of industrial

wood can come from plantations. One recent

estimate is that 140 million ha of well-managed

plantations could, theoretically, supply all the

industrial wood consumed in the world in the

year 2000 (8). That would be an area equal to

5 percent of the present forested area in the

world.

Much more wood is consumed in tropical

countries for fuelwood, however. Serious shortages of fuelwood, lumber, poles, paper, and

other forest products within nations are not being met through international trade because of

high transportation costs and persistent poverty. Furthermore, conflicts between forest and

agricultural land uses

countries.

Natural Forest

are critical in many

Management

Only small areas of tropical forests are under

intensive management (3). In tropical America,

management is increasing. For example, Mexico is managing watershed forests through controlled logging. Belize, Brazil, Guatemala, and

Paraguay are designing management plans for

natural resources. Silvicultural trials and

research efforts to develop suitable technologies for managing natural forests are under

way in Brazil, Costa Rica, French Guyana,

Mexico, Peru, and Venezuela.

25-287 0 - 84 - 6
74 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Some African nations, when they were British and Belgian colonies, had developed harvesting regulations and working plans for managing natural forests, but these have been abandoned over the past two decades. Nigeria,

Zaire, and Tanzania previously managed large

areas of natural forest, but no longer do so.

Uganda reports a large managed area, although

it is doubtful that the management plans have

been implemented. The Congo also is preparing plans that set the allowable cut for natural

forests and indicate appropriate silvicultural

practices.

The deciduous and conifer forests of South

Asia—Burma, Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan—have a long history of intensive forest

management. India alone contains 60 percent

of all the managed forest in the 76 tropical nations. However, the remaining tropical forests

of South Asia and the forests of Southeast Asia

are not intensively managed for a number of

reasons. Information on forest ecology and dynamics is scarce. Forestry departments lack

trained personnel to manage the forests. The

emphasis in forestry has been on commercial

exploitation so that little attention has been

given to silvicultural treatments (3).

About 11.5 million ha of tree plantations had

been established in the 76 nations by the end

of 1980 (table A-5 in app. A). Most (68 percent)

of these are in just three countries: Brazil, India, and Indonesia. About 7 million ha are intended to produce sawlogs, veneerlogs, pulpwood, or industrial poles. Only 4.4 million ha

have been planted for fuelwood and charcoal,

for environmental protection, and for nonwood

products such as gum arabic.

The estimated rate of planting in the tropical

nations is about 1.1 million ha/yr (4). Current

planting is intended mainly (53 percent) for

lumber, paper, and industrial poles, but a gradual shift to fast-growing trees to produce fuelwood and charcoal is occurring as a result of

changing objectives in tropical forestry.

Forestry plantations are usually monoculture, often of exotic species, planted not where

forest cutting is occurring, but rather on land

that has been cleared for some time, such as

abandoned farmland (5). Most industrial wood

plantations in East Africa are softwoods (pines

and cypress), while in West Africa hardwoods

(principally teak) are planted. In tropical

America, pines are usually grown for saw timber, while eucalyptus and gmelina are planted

for pulpwood. Eucalyptus frequently is grown

for pulpwood in India, while teak is grown for

timber in India and Indonesia.

Two-thirds of nonindustrial plantations in

Africa are for fuelwood; the rest are mainly for

gum arabic production or watershed protection. In tropical America, three-quarters of the

plantations classified as nonindustrial are eucalyptus trees planted to supply charcoal to the

iron and steel industry in the Brazilian State

of Minas Gerais. Most of the rest is for production of forest fruit, such as “palmito.” Only

about 100,000 ha of plantations in tropical

America are intended primarily for soil and

watershed protection; Mexico has most of

these. In Asia, most nonindustrial plantations

are intended to produce locally consumed firewood and these are being planted at a rate of

about 1 million ha/yr.

The rate of forest plantation establishment

is much too low to replace the amount of forest

being cleared. In tropical America, the ratio of

area planted to area deforested annually is

about 1 to 10.5; in tropical Africa it is 1 to 29;

and in tropical Asia it is 1 to 4.5 (4). Furthermore, most reforestation programs are not carried out where deforestation takes place. In

Brazil, for example, plantations are concentrated in the South, whereas forest clearing occurs mainly in the North.

The greatest discrepancy between reforestation rates and the demand for wood and other

forest products is in Africa. In Asia, reforestation is closer to deforestation because

deforestation rates level off as the remaining

forest is left only in inaccessible areas and

because severe wood shortages in heavily

populated areas are leading to greater planting

efforts (4).
Ch. 3—Stafus of Tropical Forests Ž 75

DESTRUCTION OF

Distinguishing between deforestation (also

called “clearing” in this report) and degradation of forest resources is important. The FAO/

UNEP study estimates deforestation rates for

1976-80 and projects rate estimates for 1981-85.

It does not, however, estimate degradation

rates. Unlike deforestation, degradation is not

easy to identify through time-series Landsat or

other remote-sensing analyses.

Deforestation

Each year about 0.5 percent of the remaining closed tropical forests and 0.6 percent of

the remaining open tropical forests are converted to nonforest land uses or to wasteland.

This is an aggregation of estimated deforestation rates from the 76 countries covered by the

FAO/UNEP report. In some countries, the deforestation rate has been estimated by comparing Landsat or other remote-sensing data from

two time periods; for some, information on

population growth, farming, and animal husDeforestation and Degradation

Much of the confusion over rates of change

in forest areas stems from the failure to distinguish between deforestation and degradation. As defined here and in the FAO/UNEP

report:

● Deforestation is the conversion of forests

to land uses that have a tree cover of less

than 10 percent. Thus, logged-over areas,

including clear-cut areas, are not classified as deforested if the forest is in the

process of regenerating.

● Degradation of forests refers to biological, physical, and chemical processes that

result in loss of the productive potential

of natural resources in areas that remain

classified as forest. Soil erosion and Ioss

of valuable or potentially valuable genetic

types are examples of degradation. In

some cases, forests can recover naturally

from degradation within a few decades.

In other cases recovery may take much

longer, if it occurs at all.

FOREST RESOURCES

bandry practices were considered as well.

Table A-6 in appendix A shows estimated areas

of closed forest converted to nonforest annually for each of the 76 countries.

The overall tropical deforestation rate is

strongly affected by the status of the forests in

a few tropical nations that have very large forest areas relative to their population. Thus, the

0.5 and 0.6 percent/yr figures obscure both substantial differences among nations and the

overall severity of tropical deforestation.

Closed forest area per capita is already less

than O.O5 ha in 17 of the 76 nations. Over half

the rest have deforestation rates between 1 and

6.5 percent/yr. Table 3 indicates forest areas

per capita and deforestation rate estimates for

each country.

Table 4 shows the 76 nations divided into

nine categories of closed forest area and population size. Several countries, including Gabon,

Congo, French Guiana, Surinam, and Guyana,

have such large forests and so few people that

their deforestation rates are very low. Clearly,

closed tropical forests will exist in these nations for many decades, although even a

relatively small population can cause resource

degradation over large areas. Other nations,

such as Liberia and Honduras, have large

amounts of forest but also have high deforestation rates. If current rates of deforestation and

population growth were to continue, these two

nations would, in just 15 years, reduce their

forest area per capita to half what it is. In some

nations, deforestation can be expected to slow

as the forests are reduced to inaccessible areas

that are unattractive to farmers. However, experience in nations such as Haiti, El Salvador,

Jamaica, Costa Rica, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Angola,

and Ghana indicate that deforestation can continue rapidly even when only limited forests

remain.

In tropical Africa, deforestation rates are

highest in the West African nations. Nigeria

and Ivory Coast together incur almost half (45

percent) of the continent’s total annual deforestation of closed forests, About 4 percent of

the closed forests of the West African nations
76 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Table 3.—Estimates of Per Capita Closed Forest Areas and Deforestation Rates

in Tropical Africa, America, and Asia

Closed forest Closed forest Percent Closed forest Closed forest Percent

area area (ha) deforested area area (ha) deforested

Country (1,000 ha) per capita per yeara Country (1,000 ha) per capita per yeara

Tropicai Africa:

Ivory Coast . . . . . . . . . .

Nigeria. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Rwanda . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Burundi . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Benin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guinea-Bissau . . . . . . .

Liberia . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guinea. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Kenya. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Madagascar . . . . . . . . .

Angola . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Uganda . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Zambia. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ghana . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Mozambique . . . . . . . . .

Sierra Leone . . . . . . . . .

Tanzania . . . . . . . . . . . .

Togo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sudan . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Cameroon . . . . . . . . . . .

Ethiopia . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Somalia . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Equatorial Guinea . . . .

Zaire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Central African

Republic . . . . . . . . . .

Gabon . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Congo . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Zimbabwe . . . . . . . . . . .

Namibia . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Botswana . . . . . . . . . . .

Mali . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Upper Volta . . . . . . . . . .

Niger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Senegal . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Malawi . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Gambia . . . . . . . . . . . . .

4,458

5,950

120

26

47

660

2,000

2,050

1,105

10,300

2,900

765

3,010

1,718

935

740

1,440

304

650

500

17,920

4,350

1,540

1,295

105,750

0.5

O.7

b

b

0.8

1.0

0.4

0.1

1.1

0.4

0.1

0.5

0.1

0.1

0.2

0.1 O.l

0.1

2.0

0.1

0.3

4.3

3.4

6.5

5.0

2.7

2.7

2.6

2.6

2.3

1.8

1.7

1.5

1.5

1.3

1.3

1.3

1.1

0.8

0.7

0.7

0.6

0.4

0.4

0.2

0.2

0.2

0.2

3,590 1.4 0.1

20,500 29.3 0.1

21.340 12.6 0.1

’200

c

b

b

c

c

c b c

c b c

c b c

c b c

220 b c

186 b c

65 0.1 c

El Salvador . . . . . . . . . .

Jamaica . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Nicaragua . . . . . . . . . . .

Ecuador . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Honduras . . . . . . . . . . .

Guatemala . . . . . . . . . . .

Colombia . . . . . . . . . . . .

Mexico . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Panama . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Belize . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Dominican Republic . .

Trinidad and Tobago..

Peru . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Brazil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Venezuela . . . . . . . . . . .

Bolivia . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Cuba . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

French Guiana . . . . . . .

Surinam . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guyana . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Totals . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Tropical Asia:

Nepal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sri Lanka . . . . . . . . . . . .

Thailand . . . . . . . . . . . .

Brunei . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Malaysia . . . . . . . . . . . .

Laos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Philippines . . . . . . . . . .

Bangladesh . . . . . . . . . .

Viet Nab . . . . . . . . . . . .

Indonesia . . . . . . . . . . .

Pakistan . . . . . . . . . . . .

Burma . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Totals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216.634 0.6 0.61 Kampuchea. . . . . . . . . .

Tropical America:

Paraguay . . . . . . . . . . . . 4,070

Costa Rica . . . . . . . . . . 1,638

Haiti . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

1.2

O.7

4.7

4.0

3.8

India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Bhutan . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Papua New Guinea . . .

Totals . . . . . . . . . . . . .

141

67

4,496

14,250

3,797

4,442

46,400

46,250

4,165

1,354

629

208

69,680

357,480

31,870

44,010

1,455

8,900

14,830

18,475

678,655

1,941

1,659

9,235

323

20,995

8,410

9,510

927

8,770

113,895

2,185

31,941

7,548

51,841

2,100

34,230

305,510

1.6

1.6

0.9

0.6

1.7

0.6

2.0

5.0

0.1

0.2

3.6

2.7

1.8

7.5

0.1

129.1

37.1

23.1

3.2

3.0

2.7

2.4

2.4

2.0

1.8

1.3

0.9

0.7

0.6

0.4

0.4

0.4

0.4

0.2

0.1

c

c

c

2.1

0.1

0.1

0.2

1.2

1.4

2.3

0.2

b

0.2

0.7

b

0.8

1.3

0.1

1.5

11.0

0.2

0.6

4.3

3.5

2.7

1.5

1.2

1.2

1.0

0.9

0.7

0.5

0.3

0.3

0.3

0.3

0.1

0.1

0.6

a

From 1981-85.

b

Lessthan 0.05 forest hectares per capita.

cNo data; in most cases this is where the areas are very small.

SOURCES: Population Reference Bureau, World Population Data Sheet Washington, D.C; Food and Agriculture Organization/United Nations Environment Programme,

Tropical Forest Resources AssessrnenfF’reject (GEMS): Tropical Africa, Tropical Asia, Tropical Arnerica,4 vols. (Rome: FAO, 1981)

are deforested each year. Other African regions

with high deforestation rates include East Africa, where 1.4 percent of the closed forest capable of producing industrial wood is cleared

each year, and the nations of Burundi and

Rwanda, where the rate is 2.7 percent/yr. Large

areas of closed forest in Zaire and Cameroon

are cleared—262,000 ha/yr together—but like

Brazil these countries are forest-rich so the

rates do not seem so alarming as in the other

African nations.

Five nations in tropical America (Paraguay,

Costa Rica, Haiti, El Salvador, and Jamaica)

have deforestation rates of at least 3 percent/yr,

while another six (Nicaragua, Ecuador, Honduras, Guatemala, Columbia, and Mexico)convert atleast l percent/yr of their closed forest

to other uses or to unforested wasteland. Although deforestation in Brazil is low when expressed as a percent of the remaining forest(0.4

percent), it affects a large area—about l.5 million ha/yr. That is one-third of all the closed
Ch. 3—Status of Tropical Forests ● 7 7

Table 4.—Comparison of Tropical Countries’ Closed Forest Sizes, population Sizes, and Deforestation Rates — Closed forest Population Deforestatio n

—

Region/country slz e

a

slz e

b

rat e

c

Tropical Africa:

Kenya, . . . ., Small

Uganda Small

Ghana . . Small

Mozambique Small

Tanzania ., ., Small

Sudan ... ., Small

Burundi . ,

Rwanda ., ., .,

Benin . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sierra Leone . . .

Cha d

Upper Volt a

Zimbabwe.... 

Mali . . . . ,,

Niger . . . .

Senegal .

Malawi, ,. .,..,, .., ,.

SmalI

Small

SmalI

Small

SmalI

Small

SmalI

SmalI

SmalI

SmalI

SmalI

Guinea-Bissau . . Small

Togo, . . . . . Small

Equatorial Guinea . . . . . Small

Botswana . . Small

Gambia . . . . . . . . . . . Small

Namibia. , . . . . SmalI

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ivory Coast . Mediurn

Nigeria, . Medium

Angola ..,. . Medium

Ethiopia . Medium

Guinea . . . . . . . Medium

Zambia . . . . Medium

Somalia Medium

Liberia . . . ., . Medium

Central African Republic Medium

Madagascar Large

Cameroon Large

Zaire . . . . . . . . . . Large

Gabon ,., . Large

Congo, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Large

Tropical America:

Cuba . Small

Large

Large

Large

Large

Large

Large

Medium

Medium

Medium

Medium

Medium

Medium

Medium

Medium

Medium

Medium

Medium

SmalI

SmalI

Small

SmalI

Small

Small

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Large

Large

Large

Large

Medium

Medium

Medium

Small

SmalI

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Large

Large

Large

Small

SmalI

Large

Medium

Medium

Medium

1 ,7%

1,3

1.3

1.1

07

06

27

2.7

26

08

04

d

d

d

d

d

d

2.6

07

0.2

d

d

d

65

5.0

15

02

1.8

1.3

02

2.3

0.1

1,5

0.4

0,2

0.1

01

01

38

32

06

Tropica/
78 • Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

forest clearing each year in tropical America.

Colombia and Mexico together account for

another third.

Three-fifths of the closed forest cleared in

tropical Asia each year is logged-over productive forest and about one-quarter is previously

undisturbed forests. The highest deforestation

rate in Asia is 4.3 percent/yr in Nepal, and a

significant portion of this cutting occurs in

temperate forests on mountain watersheds. In

Sri Lanka, deforestation is 3.5 percent/yr, and

in Thailand it is 2.7 percent. Brunei, the Philippines, and Bangladesh also have very high

deforestation rates.

Rates of deforestation are calculated as the

estimated area deforested per year divided by

the estimated 1980 forest area. Thus, these

rates should not be confused with geometric

rates of change, such as population growth

rates. Acceleration or deceleration of deforestation rates are influenced not only by population growth but also by many other factors such

as rural to urban migration rates, land tenure

changes, and especially road-building activities. Much too little is known about how these

factors interact to predict how deforestation

rates will change over any long period.

The FAO/UNEP study does draw some inferences about changes in the accessibility of the

remaining forests. The area of closed tropical

forest cleared each year may be decreasing

slightly for tropical Africa as a whole during

the first half of the 1980’s, since during the

, previous decade the closed forests in heavily

populated countries of West Africa generally

were reduced to sites that are unattractive to

farmers. However, the rate probably is accelerating in some nations. Deforestation in

Latin America, on the other hand, probably is

increasing because additional forested areas

are becoming accessible as new roads and

bridges are built. In tropical Asia, deforestation is also thought to be increasing, but the

rate probably will level off in the 1990’s as the

forests are reduced to inaccessible areas or

sites where agricultural clearing is not worthwhile.

Based on current and planned rates of tree

plantation establishment, the areas reforested

in the Tropics as a whole are about one-tenth

of the areas deforested.

Deforestation also occurs in open tropical

forests, Trees are cut and burned both by traditional shifting agriculturists and by farmers intending to establish permanent croplands. Extracting wood for fuel or industrial use, fires,

and excessive grazing all cause deforestation

by reducing tree cover to less than 10 percent.

The open forest area data are poor, however,

and the estimates of deforestation rates are

even less precise. Deforestation in the dry open

forests is typically a gradual process and thus

is more difficult to see than in moist areas

where the tree canopies are more dense. Further, the open forest lands are often under the

jurisdiction of agencies that consider grazing

to be the main use of this land. Thus, the land

is likely to be classified by its herbaceous cover

rather than its tree cover.

The FAO/UNEP study does not list countryspecific deforestation rates for open forests, but

it does provide overall estimates of open forest

clearing for tropical Africa, America, and Asia.

These are shown in table 5. As a rough indicator of the pressure on open forest resources,

table A-7 in appendix A indicates open forest

area per capita for each of the 76 nations.

Resource Degradation

Resource degradation, the long-term loss of

productive potential, is much more difficult to

measure than deforestation. Reduction of soil

quality and loss of superior genetic types of

trees have been documented for specific forest

locations (6). But so little is known about the

ecology of the tropical forests or the economic

potential of the many tropical forest species that

degradation can be a highly subjective term.

Forest resource degradation is undoubtedly occurring (3,6) and, especially in the drier open

forests where recovery is slower, it may be a

more important change than deforestation (12),
Ch. 3—Status of Tropical Forests . 79

Table 5.—Annual Deforestation, 1981-85

Closed forests Open

Undisturbed Productive, logged Unproductive forests

(1,000 ha) (o/o) (1,000 ha) (

0

/ 0 ) (1,000 ha) (%) (1,000ha )

Area

Total open and reforested

closed forests annually

0

/ 0 ) ( 1

-

,000 ha) ( % ) (1,000 ha)

Tropical America . 1,299 0.29 1,867 2.78 1,173 0.74 1,272 0.59 5,611 0.63 535

Tropical Africa . . . 226 0.19 1,032 2.31 73 0.14 2,345 0.98 3,676 0.52 126

Tropical Asia. . . . . 395 0.39 1,278 1.28 153 0.15 190 0.61 2,016 0.60 438

Total . . . . . . . . . . 1,920 0.28 4,177 1.98 1,399 0.45 3,807 0.52 11,303 0.58 1,099

SOURCE Calculated from Food and Agriculture Organlz~lon/United Nations Ennvironment Programme, Tropical Forest Resources, Forestry Paper No 30 (Rome FAO, 1982)

Forest resource degradation has multiple

causes. Logging practices can cause degradation by damaging residual trees, damaging soil,

or failing to create an environment where natural regeneration of valuable forest species can

occur. Forests in tropical America and Africa

typically contain a large number of tree species

per hectare, but just a few are commercially

valuable for timber. Logging in these areas usually means felling and extracting only the bestshaped, large individuals of selected species.

Yet, substantial and lasting damage is often

done to the residual trees as a result of mechanized logging and skidding operations (10). As

much as one-half of the residual stand may be

damaged (e.g., broken stems and branches or

disturbed roots) and one-third of the logged

area may undergo soil damage (2).

Some tropical forests, such as the Dipterocarp forests of South and Southeast Asia, have

a large number of commercially valuable species per hectare and are clearcut. This can

cause soil erosion that reduces the potential for

natural regeneration. In tropical moist forests

a large proportion of the ecosystem’s nutrients

are tied up within the biomass of trees rather

than the soils (fig. 17). Thus, a large share of

the nutrients may be exported from the forest

with the logs. Machinery is available to harvest

whole trees and to use multiple species to produce pulpwood. Although these technologies

are not yet widely used in the Tropics, they

could accelerate the loss of soil fertility (2). Furthermore, many tropical tree species seed irregularly or at long intervals (once in 5 to 7 years).

If clearcutting is practiced, natural regeneration of these species may not occur. Clearcutting also reduces regeneration of trees, such

as Dipterocarps, whose seedlings need to grow

in partial shade (l).

Conifer and mangrove forests in all three

tropical regions and certain other forests in

tropical America (e.g., “cativo” and “sanjo”

forests of Panama and Colombia) also have a

low diversity and often are clearcut or cutover

so severely that soil conditions are unable to

support natural regeneration.

Even where clearcutting is not practiced, logging roads can lead to degradation, For example, in Sabah and the Philippines, approximately 14 percent of forest concession areas are

cleared for logging roads (3). Poorly designed

or constructed roads cause erosion and water

drainage problems and may increase the severity of Landslides,

Projection OF CHANGE S

The FAO/UNEP study provides some

estimates of rates at which forests are being

changed from one category to another during

the period 1980-85, although quantitative data

on natural resource degradation in areas that

remain classified as forest are not available. A

straight-line projection of the FAO/UNEP estimates, while not a forecast, can provide an

understandable way to describe the magnitude

of resource changes that may occur. Table 6

shows the projected forest areas for each of the

three tropical regions.
80 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Figure 17.—Plant Nutrient Loss Caused by Logging in Tropical v. Temperate Forests

Tropical Temperate

Nitrogen

10 ”/0

harvest

loss

Phosphorus

Potassium

2 %

390/0

280/o 14 ”/0

Calcium 20% 50/0

57 ”/0

7 “/0
Ch. 3—Status of Tropical Forests • 81

Table 6.–Forest Area Projections (1,000 ha)

Tropical Africa Tropical America Tropical Asia

Change Change Change

over 20 over 20 over 20

Forest Category 1980a 1985a

200 0

b years (O/. ) 1980a 1985 a

200 0

b years (o/o) 1980a 1985a

200 0

b years (

0

/ 0 )

Closed forests:

Undisturbed, productive ., 118,450 114,134 101,18 6 – 1 5 454,507 438,119 388,995 – 1 4 101,352 89,087 52,29 2 – 4 8

Logged, productive ., ., 42,848 40,911 35,10 0 – 1 8 66,622 67,281 69,258 +4 59,847 60,424 62,155 + 4

Managed, productive ... . 1,735 1,689 1,551 – 1 1 522 522 522 0 39.790 40,032 40,758 + 2

Fallow In closed forests 61,646 66,705 81,882 +33 108.612 116,303 139,376 +28 69,225 73.729 87.241 +26

Physically unproductive or

parks and protected areas 53,601 53,236 52,141 –3 157,004 151,140 133,548 –15 104,521 106,836 113,781 +9

Open forests:

Productive ., ., . . . . 169,218 159,555 130,566 – 2 3 142,887 136,787 118,487 – 1 7 8,530 8,075 6,710 –21

Unproductive ... ., ., . 317,227 315,167 308,987 – 3 74,110 73,850 73,070 – 1 22,418 21,923 20,438 -9

Fallow In open forests, 104,335 111,520 133,07 5 + 2 8 61,650 62,950 66,850 + 8 3,990 4,100 4.430 + 1 1

aSOURCE Food and Agriculture Organ!zat!on/United Nat Ions Environment Program me, Tropica/ Forest Resources, Forestry Paper No 30 (Rome FAO, 1982)

‘Extrapolated from current rates of change excludes plantations

This 20-year projection suggests that at current rates of logging and deforestation in tropical Africa, the area of undisturbed forest

would decline 15 percent by the year 2000.

Some of this is because timber harvest will convert undisturbed forest to logged forest. The

logged forest category also includes secondary

forest on land that is recovering from use for

shifting agriculture. However, in spite of these

additions, the logged forest area is decreasing

because this category incurs most of the deforestation for agriculture, Since the land does not

sustain continuous cropping, the forest fallow

area is expected to increase over the 20-year

period by one-third. Changes in the open forests of Africa would be even greater. The open

forest fallow is already larger than the fallow

area in Africa’s closed tropical forests. It would

increase by another 28 million ha as productive open forest is degraded to the unproductive category and both are cleared for shifting agriculture.

The projection shows a 14-percent reduction

in the area of productive undisturbed forest in

tropical America, It also shows a 4 percent increase in the area of logged forest, which suggests that logging of undisturbed forest outpaces clearing of logged forest only slightly.

Meanwhile, the forest fallow area in tropical

America would increase by only about half as

many hectares as are lost from the forest categories, implying that large areas are being converted to nonforest uses other than shifting agriculture. The main reason for converting forest land in tropical America in recent years has

been to make cattle pasture, although this use

generally is not sustainable in moist forest

areas. The area of closed forest that is unproductive for physical or legal reasons is also declining significantly, suggesting that this land

is not so inaccessible as its definition implies.

The change rates for tropical America’s open

forests imply degradation of forest from the

productive category, simultaneous clearing of

the unproductive forest, and a net increase in

open forest fallow that can account for only a

fraction of the reduction in the forest categories. Again, this means a net conversion of

open forest into cropland, grazing land, and

degraded land where forests do not regenerate

naturally, and it means a substantial decline

in the quality of the remaining open forest.

Tropical Asia shows the highest reduction

(21 percent) in undisturbed productive forest,

although such forest has already been reduced to an area much smaller than in tropical

Africa and America. The logged-over area is

increasing slightly, probably because forestry

departments in several Asian nations have

some control over the spontaneous clearing for

cropland that follows logging operations, The

area of forests unproductive for physical or

legal reasons is increasing in tropical Asia,

though whether this is a result of more parks

being established or of severe degradation of

the logged-over forests is not clear. Open forests in tropical Asia are not so extensive as in
82 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

—

the other regions, but the pattern of degradation and deforestation is similar.

Reviewing the FAO/UNEP study’s findings

on deforestation and resource degradation,

westoby (12) declares that the situation is most

alarming in the drier areas, where the data are

least precise:

Among the one and a half thousand million

or so hectares of open forest and shrub land,

there is an infinite gradation of forest and

shrub, ranging from less dry and reasonably

wooded forests at one end to extremely arid

shrub formations at the other, with the borderline between what can still be regarded as

forest and what is irretrievably lost, vague, dif1. Abraham, F., “Practices and Experience of

NASIPIT Lumber Co., Inc., and Affiliates in Its

Natural and Artificial Regeneration of Forests

and Plantations, ” Proceedings of a Conference

on Improved Utilization of Tropical Forests

(Madison, Wis: U.S. Forest Service Forest Prod-

~~cts Laboratory, 1978).

2. Ewel, J., “Environmental Implications of Tropical Forest Utilization, ” InternaticmaZ Symposium on Tropical Forests Utilization and Conservation, F. Mergen (cd.) (New Haven, Corm.:

Yale University Press, 1981), pp. 156-167.

3. Food and Agriculture Organization/United Nations Environment Programme, Tropical Forest

Resources Assessment Project (GEMS): Tropical Africa, Tropical Asia, Tropical America (4

vols.) (Rome: FAO, 1981).

4. Food and Agriculture Organization/United Nations Environment Programme, TropicaZ Forest

Resources, Forestry Paper No. 30 (Rome: FAO,

1982).

5. Gallegos, C,, et al., “Technologies for Reforestation of Degraded Lands in the Tropics, ” OTA

commissioned paper, 1982.

ficult to identify from aerial photography or

satellite imagery, and by no means easy to be

sure about when one is actually there standing

in it. What is happening to these forests today, under the impact of a variety of pressures, can best be visualized as a steady pushing along the spectrum, a general downgrading, with the result that very substantial areas

every year slide out of sight and can no longer

be considered as forest on even the most generous definition. But what should be giving

concern is not so much the 4 million or so hectares that are sliding off the visible spectrum

as the general degradation which is sapping

away at the drier tropical forests through the

whole spectrum,

REFERENCES

6, Myers, N., Conversion of Tropical Moist Forests (Washington, D. C.: National Academy of

Sciences, 1980),

7. Schmithusen, F., “Recent Trends of Forest

Legislation in Developing Countries,” Proceedings: XVII IUFRO World Congress, Division 4 (Vienna: International Union of Forest

Research Organizations, 1981).

8. Sedjo, R., and Clawson, M., GZobaZ Forests

(Washington, D, C,: Resources for the Future,

1983).

9. Spears, J., Tropical Reforestation: An Achievable

GoaZ? (Washington, D. C,: World Bank, 1983).

10. United Nations Economic, Social, and Cultural

Organization, Tropical Forest Ecosystems (Paris: UNESCO/UNEP/FAO, 1978).

11. Weber, F., “Combating Desertification With

Trees,” OTA commissioned paper, 1982.

12, Westoby, J., “Halting Tropical Deforestation:

The Role of Technology,” OTA commissiorltxl

paper, 1982,
Chapter 4

Causes of Deforestation and

Forest Resource Degradation
Page

Highlights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Historical Context . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Soil: Its Relationship to Deforestation and Land Degradation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

Visible Agents of Forest Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

Subsistence. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

Shifting Cultivators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

Livestock Raisers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

Fuelwood Gatherers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

Fires, , . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

Warfare, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94

Commercial Resource Use . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

Commercial Agriculturalists and Cattle Ranchers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

Loggers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

Underlying Causes of Forest Degradation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

Property Rights and Control of Forest Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

Transformation of Forestry Administrations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99

Chapter 4 References. . .

Table

Table No.

7. The Main Soil Constra

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100

Page

nts in the Amazon Basin Under Native Vegetation 88
Chapter 4

Causes of Deforestation and

Forest Resource Degradation

HIGLIGHTS

• Tropical deforestation and forest resource

degradation are caused by subsistence

agriculturalists, livestock raisers, firewood

collectors, and loggers.

● The agents of tropical forest loss vary in

prominence among the three major tropical

forest regions (American, Africa, and Asia),

Many times, the combination of these activities exacerbates forest resource problems.

In many tropical areas, political, ecocomic,

and social forces lead to overexploitation

and underinvestment in management of

tropical forest resources.

Regardless of what activities are responsible-for forest removal from tropical lands,

the soil plays a large role in determining

whether agriculture, new forest growth, or

barren wastelands will replace the forest in

the long run.

HISTORICAL CONTEXT

Deforestation of tropical lands is not solely

a recent phenomenon, In fact, the main loss

of forests in some places occurred in the 19th

century, when forests were cleared to establish plantations of export crops such as sugar,

abaca, coffee, indigo, and tobacco (36).

Sugar plantations swept away the Caribbean

forests in turn: first Barbados, then the Leeward Islands, Jamaica, and Haiti. The slave rebellion in Haiti left the country in ruins and

made possible the sugar boom in Cuba.

Cuba’s story is typical and better documented than that of other parts of the Caribbean (7). Upon reaching the northeast coast of

Cuba in 1492, Christopher Columbus was impressed by the island’s rich forests. A few years

later, priest Fray Bartolome wrote that it was

possible to walk from one end of the island to

the other without leaving the shade of trees.

In 1812, forests still covered 89 percent of

Cuba. But thereafter, fields of sugar cane began

to replace the forests. Fire and axe were used

to clear forests for ranching as well. Forest

cover had shrunk to 53 percent by 1900. with

the declaration of the Republic in 1902, and the

subsequent heavy influx of foreign capital into

the Cuban economy, forests continued to shrink,

Small farms were swallowed up by large plantations. The farmers were driven to eke out a

living in the hills where their struggle for survival, together with the insatiable fuel demands

of the sugar mills, took a heavy toll on the upland forests. By 1946, forest cover was down

to 11 percent of the land area. The average

yearly deforestation had been 1.7 percent of the

forest area that existed in 1900.

The history of Brazil, which was the world’s

largest sugar producer until the middle of the

17th century, illustrates the severe damage that

deforestation can inflict. The northeastern region of the country is notorious for its poverty. The densely populated coastal region receives substantial rainfall and when the area

85
86 • Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

was forest-covered, its soils were described as

fertile and rich in humus. But the forests were

cleared for sugar plantations, which were abandoned as the soils wore out. Now the infertile,

eroded soils only support savanna. Rainfall is

rapidly shed as runoff so that streams and storages dry up during protracted droughts. As a

consequence, the region frequently gives rise

to mass emigrations (50).

Similarly, little of South China’s tropical forests remain except in the extreme southwest

and in the interior of Hainan Island. Fire and

cultivation took a heavy toll as these forests

came under increased human pressure about

1,000 years ago (45). Fire was used widely to

clear forests for grazing lands and croplands.

Overgrazing and poor agricultural practices

further reduced the likelihood that forests

would ever reestablish naturally. Timber was

used to build houses, temples, and ships, and

wood was cut to supply fuel for cooking and

heating. Forests probably were eliminated in

part to destroy the habitat of dangerous wild

animals or to minimize the hiding places for

bandits. Today’s partly grass covered, eroded,

and depopulated hills and mountains in South

China attest to the severity of past land-use

practices and the inability of the forest to

regenerate naturally (46).

In the African Sahel, resource degradation

of dry forests has for centuries been caused by

a combination of processes including dry and

erratic climate, brush fires, trans-Saharan

trade, gum arabic trade, agricultural expansion, and cattle. Herodotus and others, writing

around 450 B. C., described an active transSaharan trade based on precious stones called

“carbuncles,” gold dust, and slaves. This trade

had great adverse impacts on the land. For instance, large areas were cleared of Acacia raddiana to produce charcoal. In the late 18th century, huge caravans of 4,000 camels and 1,000

men would stop at the desert margin and cut

wood for charcoal to cook and trade. The charcoal even was used as emergency rations for

the camels (34).

The resulting encroachment of the desert

margin encouraged a southward shift of

drysteppe vegetation. This, in turn, altered eco-
Ch. 4—Causes of Deforestation and Forest Resource Degradation • 87

logical relationships and amplified the impact

of hazards such as drought (27). Even though

the human populations in the Sahel had suffered periodic droughts for centuries, far

greater harm was caused during the 1970’s

when drought was coupled with a seriously degraded natural resource base. This is the expected response of a resource system where

there is self-perpetuating degradation. The

problem increases gradually for a long time,

but it is typically a logarithmic progression and

can lead to catastrophe (11).

For centuries, tropical deforestation has been

associated with poverty (17). People displaced

by development processes are often the direct

agent of deforestation. While peasant cultivators and herders have done the actual tree cutting and burning, the causes lie in a chain of

events that have left these people few options

but to destroy the forest or starve.

SOIL: ITS RELATIONSHIP TO DEFORESTATION

AND LAND DEGRADATION

Soils, by themselves, are not a direct cause

of tropical deforestation. They do, however, set

the stage in many tropical regions for the practice of shifting cultivation, which causes deforestation. When it is cleared, forest land commonly loses its fertility, produces declining

crop yields, and ultimately is abandoned. If

forest soils could sustain agriculture, continual

relocation of farm fields would be less likely

to occur and fewer forests would be cut down.

But few tropical forest soils can sustain productive agriculture over the long term. The

presence of large areas of either heavily

leached soils of low fertility, thin erosion-prone

soils, or dry soils makes the establishment of

permanent farming sites extremely difficult.

Therefore, regardless of what activities are responsible for cutting tropical forests, the underlying soil materials play a large role in determining whether agriculture, new forest

growth, or barren wastelands will be the longterm results.

A simple but useful way of discussing tropical forest soil is to divide the forest lands into

three categories:

1. hot, wetlands;

2. arid/semiarid lands; and

3. mountainous lands.

Although the soils on certain deltas, young

volcanic materials, and flood plains may be fertile, most soils in hot, wetlands have significant fertility problems. These soils are formed

by chemical weathering of rocks. High

temperatures and high rainfall combine to accelerate leaching of nutrients from the rock and

soil mineral particles. The residual minerals

tend to be composed mostly of aluminum, silicon, iron, oxygen, and water, a chemical composition so restricted that many food or tree

crops planted on such soils will have stunted

growth or will not survive. In some of the soils,

silicon and iron concentrations are so low, and

aluminum so high, that the soil may approach

or reach the composition of bauxite, an aluminum ore. *

These soils have other problems when fertilized with certain essential plant nutrients.

Phosphorus becomes so tightly held by certain

clay minerals, aluminum, iron, and manganese

oxides that plants cannot extract enough for

their own benefit (4,13). In the Amazon Basin,

*See Van Wambeke (47) and Fripiat and Herbillon (12) for more

detailed information. These are good references on soils of the

hot, wet tropics that not only contain the commonly cited information on agriculture, soil names, etc., but also provide discussions of mineralogical and chemical processes.
88 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

for example, 16 percent of the soils suffer this

problem. Overall, 90 percent of the Basin’s soils

(table 7) have a phosphorus deficiency (37).

Some 15 percent of the Amazon Basin soils ‘

have a poor ability to hold potassium and other

common plant nutrients (low cation exchange

capacity). If such nutrients are added to the soil

as fertilizer, they can be expected to be leached

away rapidly (4,13).

In addition, an estimated 2 percent of these

soils will harden irreversibly upon drying (47),

severely limiting reestablishment of vegetation

(21). In some cases, soil hardening is so complete that the hardened material can be crushed

and used as gravel for road building (24).

Undisturbed tropical forests have an efficient

nutrient recycling system. As long as the forest

is undisturbed, the nutrient supply remains

stable. Soil shaded by the closed forest canopy

is cool enough for the abundant organic material to decay gradually. Thus, the forest soils

typically have a substantial humus content and

can hold the nutrients released by microorganisms until they are absorbed back into the

web of tree roots to be recycled again. Slashand-burn agriculture takes advantage of the

humus and of the rapid release of nutrients

that occurs when the vegetation is burned. But

as soil temperatures rise, the humus is oxidized

rapidly, and as the forest is removed, the organic inputs are reduced. Soil with less humus

is less able to hold nutrients, and when rain

falls the soil fertility fades. If the land is returned to forest fallow soon enough, a new

growth of trees can reestablish the soil’s humus, the web of roots, and the recycling system.

In hot, dry lands physical breakdown of

rocks and soil minerals plays a larger role in

soil formation. In this process, the particles become smaller, but the chemical composition remains nearly the same and leaching of soil nutrients is low. Physical disintegration can occur in a number of ways; for instance, day and

night temperature variations cause rocks and

minerals to expand and contract and, in time,

crack. Salts and other substances collect in

cracks, expanding when wet and contracting

when dry, further breaking the grains (3).

Another mechanical way particles become

smaller is through impact of other windblown

grains. And, of course, the growth of plant

roots is a powerful agent in breaking up and

holding rock and soil particles.

In arid/semiarid areas, nutrients needed by

many plants commonly are in the soil but become available to the plants only if sufficient

water is available (6). If most of the water evaporates from the soil surface rather than percolating down into the soil, dissolved solids or

salts can accumulate as crusts at or near the

land surface in concentrations that few plants

can tolerate (16).

Mountainous lands, though generally cooler

than the other two categories, exist in both wet

and dry climates and, thus, either chemical

or physical processes may dominate. Rather

than percolating into the ground to form thick

soils through chemical weathering, much of the

Table 7.—The Main Soil Constraints in the Amazon Basin Under Native Vegetation

Millions of Percentage of

Soil constraint hectares Amazon Basin

Phosphorus deficiency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 436 90

Aluminum toxicity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315 73

Low potassium reserves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242 56

Poor drainage and flooding hazard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116 24

High phosphorus fixation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 16

Low cation exchange capacity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 15

High erodibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 8

No major limitations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ., . . . . . . . . . . . 32 6

Steep slopes (>30 percent) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 6

Laterite hazard if subsoil exposed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 4

SOURCE: P. A. Sanchez, D. E, Bandy, J. H. Villachica, and J, J. Nlcholaides, “Amazon Basin Soils Management for Continuous

Crop Production,” Science 216:821-827, 1982.
Ch. 4—Causes of Deforestation and Forest Resource Degradation . 89

rainfall runs off the land surface to streams.

The soils that do form are easily eroded. Consequently, soils in mountainous lands, in general, are likely to be rocky and thin, except perhaps on the lower slopes (6). Deforestation in

mountainous regions is one of today’s most

acute and serious ecological problems (10).

The presence of organic matter is an important factor in the soil’s productivity because it:

● contributes to the development of soil aggregates, which enhance root development

and reduce the energy needed to work the

soil;

● increases the air- and water-holding capacity of the soil, which is necessary for

●

●

●

plant growth as well as helping to reduce

erosion;

releases essential nutrients as it decays;

holds nutrients from fertilizer in storage

until the plants need them; and

enhances the abundance and distribution

of vital biota (3 I).

Therefore, deforestation, by reducing organic

matter, lowers the potential productivity of

tropical lands. Thus, when tropical land is

abandoned, natural regeneration of the forest

may not occur, and replanting the forest may

be difficult.

VISIBLE AGENTS OF FOREST CHANGE

Subsistence

Shifting Cultivators

Shifting cultivation is common in the Tropics. The techniques are basically similar everywhere: farmers fell and burn the woody vegetation; then cultivate the cleared ground for 1,

2, or 3 years; and then abandon the site for a

long period to forest or brush cover (forest fallow). There are four reasons for shifting to new

fields: decreasing soil fertility, reduced soil

moisture, pest outbreaks, or excessive weeds

that raise labor requirements. Long fallow periods generally allow the land to recuperate

and become productive once more.

Shifting cultivators fall into two broad classes:

indigenous groups and recent occupants. Indigenous groups have long experience with the

local environment and use farming practices

that tend to be resource conserving. These

farmers traditionally have practiced shifting

cultivation using methods particular to them

and woven into their family and tribal customs,

and sometimes into their religion. Usually the

choice of land to be cleared is based on knowledge of nature and soils. The timing of various

agricultural activities is determined by specific

indications of nature, such as the blossoming

of wild plants, the emergence of particular insects, and so on.

In contrast, recent occupants generally are

less knowledgeable about local environments

and apply farming systems that are more destructive of resources (23). These people also

cut and burn part of the forest. But unlike

native populations, they may farm the same

plot until the fertility of the soil is exhausted

or shorten the fallow period so that the vegetation cannot recover. This type of cultivator is

often a “colonist” who comes to the forests for

land because ownership there is ill-defined or

badly protected.

Generally, the new lands are only marginally productive for agriculture. In addition, recent occupants bring with them dietary preferences and agricultural technologies that are

suited to intensive culture of the more fertile

lowlands. By applying inappropriate farming

systems on fragile soils, they often destroy the

land’s productivity.

A large part* of the agricultural population

of Latin America farms on steep slopes. Population growth often leads to increased clearance of forested watersheds and forces many

farmers to migrate down the slopes, clearing

*In most of the tropical countries of Latin America, over 30

percent of the agricultural population is on steep slopes, including 50 percent in Peru and Colombia, 40 percent in Ecuador,

65 percent in Guatemala and Haiti, and 45 percent in Mexico

(33).

25-287 0 - 84 - 7
90 • Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Photo credit: H. Bollinger

Forested hillsides such as this one in Guatemala are

being cleared for agriculture throughout the Tropics

in part because of population increases and

inequitable land distribution

the forests as they go, even into the inhospitable

humid lowlands of the Amazon Basin. In recent decades, colonization by farmers who

practice shifting cultivation has taken place

throughout tropical Latin America. Colonization was primarily spontaneous in the 1940’s

and l950’s, but became more systematically

planned by government agencies in the 1960’s

and 1970’s.

Even traditional shifting cultivation practices

are breaking down under increasing population pressures. Commercial exploitation and

subsequent colonization leave less land for traditional cultivators, With limited land and increasing populations, fallow periods have decreased. These shorter cycles do not allow

enough time for forests to restore adequate soil

fertility. The result is even more extensive forest clearance and a gradual decline in human

living conditions.

It is easy to attribute recent increases in shifting cultivation to population pressure and inadequate land outside the forests. But other important factors are involved as well. In many

places, good farmable land is reserved for the

privileged and not used intensively to produce

needed food crops for domestic consumption.

Governments may build highways and promote colonization projects as alternatives to

land reform (as has happened in Latin America). Some colonization projects are viewed as

an effective way to occupy empty territory.

This is especially true near frontiers in Brazil

and Mexico (28). Still, indications are that

forest clearing by peasant farmers will continue to expand with or without government

encouragement and assistance.

Livestock Raisers

Nomadic herders in open forests are analogous to shifting agriculturalists in wetter tropical forests. In arid and semiarid areas, nomadic herding is a major land use (43). At one time,

the nomadic way of life probably did not degrade the limited resources of dry regions significantly because there was a long fallow period before an area was reused. It is likely that

an ecological balance among man, animals,

and the surrounding natural vegetation existed.

This has changed, however.

Livestock symbolize wealth and provide barter materials and insurance against future

disasters (44). Cattle herds have increased in

the Sahel in response to economic conditions.

For example, the French-speaking Sahel had

a fivefold increase in cattle during the 25 years

preceding the 1968 drought (14). Cattle, however, are poorly adapted to Sahelian conditions: their conversion efficiency of plants to

animal products is poor; they require substantial quantities of water; and they are highly

prone to stress, Further, their feeding habits

are incompatible with the Sahelian environ-
Ch. 4—Causes of Deforestation and Forest Resource Degradation • 91

ment. Since cattle are largely grazers, not

browsers, they must be moved very frequently or they may completely eliminate perennial

grasses. The reduction of dry-season grasses

triggers a number of degradation processes

once the seasonal rains begin. Raindrops striking the soil surface raise mud spatters that seal

the soil surface to water infiltration. Then overland waterflow erodes the soil.

High-yielding wells have been built during

recent droughts to alleviate chronic livestock

water shortages. This has led to a rapid increase in the number and size of herds of cattle and small ruminants, which in turn have

overgrazed the land in the vicinity of wells.

Natural vegetation has disappeared in generally concentric circles around the wells until the

grazing resources are so distant from the well

that animals nearly starve before they reach

forage sites. Meanwhile, parts of the remaining trees in the vicinity of the wells are lopped

off for animal feed, and goats overbrowse

shrubs.

These effects accelerate desertification, a

process that spreads desert-like patches around

villages or waterholes as a consequence of continued excessive pressure on the natural environment. Desertification is serious in tropical

Africa, Latin America, and Asia.

Fuelwood Gathers

Cutting trees and woody vegetation to meet

the growing demand for fuelwood has accelerated the process of deforestation and now

seriously threatens the environmental stability of large areas. Such situations prevail in Africa (especially in the arid and semiarid areas
92 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

south of the Sahara, in the east and southeast,

and in mountainous areas); in Asia (in the Himalayas and the hills of South Asia); and in

Latin America (mostly in the Andean Plateau,

the arid and semiarid areas of the Pacific coast

in South America, and in the Caribbean).

Wood provides two-thirds of all fuel used in

Africa, nearly one-third in Asia, and one-fifth

in Latin America (z). Among the poor in tropical countries, it is often women and children

who collect subsistence firewood. When possible, they avoid felling whole trees. Instead they

lop off small branches, twigs, and roots and

pick up dead wood from the ground. Men are

more likely to collect wood for commercial sale

and are more to fell whole trees.

Demand for wood fuels is concentrated in

towns, cities, and densely populated farmlands,

so the impacts of fuelwood cutting and gathering are greatest around such areas. Eventually, the intense pressures around urban places

can lead not only to destruction of the forest

but also to complete removal of tree and shrub

cover.

It is the commercialization of fuelwood collection that most threatens forests. As towns

grow, markets develop for traditionally noncommercial firewood and charcoal. The relatively rich in small towns and fringes of cities,

create the demand, while the poor, who are

often landless, take advantage of an opportunity to gain income (38). However, if the mar-
Ch. 4—Causes of Deforestation and Forest Resource Degradation ● 93

kets place a price on wood above the price of

collecting and transporting it, the trees become

valuable. In this case someone is likely to claim

ownership and to take over cutting from the

landless poor (l).

Fuelwood cutting and gathering often have

adverse effects on the land. Maintaining tree

and bush cover in arid and semiarid areas is

important to prevent desertification. Where

fuelwood is available, animal dung and crop

residuals are used as fertilizers and compost,

but when wood becomes too scarce, these materials are diverted to become fuels. For the

very poor, wood scarcity may mean the elimination of cooked food, boiled water, and an

essential minimum level of warmth.

Firewood gathering is not the major cause

of deforestation in Latin America, but the impacts are great on tropical mountain vegetation. Large circles around mountain settlements have been denuded of woody vegetation.

The use of wood and charcoal for industrial

fueI is particularly important in Brazil, where

it provides 40 percent of the fuel used in the

steel industry (42).

Fuelwood gathering has had detrimental effects in Africa and Asia. In the sparsely populated Sahel, areas surrounding population centers are largely deforested. The affected areas

continue to grow each year. Until recently,

fuelwood was hauled as far as 50 kilometers

(km) to large Sahelian towns; now, it is commonly hauled 100 km. Within 40 km of Ouagadougou, the capital of Upper Volta, virtually

all trees accessible to roads have been cut to

provide fuel for the city’s inhabitants. Only a

few years ago, fuelwood could be collected in

the immediate vicinity of most households;

now people must walk half a day to reach it.

Since collection and transport of fuelwood

in rural areas is mainly by human and animal

labor, its free supply generally is limited to

areas within walking distance of the consumer.

Rural people will seek fuelwood from more distant locations until travel time becomes too

great; then consumption may drop. A survey

of India showed that most villages located inside or adjoining the forest meet their total fuel

requirements from the forest. At localities within 10 km of the forest boundaries, about 70 percent of the fuelwood used comes from the forest; beyond 10 km, the use of fuelwood from

the forests diminishes steadily until at about

15 km it is almost nil (22). However, in nations

such as Thailand, with developed road systems

and adequate trucks, urban consumers may use

fuel or charcoal from much farther away.

Fires

Repeated burning has altered vast areas of

tropical forest and woodland. Natural fires are

caused by lightning, volcanic activity, spontaneous combustion, or sparks from rockfalls.

The majority of manmade fires are set intentionally. Hunters use fire to drive game and to

clear bush so that game can be seen more easily. Gatherers use it to encourage the growth of

desirable plants and to discourage the growth

of others, and to smoke honey bees out of their

hives. Farmers use it to clear and fertilize land

for planting. Pastoral people use fire to kill insects and snakes and to discourage predators.

Other people use fire to ease travel through

densely vegetated areas, to make war on neighboring people, or for other reasons. The primary reason, however, is to improve the quality

of grasses for grazing.

Repeated fires generally impoverish vegetation and deplete soil through losses of organic

matter, reduced nutrient cycling, and reductions in soil microbe populations. Regeneration

may be rapid, but plant succession depends on

a host of factors including the frequency and

intensity of fire. After frequent burnings, fastgrowing, light-loving second growth trees and

shrubs eventually are replaced by savannas

(permanent grass-covered plains). Fires can

convert closed forests to savanna and can extend conifer forests at the expense of the broadleaved forests. Such degradation leads to the

establishment of plant communities adapted to

physiologically drier conditions.

Seasonally dry forests are being more severely modified than wet forests. Many dry tropical
94 Ž Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

forests were converted to savannas by human

activities long ago. Some savannas are natural

grasslands, but these have been expanded beyond their natural boundaries by forest clearing for agriculture and by manmade fires. In

many places, it is difficult to determine what

savanna is natural and what is derived from

human activity, since all savanna vegetation

is adapted to frequent fires and appears similar

regardless of origin.

Warfare

Warfare has adverse effects on tropical forests. Bombing and shelling of some islands in

the Pacific during World War II nearly eliminated the forest cover and the effects remained

visible years later (48). Forested areas of Central America, Vietnam, Laos, and Kampuchea

more recently have suffered the effects of military conflicts. Dense patterns of bomb and

shell craters can eliminate forests or severely

damage the trees. In some large areas, forests

were removed by plowing and bulldozing to

eliminate protective cover for enemy troops.

Attempts were made to burn large tracts of

dead, defoliated forests, but these largely were

unsuccessful (41).

Between 1961 and 1971, about 14 percent of

the land surface of Vietnam was repeatedly

sprayed with herbicides and defoliants, adversely affecting the forests and mangroves

(29). A recent examination of Vietnam’s forests
Ch. 4—Causes of Deforestation and Forest Resource Degradation . 95

some 12 years after the war shows that the

long-term effect of spraying on inland forests

depended on the dosage (30). An obstacle to reforestation of these damaged lands, which now

are covered with coarse grasses, is uncontrolled burning by village farmers even though

the land is more suitable for growing trees than

farm crops.

The impact of defoliants has been most severe on mangrove forests, as much as 40 percent of which were sprayed. Natural regeneration has brought the regrowth of some minor

“weed” species, but commercial species have

returned naturally on only about 1 percent of

the mangrove area (49). Some replanting has

occurred, however, and commercial species

have been reestablished

Commercial Resource Use

Commercial Agriculture and

Cattle Ranchers

Few data are available on the amount of deforestation now caused by commercial farming, which usually involves permanent fields

with perennial bush and tree crops. This was

once a major cause of tropical deforestation,

but now it is a less significant cause than shifting cultivation and ranching.

Cattle raising plays a major role in the loss

of tropical moist forests in the Brazilian Amazon and in Central America. In contrast, it is

not a major factor in moist regions of tropical

Asia and Africa, where shifting cultivation and

n some areas. logging are more important.

Photo credit: H. Bo//inger

Conversion of moist tropical forest to temporary grazingland in Panama, a common scene throughout

Latin America. Most of the beef is exported
96 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Pastures commonly are abandoned after 10

to 15 years of grazing because of declining soil

fertility, erosion, soil compaction, invasion of

unpalatable weeds, and low productivity. In

parts of the Brazilian Amazon, ranches only

5 years old fail because of pasture degradation

(19). Pasture instability and degradation result

in greater pressure to clear new forests.

The area of pasture in Central America more

than doubled between 1950 and 1975, almost

entirely at the expense of undisturbed forests.

Between 1966 and 1978,8 million ha of Brazil’s

Amazon forests were converted into 336 cattle ranches supporting 6 million head of cattle. In addition, some 20,000 other ranches of

varying sizes have been established (25).

There are several ways that forests are converted to pasture in Latin America. On large

land holdings, forests are often leveled, burned,

and seeded with native or introduced grasses.

Owners of smaller holdings commonly clear

their land by making arrangements with peasant shifting cultivators whereby the peasants

clear the land, farm it for 1 or 2 years, and then

seed it to pasture and move on (9,32). In southeastern Panama and probably elsewhere, professional deforesters move into national forests,

cut the forest, plant grass, and then sell plots

as “improved land” (28).

Land consolidation, however, is probably the

most common means of converting forest to

pasture. Agricultural colonists leave their fields

and move elsewhere when yields decline significantly or losses to pests or weeds become

too severe. The land is abandoned or sold to

more successful neighbors, to a second wave

of settlers with more capital, to speculators, or

to cattle ranchers. Small plots may then be

combined into larger, more efficient units that

sometimes are used for tree crops but more

commonly for pasture. This process is widespread in tropical Latin America (8).

A number of factors account for the acceleration of cattle ranch development. Cattle ranching, having its roots in Spain and Portugal, always has been a prestigious occupation in

Latin America (32). Furthermore, a tradition

exists in the Amazon and elsewhere in Latin

America that it is the act of deforestation, or

other “improvement,” which gives one the

right of possession of land. The capital costs

of ranching are low compared with commercial crop production, and the market for beef

is steady or expanding. Government incentives

minimize the costs of credit, land, taxes, and

production for the conversion of rainforest to

pastureland. Finally, strong export markets

have encouraged expanded beef production in

this region of the world. U.S. companies annually import as much as 330 million lb of Central American beef. That is 25 percent of the

region’s annual beef production and 90 percent

of its beef exports (39), though this imported

beef only amounts to about 2 percent of annual

U.S. beef consumption.

Several researchers have recommended that

the United States ban beef imports from Latin

American countries where cattle raising plays

a major role in tropical forest destruction [28,

39), or that the United States import no beef

from Central America (26). A number of questions would have to be answered before legislation for the first suggestion could be seriously

considered. How much time must pass between

forest clearing and cattle grazing to avoid the

proposed ban? How could it be proven that

beef from a particular country is produced primarily at the expense of tropical forests? Who

would make the judgment that the beef is produced primarily at the expense of tropical

forests? Who would monitor cattle grazing

operations day to day in each Latin American

country? Such questions need to be examined

carefully and answered in detail to deal fairly

with other countries. The second suggestion

is simpler than the first but the foreign policy

implications are equally complex.

A variety of inducements for cattle operations come from international organizations

and development agencies. For instance, international agencies and governments provide

loans for cattle development, including credit

for individual ranchers. Between 1971 and

1977, international and bilateral agencies provided more than $3.5 billion in loans and technical assistance to Latin America to improve
Ch. 4—Causes of Deforestation and Forest Resource Degradation . 97

livestock production and meat processing (28).

In sum, the growth of cattle ranching reflects

not only markets but government and international assistance, low cost loans, and other

incentives.

Loggers

Commercial logging causes deforestation in

moist broadleaved and conifer forests, especially in Asia, West and Central Africa, and parts

of Latin America. It is expected that as the

Asian wood supply is exhausted, the Latin

American share of international trade in tropical wood will increase accordingly, from 16

percent today to about 40 percent by the year

2000 (25). Most tropical American softwoods—

and the more valuable hardwoods of tropical

Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central America—

already are depleted. Most of the remaining

timber is in the Amazon, where most of it remains inaccessible and unsuitable for current

methods of selective logging.

Logging practices in the tropical forests differ from those in temperate woodlands. Logging companies have markets for only a few

tree species, and these are widely scattered in

highly diverse tropical forests. For example, in

the Ivory Coast only 25 species are regularly

cut out of the hundreds available (25). Thus,

extensive areas must be worked to get enough

logs, and this can be quite destructive. Cutting

one tree commonly brings down other trees

around it. Additionally, species diversity decreases with repeated selective cutting.

Logging practices frequently influence subsequent natural regeneration and rarely are fol-
98 •Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

lowed by assisted regeneration or intentional

reforestation. For timber concessionaires in

Asia, tropical silviculture has been a rationalization for cutting economically valuable trees

rather than a technique for securing forest regeneration (35). National forestry departments

usually exercise only weak control over logging

concessionaires.

removal reinforce one another. Networks of

forest roads designed to transport timber provide entry for farmers. Through a sequence of

felling, burning, and cultivation, forest lands

are actively degraded to low productivity

farms, which in turn maybe converted to lowgrade grasslands through further burning and

grazing. An adequately trained forestry staff

Even though loggers may gradually degrade rarely is available to police either the logging

forest quality, the relationship between loggers operations or the movement of cultivators into

the concession. and cultivators exacerbates the rapid depletion

of forest resources. These two agents of forest

UNDERLYING CAUSES OF FOREST DEGRADIATION

In most of the Tropics sustainable forestry Properety Rights and Control Of

and agriculture practices are not being developed and applied. The underlying causes of

this failure are institutional more than technical (8,15).

Institutions include national, state, or provincial forestry departments as well as international donor and technical assistance agencies.

Institutions also comprise the broad set of rules

and arrangements that assign rights to resources, define roles, and govern individual

and collective ownerships. Institutions define

what individuals can and cannot do, what they

can expect others to do or refrain from doing,

and what they can expect the government to

do on their behalf (15). Institutions set the rules

by which policies are applied to produce desired results; policies and actions correspond

to the extent that institutions are effective.

Forest degradation represents a case of

chronic institutional failure. The two most important factors are:

1. the pattern of property rights and the absence of effective common property institutions for forest-land management, and

Z. the ineffectiveness of State and national

forestry agencies.

Forest Resources

Forests supply rural people with food, fuelwood, and fodder. A large portion of both

moist and dry tropical forests is government

owned and people gather freely what they

need. Sometimes the government allows such

gathering, but more often people take natural

forest products whether it is legal or not because the forests are not well policed. Although

some forest land is owned by villages or tribes,

the individual quest for wood and fodder often

overwhelms the collective need to sustain

forests. The same principles hold true for other

resources. As pressures mount to fulfill human

needs, overuse and mismanagement of resources lead to degradation and deforestation.

Growing population is a major force behind

this increasing demand, but property rights

status (or lack thereof) is an underlying cause

of the failure to meet the demand with sustainable production. Use without management is

characteristic of natural resource systems that

lack clearly defined property rights. When any

potentially renewable resource is used in common, no user will delay use or otherwise invest in efforts to sustain the renewability of the
Ch. 4—Causes of Deforestation and Forest Resource Degradation ● 99

resource unless some institution guarantees

that he will benefit from the investment. Thus,

tropical forests have been degraded because of

institutional problems related to control over

access to forest land and forest products.

Uncertain institutional arrangements and inadequate administering agencies are at the root

of many forest degradation problems. When

forests become nationalized, as in parts of Asia,

traditional tenure and institutions for common

property management of forest lands are abandoned. National governments acquire formal

control, replacing local administrations and denying the validity of prior land-use arrangements. The rights of forest occupants to continue using forest land, acquired over generations, have been removed or reinterpreted in

the national effort to control people and territory.

Unlike commercial agriculture, which generally takes place on lands where property

rights are understood, agreed on, and respected, forestry takes place on lands where

complex and often conflicting systems of land

tenure apply. This difference creates the acute

contrast between investments in technologies

to increase agricultural productivity and the

lack of such investments in forestry, The lack

of clear land tenure will continue to constrain

development initiatives in forestry and efforts

to reverse forest land degradation. Where communal or national tenure is clear, the lack of

capable administration institutions is the major constraint.

The potential for forestry to support national

economic development that brings benefits at

the village level is great, provided sustainable

resource-use systems are applied. But such systems depend on the establishment of institutions to administer forest lands as common

property. Developing these institutions will require a better understanding of history, culture,

and social organization than is now applied.

To be effective, forest administrations need

local support and participation, and this contrasts with how forestry bureaucracies typically work. Unless the institutional component

of a forest management technology is understood by villagers to support their goals, that

technology will not be used. With respect to

villagers in or around public forests, effective

common property institutions would clearly

define individual and group claims on the benefits that stem from the forest. However, what

generally prevails are claims on uses which,

in the absence of control over rates of use, drive

the resource to depletion (5). Since privatization of forest lands may not be possible in many

parts of the Tropics, open access must be controlled through such means as issuing licenses

for users, setting quotas, taxing users, or

strengthening local social institutions (18).

Transformation of Forestry

Administrations

The second part of the issue of institutional

change relates to changes in the forestry agencies themselves. Government forestry institutions typically have been designed to protect

state or private logging and ranching interests.

In many countries, the forest has been a zone

of tension between the state and the people.

The pattern has been exacerbated by government insecurity with respect to its citizens and

borders.

Although agency attitudes and traditions are

deepseated, they seem to be changing as government forestry institutions evolve from being custodians of public land to functioning as

managers of a development process. For example, in many Asian nations increasing strength

is being given to national forestry development

corporations charged with managing forests

according to sound economic principles. At the

village level, small-scale forestry projects for

local community development are beginning

to be promoted by national agencies. These are

intended to create new income for villagers

from degraded public forest lands and to reduce pressure on the remaining or regenerating public forest. Some nations have begun to

provide forestry extension services for village

farmers.

Many Asian nations also have begun to apply

policies to encourage investment in wood-processing facilities and to use forest industries
100 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

—

within broader strategies of regional development. Few African or tropical American nations have developed such policies, and very

few nations in any region have developed feasible long-term plans for forest land allocation.

Even where appropriate policies exist, forest resource development is constrained by

poor implementation and reluctance to enforce

the policies. The effectiveness of government

control over logging concessionaires depends

on the degree to which national leaders are

committed to maintaining long-term forest productivity. The real value of hardwoods from

Asia and West Africa has made it difficult to

restrain powerful individuals and firms from

enriching themselves by sponsoring illicit cutting, by misrepresenting volume and grade of

legally cut logs, or by conferring the rights to

exploit the remaining forest to others. Several

national governments have banned export of

unprocessed logs to encourage forest conservation and local employment. However, data

on tropical wood imports by industrialized

countries indicate that illicit logging and exporting continue despite the bans (15). The persistence of these problems is due to incentives

for rapid economic gains by elite groups and

the lack of political commitments to conservation and development of public resources for

the benefit of the general public.

Improving forest administration also depends on developing effective participatory approaches to forest management. Through participatory approaches, forestry programs may

adapt techniques and institutions to local environments to develop productive and protec1.

2.

3,

4.

5.

CHAPTER 4

Agarwal, A., personal communication, 1982,

Arnold, J. E. M., and Jongma, J., “Fuelwood and

Charcoal in Developing Countries, ” Unasylva

29(118):2-9, 1977.

Birot, P., General Physical Geography (New

York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1968).

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the implementing agencies and at the local

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20

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46.

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48.

490

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Chapter 5

Organizations Dealing With

Tropical Forest Resources
Page

Highlights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105

The Role of Organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105

Types of Organizations in Tropical Countries. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

Research Organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

Educational Organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

Regulating Agencies.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

Project-Implementing Agencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

Nongovernmental Organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

International Organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111

International Council for Research in Agroforestry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112

International Union of Forestry Research Organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112

United Nations University. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112

The Role of the Private Sector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113

Constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

Lack of Funds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

Lack of Knowledge About Resources and Adequate Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115

Political, Cultural, and Institutional Constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116

Lack of Communication. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116

Contradictory Efforts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117

Opportunities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117

Greater Cooperation Between U.S. Government Agencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117

Redirecting International Organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118

U.S. Representation to the Multilateral Development Banks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119

U.S. Representation to U.N. Agencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119

Increasing Coordination Among the U.S., Other Bilateral Donors,

and Multilateral Aid Agencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119

Greater Reliance on NGOs and Universities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121

Encouraging Responsible Involvement by Private Corporations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121

Overseas Private Investment Corporation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122

Trade and Development Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122

International Executive Service Corps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122

Strengthening Existing Organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122

Chapter preferences. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123

List of Tables

Table No. Page

8. U.S. Government Organizations ● . . . . . . . . . . ● . 106

9. Nongovernment Organizations Based in the United States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107

1O.Consortia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ● 107

11. Multilateral Development Banks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107

12. Major International Nongovernment Organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108

13. United Nations Agencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108

14. Private U.S. Foundations Funding Tropical Forestry Research and Projects . . . 108

15. Major Foreign Bilateral Organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

16. U.S. Forestry Firms Operating in Tropical Countries, 1981 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Chapter 5

Organizations Dealing With

Tropipal Forest Resources

HIGHLIGHTS

●

●

●

Many organizations are involved in work to

sustain tropical forest resources, but the expertise, knowledge, and funds available are

inadequate. This is partly because forestry

is a peripheral interest for most of the organizations.

The limited funds available are not used efficiently because the activities of the many organizations do not complement one another

well. There is some prospect that the International Union of Forestry Research Organizations (IUFRO) and the Forestry Department of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) will begin to coordinate the

international efforts.

Coordinating diverse organizations’ re-

●

level is the role of the tropical governments.

Development assistance agencies have done

little to enhance the governments’ capabilities for this task, but some promising new

programs, such as Cooperation for Development in Africa (CDA), are being developed.

Because tropical forests are not the central

interest of any major U.S. organization, U.S.

expertise is widely scattered among many

organizations. Cooperative agreements between organizations (e. g., U.S. Agency for

International Development/U.S. Forest Service) can bring together this expertise effectively.

source development projects at the national

THE ROLE OF ORGANIZATIONS

Substantial institutional activity is occurring

worldwide that directly or indirectly affect;

tropical forest resources. The U.S. Agency for

International Development (AID), the United

Nations agencies, the World Bank, and others

have increased their attention to forestry in recent years (16,24). Private corporations and

nonprofit organizations also have been involved in the search for solutions to tropical

forest problems. And most importantly, the

governments of tropical nations have come to

recognize that deforestation constrains their

economies and their development options. This

chapter reviews the types of organizations in

the United States and abroad that help sustain

tropical forest resources through research,

technology development and transfer, institution building, and funding.

U.S. and international organizations play a

variety of roles in developing and implementing technologies to sustain tropical forests. The

nature of each organization’s activities varies

with its objectives. Some organizations offer

grants or loans, while others carry out research, technology transfer, or education.

Some work at the village level, while others are

organized for international efforts. Many organizations are mandated to focus on a particular region or a particular issue. Some support the use of existing forests, others concentrate on planting trees for immediate needs,

105

25-287 0 - 84 - 8
106 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

while other organizations conduct the basic or

applied research needed to develop sustainable

forestry systems for the future. This institutional diversity ensures that there will be no

unrealistic search for the “one answer” to

tropical forest resource problems.

This diversity of functions and goals, however, can create problems and inefficiencies.

Different organizations sometimes work at

cross purposes, without knowledge of the

other’s actions. Similarly, unnecessary duplication of efforts can occur. On occasion, counterproductive competition occurs between organizations or between assistance-giving nations.

Often, there simply is a lack of communication

between the various groups. Thus, many different groups may carry out many necessary

actions, but no one determines whether all the

necessary actions are conducted or whether

the activities are appropriately timed relative

to one another.

Tables 8 through 15 list a selection of important U.S. and international organizations that

are involved in tropical forest resource activities. For a more complete discussion of the various institutions listed, see OTA Background

Paper #2, Sustaining Tropical Forest Resources: U.S. and International Institutions.

It is important not to be misled by the apparently large number of organizations. Even

though a great many organizations are involved in tropical forestry work, in few of these

are reforestation, forest maintenance, or conservation a high priority. These organizations

devote far more staff and funds to other types

of development activity than to forestry. In fact,

the total amount of funding devoted to forestry remains small relative to the needs. Also,

care must be taken to avoid double-accounting,

since the forestry funds for some organizations

come from the forestry funds of other organizations. Despite the recent expansion of social

forestry, international assistance for forestry

is still dominated by industrial projects. Analyzing the effects of that dominance, a recent

U.S. Forest Service report states:

Industrial assistance projects cover heavily

capitalized pulpmills and sawmill complexes,

Table 8.—U.S. Government Organizations

Agency for International Development, Washington, D. C.: international development, institution building with congressional mandate to address forest-related problems in the

developing world. AID funding supports other organizations listed in this table

National Science Foundation, Washington, D. C.: Grants for

U.S. scientists to do fundamental research in tropical

biology

National Academy of Sciences, Washington, D. C.: Funds projects and research on sustaining tropical resources, primarily through Board on Science and Technology for international Development (BOSTID)

Peace Corps, Washington, D. C.: Volunteers for development

activities worldwide, including forestry and conservation

Smithsonian Institution, Washington D. C.: Basic research on

tropical ecosystems

Us.

●

●

●

●

Us.

●

●

Department of Agriculture

Office of International Cooperation and Development:

Grants for agricultural research, development

assistance, and technical assistance

Agricultural Research Service: Soil and water conservation research; includes Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands

Forest Service

Pacific Southwest Forest and Range Experiment Sta.

tion: U.S. tropical forests, Hawaii, U.S. Pacific territories

Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry: U.S. tropical forests

Institute of Tropical Forestry (Puerto Rico): Tropical

timber management, plantation silviculture

Soil Conservation Service: Soil management support for

tropical countries

Deparment of the Interior:

National Park Service (International Park Affairs): Park

planning, management, and conservation training

Fish and Wildlife service: Assist management and planning for conservation (under the Endangered Species

Act, etc.)

U.S. Department of State: Research on tropical ecosystems

through MAB (Man and the Biosphere). 1984 funding

uncertain

SOURCE: Office of Technology Assessment.

rather than on-the-ground establishment and

management of forest stands. Continuation of

this trend would exert greater pressure on existing forest reserves and contribute to the deforestation problem (24).

Because the scope of forest problems and

opportunities is so extensive and is affected

by many interacting economic, social, political, and ecological factors, sustainable development can only be achieved when major

changes are instituted by the tropical countries

themselves. Actual solutions to the forest

resource problems generally will require actions at the village level by local people.

Nevertheless, national and international organizations based outside the Tropics can af-
Ch. 5—Organizations Dealing With Tropical Forest Resources ● 107

Table 9.- Nongovernment Organizations Based

in the United States

Arnold Arboretum, Cambridge, Mass.: Evolutionary biology

East-West Center, Honolulu, Hawaii: Graduate research,

education, and information exchange throughout Asia

International Institute for Environment and Development,

Washington, D. C.: Studies sustainable economic and

social development, including energy, human settlements,

environmental impacts

Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, Me.: Tropical flora,

botany, and research

National Wildlife Federation (International Program), Washington, D. C.: Largest western conservation group: 4.5

million members. International initiative is recent

Natural Resources Defense Council, Washington, D. C.: Legal

assistance, monitors natural resource policies and decisions

The Nature Conservancy (international program} Washington,

D. C.: Inventory, acquisition, and protection of natural areas

The New York Botanical Garden, The Bronx, N. Y.: Taxonomic

research, neotropical plant collection, economic botany

Rare Animal Relief Effort, Washington, D. C.: Environmental

education and training in Latin America

Pacific Tropical Botanical Garden, Kauai, Hawaii: Tropical

botany

Sierra Club International, Earth Care Center, New York, N. Y.:

An information clearinghouse including protection of

fragile areas, tropical rain forest mangement and conservation

Volunteers in Technical Assistance, Arlington, Va.: Technical

assistance in development-oriented projects

World Resources Institute, Washington, D. C.: Policy studies

on natural resources management, particularly in developing countries

World Wildlife Fund-U.S., Washington, D. C.: Funding for conservation of living resources, international wildlife conservation

SOURCE: Office of Technology Assessment

Table 10.—Consortia

Board for International Food and Agricultural Development:

To increase involvement of U.S. agricultural universities

in AID

CamCore: Focus on industrial forestry in tropical America

Organization for Tropical Studies: Consortium providing graduate training and university research on tropical biology

South-East Consortium for International Development: Consortium providing development assistance

Universities for International Forestry: Consortium providing

experience in forestry and forestry-related problems

SOURCE: Office of Technology Assessment.

Table 11 .—Multilateral Development Banks

African Development Bank: Loans total $635 million; U.S. contributes indirectly through Africa Development Fund. involved in forestrty in Ethiopia, Liberia, Ivory Coast

Asian Development Bank: Growing attention to community

forestry, including fuelwood and environmental protection

Inter-American Development Bank: Investigating potentials

for greater involvement in forestry activities

World Bank: Loans for development, Trend away from monoculture and forest industry toward projects to sustain

tropical resources

Table 12.—Major International Nongovernment

Organizations

BIOTROP: Information, training, and research institute in

tropical forestry and biology

CARE: Renewable resources program promoting conservation of forests and forest dependent resources in the

Tropics

Centro Agronomic Tropical de Investigation y Ensenanza

(CATIE): Improvement of annual and perennial crop and

plant production systems, and animal production on small

farms

Permanent Interstate Committee for Drought Control in the

Sahel (CILSS): Association of eight Sahelian countries

(Cape Verde, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, The Gambia, Chad, and Upper Volta) to foster coordination of efforts in the region

Commonwealth Forestry Institute: Associated with Oxford

University; reforestation of degraded sites and promoting

fast-growing plantations

Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research:

Supports and promotes international system of agricultural research centers and programs. Thirteen research

centers

Eastern Caribbean Natural Areas Management Program: Research, training, and field projects to strengthen local capacity to manage living natural resources

International Council for Research in Agroforastry: Seven programs: management, information services, training, researchlevaluation, technology research, field stations, and

special projects

Institute for Terrestrial Ecology: A group of research laboratories in the United Kingdom. Projects on regenerating

hardwoods in West Africa and vegetative reproduction of

tree species

Intermediate Technology Development Group: Nonprofit organization that offers consultants to developing countries

for improving social forestry, household energy, and industrial energy projects

International Development Research Centen Canadian group

for development research, including studies of social forestry, agroforestry, and sustainable agriculture. Funded

by Canadian bilateral aid

International Society of Tropical Foresters: Information transfer. About 1,000 members

International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources: Six commissions: ecology, education, environmental planning, species survival, national parks and

protected areas, and environmental policy, law, and administration

International Union of Forest Research Organizations: international cooperation in forestry research through correspondence, seminars. About 10,000 members

Lutheran World Relief: Financial support to other agencies,

including Lutheran World Service for tropical forest

projects

Lutheran World Service: Community development services,

including health care, education, agricultural development. Also reforestation, community forestry

World Wildlife Fund—lntemational: Largest nongovernmental

organization for conservation of tropical forests, species,

and habitats

SOURCE: Office of Technology Assessment.

SOURCE: Office of Technology Assessment,
108 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Table 13.—United Nations Agencies

Food and Agriculture Organization: Emphasizes agriculture:

Has four forestry programs: forest resources and environment, forest industries and trade, forest investments and

institutions, and forestry for rural development

United Nations Environment Programme: U.N. coordinating

agency for environmental activities

United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization: Tropical forest research, protectd natural resources.

Includes MAB

United Nations University (Natural Resources Program): international centers for research, post-graduate training, and

dissemination of knowledge. Programs in agroforestry,

energy

World Food Programme: Supplies food for disaster relief and

through Food for Work projects. Some reforestation and

woodlot establishment

SOURCE: Office of Technology Assessment

Table 14.—Private U.S. Foundations Funding Tropical

Forestry Research and Projectsa

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

15.

16.

17.

18.

19.

Ahmanson Foundation

Andrew W. Mellon Foundation

Atlantic Richfield Foundation

Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation, Inc.

Exxon Education Foundation

Ford Foundaton

Ford Motor Company Fund

Inter-American Foundation

John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation

Mobil Foundation

Morgan Guaranty Trust Co. of New York

Richard King Mellon Foundation

Rockefeller Brothers Fund

Rockefeller Foundation

Shell Companies Foundation

Tinker Foundation

W. K. Kellogg Foundation

Wallace Gerbode Foundation

Weyerhaeuser Foundation

feet the willingness and ability of tropical countries to take necessary steps. It is unlikely that

bilateral and multilateral aid will fund enough

tree planting and conservation to compensate

for tropical deforestation and forest degradation. Instead, outside organizations can focus

on improving the technical and managerial capabilities of organizations in tropical countries.

Following this view, the priority areas for assistance would be forest resource research and

technology development, technology transfer,

institution building for forest-related education

and planning, and measures to increase the

productivity and sustainability of agriculture.

a

ln general,, few U.S. foundations have substantial international programs. Support for all tnternatlonal and foreign projects amounts to only about 4 percent

of the approximately $2.4 billion awarded each year by U.S. private foundations

(20). Total U.S. foundation support for tropical forest projects, though difficult

to calculate, probably averages between $10 million and $12 million a year

SOURCE: Office of Technology Assessment.
Ch. 5—Organizations Dealing With Tropical Forest Resources • 109

Count-~

Canada ‘

-

France

Japan

Sweden

United Kingdom

West Germany

Table 15.—Major Foreign Bilateral Organizations

Organization Function

Canadian International

Development Agency (CIDA)

Centre Technique Forestier

Tropicals (CTFT)

Japanese Overseas Afforestation

Association (JOAA)

Swedish International

Development Authority (SIDA)

Overseas Development

Administration (ODA)

Bundesministerium fur

wirtschaftliche Zusammenarbiet

(BMZ)

Gesellschaft fur Technische

Zusammenarbeit (GTZ)

SOURCE Off Ice of Technology Assessment

TYPES OF ORIANIZATIONS

Research Organizations

Some 40 organizations in tropical countries

conduct significant research related to forest

resources (23). The majority of these are weak

and have been severely constrained by lack of

staff and funding. Nevertheless, most of these

organizations are carrying out some research

to support the recent shift in tropical forestry

priorities (e.g., research related to contribution

of forestry to rural development, energy production, and conservation and management of

tropical forest ecosystems).

Educational Organizations

There are 23 university degree programs in

forestry in tropical Africa, 55 in tropical Asia,

Funds infrastructure for forest industries and conducts inventories and development plans

for commercial wood production

Projects include technical

assistance, plantation operation,

reforestation, and silvicultural

research on tropical pines and

eucalyptus

Tests plantation establishment

and maintenance techniques for

exotic pulpwood species, mostly

in Southeast Asia

Develops infrastructure for forest

industries. Supports community

forestry and fuelwood projects,

in part through a trust fund for

FAO

Tropical forestry research focuses

on silvicultural techniques and

genetic improvements of tree

species, especially pine

Funding arm of bilateral

assistance

Implements forestry projects.

Priority areas are forest conservation and production, institution-building, and timber technology and processing

IN TROPICAL COUNTRIES

and 39 in tropical America (15 of these are in

Brazil). In addition, tropical Africa has 59 technical schools offering forestry courses, tropical

Asia has 118 (49 are in India and 19 in the Philippines), and tropical America has 51 [19 are

in Brazil and 14 in Mexico) (7). These numbers

may give a misleading impression that there

is sufficient capacity in forestry education and

training. But most of these schools are new and

small, producing few graduates each year.

Some tropical countries, particularly in

Southeast Asia, have introduced commendable

interdisciplinary resource management programs, A new forestry program in Bihar, India, has a sizable curriculum in related social

sciences. Nepal’s Tribhuvan University sends

all of its graduate students to work in villages

for 1 year,
110 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Regulating Agencies

Regulatory agencies with responsibilities related to forests have proliferated in many countries. In addition to forest departments, agencies concerned with planning and finance,

agriculture, mines, water resources, energy,

parks, wildlife, industrial development, and

military matters and internal security have

regulations and policies that affect forests in

some way. In 1972, only 11 developing countries had environmental ministries or high-level

agencies; that number has now reached 102 (9).

In many tropical countries, regulation is

hampered by administrative structures, bureaucratic lethargy, low enforcement capability

due to remoteness and extensiveness of forest

lands, lack of vehicles or fuel, insufficient number or training of staff, and low pay. Where corruption occurs, the policing approach is unable

to cope with illegal commercial logging, with

excessive hunting and gathering, and with

spontaneous agricultural clearing within reserve forests and protected areas.

Project-Implementing Agencies

In most tropical countries, the agencies that

are responsible for regulation also implement

resource development projects. This can cause

some problems in project implementation,

especially for social forestry. It is difficult to

create a dialog between foresters and local people if the forest department is perceived as a

paramilitary organization. Also, paramilitary

discipline can discourage innovation within

the ranks of the Forest Department, particularly if promotions are based mainly on seniority (21).

One weakness of many project-implementing

agencies is that little long-range planning is

done. There is a shortage of qualified personnel, good data, and funds for planning (15). In

some tropical countries, technical forestry

skills are in short supply and many jobs remain

unfilled. The foresters often lack the special

skills needed for social and environmental forestry (e.g., communications, interpersonal relations management, economics, sociology, and

ecology). In many forestry departments, the

new types of projects such as fuelwood or social forestry do not have prestige or provide

career advancement opportunities. Further,

field work is generally left to the most inexperienced staff while the best workers are promoted quickly to central forestry department

offices (17).

Nongovernmental Organizations

(NGOs)

NGOS concerned with forestry, rural development, and the environment have been established within tropical countries. Examples include the grassroots Chipko or “hug-a-tree”

movement in India, Green Indonesia, Earthman Society in the Philippines, Fundacion Natura in Ecuador, Pronatura in Paraguay, Grupo

Ecologico Tolima in Colombia, and the Peruvian Association for the Conservation of Nature. The Environment Liaison Centre in Nairobi helps coordinate activities of environmental NGOS, particularly in Africa. NGOS have

done important applied research in Kenya and

Sri Lanka. In Gujarat, India, NGOS helped

spread farm forestry and fuel-efficient woodstoves and crematoria. NGOS in Malaysia, Costa

Rica, and Haiti also have implemented projects

successfully.

INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS

Although a great many bilateral and multi- international organizations doing significant

lateral development assistance agencies and work on tropical forest resource technologies

national organizations have programs related is much smaller. Five international organizato tropical forest resources, the number of tions that have important potential for develop-
Ch. 5—Organizations Dealing With Tropical Forest Resources Ž 111

ment and dissemination of technologies that

can sustain the forest resources are briefly

described here.

Consultative Group on International

Agricultural Researeh (CGIAR)

CGIAR is an association of 13 international

or regional research centers concerned with

increasing the quantity and quality of food supplies. CGIAR also organizes conferences and

training courses and disseminates information.

Established in 1971, it has a secretariat based

at the World Bank and a technical advisory

committee located at FAO. The secretariat coordinates with donors and channels funds to

the centers. The total budget for the CGIAR

centers exceeded $120 million in 1980.

The CGIAR centers are:

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7,

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

13.

International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), Colombia.

International Center for the Potato (CIP),

Peru.

International Center for the Improvement of Corn and Wheat (CIMMYT),

Mexico.

International Board for Plant Genetic Resources (IBPGR), Italy.

International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), Lebanon.

International Crops Research Institute

for Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), India.

International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), U.S.A.

International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Nigeria.

International Laboratory for Research on

Animal Diseases (ILRAD), Kenya.

International Livestock Centre for Africa

(ILCA), Ethiopia.

International Rice Research Institute

(IRRI), Philippines,

International Service for National Agricultural Research (ISNAR), The Netherlands,

West Africa Rice Development Association (WARDA), Liberia,

CGIAR centers could expand into forestry

research. By increasing the productivity of

food crops, CGIAR research has the potential

to reduce land conflicts between agriculture

and forestry. However, CGIAR’S commodities

approach and emphasis on input intensive

methods might not be relevant to forestry. In

addition, CGIAR has not shown much interest

in expanding into forestry; it rejected the Council for Research on Agroforestry’s (ICRAF) request for associated status in the CGIAR network (4).

Food and Agriculture Organization of

the United Nations (FAOI

FAO, headquartered in Rome, has the largest

concentration of tropical forestry expertise in

the world. It also has a large number of specialists on assignment in tropical countries. It

is important to note that the FAO Forestry Department is dwarfed by the size of the FAO Agriculture Department. Forestry receives less

than 8 percent of FAO’S total funding, and

FAO Agriculture Department publications seldom evidence concern for the relationships between agriculture and forestry. Nevertheless,

agriculture and forestry are interdependent, so

the agriculture activities of FAO are of critical

importance to forest resources.

FAO’S Forestry Department is divided into

four programs. In decreasing order of size, they

are: 1) Forestry Investment and Institutions, 2)

Forest Industries and Trade, 3) Forest Resources and Environment, and 4) Forestry for

Local Community Development. A Forestry

Policy and Planning Service sets overall

priorities.

FAO’S primary mission is technical assistance, not research or implementation of development projects. It compiles an annual yearbook of forest product statistics and, in conjunction with UNEP, has assessed tropical

forests resources and deforestation rates (ch.

3). FAO also has a mandate to support a tree

seed bank system, but this has not progressed

very far. FAO’S Investment Centre assists the
112 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

World Bank and the regional development

banks in appraising projects. Nearly all forestry

projects of the United Nations Development

Programme are implemented through FAO’S

field units.

Although FAO responds to country requests,

it also sets priorities for assistance. Current

priorities of the Forestry Department include

creating a world forest resources information

system; improving techniques for the establishment and management of plantations; developing upland forests for erosion control and

watershed management; promoting wildlife

and park policies; monitoring and evaluating

social forestry projects; identifying ways to

generate more income from processing wood

and nonwood forest resources; and facilitating

education, training, and institution building in

developing countries. FAO has recently decided to revitalize its Committee on Forestry

Development in the Tropics and is expected

to use more of its resources for tropical forest

conservation and development.

International Council for Research

in Agroforestry (ICRAF)

ICRAF is a relatively small organization

(about 15 professionals) headquartered in

Nairobi, Kenya. Its budget is only one-tenth of

the budget of individual CGIAR institutes. But

it is the only organization with a mandate to

work globally to stimulate, initiate, and support

research for development of sustainable agroforestry land-use systems. ICRAF’S multidisciplinary team of scientists conducts its own research and trains people from a wide variety

of disciplines and organizations in the developing world. In addition, it collaborates with

other developing nation institutions on research and development projects. Its long-term

program involves: 1) developing interdisciplinary capacity and methods to assess constraints in land-use systems and to identify

agroforestry solutions, 2) collecting and evaluating existing agroforestry knowledge, and 3)

establishing a program for disseminating information about agroforestry.

ICRAF is governed by an international Board

of Trustees and is independent of all other supranational bodies. It receives its operational

funds from bilateral donor agencies and private

foundations. AID and Canada’s International

Development Research Center are among the

main donors to ICRAF. Since ICRAF is considered a forestry organization, it is not a member

of CGIAR, whose mandate does not include

forestry. However, ICRAF has indicated that

it should be considered an organization developing technologies for use on agricultural as

well as forest land.

International Union of Forestry

Research Organizations (IUFRO)

IUFRO, based in Vienna, is a loosely knit association of some 600 research organizations

involving some 10,000 researchers from 89

countries (3). It does not conduct research but

helps to disseminate findings. It sponsors the

World Forestry Congress every 3 to 5 years, regional workshops, and a quarterly newsletter.

Other than these activities, IUFRO’S role has

been limited because its funding levels are low.

IUFRO is a very decentralized organization,

mostly dependent on voluntary cooperation

(18). IUFRO is concerned with six main areas

of research: 1) forest environment and silviculture; 2) forest plants and forest protection; 3)

forest operations and techniques; 4) planning,

economic growth, and yield; 5) management

and policy; and 6) forest products.

In mid-1983, a research coordinator post was

established at IUFRO headquarters. In 1984,

IUFRO will sponsor four regional planning

workshops on forestry research and technology

transfer. These include fast-growing tree

species in Asia, fuelwood production systems

in Africa, and multipurpose tree species for

reforestation of degraded lands in Latin

America. The total funding for these research

coordination efforts is low.

United Nations University (UNU)

The UNU, chartered in 1975 under the joint

sponsorship of the U.N. and UNESCO, was
Ch. 5—Organizations Dealing With Tropical Forest Resources ● 113

.

created to be an international community of

scholars engaged in research, post-graduate

training, and dissemination of knowledge. A

central program and coordinating unit is based

in Tokyo, but UNU activities take place throughout the world. It does not offer degrees. UNU

has never received funds from the U.S. Government.

The university has three principal programs:

Natural Resources, Human and Social Development, and World Hunger. In each of these

areas, the UNU performs five major functions:

1. to identify and define pressing global problems that can be alleviated through

research, advanced training, and dissemination of knowledge;

2. to help fill gaps in knowledge and expertise through internationally coordinated

research and advanced training;

3. to strengthen research and advanced training resources in developing countries;

4. to make information available to scholars

and research results available to decisionmakers in usable form; and

5. to encourage mission-oriented, multidisciplinary research and advanced training.

The UNU functions through networks of

existing universities and research institutes

around the world and provides participants

with access to a variety of courses, instructors,

and research facilities. Special emphasis is

placed on interdisciplinary research and training and on disseminating information to international organizations, governments, scholars,

policy makers, and the public. UNU has supported research relating to agroforestry ($200,000

per year, primarily in cooperation with

C.ATIE), fuelwood consumption and supply,

and land use in arid and semiarid regions.

THE ROLE OF THE PRIVATE SECTOR

Historically, the greatest involvement of U.S.

interests in tropical forests has been in the

private sector, U.S.-based commercial firms

have had forestry operations in tropical regions

at least since the early 1900’s. The value of tropical hardwoods (logs, lumber, plywood, and veneer) imported into the United States totaled

$537 million in 1978. U.S. demand for tropical

hardwood sawtimber is expected to increase

dramatically over the next two decades. Also,

because of the longer growing seasons and faster growth rates possible in tropical forests, the

U.S. paper industry is expected to begin using

wood from the Tropics for its processes as well.

The extent of private sector involvement in

the Tropics has varied because each firm has

its own perceptions of its needs and of the current and future economic climate. A few U.S.

firms specializing in use of primary resources

(e.g., timber or minerals) have contributed

substantially to developing technologies for the

Tropics and have played an important role both

by providing capital for development and by

transferring technologies.

Of all U.S. organizations, the U. S-based multinational forestry corporations have had the

most to offer and the most to gain in ensuring

that tropical forest resources are maintained,

These companies are a great storehouse of information and experience in managing forests.

Much of this experience was acquired in the

temperate zone, but technical know-how can

be adapted and transferred in such fields as

nursery and seed orchard establishment, tree

improvement, pest control, fertilization, silviculture programs, harvesting, transportation,

and wood product processing.

Although U.S. forestry companies with operations in tropical nations have in the past

concentrated on producing sawlogs and veneer

logs, some have recently begun applying their

expertise to managing the forests within their

concessions for production of a wider range
.. .—— —

114 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

of products and sustainable yields. At least 23

U.S.-based forestry firms (table 16) have operations in the Tropics. About half of these have

active forest concessions; the others are involved in pulp and paper operations, research,

or have simply setup offices to explore the feasibility of establishing operations in the tropical

country (l).

The extent of future investments in the Tropics by U.S. firms is uncertain. Opportunities

exist for transfer of both technical and business

skills. In some ways, tropical areas have a omTable 6.—U.S. Forestry Firms Operating in

Tropical Countries, 1981

parative advantage because they have longer

growing seasons. But this is countered by higher infrastructure and transportation costs.

Although labor costs are lower in the Tropics

than in the United States, it can be difficult to

find skilled workers for forest industries.

The main obstacle to increased U.S. investment, however, is the political and economic

situation in tropical countries. Some countries

restrict the share of foreign capital in domestic

enterprises, have unfavorable tax or monetary

policies, have institutionalized corruption, or

involve high risks due to potential economic

instability,

Other private industries could also make

important contributions to maintaining tropical forest resources. The development of unconventional energy sources could affect tropical forests. Biotechnology firms are improving food and tree crops through tissue culture

and other propagation techniques. In the past,

some pharmaceutical firms conducted systematic studies of exotic flora for compounds of

pharmacological interest (11). Such programs

added to the knowledge of tropical ecosystems

and provided new, useful substances. Now,

however, plant screening is seen as less productive than chemical synthesis of new compounds. Today there are no U.S. pharmaceutical manufacturers involved in a research program designed to discover new drugs from

higher plants (6) and the major program, begun

by the National Cancer Institute in 1956 to

screen plants for antitumor activity, was terminated in 1981.

CONSTRAINTS

Lack of Funds heard from the field, from project designers,

Constraints on tropical forest resources de- and from the organizations themselves when

soliciting support from their governments or velopment occur at various levels: within de- contributors. velopment assistance organizations, within the

recipient countries, and within the local recip- Forestry is a relatively cash-starved sector in

ient communities. A constraint often cited at many countries where forests do not generate

all levels is lack of funds. More money, it is so large foreign-exchange earnings. The slow

often argued, will bring more results. This is growth of forests compared with the produc-
Ch. 5—Organizations Dealing With Tropical Forest Resources . 115

tion of annual crops or manufactured goods

makes forestry investments seem relatively unprofitable. Even in wood-exporting countries,

concession fees and excise taxes 011 commercial products are often so low that the government does not obtain much profit from forest

exploitation. Consequently, finance and planning agencies in tropical countries tend to

neglect forestry, Even the multilateral development banks provided little financing for efforts

to sustain forest resources until just a few years

ago.

Moreover, projects often are left unfinished

or without proper followup because funding

beyond initial budget commitments is inadequate. This deterioration of projects over time

occurs because donors fail to recognize the

long-term nature of forestry activities (24).

Within countries, it is often easier to start a

new project than to secure funds to continue

one. Thus, it may be appropriate for development assistance agencies to plan fewer projects

but to continue support for longer periods (8),

The problem is, of course, that the current

economic climate makes it exceedingly difficult to obtain increased or new funds. Many

legitimate development issues needing financial support must compete for a limited resource—money. Thus, while continuing to seek

additional financial support organizations also

need to search for more innovative and effective ways to use the forestry and agroforestry

funds they have.

Lack of Knowledge About Resources

and Adequate Technologies

Tropical ecosystems are extremely complex.

Further, forest resource problems—and their

solutions—are commonly site-specific, Although some basic knowledge about the structure and functions of tropical forests has been

known for decades, the kinds of information

needed to analyze long-term effects of various

management schemes are not available. Thus,

site-specific research on biotic resources, soils,

and hydrology is needed to plan action that can

sustain land-use conversions, maintain the resilience of forests, exploit the wide variety of

Obstacles to Effectiveness of

Organizations Involved in Forestry

Activities in Developing Countries

Few donors are involved in forest conservation activities, probably because conservation projects often are not profitable,

A number of donor projects are contributing to deforestation or will fail in reducing

the problem because inadequate attention

is paid to ecological effects, Road building,

agriculture, hydroelectric dams, colonization, and industrial forest harvest projects

can be causes of deforestation.

Donor agencies operating in the same country tend not to communicate with each

other. This leads to duplication of efforts or

failure to learn from the mistakes and successes of others.

Forestry projects are often imposed on local

residents rather than being based on what

the community wants and needs. As a consequence, many donor projects fail because

of “lack of cooperation” from local residents.

Donor organizations often exhibit little acceptance or understanding of the value systems, cultures, and traditions of the recipient countries in the design and implementation of forestry projects.

It is possible to create a negative impact by

flooding a country with excessive donor activities or funds. Donor organizations may

implement oversized projects in countries

riot yet ready to absorb them into their existing political and economic structure.

Often, when project funding has ended, the

country is ill-equipped to carry on because

of bottlenecks in education, managerial talents, and other factors.

Projects are often started but left unfin-
116 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

forest products, and reduce or mitigate offsite

impacts.

Many experts believe that the major constraints on sustained use of tropical forests are

institutional, social, and political, not technical.

They argue that adequate techniques to manage natural forests and plantations, reforest

degraded lands, and sustain agroforestry already exist. (Some techniques to reforest degraded lands, for example, are reviewed in

OTA Background Paper #1, Sustaining Tropical Forest Resources: Reforestation of Degraded Lands.)

Why, then, are these techniques not widely

in use? One possibility is that although they are

technically feasible, they are not economically attractive. Many of the techniques have not

been suitably adapted for developing nations.

They are often capital intensive, require heavy

or specialized machinery, highly skilled labor,

or continuous inputs of imported chemicals—

any one of which can make a technology inappropriate. Additionally, poorly understood

social or cultural factors often impede technology transfer. Thus, many organizations’ efforts to develop forest resources fail to spread

beyond the bounds of pilot project areas because the knowledge needed to make the technologies more attractive does not exist or has

not been communicated to the project implementors.

Political, CulturaI, and

Institutional Constraints

Many organizations’ efforts are constrained

by social factors. Political commitment is often

lacking within development assistance organizations or within the counterpart tropical government organizations to allocate more staff

and funds to:

●

●

conduct the necessary, long-term baseline

ecological and social research;

provide ecologically sound support for local populations during the lag between investments in trees and realization of the

benefits;

Ž provide necessary, continuous evaluation

of projects so that they can be improved

as needed; and

● work to meet the needs of local populations.

Forestry projects imposed “from the top down”

without adequate community participation

commonly fail.

How these constraints affect organizations

varies depending on the organization and its

purposes. The effectiveness of regional and

international research organizations can be

greatly constrained where local organizations

to adapt technologies to local conditions are

lacking. In some cases, capable local organizations do exist but are under political constraints that limit their communication with international groups.

National governments’ attitudes toward tropical forest resources are often a major constraint on investment to sustain the resource

base. Forestry concessions are often viewed

just as revenue-raising devices rather than also

as forest management tools. Political leaders

who may be voted out of office or deposed

rapidly often have a short planning horizon,

viewing forest land as a commodity rather than

a resource. Or some special interest may be

able to get sizable short-term profits from

destructive use of tropical forest resources.

Legislation is needed to promote integration

of forestry and land-use planning, but only a

gradual education process can assure government backing for such policies.

Lack of Communication

One constraint often emphasized is inadequate communication. Resource development

suffers when researchers or field staff do not

communicate with each other, when project

planners do not communicate with recipients,

and when donor agencies do not communicate

with other agencies. And prospects for sustained resource development are dim when

projects do not complement one another as sequential steps in an overall strategy. But im-
Ch. 5—Organizations Dealing With Tropical Forest Resources . 117

proving communications and coordination is

more difficult, and more expensive, than might

be expected. Distribution of timely information, especially when the most important audience is in developing countries, can face

many obstacles, both logistical (delivering information to appropriate recipients) and human (finding appropriate readers and inducing them to read and use the information).

Encouraging donor agencies to communicate and coordinate with each other should be

a less formidable task, but in reality it is not.

First, there are a great number of national, international, regional, and local institutions to

track. Many agencies simply do not have the

capacity to do this. Communicating with other

agencies is often seen as an inappropriate infringement on staff time simply because interagency coordination is seldom an explicit objective in agencies’ policies. In some cases,

donor organizations compete with each other

for influence and thus avoid communication.

More often, there are simply too many other

things for an organization to accomplish with

limited staff and funds,

Contradictory Efforts

There is a lack of consensus and unified policy on how to reconcile economic development

of tropical forest resources with the need to

preserve biological diversity and other nonindustrial forest functions. This sometimes leads

to organizations working at cross purposes. At

times contradictory efforts are accidental; one

donor agency simply may not know what other

agencies are doing. Occasionally an organization’s own efforts can seem confused—one

branch financing a reforestation project while

another finances the conversion of undisturbed

forest into agricultural land.

Sometimes such apparent conflicts are the

inevitable result of different organizations having different goals. For instance, the CGIAR

institutions strive to increase and promote agricultural production and expansion. The expansion often occurs at the expense of forests

and in conflict with organizations that are

working to prohibit agricultural clearing on forest lands that cannot sustain it. In times when

development funds seemed more plentiful, coordination of effort may have been less important. But today coordination is essential to

assure efficient use of existing funds and staff.

OPPORTUNITIES

The constraints discussed in the previous

section are not insurmountable. Some of the

leading multilateral such as World Bank and

FAO have begun to shift their forest development priorities from nearly total emphasis on

industrial forestry to community forestry, agroforestry, and institution building. While there

is criticism that implementation of these new

priorities has lagged (24), the shift in policy is

an important beginning. Several strategies exist

to further improve the capabilities of organizations that develop, transfer, and implement

technologies to sustain tropical forest resources.

Greater Cooperation Between

U.S. Government Agencies

Because tropical forestry is peripheral to the

interests of U.S. organizations, the U.S. expertise on tropical forests is widely scattered (13),

No one organization can assemble an adequate

team for tropical forest resource development

from its own staff. However, cooperation be-
118 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

tween organizations can be fruitful. Two of the

most productive cooperative agreements are

the Forestry Support Program and the Forest

Resource Management Project.

The Forestry Support Program is a joint effort of AID, Forest Service, and the Office of

International Cooperation and Development.

It provides forest service personnel to help AID

in designing, managing, and troubleshooting

field projects in forestry and natural resources.

It maintains detailed files on hundreds of U.S.

forestry and natural resources experts. It provides general forestry information and facilitates exchanges of technical information

among natural resource personnel on AID and

Peace Corps projects. Evaluation of the program has indicated that it has substantially

enhanced the cost effectiveness of AID’s development assistance efforts in forestry (5).

The Forest Resource Management Project,

in which the Peace Corps and AID collaborate,

has assessed forestry activities for many tropical nations, conducted regional forestry programing workshops for AID, Peace Corps, and

ministry staff in several countries, conducted

pre-service and in-service technical training

programs, and initiated several modest reforestation pilot projects. The Peace Corps efforts

have been funded by AID and given technical

support from the Forestry Support Program.

Several existing laws can be used by U.S.

agencies to transfer staff and resources and increase the coordination and cooperation of

U.S. Government agencies in development assistance. The Foreign Assistance Act (22 U.S.C.

2357(a)) provides several mechanisms for interagency cooperation. Temporary duty assignments (TDY) can be arranged for specific tasks

up to 6 months. Participating Agency Services

Agreements (PASA) are for time-specific, reimbursable exchanges of staff for up to 2 years.

Resources Supply Services Agreements (RSSA)

allow for other types of reimbursable cooperation. Cooperative agreements allow exchanges

of staff and resources between agencies without charge. The Government Employees Training Act (ch. 41, Title 5 U. S. C.) and the Economy

Act (31 U.S.C. 686) also provide authority for

reimbursable cooperation between Federal

agencies. Although AID has some agreements

of this sort with other Federal agencies, the full

potential of their use in foreign assistance activities has not been realized (22).

Redirecting International

Organizations

Multilateral development banks and some

U.N. agencies provide capital and technical

assistance for forest resource development. But

their forestry efforts are small relative to their

other rural development programs. Further, the

unplanned impacts on forests of other projects

may well be greater than the effects of the forestry projects. Some development projects contribute directly to deforestation—for example,

large hydroelectric plants, extensive cattle

ranches, and resettlement schemes based on

unsustainable agriculture (2). Although the

multilateral development banks have signed a

joint “Declaration of Environmental Policies

and Procedures Relating to Economic Development, ” little has yet been done to include comprehensive environmental assessment in the

project planning process (12).

Through existing mechanisms, the United

States has considerable influence over activities of multilateral development banks and

U.N. agencies. However, the United States has

not fully exercised its influence to promote

projects that sustain renewable resources and

to avoid projects that harm long-term resource

productivity. Doing so would have a significant

effect on tropical governments. Countries often

are able to obtain substantial cofinancing from

other sources for activities supported partly by

multilateral development bank loans. Thus,

governments can be motivated to modify their

development policies to harmonize with those

of the development banks.

Some actions that U.S. representatives to the

multilateral banks and U.N. agenices could

promote include:

● instituting environmental impact assessment procedures,
Ch. 5—Organizations Dealing With Tropical Forest Resources ● 119

●

●

●

●

improving monitoring and evaluation of

projects for their environmental impacts,

increasing environmental staff and budgets,

reporting environment-related activities

annually, and

removing restrictions on information about

projects-to allow greater outside scrutiny

and accountability (19).

The mechanisms for accomplishing these reforms differ for each multilateral development

bank and U.N. agency.

U.S. Representation To the

Multilateral Dovelopment Banks

The U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of

Multilateral Development Banks oversees administrative budgets and policy papers for the

multilateral development banks. It also evaluates loans on the basis of legislated, political,

and economic concerns. The predominant concerns are human rights and the production of

citrus, sugar, and palm oil that could affect U.S.

producers. Most of the office’s work is in reviewing the projected economic returns of

loans. Recently, this office sought advice from

U.S. embassies on loans in their respective

countries.

The United States has representatives on the

boards of directors of the multilateral banks.

Voting rights are allocated in proportion to

each nation’s contribution to the bank’s budget.

The United States has 19 percent of the total

voting power on the World Bank’s Board, 5

percent at the African Development Fund, 13

percent at the Asian Development Bank, and

35 percent at the InterAmerican Development

Bank. However, a formal vote is rarely taken

because decisions on projects generally are

made by consensus. A country can push to

have formal votes recorded. Ordinarily, problem projects are simply blocked from reaching

the agenda. In 1982, the U.S. Government opposed 17 projects proposed by the banks. The

multilateral development banks can fund only

those activities requested by governments;

however, the banks can impose conditions on

project implementation in loan agreements.

U.S. Represenation to U.N. Agencies

The International Development Cooperation

Agency (IDCA) establishes the overall budget

and policies for U.S. participation in UNDP,

FAO, WFP, UNEP, UNESCO, UNICEF, OAS

Technical Assistance Funds, U.N. Capital

Development Fund, U.N. Educational and

Training Program for Southern Africa, and the

U.N. Disaster Relief Organization. The State

Department’s Office of International Organizations and Programs has lead responsibilities

relating to several U.N. agencies.

The United States maintains permanent representatives to the U.N. agencies and has special delegations who present U.S. policy positions and vote on specific country programs.

Like all other countries, the United States has

only one vote on the governing boards of U.N.

agencies. However, the United States can exercise considerably more influence due to its

budget contribution. Until recently, UNDP’S

Governing Council voted on particular projects. Now these decisions have been decentralized and the U.S. representatives no longer

even receive copies of project documents

routinely. The FAO/UNEP Committee on tropical forestry is another vehicle by which the

United States can participate in setting the priorities of these two organizations.

One way of increasing the role of U.S. experts is to begin participating in the U.N. Associate Experts Program. Under this program,

the U.S. Government would pay the salary

costs of sending U.S. technical personnel to

developing countries to work on U.N. agency

projects.

Increasing Coordination Among the

United States, Other Bilateral Donors,

and Multilateral Aid Agencies

Coordination among the United States, other

bilateral donors, and multilateral aid agencies

can be improved. One vehicle for such coordination is the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) of the Organization for Economic
120 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Cooperation and Development (OECD).* DAC

undertakes “Annual Aid Reviews” on the

volume and terms of assistance. Few agreements have been reached through DAC, and

those that have are not binding or are vague

(14). Nevertheless, DAC provides a forum for

exchanging ideas. It has encouraged some

countries to establish new programs and

change existing ones.

U.N. agencies seem to be appropriate organizations for international coordination. The

U.N. Commission on Trade and Development

has made efforts to coordinate but these have

led to confrontation rather than constructive

problem-solving. The U.S. Department of State

believes that FAO is best suited to coordinate

the international forestry activities that are not

country-specific (8). However, AID does not aggressively seek FAO coordination of its forestry

efforts.

Coordination also needs to be improved at

the country programing level. Such programing should involve the preparation of multiyear

plans by the recipient countries or ad hoc committees of donors so that the various donors

can support complementary projects. With

such planning the development assistance

agencies would not compete for host country

experts or other resources. Through DAC, the

United States has advocated greater use of

country programing since the early 1960’s (14),

arguing that it would result in more cost-effective development assistance. In the simplest

model, each donor would proceed separately

after obtaining a coordinating organization’s

agreement on a project. However, another possibility would be for several donors to combine

resources and expertise on joint projects.

Successful coordination requires: 1) active interest and participation of the donors and the

recipient countries; 2) good planning capability; and 3) strong leadership (8). In practice,

securing cooperation is not easy. Donors are

often reluctant to change plans to conform to

*OECD member countries are Australia, Austria, Belgium,

Canada, Denmark, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, Luxembourg,

the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Spain,

Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the

United States. Yugoslavia has special status.

those of a coordinating organization. If a foreign or multilateral organization attempts the

coordination role, recipient countries may feel

that their sovereignty in negotiating with the

donors is being compromised.

Some attempts have been made to coordinate

country programing for forest resource development. Nepal has tried to designate a lead

donor for particular types of projects in certain regions of the country, but this has not

been accomplished. Honduras has a Governmental Department of International Coordination, but this has done little to improve coordination because the Department only reviews

projects after they have been approved by the

various implementing agencies (8).

In response to pressing problems in one region of Africa, the Club du Sahel was established in 1976 by donors in Paris. The United

States provides some participants to this group.

An African group, the Interstate Committee for

Drought Control in the Sahel (CILSS) also

works in this area. Enlisting the cooperation

of donors and recipient countries was made

easier by the crisis situation in the Sahel.

Cooperation for Development in Africa

(CDA) is an informal group of bilateral donors

established in 1982 at the initiative of France.

The participants include the United States,

Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the

United Kingdom, and numerous African nations. The multilateral development banks do

not participate officially but may send observers to CDA meetings. CDA consists of ad hoc

committees of representatives organized to address particular development topics. The

United States is the lead donor nation for the

committee on forestry and fuelwood. The committees discuss the types, location, and timing

of projects. They do not undertake directly to

exchange information on technologies or

evaluate lessons learned during projects. CDA

also is making an effort to find activities that

are too large for a single donor to take on but

are appropriate as joint development assistance

ventures.

The CDA Forestry and Fuelwood Technical

Committee takes a national focus, not a region-
Ch. 5—Organizations Dealing With Tropical Forest Resources ● 121

al one. It initially operates in only five countries—Burundi, Malawi, Senegal, Somalia, and

Upper Volta—in order to demonstrate the

workability of the process (10). Criteria for

selecting countries include: 1) commitment of

the country to coordination of assistance, 2)

potential for success, 3) need, and 4) existing

multiple CDA-donor programs. The committee plans to add Mali and the Sudan and to consider inclusion of Cameroon and Kenya (4).

More African countries are involved in other

CDA technical committees.

The CDA process is well under way in Senegal and Somalia, where it has been successful

because of government commitment. The process does take staff and resources from both

donor and recipient country agencies. It has

not been so successful in Upper Volta, which

is so flooded with development projects that

it is unable to implement them well. Upper

Volta also lacks a national forestry plan. In

Burundi and Malawi, the process is barely

under way, but appears to be working. There

have been no major problems in CDA donor

competition (4).

Greater Reliance on NG0s and

Universities

In the past few years, U.S. AID has channeled an increasing amount of money through

nongovernmental organizations (NGOS) in

tropical countries, especially through private

voluntary organizations. This appears to be an

effective way to promote technology transfer.

NGOS offer particular advantages for smallscale and innovative projects, since in some

cases they can act with greater speed, more

midproject flexibility, or more public confidence than government agencies. Grass roots

environmental movements within tropical

countries also may deserve increased international support. Some development assistance

programs explicitly exclude NGOS while others

do not exclude but still underuse them.

U.S. NGOS could be made more effective by

using the Intergovernmental Personnel Act

(IPA) of 1970 (ch. 33, Title 5 U. S. C., subch. 6)

to arrange exchanges of personnel for up to 2

years between Federal agencies and universities or nonprofit research organizations.

Some U.S.-based NGOS are eligible for IPA exchanges, but transfers of U.S. Government personnel to NGOS are uncommon. The Office of

Management and Budget (OMB) has recommended that IPA arrangements with universities be limited to tenured faculty, but this

seems likely to have detrimental effects on the

availability and development of U.S. expertise

to solve forest resource problems.

The Foreign Assistance Act (22 U.S.C.

2357(a)) allows Federal agencies to provide

training to: 1) personnel or sponsored fellows

of international organizations in which the

U.S. participates, 2) certain quasi-public organizations such as the Red Cross, 3) voluntary

nonprofit relief organizations approved by the

Advisory Committee on Voluntary Foreign

Aid, and 4) personnel of foreign governments.

Fulbright Grants provide opportunities for

faculty members from U.S. universities to

teach, study, and conduct research in developing countries and for scholars from developing countries to work in the United States. This

program could make a greater contribution to

the development and transfer of tropical forest

resource expertise. However, the Fulbright program has been cut back sharply in recent years.

AID has given one strengthening grant to a

U.S. university to expand its international forestry capability. This is a 5-year matching grant

of $100,000 per year with the University of

Idaho. There are no plans to award similar

grants to other universities in forestry. In comparison, AID has some 50 strengthening grants

with U.S. universities in agriculture.

Encouraging Responsile Involvement

by Private Corporations

The private sector can be an effective technology transfer agent and could play a more

important part in efforts to develop and implement technologies to sustain tropical forests.

The U.S. Government has established three

programs to increase the involvement of the

private sector in fostering development: 1)

25-287 0 - 84 - 9
122 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Overseas Private Investment Corporation, 2)

Trade and Development Program, and 3) International Executive Service Corps. However,

none of these programs has been used very

much in the forestry sector.

Overseas Private Investment

Corporation (OPIC)

OPIC, established in 1971, provides services

to U.S. companies interested in investing in the

private sector in developing countries. These

services include: 1) information on investment

opportunities; 2) financial assistance for investment missions, feasibility studies, and market

research; 3) insurance for political risks; and

4) loans or loan guarantees. The eligibility criteria for assistance include per capita incomes

in the host country; size of the participating

business and its degree of involvement in the

venture; economic and technical soundness of

the proposal; and the contribution of the business to the economy of the host country. Environmental factors are also supposed to be

considered. Forestry and biotechnology enterprises can be eligible for OPIC assistance.

Trade and Development Program (TDP)

TDP, established in 1980 under IDCA, aims

to increase the exports of goods, services, and

technology by U.S. firms to governments in less

developed countries. The principal activities

of TDP are: 1) sponsoring project identification

and feasibility studies, 2) organizing technology

workshops, 3) coordinating technical assistance from various U.S. Government agencies

to foreign governments, and 4) administering

technical training programs in the United

States for foreign citizens. The latter two activities are on a reimbursable basis. TDP seeks

reimbursement of the costs of feasibility studies

from the investors if the project proceeds and

it also tries to obtain some cost-sharing by the

host countries.

The criteria for selection of TDP activities

include: 1) consistency with the development

priorities of the host country, 2) availability of

funding for project implementation (other than

AID), 3) friendliness of the host country to the

United States, and 4) export potential of implemented projects.

International Exeutive Service Corps

(IESC))

IESC makes the expertise of volunteer retired

executives available to developing countries.

IESC gives priority to assistance for small and

medium businesses; services to governments

are deemphasized. U.S. AID provided $5 million to IESC in fiscal year 1982, slightly over

half of its funding. The rest comes from U.S.

corporations.

Strengthening Existing Organizations

Foremost among opportunities to strengthen

existing development assistance organizations

would be to continue and expand support for

forestry efforts by AID. AID has a clear mandate from the U.S. Congress to develop and

strengthen “the capacity of less developed

countries to protect and manage their environment and natural resources” (sec. 118 of the

Foreign Assistance Act) with explicit authorization for assistance to “maintain and increase

forest resources” (sec. 103 b). In 1981, section

118 was further amended to express congressional concern “about the continuing and accelerating alteration, destruction, and loss of

tropical forests in developing countries. ”

AID could emphasize this policy mandate,

translating it more often into action. This could

include continuing education for AID personnel regarding the relevance of forestry concerns. More project designs could allocate a

percentage of funds to relevant environmental protection measures—for instance, water

development projects could include components to maintain forest cover on surrounding

watersheds. Many of the development activities AID conducts have direct and indirect impacts on tropical forests, and AID does sometimes include forest-related components on

projects not specifically aimed at forest development.

Another way AID could enhance its effectiveness in this sphere is through the Food for
Ch. 5—Organizations Dealing With Tropical Forest Resources ● 123

Peace program. AID administers some $1.6 billion per year in Public Law 480 Food for Peace

activities, but now only about 1 percent of the

projects are concerned with forest resources.

More of these funds could be directed to reforestation and assuring local involvement in

forest and plantation management. Public Law

480 foreign currency reserves could also be

used to fund forest research, perhaps including

a greater involvement by the U.S. Forest Service.

This redirection of existing efforts is a way

to increase U.S. involvement without adding

new financing, although substantial increases

this way could lead to reductions elsewhere.

The international programs of U.S. Government agencies other than AID also could be expanded to play a more active role in sustaining forest resources. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife

Service, the Forest Service, and the National

Park Service, for instance, have much relevant

expertise and could be encouraged to increase

their international work.

Research sponsored or financed by the U.S.

National Science Foundation (NSF) and the

CHAPTER 5

1. Bethel, J., et al., The RoZe of U.S. &fzdtinatiorzaZ

Corporations in Commercial Forestry Operations in the Tropics, University of Washington,

report for the U.S. Department of State, 1982.

2. Bramble, B., National Wildlife Federation, Testimony Before the House Subcommittee on International Development Institutions and Finance, 1983.

3. Buckman, R., U.S. Forest Service, personal

communication, 1983.

q. Catterson, T., FueZwood Research in Africa

(Washington, D. C.: U.S. Agency for International Development, 1983), and personal communication, 1983.

5. Cliff, E., Gallegos, C., and McCarty, H., Evacuation of Forest Resources Management Project,

No. 936-5519, for AID/S& T/FNR by the Society

of American Foresters Evaluation Team, 1982.

6. Farnsworth, N., and Loub, W., “Information

Gathering and Data Bases That Are Pertinent

to the Development of Plant-Derived Drugs, ”

National Academy of Sciences (NAS) has provided important support to AID and other organizations that work to sustain tropical forest

resources. These two agencies could be encouraged to intensify their work on important international environment issues.

Another opportunity to strengthen existing

organizations concerns the UNESCO Man and

the Biosphere (MAB) program. MAB has supported some 1,000 field projects in 90 countries. Nearly one-fourth of its $2 million 1981-83

budget is for activities related to humid tropical

zones and MAB has a commendable record of

supporting innovative research on tropical

forest resources. It has a good international

reputation and has been successful in supporting small-scale and pilot project research.

UNESCO is the organizing agency for MAB,

but each country’s effort is funded independently. U.S. support for MAB has been diminishing and much of the U.S. contribution now

comes from the Forest Service and the Department of State. The proposed fiscal year 1984

budget contains no funds for MAB.

REFERENCES

Plants: The Potentials for Extracting Protein,

Medicines, and Other Useful Chemicals, Workshop Proceedings (Washington, D. C.: U.S. Congress, Office of Technology Assessment OTABP-F-23, September 1983).

7. Food and Agriculture Organization of the

United Nations, World List of Forestry Schools

(Rome: FAO, 1981), Report 3 rev./l.

8. General Accounting Office, C’hanges Needed in

9

U.S. Assistance to Deter Deforestation in Developing Countries [Washington, D. C.: U.S.

Government Printing Office, 1982), Report ID82-50.

Goodland, R,, “Brazil’s Environmental Progress

in Amazonian Development, ” Changes i; the

Amazon Basin, J. Hemming (cd.) (Manchester,

England: Manchester University Press, 1983).

10. Gulick, F,, PossibZe Additional Countries for the

CDA Forestry Initiative (Washington, D. C.: U.S.

Agency for International Development, 1983).

11. Hansel, R,, “Medicinal Plants and Empirical
124 Ž Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

12.

13.

14,

15.

16.

17.

Drug Research,” Plants in the Development of

Modern Medicine, T. Swaine (cd.) (Cambridge,

Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1972), pp.

160-174.

Horberry, J., BMZ Working Paper on Status and

Application of Environmental Impact Assessment for Development Projects (Gland, Switzerland: International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, 1983).

Interagency Task Force, The World’s Tropical

Forests: A Policy, Strategy, and Program for the

United States (Washington, D. C.: U.S. Government Printing office, 1980).

Kaplan, J., International Aid Coordination:

Needs and Machinery (Washington, D, C.:

American Society of International Law, 1978),

Report No. 16.

McGaughey, S., “Prospects for Financing Forest-Based Development in Latin America: An

Issue for Sector Analysis,” Proceedings: XVII

IUFRO World Congress, Division 4 (Vienna: International Union of Forest Research Organizations, 1981).

McPherson, M. P., Administrator, Agency for

International Development, testimony before

the Subcommittee on Human Rights and International Affairs, Committee on Foreign Affairs,

U.S. House of Representatives, Mar. 30, 1983,

Noronha, R,, World Bank, personal communication, 1982.

18,

19,

20.

21.

22.

23.

24.

Payne, B., U.S. Forest Service, personal communication, 1983.

Rich, B., “Institutions That Deal With Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources, ”

OTA commissioned paper, 1982.

Teltsch, K., “Philanthropic Coalition to Expand

Aid Abroad,” The New York Times, Jan. 31,

1982.

Tewari, R., “Effective Policies and Legislative

Needs for Stimulating Growth Through Community Forestry in Forest-Based Economies

Within an Agrarian Environment,” Proceedings: XVII IUFRO World Congress, Division 4

(Vienna: International Union of Forest Research Organizations, 1981).

Wadsworth, F., “Secondary Forest Management and Plantation Forestry Technologies to

Improve the Use of Converted Tropical Lands,”

OTA commissioned paper, 1982.

World Bank/Food and Agriculture Organization

of the United Nations, Forestry Needs in DeveL

oping Countries: Time for a Reappraisal? (Paper

for 17th IUFRO Congress, Kyoto, Japan, Sept.

6-17, 1981).

Zerbe, J., et al,, Forestry Activities and Deforestation Problems in Developing Countries, Report to Office of Science and Technology, AID,

Washington, D. C.; U.S. Department of Agriculture; and the U.S. Forest Service, 1980.
Chapter 6

U.S. Tropical Forests:

Caribbean and Western Pacific
Page

Highlights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127

Introduction . . .... * 127

Common Characteristics of Island Tropical Forests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129

Species-Rich Forests ... **** . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129

Abundance of Endemic Species . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129

Vulnerability to Invasion by Exotic Plant and Animal Species . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130

Dependence of Water Resources on Forests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

Dependence of Coastal Ecosystems on Forests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132

Vulnerability to Land Degradation . . . . . ., . . ,0 ., . . . 6 ., . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132

U.S. Caribbean Territories: Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

Forest Resources: Status and Trends . **...,....,. ,** ,...,*.,.**,.*.*.* 133

History of Forest Use ... .. , 135

Organizations Dealing With Tropical Forests. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140

U.S. Pacific Territories: American Samoa, Trust Territory of the Pacific

Islands, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and Guam . . . . . . . . 141

Forest Resources: Status and Trends . ..,..,, , 141

History of Forest Use .*** . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148

Organizations Dealing With Tropical Forests. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149

Chapter 6 References. . . . . ., . . ...... 152

List of Tables .

Table No. Page

17. Life Zones and Area in Puerto Rico . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

18. Life Zones of the U.S. Virgin Islands . . .. .. 134

19. Average Annual Sheet and Rill Erosion in the U.S. Caribbean . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136

20.1981 Lumber Imports into Puerto Rico by Species and Country of Origin . . . . 139

21. Organizations Dealing With Tropical Forests in

Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands ., * . . * . *, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140

22. Pacific Territories of the United States . . . . . . . . . . * . . . . . * . . . . * * . . *..***... 144

23. Land Use in American Samoa, 1977 , ,9, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144

24. Island Types and Forest Areas of Micronesia . . . . . . . . . .. . 145

25. Landownership in Guam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147

26. Organizations Dealing With Tropical Forest Resources in

the American Western Pacific .*** **.   ** . *.. **** *.** . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151

List of Figures

Figura No., Page

18. Land Use in Puerto Rico ● *********9****.*.******.*********. ....** *. 134

19. An Idealized Transect Through a Caribbean Island in the Lesser Antilles. . . . . 135

20. Original Vegetation of Puerto Rico . ....................,.,.,.,,. . 136

21. Location of the U.S. Western Pacific Territores ● * * * * * . . * . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142

22. Geopolitical Breakdown of the U.S. Western Pacific Territories . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143

23. Diagram of a “Typical” Micronesian Island Indicating Some

Relationships Between Land Development and Island Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
Chapter 6

U.S. Tropical Forests:

Caribbean and Western Pacific

HIGHLIGHTS

● Past poor land-use practices have degraded ●

forest resources in the U.S. Caribbean and

Pacific tropical territories and have resulted

in significant amounts of abandoned land

and relatively unproductive secondary forest. Related resources (e. g., water supplies ●

and coastal marine resources) are, in many

places, threatened by forest loss.

● Although not a problem at present, overexploitation of island forests is likely to occur

as populations grow and expectations rise.

Much of this could be avoided if forest resource development were integrated with

economic development.

Only Puerto Rico has significant potential

for commercial forestry, but both the Pacific

and Caribbean territories could provide a

greater share of their domestic forest product needs.

The territorial governments all have designated natural resource agencies and have expressed their recognition of the need to integrate forestry into development, but most

of the agencies are small and lack adequate

funding and personnel.

INTRODUCTION

Less than 1 percent of the world’s tropical

forests fall under U.S. jurisdiction. These are

located primarily in Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the U.S. Pacific territories of American Samoa and Micronesia (Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands,

and the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands),

and Hawaii. Both the Caribbean and Pacific

territories have a long history of land-use practices that have created relatively large areas of

degraded or abandoned forest land. For over

a century, Hawaii has restricted use of its forest

areas, primarily to protect their watershed values.

Puerto Rico includes the adjacent small

islands. It includes the easternmost islands of

the Greater Antilles in the West Indies. It is a

mountainous land with a variety of ecosystems.

Today, at least one-third of Puerto Rico’s 2.2

million acres* is under forest cover, mostly second growth trees, fruit tree plantations, and

shade covers in the remaining coffee regions.

Despite this, Puerto Rico produces less than 1

percent of its domestic wood requirements (43).

The U.S. Virgin Islands are an unincorporated territory east of Puerto Rico containing

about 86,500 acres, including about 50 islands

and islets. They have been administered since

1951 by the U.S. Department of the Interior.

The three largest islands—st. Croix, St. John,

and St. Thomas—are used extensively for

tourism and have effectively no forest products

industry. However, three-fourths of the island

of St. John is the Virgin Island National Park.

*All land areas in this chapter will appear in acres, as this

is the common measurement for U.S. lands. One hectare = 2.47

acres.

127
128 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Water retention and control, protection of

critical marine habitats, and esthetic values are

the primary purposes of the forests on these

islands.

The U.S. tropical forests in the western Pacific are located in Micronesia and American Samoa. Micronesia includes some 2,000 islands

within 3 million square miles in the western

Pacific north of the Equator, southwest of Hawaii, and extending west to within 500 miles

of the Philippines. They range in size from

small, unoccupied coral atolls to large, populated volcanic islands. American Samoa consists of seven islands located south of the Equator. Some wood products are harvested on

these islands for local use, although on

American Samoa nearly all wood products except fuelwood are imported from nearby independent Western Samoa, and from the United

States and New Zealand (5).

Reliable information on the original extent

of the forests on the U.S. western Pacific

islands does not exist, but forests probably

covered most of the island. On many islands—

such as Guam, Tinian, and Saipan—man and

nature have so changed the islands that it is

nearly impossible to identify the original forest

types.

The State of Hawaii lies in the middle of the

northern Pacific Ocean between Mexico and

Micronesia. Hawaii has 8 major islands and

124 smaller islands that cover about 4 million

acres. About half this acreage is forest- and

shrub-covered.

Since the late 1800’s, Hawaii has pursued a

policy of protecting its forests for watershed

values (16). A well-developed land-use plan was

enacted in 1961. All lands were zoned according to allowed use: urban, rural, agricultural,

and conservation. Most forested lands are

under conservation zoning. Forests on agricultural land can be manipulated, but forests on

conservation land cannot without special permission by the Hawaii Board of Land and Natural Resources (9). In 1962, the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources produced

the first of three lo-year multiple-use programs

for managing water, timber, livestock forage,

recreation, and wildlife habitat in the islands’

forests.

Industrial forestry recently has become a focus of economic development in Hawaii. There

are 47,000 acres of forest plantations in Hawaii,

most of which are on public lands (7). However, about 1 million acres have been designated as commercial forest land (areas suitable

for growing timber and with some forest cover

but not necessarily stocked with timber trees).

Of this, the State owns nearly 45 percent. An

additional 290,000 acres of extensively grazed

lands also are suited for timber crops, but now

have no forest cover (16).

Hawaii also hosts a number of organizations

dedicated to sustaining tropical forest resources in the islands and the tropical world.

For example, an AID-funded project on

nitrogen fixation by tropical agricultural

legumes (NiFTAL), which produces inoculants

on a pilot scale for researchers and legume

growers, is based in Hawaii. The East-West

Center, created by Congress in 1960 to promote

interchange among the United States, Pacific,

and Asian countries, is a regional center for

discussion and study of natural resource issues.

The Pacific Tropical Botanical Garden, the

only privately supported tropical botanical

garden chartered by the U.S. Congress, is in

Hawaii. Forestry research and education are

pursued by the University of Hawaii and the

Bishop Museum. Hawaii also houses the U.S.

Forest Service Institute of Pacific Island

Forestry (IPIF], which supports research on

forest resources in Hawaii and the U.S.

western Pacific, and a cooperative State and

Private Forestry division.

In 1979, the U.S. Forest Service and C. Brewer & Co. created the BioEnergy Development

Corp., funded by the Department of Energy,

to implement and demonstrate IPIF research

activities. This joint venture has become one

of the largest forestry research and development projects directed at biomass fuel production in the United States. It is cultivating more

than 200 acres of fast-growing eucalyptus

species on Hawaii Island that will be chipped

for use as boilerfuel at two nearby sugar plan-
Ch. 6—U.S. Tropical Forests: Caribbean and Western Pacific . 129

tation powerplants. Plantings are planned for

400 acres of abandoned sugar cane land and

500 acres of wasteland and undeveloped forest

areas (8).

The problems that Hawaii has experienced

related to forest resource management (e.g.,

increased runoff, severe erosion, inadequate

water supply) are similar to other tropical

forested areas. However, the State is atypical

of tropical areas in that its institutional capacity for dealing with these problems is welldeveloped. Because of this, the expertise and

experience embodied in Hawaiian people and

organizations working with tropical forest resources can contribute to sustaining tropical

forest resources in the U.S. territories and in

the developing world.

COMMON CHARACTERISTICS OF ISLAND TROPICAL FORESTS

Island forests share many common features

with continental tropical forests, yet display

numerous unique ecological and historical attributes. Some characteristics shared by many

U.S. Pacific and Caribbean island forests are:

●

●

●

●

●

history of species-richness;

abundance of endemic (unique, areaspecific) species;

great vulnerability to invasion by exotic

plants and animals;

dependence of water and coastal resources

on forests; and

severe pressure on land resources from human populations.

Species=Rich Forests

Island tropical forests found near continents

are rich in tree species (26,48). The 547 native

tree species found in Puerto Rico (19,20) approximate the number of tree species found in

all the continental United States (18). Some 500

native tree species and several hundred introduced or exotic species grow in the U.S.

Virgin Islands (30).

Smaller islands and islands farther from continents have fewer native species, but many exotic species have been introduced to these

areas, For example, about 800 tree species were

planted in the State of Hawaii between 1908

and 1960 (16). The western Pacific islands have

varying numbers of species depending on their

distance from Asia and their history of disturbance and replanting.

Abundance of Endemic Species

Many rare species and unique ecosystems

have evolved on these islands because of their

small size and geographic isolation. Hawaii

and the western Pacific islands are especially

rich in rare, endemic species; for some tree

species only one or two individuals are known

(31). In many cases, the insular bird, mammal,

and fish life also are endemic. Among the many

endangered, endemic species are the Puerto

Rican parrot, the Micronesia megapode, and

the Yapese fruit bat. In Hawaii, 90 percent of

Photo credit: J, Bauer

Endangered Puerto Rican parrots nesting at artificial

nest site; these parrots remain only in the Caribbean

National Forest
130 • Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

the species in many plant and animal families

are endemic and as many as 2,000 plants and

animals may be endangered (36).

Local endemism is highly developed in cloud

forests. These are, in a sense, islands within

islands (28). Cloud forests (also called dwarf or

moss forests] occur on steep slopes and hill

crests extending into the cloud zone. Thin,

leached soil and steep, windswept terrain limit

tree growth so trees have a low, bushy appearance, some with bare trunks and branches

and broomlike tufted tops. Much is known

about cloud forests in Puerto Rico (28), but information on these forests in Micronesia (on

Ponape and Kosrae) is meager. This type of

forest is very sensitive to disturbances (15).

Island ecosystems provide values to science

disproportionate to their small size. Because

of the high rates of endemicity, islands provide

many species for botanical and zoological investigation. Their clearly defined boundaries

facilitate study of species migration, competition, adaptation, and extinction. General principles of evolution can be distilled from island

studies and applied to, for example, the design

of parks and reserves.

Vulnerability to Invasion by Exotic

Plant and Animal Species

The survival of native plants and animals in

the U.S. tropical islands is threatened by the

conversion of forests to agriculture and urban

uses. Introduced plants and animals also pose

a great threat because they prey upon or outcompete native species. The result has been a

continuing decline in the quality of the forests

and a selective elimination of native species.

Photo credit: J. Bauer

Cloud or dwarf forests are important for water retention and as habitat for many endemic species in both Puerto Rico

and the U.S. western Pacific islands
Ch. 6—U.S. Tropical Forests: Caribbean and Western Pacific ● 131

Introduction of pigs, goats, cattle, rats, and

some birds and insects, affects both the Pacific

and Caribbean islands. In the western Pacific

islands, for example, introduction of the

Rhinoceros beetle contributed greatly to the

decline of coconut plantations, and the Giant

African snail inhibits nursery production for

horticulture and forestry (15,22). In the Caribbean, animals have affected dry ecosystems to

a greater degree than moist ecosystems.

Mammals are being introduced to Hawaii by

man at 90,000 times the natural rate: one species or population has been successfully introduced every 11 years for the last 200 years. For

land birds, the rate is one successful species

or population every 4 years. Most of these species are successful at the expense of endemic

or indigenous forms (39). Research performed

during the 1970’s documented the heavy impacts by feral animals on both wet and dry native Hawaiian forests. Results from this research have led to a decision to reduce or eliminate these animals in some areas (17).

Dependence of Water Resources

on Forests

On all of the islands, the primary value of forests is their regulation of water regimes. Tropical oceanic islands, except coral atolls, are

usually small with steep slopes. The natural

freshwater habitat is streams rather than lakes

(38). Streams and forests are concentrated in

the interior highlands and stream ecology is

closely linked with forest ecology. Diversion

of water for domestic purposes, plantation

agriculture, and industrial needs can leave insufficient waterflow for riverine fauna and

flora.

Island ecosystems often host animal populations that depend on local freshwater and forest habitats. Many species spend part of their

early lives in the ocean but migrate through

streams to complete their lifecycle. In the

natural state, much of the stream where they

live and migrate lies within the forest. But

when forests are altered or removed, stream

habitats change. Any uninhabitable stretch can

Photo credit: J Bauer

La Mina Falls: Regulation of water regimes is the most

important function of forests on tropical high islands.

Most upper watersheds have steep slopes and should

remain forest-covered to reduce erosion and siltation

of reservoirs and coastal ecosystems

destroy a population that must migrate through

it to reach its normal adult habitat upstream

(38).

On many islands, deforestation has resulted

in turbid, erratic, and seasonally disappearing

streams (11). For example, the U.S. Virgin

Islands have no remaining permanent streams

(30). Aquifer water levels are declining as populations pump out more than is recharged. Because of inadequate freshwater resources, water in the U.S. Virgin Islands is expensive, ranging from $10 per 1,000 gallons from a desalination plant to as much as $12 per 1,000 gallons

for water barged in from Puerto Rico (32).
-

132 Ž Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Dependance of Coastal Ecosystems

on Forests

Disruption of water regimes in tropical

islands has considerable influence on coastal

marine environments. when forested watersheds are cleared, waterflow and erosion accelerate, depositing a blanket of sediment on

coral reefs. This deprives corals of light and

oxygen and causes the bottom to become soft

and unstable, thereby preventing recolonization. The addition of large amounts of

freshwater runoff also is damaging because

corals can only live within a limited salinity

range (29).

Normally, mangrove forests along the coastline act to filter and chemically buffer the

sediments. Seagrass meadows also can filter

sediment that escapes the mangroves. Unfortunately, little is known about how these filtering and silt-adjusted biotic communities operate, how they are affected by and affect the

nutritional levels of lagoon and reef waters, or

how they affect fish nurseries and the coral reef

community.

The approximately 31,000 acres of mangroves in the U.S. Micronesia territories provide food and building materials for local people and are important to traditional Micronesia life. Mangroves also are found along the

coastlines of American Samoa, Hawaii, and the

U.S. Caribbean islands. Here, too, they are the

spawning grounds and nurseries for many

forms of marine and reef life. Coral reefs, protected by mangroves, are basic in the food

chain of shallow waters, affecting fish and

other marine resources of both subsistence and

commercial importance to island people of the

U.S. tropical territories (23). Reefs have economic importance not only from their food proPhoto credit: E. Petteys

Coastal mangrove forests capture, filter, and

chemically buffer sediments from runoff. Little is

known about the operation and carrying capacity of

these communities and their relation to fish

nurseries and the coral reef community

duction and tourist value but also as a basis for

industry built around scientific research (6).

Vulnerability to Land Degradation

Because of small land areas, rapidly growing populations, and transportation barriers,

appropriate land-use is especially important for

island development. Lacking enough land for

shifting cultivation, indigenous peoples on

small tropical islands developed land-intensive

systems of agriculture. Small-plot land-use systems were common in both the U.S. western

Pacific and Puerto Rico. Today, these agricultural systems can no longer support the growing populations. Because of limited land, farmers displaced by residential or commercial construction move to the more easily eroded island

hillsides, and roads may be routed through susceptible mangrove forests (6).
Ch. 6—U.S. Tropical Forests: Caribbean and Western Pacific ● 133

U.S. CARIBBEAN TERRITORIES: PUERTO RICO AND

THE U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS

Forest Resources: Status and Trends

Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico’s total land area, including that

of adjacent small islands, is 2,198,000 acres.

Originally, most of Puerto Rico was forested,

but agricultural colonization reduced forest

cover to only 9 percent by 1950—4 percent

government forests and 5 percent privately

owned forests. Today, at least one-third of

Puerto Rico is again under forest cover, mostly second growth trees, fruit tree plantations,

and shade cover in the remaining coffee

regions. Original forest cover is found only in

a few inaccessible regions, Some 98,000 acres

are public forest, divided between Federal and

Commonwealth administration. Abandonment

of coffee plantations and farmlands, particularly on steep slopes, released 1.1 million acres

now potentially available for forestry activities,

Some of this land is probably too steep to use,

although some recreation and gathering activities might be allowed. Some acreage will be

required for future development; nevertheless,

a considerable amount of land could be used

for productive forestry, Some 200,000 acres are

estimated suitable for commercial forestry (42,

44) and some could be used for forestry-agriculture combinations.

Pronounced differences in natural vegetation

occur because of sharp variations in altitude,

climate, and soil characteristics. Using the

Holdridge Life Zone system, six zones are

found in Puerto Rico (12). At least 98 percent

of the land area is covered by three of the life

zones (table 17). The other three are found only

at or near mountaintops and are very wet.

Generally, they are unproductive for

Table 17.—Life Zones and Area in Puerto Rico

Percent

Life zone Total acres of total

Subtropical moist forest . . . . . . . . . . 1,314,582 59.2

Subtropical wet forest . . . . . . . . . . . . 524,830 23.6

Subtropical dry forest . . . . . . . . . . . . 346,936 15.6

Subtropical lower montane forest . . 26,950 1,2

Subtropical rain forest . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,260 0.1

Subtropical lower montane rain

forest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,040 0.1

SOURCE: Adapted from: J. J. Ewel and J L. Whitmore, The Ecological Life Zones

of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, USDA Forest Service

Research Paper ITF-18, 1973, In: Schmidt, 1982, and S. I. Somberg, Virgin Islands forestry Research: A Problem Analysis (St Croix: College of

the Virgin Islands, Virgin Islands Agricultural Experiment Station, 1976).

agricultural or forest crops and still exist in

their natural state. Most of these lands are in

public forests and are important for watershed

protection.

Subtropical dry forests support a forest cover

rich in tree species, but they do not have good

potential for commercial forest production. In

Puerto Rico and throughout the Tropics, dry

forests often are converted to grazing land (fig,

18), The southern coastal plain of Puerto Rico

and associated small islands contain most of

the dry forests, limiting the potential for commercial forestry and increasing their need for

effective conservation programs.

The subtropical moist life zone, with 1,000

to 2,000 mm of rainfall per year, covers most

of Puerto Rico. Agriculture, urban, and industrial uses are common in this zone, Subtropical

wet forests are found higher in the mountains

of Puerto Rico where rainfall is above 2,000

mm. Pasture is common in this zone, which

is cooler, and coffee, bananas, plantains, and

other fruits grow well. *

*Ewel and Whitmore (12) provide more detailed descriptions

of all life zones in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
134 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Figure 18.— Land Use in Puerto Rico

This wet forest life zone presents a substantial management challenge. Forests composed

of abandoned coffee shade trees, in particular,

contain some commercially valuable trees, but

most of their volume is in three legumes (Inga

vera, I. laurina, and Erythrina poeppingiana)

and other marginally valuable species (e.g.,

Guarea guidonia) (2). These forests supply little useful timber, but they offer excellent watershed and soil protection, wildlife habitat, and

recreational and esthetic opportunities.

U.S. Virgin lslands

The U.S. Virgin Islands are part of the Lesser

Antilles Archipelago. Its three largest islands

are St. Thomas (17,000 acres), St. John Island

(15,000 acres), and St. Croix (55,000 acres).

Only two Holdridge ecological life zones are

found in the U.S. Virgin Islands: subtropical

dry forests and subtropical moist forests (table

18). The subtropical dry forest zone occupies

almost three-fourths of the islands’ land. There

are no permanent rivers or streams in the U.S.

Virgin Islands outside the Virgin Islands National Park. All water retained in aquifers

comes from rainfall (30); these are depleted and

many wells are dry. Despite the high costs of

desalinating water or importing it from Puerto Rico by barge, little attempt has been made

to institute a revegetation program to increase

water retention and to prevent the flooding and

marine siltation (32).

Tabie 18.—Life Zones of the U.S. Virgin isiands

Subtropical dry Subtropical moist Percent of

Island Square miles Acres forests (acres) forests (acres) total area

St. Croix . . . . . . . . 84 54,563 45,469 9,094 63.9

St. Thomas. . . . . . 28 17,984 7,001 10,983 21.1

St. John . . . . . . . . 20 12,835 8,214 4,621 15.0

Total . . . . . . . . . 132 85,382 60,684 24,698

Percent of total . .

—

71.1 28.9 100.0

SOURCE: S. I. Somberg, Virgin Islands Forestry Research: A Problem Analysis (St. Croix: College of the Virgin Islands, Virgin Islands Agricultural Experiment Station, 1976).
Ch. 6—U.S. Tropical Forests: Caribbean and Western Pacific “ 135

These islands were once largely forest covered (fig. 19). Less data are available on forest

use and potential in the U.S. Virgin Islands

than for Puerto Rico. However, an estimated

35,300 acres of forest and brushland exist, including 5,000 acres of commercial forests and

15,800 acres of noncommercial forests. The remaining 14,500 acres are unclassified and are

mountainous. Most of the forested area outside

the Virgin Islands National Park is in private

ownership (30).

The majority of land considered suitable for

agriculture (including forestry) is on St. Croix.

Two high-value timber species, mahogany and

teak, are grown at the U.S. Forest Service

Estate Thomas Experimental Forest on that

island. Teak can be established on marginal

land common in central St. Croix and has

proved compatible with grazing.

A combination of high land prices, competing land uses, and certain adverse soil and

topography factors probably preclude most

commercial forestry on the U.S. Virgin Islands

(30). However, potentials exist for agricultural

tree crops (e.g., coconut, mango, limes), management of watershed forests, and roadside

and urban forestry.

History Of Forest Use

Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands share

a similar forest-use history. Essentially all of

Puerto Rico was forested on the arrival of Columbus in 1493 (fig. 20). Then agricultural and

urban expansion into the forests gradually took

place. Until the early 20th century, most wood

harvested was used for fuel or construction, but

construction wood was being imported as early

as the 1700’s. The only exports were rare and

valuable native species such as lignumvitae and

satinwood (Guaiacmn officinale and Zanthoxylum flavwn). The economic depression in the

1930’s, combined with increased population,

had heavy adverse impacts on Puerto Rico. Agriculture was pushed farther up the hills across

the island. By 1935, only about 2 percent of the

land area—the most inaccessible and infertile

areas—had not been deforested at some time.

In the 1920’s and 1930’s, the Federal Government acquired about 50,000 acres of mountain

land in Puerto Rico for forest and watershed

Figure 19.—An Idealized Transect Through a Caribbean

Montane zone \\’\\y>

with abundant rainfall

mostly still forested \

\.

Seasonally dry zone m.

now mostly cleared and used for ~

1

agriculture

Littoral -&

and mangrove

woodlands ~P

Under the influence

of the sea and fresh Ad” “

Island in the Lesser Antilles

SOURCE: Adapted from J. S. Beard, The Natural Vegetation of the Windward and Leeward Islands (Oxford, England: Clarendon Press, 1949). In: Schmidt, 1982
136 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Figure 20.—Original Vegetation of Puerto Rico

6715 6700 6645 6630 6615 6600 6545 6530 6515

I I I I I I I I I

Puerto Rico

18

30

18

15

18 —

)0

18

10

18

05

i

18

30

18

15

18

00

SOURCE: Rafael Pico, The Geography of Puerto Rico (Chicago: Aldine Publishing Co., 1974), p. 180,

protection. In the late 1930’s and early 1940’s,

the Civilian Conservation Corps planted some

25,000 acres of timber trees that survive today,

mostly in public forests. Today 100,000 acres

are in public forest lands, divided between Federal and Commonwealth administration. Caribbean pine (Pinus caribaea var. hondurensis)

was first established on the island in 1962.

Through the 1960’s and 1970’s, from 100 to 500

acres per year of timber trees, mostly pine,

were established on private lands. About 200

acres per year of various species were planted

on public forest lands.

Planting records of the Institute of Tropical

Forestry indicate that 95,000 acres of trees have

been planted in Puerto Rico (2), but no forest

plantation inventory has been conducted. The

1973 land-use inventory (10) and the 1980 forest

resources survey (2) indicated that there are

800,000 acres of secondary forest in Puerto

Rico. About half of Puerto Rico consists of land

abandoned from farming or grazing.

The Natural Resource Inventory performed

by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 1977

estimated average annual soil loss for different

land uses in the Caribbean (Puerto Rico and

the U.S. Virgin Islands), all of which are considerably higher than the average annual soil

loss for the United States (table 19). These erosion rates reflect the extensive historical

deforestation of the islands and the continuing cultivation and inadequately managed grazing of lands unsuitable for permanent

agriculture.

Table 19.—Average Annual Sheet and Rill Erosion in

the U.S Caribbean (tons/acre)

Land use U.S. Caribbean average U.S. average

Cropland. . . . . . . . . 49 5.1

Rangeland . . . . . . . 50 2.8

Forest Iand:

Grazed . . . . . . . . 6 3.9

Not grazed . . . . . 10 0.6

SOURCE: Adapted from USOA, 1977 Natural Resources lnventory, Washington,

D.C,
Ch. 6—U.S. Tropical Forests: Caribbean and Western Pacific ● 137

Geoclimatic Regions in Puerto Rico

Five basic rock types are present in Puerto Rico. Composition within each rock type varies

and there are hundreds of soil types (3,21). However, changes in forest growth and composition

are noticeable only across the major rock types. These five rock types can be overlayed with

Holdridge Life Zones to form 17 geoclimatic regions (14). The regions with potential for commercial forestry use include:

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

Moist-alluvial region.—This is the zone of mechanized agriculture, urban development, and

protected coastal mangroves and wetlands. These uses are considered higher priority than

forestry and probably will preclude it in this zone in the future.

Moist-volcanic regioin.—This extensive zone is very important for forest development. It is

a prime zone for growing Caribbean pine, mahogany, teak, blue mahoe, and eucalyptus.

Where soils are poor, degraded, or on moderately steep slopes, agricultural practices have

ceased. Native pastures, especially where ferns invade, can be of very low productivity.

Regenerated native forests can be developed for conservation or timber production. However,

most abandoned land in this region is deforested and is not regenerating into secondary

forests of native species (27).

Moist-limestone region.—This is an area of extensive agricultural abandonment in northwestern Puerto Rico. Mahogany, teak, and Eucalyptus deglupta grow well on the lower slopes

of the rounded hills of this region; blue mahoe (Hibiscus elatus) grows well in moist valley

bottoms. Well-managed plantations of these species are grown in three Commonwealth forests in this zone.

Moist-granodioritic region.—Large areas of abandoned farms are common throughout this

region. Caribbean pine is one tree species that thrives on these deep, infertile sands.

Moist and wet serpentine region.—This region in southwestern Puerto Rico has shallow soils

that are low in nitrogen and phosphors and very permeable. Agriculture fails on these lands

and tree growth is slow (45). Two Commonwealth forests covering 17,300 acres located in

the region contain important watersheds. Some areas can support plantations of Caribbean

pine, maria (Calophyllum calaba), and, with heavy fertilizers, avocados.

Wet-volcanic region.—Most of the wet life zone in Puerto Rico is found over volcanic soil

and the main crop is coffee. In the late 1960’s and early 1970’s, many coffee plantations were

left untended due to a shortage of laborers, and shrubs and trees invaded. From the late

1970’s to the present, the coffee crop area has again expanded, apparently because of a shadeless coffee production system that uses nets for harvest (41) and a $2 million incentive program offering up to $1,000 Per acre for coffee planting. Since the new production is more

intensive, cosiderable areas of abandoned coffee shade still exist.

In 1981, Puerto Rico produced about 100,000 million to $8 million,

board feet of hardwood timber with a retail 1970—$144 million (27).

value of about $200,000, while the island’s imports of forest products totaled $410 million. Forest cover in Puerto

1950—$20 million,

Rico has increased

softwoods were imported largely from Canada from 9 percent in 1950 to 40 percent of the total

and the United States, and hardwoods deriv- area today because of a complex set of social,

ed primarily from the United States and Brazil economic, and cultural factors. Agricultural ex-

(table 20). The growth in forest product im- ploitation of tropical lands is often cyclical.

ports, now increasing by $25 million per year, Lands of marginal agricultural productivity are

has been rapid over the past 40 years: 1940–$5 exhausted by cropping, then abandoned to nat-
138 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

ural succession. If and when some measure of

fertility is restored, the lands maybe cleared

and cropped again. A peak of agricultural activity in Puerto Rico in the 1930’s and 1940’s

severely degraded the productivity of large

areas of land and led to their abandonment.

In both Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin

Islands, the abandonment of the sugar cane industry decreased the amount of land under cultivation and some of this has reverted to brush.

Brush and nonwoody species associated with

forest and brush lands are important for soil

and water management and have esthetic importance to the tourism industry in the drier

areas of the Caribbean.

Beginning in the 1950’s, industrial development led to more attractive employment

opportunities in industry than in agriculture,

lower priority for agricultural programs, and

increased abandonment of land from farming.

The growth of tourism also attracted capital

and labor away from agriculture, Complementing the increased availability of alternative

employment were easy air transportation to the

mainland United States and social support programs (e.g., food stamps) offered by the Federal

Government. Thus, the need to scratch out a

meager living on steep infertile slopes was

greatly reduced, These activities continue to

reduce dependence on marginal agricultural

activities.
Ch. 6—U.S. Tropical Forests: Caribbean and Western Pacific • 139

Table 20.—1981 Lumber Imports Into Puerto Rico by Species and Country of Origin

Totals

Species Country Quantity (MBF) Wholesale dollar value

softwoods:

Cedar (other) . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Douglas fir. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Hemlock ... , . . . . . . . . . . . .

Pine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Redwood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Spruce . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Western red cedar . . . . . . . .

Other softwoods. . . . . . . . . .

Subtotal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Hardwoods:

Mahogany . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Maple . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Spanish cedar. . . . . . . . . . . .

Walnut . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

White oak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Other hardwoods . . . . . . . . .

Subtotal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Canada

United States

Canada

United States

Canada

United States

Canada

Honduras

United States (Southern

Ponderosa White)

United States

Canada

Canada

United States

Brazil

Colombia —

599

468

6,733

764

30,544

31

1,928

1,240

31,986

220

7,548

535

765

39

51

83,451

$ 144,000

149,000

1,330,000

357,000

5,973,000

15,000

391,000

336,000

10,770,000

314,000

1,212,000

179,000

666,000

12,000

3,000

$21,851,000

Brazil 3,261 2,096,000

United States 1,417 815,000

Brazil 260 87,000

Colombia 291 55,000

Honduras 98 95,000

Surinam 10 5,000

United States 42 35,000

United States 2,075 478,000

Brazil 1,255 731,000

Colombia 459 117,000

French Guiana 64 10,000

Malaysia 23 15,000

United States 1,829 1,349,000

11,084 $5,888,000

94,535 $27,739,000

SOURCE R C Schmidt, “Forestry: Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands,” OTA commissioned paper, 1982

In addition, the price of rural land has long

since come to reflect scarcity rather than productivity. Forest land in Puerto Rico may cost

$1,000 to $2,000 per acre, and land values in

the U.S. Virgin Islands have exceeded $10,000

per acre. Consequently, land speculation is

common and much land lies idle awaiting

development. Puerto Rico maintains a law

against private individuals or corporations

owning more than 500 acres and, in general,

the land is in small holdings. Nearly 90 percent

of the land ownerships are less than 48 acres

(33).

The potential for plantation forestry in Puerto Rico has been greatly increased as lands previously used for agriculture have become available. Also, natural secondary forest may supply

useful forest products in the future. However,

the total volume of wood in the secondary

forest in Puerto Rico is not great—22 cubic

meters per acre (m3

/acre) in abandoned coffee

plantations and 18 ins/acre in secondary forests

(2). Undisturbed moist tropical forests often

support more than 80 m3 of wood per acre.

Trends in the growth of forest area or volume

are not yet known. In 1980, field work was

done for the first comprehensive inventory of

Puerto Rico’s forests, and future inventories in

1985 and 1990 will begin to show trends. Observations indicate that forest area is increasing slightly or is stabilized (27). The only cutting occurring in these secondary forests is for

fence posts, which probably does not decrease

overall volume growth significantly.
140 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Organizations Dealing With

Tropical Forests

Although several Commonwealth and Federal agencies are involved in tree planting in

Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, the

U.S. Forest Service, the Virgin Islands Department of Agriculture (VIDA), and the Puerto

Rico Department of Natural Resources (DNR)

are the agencies with primary responsibility for

forestry (table 21). U.S. Forest Service activities

include research at the Institute of Tropical

Forestry (ITF), administration of the Caribbean

National Forest, and cooperative programs

with the DNR and VIDA.

ITF uses the Luquillo Experimental Forest,

several Commonwealth forests, and the 120-

acre Estate Thomas Experimental Forest in the

Virgin Islands as sites for research. Even

though timber management has been ITF’s

main research objective, cooperative programs

have been under way with AID, the Peace

Corps, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and

several universities and Caribbean nation

governments.

Neither the land grant University of Puerto

Rico nor the College of the Virgin Islands has

a forestry curriculum or an integrated natural

resource management curriculum. The Virgin

Islands Department of Agriculture’s Forestry

Program, with five staff members, operates a

nursery, an urban forestry program, and a rural

reforestation program. Nearly 400 acres have

been reforested since the program’s inception

in 1967.

Changing public attitudes toward Puerto

Rico’s forests is the primary focus of DNR’s

Forest Service. It has begun a media campaign,

trained field agents in each of the five regions

of Puerto Rico, and recently embarked on a

program to bring private landowners into commercial forestry. State and private forestry programs administered by the U.S. Forest Service

provide technical assistance to guide the DNR

Forest Service’s forest management, utilization, and extension programs.

Table 21.-Organizations Dealing With Tropical

Forests in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands

Agency/Responsibilities

Federal Government:

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

Forest Service: Administers the Caribbean National Forest,

participates in the Cooperative Forest Management Act,

and conducts research in forest management, recreation,

wildlife, and tropical tree culture.

Soil Conservation Service: Advises landowners about landuse alternatives, including forestry practices.

Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service: Approves incentive applications for forestry practices included under the Rural Environmental Assistance Program

Act.

Agricultural Extension Service: Handles island-wide education campaign promoting tree-planting for ornamental, recreational, environmental, and commercial purposes.

Mayaguez Institute of Tropical Agriculture: USDA agricultural research station specializing in developing and testing

crops suited for tropical areas including fruit trees and

cacao.

National Park Service: Administers San Juan National Historic Site, Puerto Rico; Virgin Islands National Park, St.

John; Buck Island Reef National Monument, St. Croix;

Christianstead National Historic Site, St. Croix.

Federal Highway Authority: Develops specifications regulating tree-planting along roads built with Federal funds.

Commonwealth and Territory Governments:

●

●

Ž

●

Forest Service, Department of Natural Resources, Puerto

Rico: Manages the 13 Commonwealth forests for watershed, recreation, research, wildlife, and timber. Under the

Cooperative Forest Management Act, conducts field work

related to private reforestation programs. Produces and

distributes seedlings from three nurseries.

Agricultural Services Administration, Puerto Rico: Grows

forest, ornamental, fruit, and shade tree seedlings at the

Monterrey Nursery in Dorado, Puerto Rico.

Forestry Program, Department of Agriculture, U.S. Virgin

Islands: Operates a nursery, manages urban forestry on

public lands, and runs a rural reforestation program for private landowners.

Department of Conservation and Cultural Affairs, U.S.

Virgin Islands: Administers territorial parks, Earth Change

Permit System restrictions on earth-moving, and Sediment

Reduction Program managing watersheds related to marine

sedimentation.

Universities and colleges:

• University of Puerto Rico: Offers undergraduate and graduate programs in biology, ecology, agronomy, and administers system of agricultural experiment stations.

● College of the Virgin lslands: Offers undergraduate programs in biology and chemistry and administers the Virgin

Islands Experiment Station which maintains Forest Service experimental plots.

SOURCE: Adapted from L. H. Liegel, “Woodland Conservation in Puerto Rico:

Its Past, Present, and Future,” New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, NY., thesis, 1973.
Ch. 6—U.S. Tropical Forests: Caribbean and Western Pacific ● 141

U.S. PACIFIC TERRITORIES: AMERICAN SAMOA, TRUST TERRITORY

OF THE PACIFIC ISLANDS, COMMONWEALTH OF THE NORTHERN

MARIANA ISLANDS, AND GUAM

American Samoa is the only U.S. territory

that lies south of the Equator. The Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, Commonwealth

of the Northern Mariana Islands, and Territory

of Guam constitute most of Micronesia, * which

lies north of the Equator between Hawaii and

the Philippines (fig. 21). Micronesia covers an

area of the western Pacific roughly equivalent

to that of the conterminous United States (3

million square miles) embracing some 2,000

islands lying in three major archipelagoes: the

Marianas, the Carolines, and the Marshalls (fig.

22).

American Samoa and Guam are unincorporated territories (to which the U.S. Constitution has not been expressly extended) under the

administration of elected Governors. American

Samoa has been administered by the United

States since 1900 and by a Governor appointed

by the Secretary of the Department of the Interior specifically since 1951. Although relations between the government of Guam and the

Federal Government also are conducted under

the jurisdiction of the Department of the Interior, residents of Guam elect their own

officials.

The Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands

(TTPI), which originally included the Northern

Mariana Islands, was established under U.N.

sanction after World War II. Administration

of the Trust Territory has been the responsibility of the Department of the Interior through

an organization composed of the High Commissioner and District Adminstrators. TTPI is

treated as domestic except that the Peace Corps

has special congressional authorization to

operate there.

Under an executive order signed by President Ford, each district was given the opportunity to determine its own form of government and degree of independence from the

*Other islands in Micronesia are Wake, Marcus, Volcano,

Benin, Nauru, and Kiribati,

United States. The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands was established and

separated from the Trust Territory in 1978,

although some relations between the Marianas

and the U.S. Government continue under the

jurisdiction of the Department of the Interior.

The remaining polical entities—the Republic

of Palau, the Federated States of Micronesia

(Yap, Truk, Ponape, and Kosrae), and the

Republic of the Marshall Islands—now must

decide whether or not to become nations in

free association with the United Staes. Free

association would allow them free control of

internal affairs while assuring them fiscal aid

and national defense provisions from the

United States.

By January 1981, each emerging nation had

installed a constitutional government with

democratically elected officials (table 22). All

of these provisional entities are weak

economically and have existed almost entirely on Federal funding since world War 11. U.S.

appropriations for the Trust Territory, excluding Federal categorical programs, exceeded $100 million in fiscal year 1980 (40). The

government employs 56 percent of the work

force, and provides 76 percent of the wages (37).

Considerable differences exist in the topography among the islands. Some are rugged,

high islands, some with active volcanoes, while

others are low islands and coral atolls.

The original vegetation of the high volcanic

islands included rain forests on the windward

slopes, and drier forests on the leeward slopes.

On some of these islands, grass or fern savanna naturally occurred. The natural cover of

elevated coral limestone areas is dense forest

with species composition different from the

high volcanic type. High coral islands are

floristically much richer than the forests of low
142 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Figure 21 .—Location of the U.S. Western Pacific Territories

Hawaii

9

●

SOURCE: Office of Technology Assessment.

coral islands. Even an elevation change of a

few feet results in a much richer flora. The

natural vegetation of low coral islands is a

“beach” type, adapted to highly saline water

and soils. Some of the drier islands have little

more than coconuts, scrub, and bunch-grass

savanna, or salt flats.

he

Equator

American

 Samo a

The current extent and condition of forests

in the U.S. Pacific vary greatly from one island

to the next. A long history of disturbance by

man and natural forces left little undisturbed

forest. A decline in agricultural production for

export, plus urban migration and dependence

on U.S. Federal income supports and imported
Ch. 6—U.S. Tropical Forests: Caribbean and Western Pacific • 143

Figure 22.—Geopolitical Breakdown of the U.S. Western Pacific Territories

Western Pacific

Samoa Islands Micronesia

American Samoa

Mariana Islands Caroline Islands Marshall Islands

Political entity

I Geographical entity

SOURCE: Office of Technology Assessment.

products are probably the reasons why agriculture has lost prominence. Most abandoned

agricultural land naturally revegetates to savanna or to secondary forest. Little of the secondary forest is suitable for commercial timber exploitation due to poor quality and low volume

of commercial tree species.

Timber exploitation has declined since

World War II. Much of the choice timber had

been cut by 1950. Most of the islands could sus-

\

\

I

tain forest production to help meet local needs,

although there is little potential for export. Rapidly increasing populations will consume any

available forest products produced within short

land or sea hauls.

Amarican Samoa

American Samoa is comprised of the seven

eastern islands of the Samoan group, with a

total land area of about 50,000 acres. Two
144 • Technologies to Sustain Tropical forest Resources

Table 22.—Pacific Territories of the United States

Approximate number Dryland 1980 Current (C) or projected (P)

Territory or island of islandsa

(acres) population relationship with the United States

American Samoa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Commonwealth of the Northern

Mariana Islands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands

(except Northern Mariana Islands).

Federated States of Micronesia. . . . .

Kosrae . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ponape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Truk. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Yap . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Republic of the Marshall Islands. . . .

Republic of Palau . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

7

1

21

2,182

607

5

165

290

149

1,225

350

2,211

49,200

135,000

76,00 0

291,340

165,095

26,270 90,000

20,950

27,875

17,945

108,300

551,540

32,400

105,000

16,900

116,345

73,500

5,500

22,300

37,500

8,200

31 ,045b

11,800

275,645

Unincorporated territory (C)

Unincorporated territory (C)

Commonwealth of the United States

(C) (established 1978)

Free association, U.S. funded (P)

—

Free association, U.S. funded (P)

Free association, U.S. funded (P)

—

OTA commissioned paper, 1982.

islands are coral atolls, whereas the others rise

steeply from the sea. Tutuila Island, with a land

area of 34,000 acres, has approximately 90 percent of the population. It has one flat coastal

plain of about 3,200 acres where urban growth

is concentrated. outside of Tutuila, the

economy is classified as subsistence. At least

95 percent of American Samoa is communally owned (25) and land disputes are common,

Through massive infusion of Federal money

from the United States, American Samoa has

in recent years developed a cash economy.

This has resulted in less land used for cultivation and subsistence. Most land in American

Samoa is classified as undeveloped (table 23).

The original forest cover for most of American Samoa was dense tropical rain forest.

However, nearly two-thirds of the rain forest

Table 23.—Land Use in American Samoa, 1977

Land use” - Acres

Developed land . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,830

Residential . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,475

Subsistence agriculture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,620

American Samoa Government . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,087

Other . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,648

Undeveloped land . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40,930

Total land area. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48,760

SOURCE American Samoa Government, Economic Development Plan for Amencan Samoa, FY 1979-1984 (Pago Pago’ Development Planning Office,

1979)

has been destroyed or damaged by man’s activities, leaving undisturbed forests only on

steep slopes. Plantations (primarily taro and

coconut) are the most extensive land use, covering 34 percent of the land. Secondary forest

covers 20 percent and includes all of those successional vegetation stages present after

agricultural land has been abandoned. The

only types of vegetation left relatively undisturbed are cloud forest, montane scrub, and

littoral (coastal) vegetation. Unlike elsewhere

in the Pacific, disturbed vegetation and secondary forest in American Samoa are not dominated by exotic plants (4).

Trust Territory Of the Pacific Islands

The Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands

(TTPI) includes roughly two-thirds of

Micronesia: the Caroline and Marshall archipelagoes. TTPI includes high volcanic

islands of varying ages, elevated platforms of

coral limestone, and low flat coral islets and

atolls (table 24). Coral atolls are characterized

by the coconut palm and its related plant

associates—breadfruit, pandanus, and shore

plants. The high volcanic islands usually have

mangrove swamps on the tidal flats, coconut

vegetation inland and on the slopes, and mixed forest growth on the uplands (fig. 23).
Subsistence agriculture, a major land use in the western Pacific, is

Table 24.—island Types and Forest Areas

Photo credit: C. Hodges

one cause of American Samoa’s forest loss

of Micronesia (acres)
146 • Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Figure 23.—Diagram of a "Typical” Micronesia Island Indicating Some Relationships Between Land Development

and Island Resources

SOURCE: N. H. Cheatham, “Land Development: Its Environmental Impact on Micronesia,” Micronesian Reporter, Third Quarter 1975, pp. 8-10

Soil fertility is sufficient for the subsistence

farming that is practiced—coconut culture and

manmade taro pits on coral islands, and taro

swamps, agroforestry, and garden culture on

the volcanic and limestone islands. Where production is intensified, fertilizers must be used

to sustain continuous production.

Leaching of plant nutrients is considered a

more severe land-use problem than erosion.

The combined loss of soil fertility from leaching and crop harvest has so depleted the available plant nutrients that certain areas in the

high islands no longer can support sufficient

vegetation either to protect against erosion or

to provide enough nitrogen and organic material for crop growth (35).

Commonwealth of the Northern

Mariana Islands

The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands comprises 14 islands of the Marianas archipelago, excluding Guam. The archipelago can be divided into a group of young,

mostly active volcanoes and a group of older

islands of elevated limestone and old,

weathered volcanic rocks. The Northern

Marianas have a land area of 76,000 acres. The

largest islands of Saipan, Rota, and Tinian

(covering 30,000 acres; 25,000 acres; and 21,000

acres respectively) are high limestone/volcanic

combinations.

The steep ash slopes of the volcanoes are

generally covered by a dense, coarse grass

Miscanthus). Mixed forest and coconut plantations cover the flatter areas near the sea.

Volcanic areas can be quickly colonized by

exotic nitrogen-fixing Casuarina and other

trees, but the common practice of burning

maintains these areas in grasslands (4). The

limestone regions of the older islands are predominantly covered with dense secondary forest. Some sugar cane is grown where the soil

is deep enough.

Man has influenced the vegetation of the

Marianas for at least 3,500 years. On old volcanic soils, accelerated clearing and burning

in recent centuries have created a secondary

forest in some areas and much secondary

savanna. Erosion and soil deterioration have

accompanied the process, making natural

regeneration of the savanna a slow process. On

fertile limestone soils, the forest has been
Ch. 6—U.S. Tropical Forests: Caribbean and Western Pacific ● 147

replaced by coconut plantations, pastures,

open fields and gardens, or secondary forest.

Guam

Guam is the largest and southernmost island

of the Marianas chain, covering 135,000 acres.

The northern half of the island is mostly flat

or gently sloping limestone with a thin lateritic

soil. In contrast, the southern half is composed

of ancient, deeply weathered volcanic material.

Except for a coastal plain on the western side,

this southern area has a generally rugged terrain with a thick, acidic clay soil that contains

little humus. More fertile soils occur on the

coastal plains and valley mouths.

Once forest covered the entire island, but

human disturbances and frequent typhoons,

together with military activities during and

after World War II, has left little undisturbed

forest on Guam. Only scattered patches remain
148 Ž Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

of the island. They are mostly in small parcels

and titles are often uncertain.

Little land on Guam is used intensively. No

more than 2 percent of the land is actively

cultivated (46). About 70,000 unmanaged acres

(52 percent) have a cover of brush or trees including some 10,000 acres of abandoned coconut groves. About 50,000 acres (37 percent) of

open or grass-covered land exist, little of which

is grazed. In the southern part of the island,

some of the open land is barren and actively

eroding. Significant portions of both wooded

and grass-covered lands are under military

control, which restricts or prevents other uses.

In general, Guam’s forests typify those of

Micronesia; they remain unmanaged and their

productivity is relatively low. Local populations seem little concerned with productive

land use as imports provide more desirable

substitutes (46). Growing populations are gradually generating pressures that will lead to conversion of the native forest to agriculture and

urban areas. Eventually, however, agricultural

lands will be largely depleted of nutrients and

will be abandoned. These lands, and those already converted to nonproductive wasteland or

scrub forest, may be designated “forest land,”

but foresters can only make such lands productive with great ingenuity, patience, and substantial investments.

History of Forest Use

Pre-U.S. Administration

The original inhabitants of Micronesia made

few modifications of their environment. Traditional agriculture activities caused only

minimal soil erosion. Low areas just inland of

the coastal mangrove forests have been used

for taro patches, changing the mangrove’s species composition but retaining their capacity

to filter and retain sediment.

Traditional agroforestry practices still found

on the islands of Truk, Yap, and Ponape produce food while maintaining a cover of trees to

protect and stabilize the soil. Coconut and

breadfruit are interplanted on Truk’s steep

lower slopes. On Ponape, yams are planted

below trees which they climb. The tree drops

some or all of its leaves as the yam grows, providing green manure. Many species of food

trees grow on Yap, and their harvest is alternated with produce from taro patches and yam

gardens. Burning is used to open up small

garden areas and to produce ash fertilizer

under trees and bamboo patches (13).

Forests began a gradual decline following

the arrival of the Spanish on Guam some 300

years ago. As the Spanish, and later the Germans, gained control, many islands—especially

atolls—were eventually cleared, primarily for

coconut plantations. The Germans also introduced teak, kapok, and a few other forest tree

species during their administration from 1887

to 1914.

In 1914, the Japanese occupied nearly all of

Micronesia except Guam and a few small

islands. Within a few years, the Japanese had

cleared all lands considered suitable for

agriculture, and new crops such as pineapple

and sugar cane were introduced. Copra production was increased, forests were cut for

lumber and charcoal, and thousands of laborers, tradesmen, and their families came from

Japan and Okinawa. Refineries, packing plants,

large towns, and fortifications were built. Agriculture and forest experiment stations were

established and research was conducted, including studies on nitrogen-fixing legumes and

forest tree species introductions.

Most of these developments were destroyed

during World War II. Commercial agriculture

ceased and most fields were abandoned. Now

they are covered with brush, grass, or trees,

and are degraded from erosion and fires. By

the middle of this century, most of the forests of

Micronesia had been at some time either destroyed, cut, or converted to agriculture. Many

forests are recovering and trees are approaching merchantable size. However, these frequently are species of limited use and commercial value. Remaining native forests and some

secondary forests in Palau, Ponape, and Kosrae

contain useful native species.
Ch. 6—U.S. Tropical Forests: Caribbean and Western Pacific ● 149

Centuries of colonial rule and great distances

between Micronesia islands have resulted in

many different forms of landownership. Much

landownership is communal, and in some

places items such as buildings or individual

trees may be owned separately from the land.

Land transfer and management authority may

be vested in a family member, a village officer,

or a village group. Individual ownership is relatively new. This leads to landownership disputes that have major impacts on the status of

forest lands, especially the mangroves.

U.S. Administration

Administration of forest resources in Micronesia has been conducted by the U.S. Navy,

Department of the Interior, Territory Governments, and now the emerging semi-independent governments. During the 37 years of

American control, the forest resource

“managers” at various times have been American foresters, agriculturists, biologists, conservationists, military planners, and local island

foresters. Some have initiated, while others

have ignored, forest management practices and

forestry-related research. Political changes and

frequent personnel turnover have eventually

negated much of the constructive work started

over the years in Micronesia. Other factors also

have played important roles in determining the

present condition of the forest lands, including

World War II destruction, fires, typhoons, vandalism, timber theft, neglect, noxious weeds,

impoverished soils, and inadequate funding of

conservation programs.

One of the more successful U.S.-supported

efforts in Micronesia has been the work of agriculturists. Specialists have come and gone

over the years, but a dedicated core accomplished some important work with limited

budgets, staff, and facilities. Technologies such

as those available through the U.S. Agency for

International Development programs to lesser

developed countries were seldom funded to

any significant extent in Micronesia. Consequently, little is known about such things as

soil nutrient deficiencies and crop nutrient requirements under the islands’ conditions (46).

Fire is the biggest technical problem to overcome in rehabilitating grass lands. Each year,

fires are started and allowed to burn uncontrolled. They sweep through the grasses to the edge

of the forest, destroying forest along the margin. This deforestation is disrupting island

hydrology. For example, older inhabitants of

Northern Babeldaob (Palau) remember when

the streams ran all year long. Now, due to repeated burnings, the forest cover has been destroyed and the streams run only when it rains,

and then they are often fast and muddy (11).

In the 1960’s, the TTPI agriculturists brought

thousands of improved varieties of coconuts

from Yap to the Marshalls and other islands.

However, this rehabilitation project was not

completed. Local economies now suffer and

two new processing plants, one in the Marshalls and one in Palau, have had low production and low profits because of a copra shortage. In fact, it has been necessary to import

copra from Papua New Guinea to keep the

Palau plant operating.

The condition of coconut plantations on

many islands is of serious concern. Many were

planted by the Germans around the turn of the

century and they are now senescent. For many

inhabitants of the U.S. Pacific, coconut growing is the only nongovernment source of cash

income. Despite its importance, the copra industry in Micronesia and American Samoa is

in trouble on three fronts: 1) the world price

is low (in competition with other copra producing areas and other vegetable oils); 2) yields are

low and most of the plantings are old, well

beyond the productive life of the palm; and 3)

while copra is not the only product derived

from the coconut, the other major potential

product–coir fiber–is wasted (34).

Organizations Dealing With

Tropical Forests

Forestry programs in the U.S. Pacific consist primarily of localized extension efforts and

limited nursery activities. Industrial forest use

is limited to harvesting small commercial
mangrove forests on Ponape and Kosrae. Individual trees are used by the crafts industry

on most islands. The forests also provide some

home construction materials on many islands.

Forest use is being included in the economic

development plans by the new governments.

The only forest research activities in the U.S.

Pacific since the 1930’s have been those conducted during the past 15 years by the American Pacific Islands Forestry Research Work

Unit of the U.S. Forest Service. This Unit is

one of three research teams that make up the

Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry (IPIF)

located in Hawaii. The Institute, in turn, is part

of the Pacific Southwest Forest and Range Experiment Station. The Pacific Islands Forestry

Research Work Unit is responsible for conducting cooperative research and information exchange with the U.S. Pacific Islands. Support

is provided by the Forest Service Northwest

Forest Experiment Station and the Hawaii Division of Forestry and wildlife. The State and

Private Forestry branch of the Forest Service

provides technical assistance and cooperative

funds to the forestry programs in the western

Pacific.

The Forestry and Soil Resources Division of

the Department of Agriculture in Guam has

three professional foresters and two technicians. The land grant University of Guam has

designated an experimental forest area, but no

school in the U.S. Pacific has a forestry or integrated natural resource management curriculum. Ponape State passed a Forest Manage-
Ch. 6—U.S. Tropical Forests: Caribbean and Western Pacific Ž 151

ment Act in 1978 that provided for the protection and management of its forest and watershed areas. No forestry program exists in

American Samoa. In 1983, the Commonwealth

of the Northern Mariana Islands initiated a

forestry program (47). Each emerging island

government, with the exception of Palau, has

a research memorandum of understanding

with the IPIF and includes forestry in proposed development plans.

ern Pacific are either small or nominal. The extant and emerging governments have expressed an intent to include forestry in development and have designated forest agencies, but

they lack funding and adequate professional

personnel. Also, IPIF is attempting to address

the forest research problems on 2,000 islands

with only three professional staff and annual

funding for only 2 scientist-years (table 26).

The forestry agencies responsible for forest

protection and management in the U.S. westTable 26.—Organizations Dealing With Tropical Forest Resources in the American Western Pacific

Agency/Responsibilities

Federal Government:

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

Forest Service; Conducts research and cooperative resource inventories; provides State, Territorial, and private

landownership support, and manages Pacific Islands Forestry Information Center.

Soil Conservation Service; Advises landowners about landuse alternatives including forestry practices; conducts cooperative soil surveys.

Fish and Wildlife Service: Administers Rose Atoll Wildlife

Refuge, American Samoa: conducts cooperative terrestrial

inventories.

National Park Service: Administers the National Historic

Park in Guam.

Department of Defense: Maintains a chief conservation officer on Guam overseeing DOD activities in the Pacific;

maintains Patti Point Natural Area.

Peace Corps: Sponsors volunteers to aid village development, forestry, etc.

Pacific Basin Development Council: Partnership among

U.S. Federal Government, American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, and State of Hawaii to determine the

future development needs and priorities of the American

Pacific Islands.

Island Governments:

These territorial agencies conduct programs in agriculture,

forestry, fire prevention, fish and wildlife management, and

outdoor reaction. Two forestry stations test nursery techniques and methods of rehabilitating and reforesting degraded grasslands and woodlands.

●

●

●

●

•

●

Territory of American Samoa: Department of Agriculture

Territory of Guam: Department of Agriculture, Bureau of

Planning

Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands: Department

of Natural Resources

Republic of the Marshall Islands: Department of Resources

and Development

Republic of Pa/au: Deparment of Natural Resources, Nekken Forestry Experiment Station

Federated States of Micronesia: Kosrae State, Department

of Resources and Development; Ponape State, Department

of Conservation, Metalinin Forestry Experiment Station;

Truk State, Department of Resources and Development;

Yap State, Department of Resources and Development

Universities and colleges:

. American Samoa Community College.” Designated a land

grant college in 1983.

● College of Micronesia.- Designated a land grant college i n

1983.

. University of Guam.- Land grant COIIege.

Other:

. South Pacific Commission.” Provides technical assistance,

training, and some monetary assistance for agroforestfy

and ecology.

. Yap Institute of Natural science.- Identifies flora and fauna

of western Pacific islands and traditional uses of medicinal

plants on Yap.

SOURCE Adapted from C D. Whitesell, C W Philpot, and M. C. V. Falanruw, ‘

rCongressional Action to Improve the Sustainability of U S Tropical Forest Resources

in the Pacific, ” OTA commissioned paper, 1982.
152 Ž Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

1.

2.

3,

4.

5.

6.

7.

8

9.

10.

11,

12.

CHAPTER 6

American Samoa Government, Economic Development Plan for American Samoa, FY 1979-

1984 (Pago Pago: Development P1anning Office,

1979).

Birdsey, R, A., and Weaver, P. L., “The Forest

Resources of Puerto Rico,” U.S. Forest Service

Southern Forest Experiment Station Resource

Bulletin, New Orleans, La., 1982. In: Schmidt,

1982.

Briggs, R, P., and Akers, J. P,, “Hydrologic Map

of Puerto Rico and Adjacent Islands,” U.S. Geological Survey, Hydrologic Investigations Atlas

HA-197, 1965. In: Schmidt, 1982.

Byrne, J. (cd.), Literature Review and Synthesis

of Information on Pacifi”c Island Ecosystems,

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Office of Biological Services, FwS/OBS-79/35, Washington,

D. C., 1979.

Chandrasekharan, C., “A Report on the Forests

of American Samoa, ” prepared for the Food

and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Regional Office for Asia and the Far East,

Bangkok, Thailand, 1977,

Cheatham, N. H., “Land Development: Its Environmental Impact on Micronesia, ” Micronesia Reporter, third quarter, 1975, pp. 8-10.

Clayton, R. V., “National Progress Report on

Forestry: Hawaii,” prepared for the Asia-Pacific

Forestry Commission Eleventh Session, Honolulu, Hawaii, 1981.

Crabb, T., “Two Years Later—The BioEnergy

Experience,” Moving Forestry and Wildlife into

the 80’s, proceedings of Hawaii Forestry Wildlife Conference, USDA Forest Service, Honolulu, Hawaii, 1981.

Daehler, R. E., “Conservation District Lands—

Best Possible Use?” A40ving Forestry and Wildlife into the 80’s, proceedings of Hawaii Forestry Wildlife Conference, USDA Forest Service,

Honolulu, Hawaii, 1981.

Department of Natural Resources, Puerto Rico,

Inventory of Land Used and Natural Resources

in Puerto Rico (unpublished report), 1973. In:

Schmidt, 1982.

Emmons, B. R,, “Forestry in Micronesia” (unpublished paper, located at Library of the Office of Territorial Affairs, Department of the Interior), 1971.

Ewel, J. J., and Whitmore, J, L,, The Ecological

Life Zones of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin

[slands, USDA Forest Service Research Paper

ITF-18, 1973. In: Schmidt, 1982.

13,

14.

15.

16,

17<

18,

19.

20.

21.

22,

23.

24

25

Falanruw, M. V. C., “Marine Environment Impacts of Land-Based Activities in the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands,” Marine and Coastal Processes in the Pacifi”c, Proceedings of

UNESCO Seminar, July 14-16, 1980, Papua,

New Guinea, pp. 21-47.

Figueroa, J. C., and Schmidt, R. C., “Species

Diversity and Forest Structure in Lower Montane Wet Serpentine Forest in Puerto Rico, ”

Seventh Symposium of Natural Resources,

Department of Natural Resources (in preparation). In: Schmidt, 1982.

Fosberg, F. R., “The Vegetation of Micronesia,”

Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural

History 171:1-361, 1960.

Harpole, B. G., Opportunities for Marketing

Hawaii Timber Products, USDA Forest Service

Research paper PSW-61, Berkeley, Calif., 1970.

Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources, “Hawaii Forest Conservation Research

Plan for the Eighties,” Honolulu, Hawaii (photoCOPY), 1981.

Little, E, L., Jr., Checklist for United States

Trees (Native and Naturalized), USDA Forest

Service Handbook No. 541, Washington, D. C.,

1979. In: Schmidt, 1982.

Little, E. L., Jr., and Wadsworth, F, H., Common

Trees of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin

[slands, Agricultural Handbook No. 249, USDA

Forest Service, Washington, D. C., 1969. In:

Schmidt, 1982.

Little, E. L., Jr., Woodbury, R. O., and Wadsworth, F. H., Trees of Puerto Rico and the Virgin 1sZands, Second Volume, USDA Handbook

No. 449, USDA Forest Service, Washington,

D. C., 1974. In; Schmidt, 1982.

Lugo-Lopez, M. A., and Rivera, L. H., Updated

Taxonomic Classification of the Soils of Puerto Rico, University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez,

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In: Schmidt, 1982.

Owen, Robert, Chief Conservationist for the

Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (retired],

personal communication, 1982.

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Forests in Micronesia,” prepared for OTA Advisory Panel Meeting (unpublished), 1982.

Owen, R. P., “A Conservation Program for the

Trust Territory,” Micronesia Reporter, the

/ourna] of Micronesia 27(1):22-28, 1979.

Patton, H. M., “The Pacific Basin: Toward a
Ch. 6—U.S. Tropical Forests: Caribbean and Western Pacific Ž 153

Regional Future,” State Government, 53:68-76,

spring 1980.

26. Richards, P. W., The Tropical Rain Forest (London: Cambridge University Press, 1966). In:

Schmidt, 1982.

27. Schmidt, R. C., “Forestry: Puerto Rico and the

virgin Islands, ” OTA commissioned paper,

1982.

28. Schmidt, R. C., personal communication, 1983.

29. Shepard, F., “Coral and Other Organic Reefs, ”

Submarine Geology (2d cd.) (New York: Harper

& Row, 1963). In: Whitesell, et al., 1982.

30. Somberg, S. I., Virgin Islands Forestry Research: A Problem AnaZysis (St. Croix: College

of the Virgin Islands, Virgin Islands Agricultural Experiment Station, 1976).

31. South Pacific Commission and International

Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, “Regional Ecosystems Survey

of the South Pacific Area, ” Second Regional

Symposium on Conservation of Nature, June

14-17, 1976, p. 179.

32. Towle, Edward, Island Resources Foundation,

St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, personal communication, 1983.

33. U.S. Bureau of the Census, “1978 Census of Agriculture,” Washington, D. C., 1980.

34. U.S. Department of Agriculture, USDA Survey:

Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, Guam,

American Samoa, Washington, D. C., 1975.

35. U.S. Department of State, Trust Territory of the

Pacific Islands, 1980, report to the United Nations on the Administration of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, Washington, D. C.,

1981.

36, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, “Endangered

37

Wildlife Research Program: Tropical Fore~t Research” (unpublished document).

U.S. Forest Service, International Forestry Research Plan for Oceania, Asia and Western Pacific, U.S. Forest Service Pacific Southwest

Forest and Range Experiment Station, Berkeley,

Ca]if., 1980.

38.

39.

40<

41,

U.S. National Park Service, “Forest Streams

and Estuaries on Tropical, High, Oceanic

Islands” (unpublished report).

U.S. National Park Service, memorandum on

status of U.S. tropical forests from Acting Regional Director, Western Region, to Associate

Director, Science and Technology, National

Park Service, Mar. 25, 1981.

U.S. Congress, Senate, hearings of the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, June 3,

1980 (photocopy).

Vicente-Chandler, J., Conceptos, plan y programa para una agricultural moderna en Puerto Rico, Special Report to the Secretary of Agriculture of Puerto Rico, 1978. In: Schmidt,

1982.

42. Wadsworth, F. H,, “Timber,” In Vicente43

44

Chandler, J., Conceptos, plan y programa para

una agricultural moderna en Puerto Rico, Special Report to the Secretary of Agriculture of

Puerto Rico, 1978. In: Schmidt, 1982.

Wadsworth, F. H., “Island’s Lack of a Wood Industry,” San Juan Star, June 29, 1981, p. 13.

Wadsworth, F. H., “Timber and Forest Energy

Development Potentials for Puerto Rico,” Symposium on Biomass Production in Puerto Rico

(in preparation). In: Schmidt, 1982.

As. weaver, P. L., Tree Growth in Several Tropical

Forests of Puerto Rico, USDA Forest Service

Research Paper SO-152, Southern Forest Experiment Station, New Orleans, La., 1979. In:

Schmidt, 1982.

46. Whitesell, C. D., Philpot, C. W., and Falanruw,

M. C. V., “Congressional Action to Improve the

Sustainability of U.S. Tropical Forest Resources

in the Pacific, ” OTA commissioned paper,

1982.

47. Whitesell, C. D., personal communication, 1983.

48. Whitmore, T. C., Tropical Rain Forests of the

Far East (Oxford, England: Clarendon Press,

1975). In: Schmidt, 1982.

25-287 0 - 84 - 1 I
PART II

Technology
chapter 7

Technologies for
Page

Highlights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159

Maintaining Sample Ecosystems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. ...... 159

Making Undisturbed Forests More Valuable ● ***... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159

Maintaining Sample Ecosystems . . . . . . . .....**. ...**... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160

Why Protect Tropical Forests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 160

Status of Protected Areas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160

Techniques to Design, Establish, and Maintain Protected Areas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160

Conclusion . . . . . . . ● **.***. .*****.* . . . . . . . . . ....,... . . 166

Making Undisturbed Forests More Valuable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167

Nonwood Products . . . . . . . ● 0..,,,. **..***. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ,, . . . . . . 167

Forest Food Sources ● . .... ... . . . . . . . . ...... ...... . . . . . 168

Innovative Forest Products .... ● .,...... . . . . . . . . . . . 171

Conclusion ● ..... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173

Chapter preferences ,..,... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173

List of Tables

Table No. Page

27. Wildland Management Categories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163

28. Steps in Planning a Park or Protected Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164

List of Figures

Figure No. Page

24. Terrestrial Biogeographic Realms of the World .. . . . . . . . . . . . . 162

25. Design of Protected Areas . . . . . . . . ..... ... . . . . . . . . . 163

26. A Typical Biosphere Reserve . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ● 166
Chapter 7

Technologies for Undisturbed Forests

HIGHLIGHTS

Maintaining Sample Ecosystems

● Preserving samples of undisturbed tropical

forests can help protect representative flora,

fauna, and habitats and thus maintain biological diversity and goods and services provided by forests. But there is a disparity in

the distribution of protected areas.

● It is essential to improve the management

of existing protected areas, since many are

protected only on paper. The United States

can contribute by providing increased opportunities to educate and train resource

managers and technicians.

● There is growing recognition that protected

area management should include more socioeconomic and institutional considerations.

The UNESCO Man and the Biosphere Program system of biosphere reserves is one ap-

●

●

preach that emphasizes these components.

It, however, suffers from the lack of strong,

consistent U.S. commitment and support.

Making Undisturbed Forests

More Valuable

The value of tropical forests could be increased by developing new products or by

encouraging the collection and processing

of existing products. This could be done with

investment to analyze traditional uses of

forest products, develop markets, and promote sustainable management systems.

Improved assessment of the value of nonwood tropical forest products, especially in

subsistence economies, could provide incentive to include development of these resources in economic development planning.

Proven methods and techniques to sustain

undisturbed tropical forests* are few. Of these,

establishing parks and protected areas probably is the most common method. A few other

examples exist where selected renewable resources are extracted from a tropical forest to

generate income while the forest and its resources remain essentially intact.

Political expediency often determines when

and where a park or protected area is established. The rapid loss of forests in most tropical

countries forces people to try to establish protected areas whenever and wherever the op-

“Undisturbed tropical forests are defined as areas where trees

are the dominant woody vegetation covering more than 10 percent of the ground and where trees have not been cut during

the past 60 years. This definition includes both primary and old

secondary forest, both closed and open forest (22).

portunity arises regardless of whether adequate, continuing protection will be available

to care for the land and its resources. Many

protected areas exist only on paper and in fact

continue to undergo destruction.

Resource conserving technologies that tap

the potential of undisturbed forests, such as

butterfly and crocodile farming (see p. 172), are

rare. while these two examples affect few people, they are important illustrations of how

human well-being can be linked directly to

maintaining the productivity of tropical forest

resources. Such systems can work, but a great

need exists to develop other integrating approaches if such methods are to provide significant benefits while sustaining undisturbed

tropical forests,

159
160 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

MAINTAINING SAMPLE ECOSYSTEMS

Why Projecct Tropical Forest?

Parks and protected areas can fulfill a variety of objectives. These vary according to the

character of the area, but can include:

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

protecting and maintaining representative

samples of major biogeographical provinces to support evolutionary continuity

and the health of the Earth’s life support

system;

protecting representative, as well as

unique, samples of natural systems, landscapes, and life forms;

protecting natural areas needed to support

development activities (e.g., watersheds

and ground water recharge areas);

providing in situ* protection of plants and

animals that may make substantial, though

perhaps currently unforeseen, contributions to human development (e.g., supply

new food or drug sources);

providing sites for research and education

to increase scientific knowledge that can

be used to develop new technologies to

manage such systems;

protecting cultural, archeological, or

natural monuments; landscapes of

historical or cultural interest; or unusual

geological formations; and

providing esthetic pleasure, opportunities

for healthy and constructive- recreation,

and revenues from tourism (11).

Status of Protected Areas

Establishment of parks and protected areas

in the world has burgeoned in the last two decades. The greatest increase in the number of

protected areas has occurred in developing

countries. Nearly one-half (160 million hectares

(ha)) of the worldwide total of protected natural

areas are found in the Tropics (3,21). Protected

areas in Central America, for example, grew

rapidly from 24 units (1.7 million ha] in 1969

to 124 units (4.8 million ha) in 1981 (2). Unfor-

*Protecting stock in the original habitat rather than in places

such as gene banks or botanical or zoological gardens.

tunately, some of the designated areas are protected only on paper. No data are available on

what portion of the parks and protected areas

worldwide suffer illegal hunting, logging, farming, and livestock grazing, but anecdotal evidence suggests that such illegal use is a common problem in the tropical nations.

Substantial increases in the area given protected status over the past two decades indicate

that the values of undisturbed forest resources

are being more widely recognized. This progress is due at least in part to a growing awareness among nations of the social, economic,

and ecological benefits accruing from appropriately managed protected areas (7,8).

An FAO/UNEP study indicates about 3 percent of the closed tropical forest has been given

park or other legal protected status (see app.

table A-2). Such protected lands are unequally distributed; at least half are located in just

four countries–India, Zaire, Indonesia, and

Brazil. In addition, the International Union for

the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), which monitors the worldwide

distribution of protected areas, reported in

1981 that some ecological types are either not

represented or are underrepresented by existing protected areas.

Techniques to Design, Establish, and

Maintain Protectedd Areas

Siting Protected Tropical Forests

Many of the first tropical parks and reserves

were established for esthetic and recreational

purposes (14). Lands were set aside because of

spectacular scenery or unique land forms, following the precedent set by the United States.

Although such lands can provide income from

tourism and recreation, they may not be designed or located to sustain other important

values associated with undisturbed forests.

Park borders in the past usually ignored animal migration routes and important adjacent

ecosystems. Some areas in Africa, for example,

protect important watering areas for wildlife
Ch. 7—Technologies for Undisturbed Forests ● 161

Photo credit” H Bollinger

Forest clearing for agricultural settlement often proceeds in spite of the site’s legal status as a protected area. This

settlement is in a Kenyan forest listed officially as a preserve by the Forest Department

but do not protect the upland watersheds that

are necessary to maintain water supplies. Furthermore, rural people living in or near parks

have often been disregarded or displaced.

More recently, planners have begun to look

beyond simple scenic values to emphasize a

broad range of biological resources and environmental services in protected area designation. Techniques for siting areas to be protected

are becoming more scientific and integrative.

A classification system used to identify appropriate locations for protected area establishment worldwide is based on ecological

categories. This system divides the Earth into

eight large “realms” (fig. 24), which in turn are

subdivided into 193 biogeographical “provinces” (21). Realms are continent or subcontinent-sized areas with unifying features of geography, fauna, and vegetation. Provinces are

more detailed subdivisions, each characterized

by a major biome type such as “tropical humid

forest,”” tropical grasslands, ” or “tundra communities.” Ideally, selection of protected sites

should include representative samples from

each realm and province.

Within a province, the location—as well as

the number, size, and shape of protected

areas—is important to biological conservation.

The scientific basis for determining these characteristics is theoretical. Few studies have

tested the theories with species other than birds

(18). Two criteria have emerged for selecting

sites to safeguard biological diversity. One is
162 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Figure 24.-Terrestrial Biogeographic Realms of the World

SOURCE: M. Udvardy, World Biogeographical Provinces, IUCN Occasional Paper No. 18, 1975.

the relative degree of species endemism of a

particular site. Areas of high species endemism are those containing many highly localized

species. A related criterion is the number of

species, or species diversity, at the site. All else

being equal, the more biologically diverse a

site, the greater its potential value.

A number of inferences about how park size

and shape affect maintenance of biological diversity have been drawn from studies of tropical island biogeography (fig. 25). These studies

have found that the risk of species extinctions

within a protected area—in essence a biological island—can be minimized through careful

design of the site. An appropriate size can be

determined by including all the natural features

that constitute a self-sustaining ecological system. However, to maintain their full complement of plant and animal species, most sites

need to be large. This is because many tropical

species occur naturally at low densities. Below

a certain minimum population, these species

are more vulnerable to problems of population

instability and the risk of extinction.

For example, the minimum viable population

size for long-lived organisms with low natural

mortality rates is believed to be about 50 individuals in the short term (50 to 100 years) and

500 in the long term (6). Ideally, sites should

contain at least this number of their rarest species. The size required to do this varies with

type of species and ecosystem, but determining actual size is an area of great scientific uncertainty. Recently, scientists in Brazil have begun a series of experiments to measure rates

of loss of biological diversity that occur with

variations in protected area size and shape

under various tropical forest conditions (12).

Such research produces results slowly. In the

meantime, some scientists have suggested

2,500 square kilometers as the minimum area

of tropical rainforest needed to safeguard most

species (20). This suggested rule-of-thumb often

is impractical, given the socioeconomic and

political situations of many tropical countries.

Biogeographical considerations are only

some of the factors needed to determine the

appropriate shape of protected areas. where
Ch. 7—Technologies for Undisturbed Forests ● 163

Figure 25.—Design of Protected Areas

Better

o

0

0000

0

00

0

A

B

c

D

E

F

Worse

•

•

Suggested geometric principles, derived from island biogeographic studies, for

the design of protected areas. In each of the six cases labeled A to F, species

extinction rates WiII be lower for the reserve design on the left than for the reserve

design on the right.

SOURCE International Union for the Conservation of Nature, The World (Conser.

vation Strategy (Gland, Switzerland: IUCNWNEPNVVVF, 1980).

maintenance of specific environmental services is a high priority, it should be reflected

in the area’s shape. For example, watershed

catchments have specific shapes. In addition,

the needs and interests of local people also

should help determine the shape, size, and

location of protected areas.

Establishment and Management

Techniques

Different categories of protected areas such

as national parks, biological reserves, and cultural monuments serve different objectives and

purposes. The management strategy chosen

depends on the particular combination of

benefits that are desired (table 27). Protected

areas should include two types of reserves: 1)

lands where ecosystems are protected with a

Table 27.-Wildland Management Categories

Management category/Characteristics

1. National Park: Wild or primary ecosystems with little evidence of human intervention; contains unique features

of national or international significance.

2. Natural monument: An area generally encompassing only

one natural feature that is of national or international

significance.

3. Scientific or biological reserve: Lands that are generally

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

not altered by man-and contain floral and)or faunal species

of national or international importance. Size depends on

habitat needs of target species.

Wildlife sanctuary or refuge: Land encompassing the vital

habitat resources of animal species or communities of

national or international significance.

Resource reserves: A transitory state where a primary ecosystem will be maintained in a natural state until more

definite management goals are determined.

National forest: Extensive forested lands important for

wood production and watershed protection.

Game reserves: Lands containing populations of native

wild species of fauna and/or habitat suitable for the pro

duction of wild fauna protein, animal products, or for viewing or sport hunting.

Protection zones: Generally small areas that do not meet

the objectives of other wildland categories but that require the kinds of strict land-use control provided by

wildland management techniques.

Recreation areas, scenic rivers, and highways: Relatively large areas with outstanding natural or seminatural

scenery and the physical potential to be developed for

a variety of outdoor recreational uses.

10. Seen/c easements and rights-of-way: Regions outside of

park or reserve boundaries that merit protection, usually

for esthetic reasons—i.e., access roads, shorelines,

mountains, scenic overviews, etc.

11. Cultural monuments: Sites or areas containing historical,

archeological, or other cultural features of national or international significance.

12. Integrated river basin regional development programs:

Integrated regional land-use planning that includes wildIands conservation as an integral component of development.

SOURCE: K. Miller and D. Glick, “Methods for the Establishment and Management of Protected Areas for Tropical Primary Foreat and Woodland

Resources,” OTA commissioned paper, 1982.

minimum of human manipulation (sometimes

called strict nature reserves or national parks);

and 2] lands where particular resources or

parts of the ecosystem are protected, but where

collection of some products and some manipulative research is allowed and managed, particularly for education and training (11).

Simply designating protected areas on a map

does not assure that the land will be managed

to provide the greatest possible benefits. A

management plan is needed. A planning procedure that has proven effective for a variety
164 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

of tropical wildland conditions is shown in

table 28. This process is continuous and interactive with built-in monitoring and evaluation components. Thus, the procedure helps

ensure that data on how management affects

the resources within the designated site, how

it affects the surrounding area, and how the

surrounding area affects the site will be collected and continually used to improve management.

The traditional approach to park establishment and management has often failed to take

into account local cultures and has excluded

local people. Consequently, protection of

designated areas has often not been effective.

Local people, with no incentive to protect the

park, ignore the area’s legal status. Given increasing needs to develop rural lands in recent

years, protected area planning has begun to incorporate more economic and social consideration (14). Although some socioeconomic and

other social science analyses are being incorporated into the planning process, methods to

use these data as yet are not fully used.

Appropriate management of tropical forest

protected areas necessitates active participaTable 28.—Steps in Planning a Park or Protected Area

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

Gather background Information, Including analysis

of administrative, organizational, legal, and political context for the park.

Conduct a field inventory of natural and cultural resources

and land-use and development aspects of the area.

Analyze constraints on planning the park.

State specific objectives on planning the park.

Divide the area into management zones, identifying sites

where specific activities and developments are to take

place.

Draft preliminary, practical park boundaries.

Design management programs for protecting, using, and

administering the park.

Prepare an integrated development program for the plan:

what is to be built; what supplies, equipment, and materials are needed; what infrastructure and utilities are required; and what staff and institutions will be involved.

Analyze and evaluate the proposal.

Design the development schedule.

Publish and distribute the management plan.

Implement the plan.

Analyze and evaluate the plan.

Solicit feedback and revise the plan as needed.

SOURCE: K. Miller and D. Glick, “Methods for the Establishment and Manage.

rnent of Protected Areas for Tropical Primary Forest and Woodland

Resources, ” OTA commissioned paper, 1982.

tion by many individuals and groups. The principal participants include:

1.

2,

3.

4.

5.

Planning Team.—Establishment and management planning is best conducted by a

team of specialists representing both environmental and sociological fields (e.g.,

park planners, ecologists, foresters, wildlife biologists, rural developers, anthropologists, sociologists, economists, environmental educators, and community developers).

Rural People.—The people living in or adjacent to proposed or established protected

areas must play an active role in park planning, establishment, and management.

Meeting their resource needs is an important factor in the success of a protected

area.

National Decisionmakers.—Government

and nongovernment leaders must support

conservation activities if adequate financial and legislative support for forest protection is to be procured.

The General Public.—If widespread public

support exists for the creation of parks and

reserves, government leaders are more

likely to support such efforts,

The Global Community,—International political and development agencies can-be

instrumental in promoting wildland protection. Development of tropical forests in

many cases is directly affected by multinational businesses and global political

bodies (14).

This broad approach, although it can be unwieldy, facilitates involvement by both those

people who directly or indirectly will affect or

be affected by the forest resource (generally

rural people) and the people and agencies that

must support or implement the management

programs.

Support from local citizens can be increased

if protected areas are designed so benefits accrue to local inhabitants (25). An example is

Nepal’s Royal Chitwan National Park. Chitwan

was declared a park in 1973 to demonstrate

that the conservation of nature was an integral

part of Nepal’s plans for economic develop-
Ch. 7—Technologies for Undisturbed Forests • 165

ment. The park’s conservation record is impressive: its population of rhinoceroses rose

from about 100 in 1968 to at least 300 in 1978,

and its tiger population increased from 25 in

1974 to as many as 60 in 1980 (15). But that success created conflicts with local residents. They

suffered loss of crops, livestock, and occasional

loss of life caused by park animals and they encountered other conflicts with park regulations. But as part of a broad program of resettlement, public participation in the park’s management, and compensation for losses, the government decided to allow villagers to use the

park to collect tall grasses for building

materials. Since most of the needed thatch

grasses outside Chitwan had disappeared, the

people realized that the park protected their

interests, too, and relations have improved considerably (15).

It is also important to ensure that once areas

have been designated, their status should not

be changed except for some compelling higher

public interest. Because of the need for coordination and top-level decisionmaking, the

power to establish any protected area should

be by law. Approval should be required of the

highest body responsible for legislative matters

in the country or region—e.g., parliament or

legislative assembly. Similarly, amendment or

abolishment of any protected area should be

through superseding legislation and determination of this highest authority. This may not be

politically or administratively possible in some

countries. In cases where the highest legislative

level of approval is not possible, review and approval should be required at least from a competent authority at a level higher than the agency which is responsible for managing the protected area (11).

Finally, even if all elements of appropriate

tropical forest management are met, the destruction of adjacent ecosystems can seriously affect resources within the reserve boundaries. Therefore, protected areas management

must broaden its scope of concern from protecting “patches” of natural areas to implementation of environmentally appropriate land-use

practices in nonpark areas (18). The complementarily of conservation and development

increasingly is appreciated as protected areas

are incorporated into broader regional and

local development plans and into development

projects to enhance their economic performance.

The UNESCO-MAB Concept. Few innovative conservation actions have been developed

to integrate protected areas directly with the

surrounding biophysical and socioeconomic

setting. One program with this objective is the

United Nation’s Man and the Biosphere (MAB)

Program initiated by UNESCO in the early

1970’s. The goals of MAB are to encourage the

study of human impact on natural renewable

resources and promote the application of appropriate knowledge and experience to maintain these resources for long-term development. The MAB program also provides a

network for information exchange among

developed and developing countries.

The MAB biosphere reserves program attempts to integrate conservation of protected

areas with surrounding socioeconomic needs.

The biosphere reserves use management and

zoning to facilitate human activity within certain sections of the reserve (5). This concept

emphasizes the needs of local populations and

seeks to define ways where specific economic

benefit in the form of revenues and products

from the reserve can be returned to the local

people.

Biosphere reserves are intended to be a

worldwide network of protected land and coast

environments linked by international understanding of purposes and standards and by exchange of scientific information. Ideally, the

network should include significant examples

of all the world’s biomes. Each biosphere reserve also should be large enough to be an effective conservation unit and to accommodate

different uses without conflict.

The zoning concept applied to a biosphere

reserve normally includes a well-protected

“core area” surrounded by one or several

“buffer areas” where manipulative research or

ecologically sound land uses are allowed. This

buffer acts as a transition zone integrating the

reserve into the surrounding region. The de-
166 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

sign of a reserve (fig. 26) can be adapted to different geographical, ecological, or cultural situations, including, for instance, cases where

animals migrate from one part of the reserve

to another or where a cluster of core areas need

protection. This concept differs from traditional designs because it is an open, rather than

closed, system. It considers the management

problems of the surrounding areas and provides for needs of local populations (l).

Each participating country designs its own

program under the minimum requirements of

MAB. Thus, practices vary from country to

country depending on available manpower, resources, and political commitment. Representation to MAB, however, may provide a tool

for developing-country experts to improve the

national and international visibility of their

conservation work. To a limited extent, the

UNESCO-MAB program can sponsor outside

Figure 26.—A Typical Biosphere Reserve

Core area R Research station

Buffer zone 1 T Tourism

Buffer zone 2 X X Human settlements

. x x

experts to provide technical assistance in countries where they are needed.

In the comparatively short life of the MAB

biosphere reserve effort, the concept behind

biosphere reserves—the improved integration

of long-term conservation and socioeconomic

needs—has become increasingly recognized as

an important and, in some areas, a critical tool

for effective conservation of natural systems.

However, additional field experience and

monitoring are needed to evaluate the successes of existing biosphere reserves. Current

indications seem to be that biosphere reserves

suffer from some of the same problems as other

protected areas—lack of adequate institutional

support, lack of adequate staff and funds, and

poor coordination with other activities and

with government concerns.

Conclusion

Actions to establish and manage protected

areas could help protect undisturbed forest resources and prevent some resource degradation in the Tropics. Protecting sample ecosystems in some system of protected areas can be

an important technique to preserve representative flora, fauna, and habitat and, thus, maintain ecological diversity and a range of goods

and environmental services in tropical areas.

An unknown number of the Tropics’ protected areas are inadequately managed and suffer deforestation and other resource degradation. Factors that contribute to these problems

are a lack of commitment at the government

level, insufficient funds, and scarcity of trained personnel in tropical countries to carry out

the many tasks involved in planning, designing,

and managing protected undisturbed tropical

forests. If the first two factors persist, it may

be preferable to improve the management of

existing protected areas through appropriate

institution-building activities rather than create

new areas on paper which would further

overextend the limited funds and human

resources. Since lack of appropriately trained

personnel is an important constraint, the

United States can make a significant contribution by making U.S. expertise more readily
Ch. 7—Techno/lgies for Undisturbed Forests Ž 167

available—through universities, nongovernmental organizations, and government agencies such as the National Park Service.

The objectives of protected areas have evolved

from strict protection to a broader approach

that considers socioeconomic and institutional

factors. Thus, the need to develop and test

methods based on the latter approach grows.

Few such conservation techniques have been

developed. The MAB biosphere reserves are

one attempt to integrate conservation with

development. However, development of the biosphere reserve concept is still at the experimental stage in both tropical and temperate

zone countries. The U.S.-MAB effort, while effective considering the minimal funding it has

received, is constrained by a reduction of support and a lack of a strong, consistent U.S.

Government commitment. Stabilizing the U.S.

commitment to MAB would enable U.S. scientists to contribute their skills and expertise to

develop further this innovative conservation

option. This might encourage additional international support for various MAB programs as

well.

The environmental services provided by undisturbed forests frequently are not enough incentive for individuals to maintain uncut

forests. One way to clarify the importance of

uncut tropical forests is to document the value

of their environmental services and use this information to convince government decisionmakers to invest in protecting the forests.

However, while this is important for parks, it

has not proven a practical method to protect

large forest areas in less developed countries.

Another approach is to enhance the value of

forests by managing them for wood production, However, cutting trees is disruptive of the

forests’ ecology and, for many types of tropical

forests, wood harvesting technologies that are

profitable and yet do not degrade the resource

base have not been demonstrated. Thus, both

for legally protected areas and for certain other

undisturbed areas, sustaining the forest

depends on making it more valuable without

cutting the trees.

Many useful and valuable forest products are

produced with little or no associated wood

harvest. More organized harvesting, processing, and marketing of these products, coupled

with development of new products, markets,

and management infrastructures (including

organization of local institutions to regulate

harvesting) could greatly enhance the value of

undisturbed forest [17,23).

Nonwood Products

Nonwood products include those obtained

from the wood, bark, leaves, or roots of trees

as well as products obtained from other vegetation and from animal and insect life in the forest. These products obtained near and in forests are directly or indirectly dependent on forest ecosystems. Examples include gums, resins,

drugs, dyes, essential oils, spices, naval stores

(turpentine, rosin, and derived products), and

livestock forage as well as a wide variety of fibers used to make baskets, mats, ropes, and

buildings. The value of some of these products

is not well quantified. Some, such as certain

specialty oils, may be relatively unimportant

economically. Others, such as natural-base

pharmaceuticals and certain fibers used in

household goods, serve currently irreplaceable

functions, either locally or internationally.

One example illustrating the potential of nonwood tropical forest products is siIk, a product

gathered for thousands of years in some areas,

yet having considerable potential for development. Most silk is produced by domestically

reared caterpillar larvae on a strict mulberry

leaf diet. In India, however, an extensive cottage industry produces silk from wild tasar silkworms that feed on a variety of wild trees. For

centuries, forest-dwelling people have produced this coarse, strong, tan silk. Tasar silk
168 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Photo cradit: S. Bunnag for FAO

Bamboo has many subsistence and commercial uses, including village handicrafts. Here Philippine villagers make

“birdcage” Iampshades for the tourist market

export earnings in India totaled US $4.4 million in 1976 and the industry employed at least

100,000 families (9).

Tasar silk is secreted by several species of the

genus Antheraea. India alone has at least eight

species, but only one, A. mylitta, has been exploited commercially. The little research that

has been done to improve production shows

great promise: breeding experiments have produced a 169-percent increase in silk weight.

Similarly, tests of rearing techniques have

shown potential to increase the average income

per family from $30 per year to $250 in 45 days

(10)0

The main tasar silk-producing countries today are China and India. However, the food

plants that can support tasar silkworms cover

7.7 million ha in the Tropics. This seems to offer significant opportunity for other developing countries to develop industry, employment,

income, and a raised standard of living for forest-dwelling people while encouraging maintenance of forest ecosystems that are habitat

for the silk-producing species (9).

Meat from wild animals and fish, fruits, nuts,

honey, insects, fungi, and vegetables are all im-
Ch. 7—Technologies for Undisturbed Forests ● 169

—

portant forest food sources. Despite the impact

of modern agricultural techniques and crops,

in many parts of the world these wild food

sources continue to contribute significantly to

local diets. In regions that are unsuitable for

conventional animal husbandry, “bush meat”

is often a main source of animal protein. For

example, in Ghana nearly three-quarters of the

meat consumed is from wild animals (4), Even

where cultivated crops such as cassava or corn

are staples, the great variety of food types available from the forest is important for adequate

nutrition.

Small Animals

Giant rats, turtles, capybara, grasscutters,

and other small animals are sought-after foods

in some developing countries, with scientific

husbandry, these animals could become important sources of much-needed protein. Further,

the development of some of these food sources

could provide incentives to sustain tropical

forests,

Capybara, for instance, are the world’s 1argest rodents—they weigh up to 100 lbs. Capybara live in family groups on the edges of

ponds, lakes, rivers, and swamps in Central

and South America. They eat only plants—preferring coarse swamp grasses, aquatic plants,

and weeds such as water hyacinth. Wild and

semidomesticated capybara has been a meat

source for centuries, but only recently have

Venezuelans begun farming them. Researchers

there report that capybara digest food 3% times

more efficiently than cattle. They are fecund,

producing six young in a year. Further, their

leather commands a high price and is sought

by glovemakers because it stretches in one

direction only (4,24).

Examples of Nonwood Products

Various essential oils are obtained from natural sources. For instance, sandalwood oil is one

of the best known of all perfume oils. It is produced mainly in India from both wild and cultivated

trees. Attempts to synthesize the oil have been unsuccessful.

Chemicals, including drugs, are important forest products for both local and world populations. Various modern pharmaceuticals—e.g., quinine from cinchona bark—are of tropical origin.

Another useful forest chemical is lac used in shellac, waxes, and binding and stiffening agents.

Lac is secreted by a tropical insect that feeds on tree sap.

Gums such as chicle are obtained from wild trees in forests of Central America. Natural gums

are primary ingredients of chewing gum and are used in many processed foods. They contribute

both to export revenue and to local employment.

Naval stores—turpentine, rosin, and derived products—can be produced from tropical pines

by a technically simple process without damaging the trees.

Forage is another traditional benefit provided by forest resources. Ground and tree vegetation

are both used-though tree fodder is particularly important in areas with a prolonged dry season.

In the past, there has been little active management of forest fodder resources.

Fibers obtained from forest vegetation are especially important in subsistence cultures, where

they are used for making baskets, mats, rope, furniture, and in construction. Some fibers are marketed (e.g., for wicker-work).

Spices are found in and around most forests, though commercial production is usually in plantations. Pepper, clove, nutmeg, cinnamon, and vanilla typically are plantation crops but do exist

in the wild. Cardamom is harvested both in the wild and from plantations. The plant thrives in

the shade and might increase the per-hectare return from tropical forests.
170 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Examples of Forest Food Sources

One of many forest fruits is the multipurpose Borassus palm. The milk of the unripe fruit is

marketed as a nourishing and popular drink. The ripe, yellow fruit is eaten. Finally, some fruits

are left to sprout cotyledons that are eaten fried (16). More well-known tropical fruits include mango,

papaya, guava, banana, pineapple, coconut, avocado, and breadfruit.

Amidst all the greenery of the forest exists a great variety of edible vegetables and foliage.

An estimated 500 species are used in Africa alone (13).

Forest rivers, coastal areas, and mangrove forests harbor an abundance of fish, crustaceans,

and molluscs that make significant contributions to local diets.

Wild animal protein-from mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and invertebrates-contributes to diets in many cultures. Rodents and ungulates are particularly common meat sources.

Palm oil is produced from the fruit of wild palms. The trees also supply palm wine and fibers.

A forest species with great potential for oil production is Raphia palm, which thrives in swampy,

high rainfall areas. Other species, including the tallow and neem trees also are, or could be, sources

of oil products (16).

Honey and wax production is another function of the forests that provides essential products

for local populations. The introduction of modern beekeeping methods could expand this use with

only moderate inputs.

Nuts are a common and protein-rich food source in forests important both locally and for trade.

Betel nut, cashew

Gamo Ranching’

nuts, and Brazil nuts are examples.

About three-fourths of the citizens of Zaire

and Ghana rely on wildlife as their main meat

source (4)—a situation common in some other

tropical nations. As pressures on wildlife populations and habitats increase, more attention

is being given to the idea of game ranching.

Problems could arise, however, because creating commercial markets for these new food

sources could induce subsistence gatherers to

exploit wild game for income. Unless these activities are carefully regulated, this could result

in overexploitation of wild game.

Husbandry of indigenous wildlife offers

some potential to provide incentives to sustain

the quality of dry open forest and shrubland

habitats where most ungulates are found. Native wild species generally are adapted to their

‘See Water-Related Technologies for Sustainable Agriculture

in Arid/Semiarid Lands: Selected Foreign Experience—Background Paper (Washington, D. C.: U.S. Congress, Office of Technology Assessment, OTA-BP-F-20, May 1983), for more information on game ranching in Africa.

natural environment and, thus, tend to require

less water and be more resistant to disease than

exotic livestock. Native species thrive on local

vegetation and typically may be better suited

to arid and semiarid ranges than conventional

livestock. Further, native species’ efficiency of

food use usually compares favorably with livestock (19). In national parks of Zaire and Uganda, for instance, each square kilometer of land

can support 24 to 37 tons of wildlife (10 species)

compared with only 3 to 5 tons of cattle (23).

Much remains to be learned about the husbandry of wild species. Further, there are

drawbacks to this technology. Wild meat can

contain parasites, making inspection, for commercial markets a problem. Initial costs to acquire, stock, fence, and manage a range of adequate size can be high, and questions remain

about whether such operations can be profitable and sustainable. However, in time game

ranching might be developed to act as an incentive to preserving wild species and their

habitat.
Ch. 7—Technologies for Undisturbed Forests ● 171

Innovative Forest Products

A wide variety of forest products that are not

now harvested or are only gathered on a small

or subsistence scale might have commercial potential. Development of markets for such products can provide income for rural people, thus

reducing their need to overexploit forest resources, and can provide incentives to protect

wild populations and their habitat. To develop

these alternative forest products, wild breeding

populations must be retained, habitat managed,

and gathering activities regulated.

Papua New Guinea is a forerunner in efforts

to take advantage of tropical forest biological

resources. Much of Papua New Guinea remains covered by undisturbed tropical moist

forest, and exploiting the economic value of its

organisms is helping to safeguard this habitat.

Papua New Guinea has developed management systems to domesticate, propagate, and

harvest cassowaries (for feathers), megapodes

(for eggs), wallabies and deer (for meat and

hides), and a number of other species. Because

insect collection is profitable, the government

has declared insects a national resource and

is the only country in the world to specify insect conservation a national objective in its

constitution (23). These projects demonstrate

a strategy that could be applied in other areas

or to other organisms.

Production strategies dependent on wild

breeding populations of threatened species face

a serious constraint. unless expansion of the
172 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Examples of Innovative Approaches to Tropical Forest Resources Managment

Butterfly farming is an example of development of a commercial product from an unusual

tropical forest resource. Once thought of as pests if common, or collector's items if rare, butteerflies

have become a profitable forest resource for villages in Papua New Guinea. Butterflies provide

a high value, low capital outlay investment: no tree clearing, fences, or veterinary services are

required. Each year, millions are sold to museums, 

&

entomologists, craftspeople, and collectors.

Collectors have paid as much as $1,00 for a specimen of the brilliantly coloreed birdwing butterfly. 

markets for nonwood forest products is accompanied by strict regulation of gathering activities and preservation of habitat, the opportunity for profit will induce people to gather

without regard for maintaining the breeding

populations. Animal populations may decline

precipitously. This occurred, for example, in

fruitbat populations on the U.S. Pacific island

of Guam.

Fruitbats area much sought after food source

on Guam. But habitat destruction and overhunting have exhausted their populations to a

point where one species is probably extinct and

the other endangered. The demand for this delicacy, however, remains high and fruitbats are

now being imported from islands in the U.S.

Trust Territory, further increasing hunting

pressure in these areas. On the island of Yap,
Ch. 7—Technologies for Undisturbed Forests . 173

fruitbats have cultural significance which in

the past had limited their harvest. But the attraction of Guam’s markets has increased illegal hunting and export. Hunters will shoot

into nesting colonies, disregarding the wounded

or lost bats. Thus, the indigenous Yapese fruitbat is being harvested unsustainable and may

become extinct if management and enforceable

regulation are not instituted.

Conclusion

Forest ecosystems house complex associations of vegetation, wildlife, and other potential

resources. If methods were developed to use

these nonwood forest resources more fully—

either by discovering new, valuable products

or by facilitating collection and processing of

established products—some of the incentives

for deforestation would be reduced and more

forests might escape conversion to unsustainable uses.

To do this, some marketable advantage must

be identified in the local environment, then

developed to provide sustained economic returns. This process calls for improved management of the resource system, which best comes

from using modern science to build on a foundation of traditional knowledge. But governments often have too little information on the

long-term value of their forests and invest very

little in development of forest products other

than timber. U.S. expertise could be applied to

this problem, especially from the fields of ecology, botany, business administration, and forest management.

The lack of development of nonwood forest

products may result partly from the fact that

1. Batisse, M., “The Biosphere

CHAPTER 7

Reserve: A Tool

for Environmental Conservation and Managemerit, ” Environmental Conservation, vol. 9,

summer 1982.

2. Commission on National Parks and Protected

Areas, International Union for the Conservation

of Nature, Conserving the Natural Heritage of

nonwood and subsistence food products gathered from tropical forests have rarely been

accounted for in economic analyses. Such

products generally are used in subsistence

economies and have no easily defined “market

value.” Where they are commercially exploited,

it is in a marketing system so diffuse that the

product flows are seldom measured. Improved

assessment of the role of forest products in subsistence economies and improved development

of markets for nontimber forest products could

cause decisionmakers to associate greater value

with undisturbed forests.

Creation of new markets for previously unused tropical forest plants and animals or expansion of local markets for previously underused products could present new opportunities

to overexploit forest resources. Unless management and regulatory systems are instituted

along with market development, wild breeding

stock may be depleted to fill market demand.

The various opportunities that exist to increase the value of the standing forests offer

significant benefits to people as well as to

forests. The management systems under development in Papua New Guinea are examples of

how such systems can provide employment opportunities, income for local residents, new

sources of food or other human needs, and opportunities for exports and increased foreign

exchange. Increasing commitments from U.S.

and other assistance agencies to develop sustainable management systems and markets for

nonwood products could act to alleviate a

variety of social problems.

REFERENCES

Latin America and the Caribbean (Gland, Switzerland: IUCN, 1981).

3. Commission on National Parks and Protected

Areas, International Union for the Conservation

of Nature, United Nations List of National Parks

and Other Protected Areas, IUCN, unpublished

draft report, 1981.
174 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical forest Resources

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

de Vos, A., “Game as Food,” Unasylva 29(116):

2-12, 1977,

Franklin, J. (cd.), Selection and Utilization of

Biosphere Reserves, Pacific Northwest Forest

and Range Experiment Station, U.S. Forest

Service, Portland, Oreg., 1976.

Franklin, I. R., “Evolutionary Change in Small

Populations,” M. E. Soule and B. A. Wilcox

(eds,), Conservation Biology (Sunderland, Mass.:

Sinauer Associates, 1980).

International Union for the Conservation of Nature, 1980 United Nations List of National Parks

and Equivalent Reserves, Gland, Switzerland,

1980. In: Lausche, 1980.

International Union for the Conservation of Nature, The World Conservation Strategy (Gland,

Switzerland: IUCN/UNEP/WWF, 1980).

Jolly, M., Sen, S., and Das, M., “Silk From the

Forest,” Unasyka, 28(114):20-23, 1976.

Jolly, M., “A New Technique of Tasar Silkworm

Rearing” (Bombay: Central Silk Board, 1973),

In: Jolly, et al,, 1976.

Lausche, B., Guidelines of Protected Areas Legislation, IUCN Environmental Policy and Law

Paper No. 16., Gland, Switzerland, 1980.

Lovejoy, T., “Discontinuous Wilderness: Minimum Areas for Conservation, ” Parks, 5(2):

13-15, 1980. In: Miller and Glick, 1982.

Martin, F., and Rubert4 R,, Ed”ble Leaves of the

Tropics, Mayaguez Institute of Tropical Agriculture (Mayaguez, Puerto Rico: AID, ARS/

USDA, 1975),

Miller, K., and Glick, D., “Methods for the

Establishment and Management of Protected

Areas for Tropical Primary Forest and Woodland Resources,” OTA commissioned paper,

1982.

15.

16.

17.

18.

19.

20,

21.

22.

23.

24

25,

Mishra, H., “Balancing Human Needs and Conservation in Nepal’s Royal Chitwan Park, ” Ambio, X1(5), 1982.

Poulsen, G., “The Non-Wood Products of African Forests, ” Unasy]va, 34(137), 1982.

Robbins, S,, and Matthews, W., “Minor Forest Products: Their Total Value is of a Major

Order,” Unasy]va, 26(106), autumn 1974.

Soule, M., and Wilcox, B. (eds.), Conservation

Biology—An Evolutionary-Ecological Perspective (Sunderland, Mass,: Sinauer Associates,

1980),

Surujbally, R., “Game Farming is a Reality,”

Unasylva, 29(116):13-15, 1977,

Terborgh, J., “Preservation of Natural Diversity: The Problem of Extinction-Prone Species,”

Bioscience 24:715-722, 1974.

Udvardy, M., World Biogeographical Provinces, IUCN Occasional Paper No. 18, 1975.

U.N. Environment Program, “Tropical Forest

Resources,” FAO Forestry Report No, 30

(Rome: Food and Agriculture Organization,

1982).

Vietmeyer, N., “Sustaining Tropical Forest and

Woodland Animal Resources,” OTA commissioned paper, 1982.

Vietmeyer, N,, “Underexploited Plant and Animal Resources for Developing Country Agriculture,” Background Papers for Innovative

Technologies for Lesser Developed Countries,

Office of Technology Assessment Workshop

prepared for the U.S. House of Representatives,

Committee on Foreign Affairs, September 1981.

Western, D., “Amboselli National Park: Enlisting Landowners to Conserve Migratory Wildlife,” Ambio, XI(5), 1976.
Chapter 8

Technologies to Reduce

Overcutting Wing
Highlights . . .... ... .. ... .......................... .

Industrial Wood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . + . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Wood Fuels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ,. ... ... ... .. . . . ...

Industrial Wood: Expanding Number of Species and Sizes Harvested . . . . . . . . . . .

Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Harvesting, Transporting, and Handling. . . . . . . . . . . ........: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Use of More Tree Species and Sizes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Markets .... ..... . . . . . . . . . ..

Preservatives. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ...... ... . ...

Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . ...,.,. ● . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....0....

Wood Fuels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ........> . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ! . . . . . . . . .. .. ... ... . . . . . . . . .

Fuelwood and Charcoal Conservation Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Resource Substitution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. .. 

Chapter preferences. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. .. ... ... ...

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Chapter

Technologies to Reduce Overcutting

●

●

●

●

Industrial Wood

If the world demand for wood is to be met

without eventually depleting all the accessible tropical forests, practical alternatives to

cutting extensive areas must be developed.

To implement alternative approaches, profitable technologies to harvest, process, and

market a wider range of tree species and

sizes must be developed. The U.S. Forest

Products Laboratory has made and can continue to make significant contributions in

developing such technologies.

Intensive harvesting schemes, such as harvesting all merchantable-size trees from a

narrow band of forest, need experimentation

and evaluation for economic and silvicultural feasibility and environmental effect.

●

●

●

●

Overexploitation of forests for firewood and

charcoal is increasing. This could be alleviated by enhancing the efficiency of wood use

and by substituting alternative energy

sources.

Improved stoves and more efficient charcoal

production can conserve wood supplies, but

effective technology diffusion requires extensive field testing and careful consideration of social and economic factors.

Efforts to develop and apply nonwood

renewable energy sources are uncoordinated

and generally underfunded, but have considerable potential to reduce fuelwood demand.

Widespread implementation of fuelwood

plantation techniques is constrained by

sociocultural and economic factors.

Actions that reduce demand for fuelwood

can also reduce incentives to invest in future

wood supply. Thus, such actions must be

planned carefully with respect to efforts to

increase supply through fuelwood plantations.

INTRODUCTION

Exponentially increasing demand for wood settlement by

for both commercial and fuel uses is contrib- for fuelwood,

uting to deforestation and resource degrada- faster than it

tion in both undisturbed and secondary tropifarmers. More species are used

but fuelwood is being cut much

is grown.

cal forests. Industrial wood users will buy only Technical solutions to these problems ina few of the many species that grow in tropi- clude methods to increase the efficiency and

cal forests. As a result, extensive areas must intensity of harvesting industrial wood so that

be “selectively cut, ” causing severe damage to less extensive areas need to be cut and meththe unharvested trees and to the soil. The prac- ods to make wood use more efficient so as to

tice also opens extensive areas to inappropriate reduce demand.

177
178 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

INDUSTRIAL WOOD:

AND

Background

If the world demand for wood is to

EXPANDING NUMBRR OF SPECIES

SIZES HARVESTESTED

be met

without eventually depleting or degrading all

the accessible tropical forests, alternatives to

extensive selective cutting must be found. Tree

harvesting and management on small areas can

reduce the need to cut wood on other sites.

This requires profitable technologies to harvest,

process, and market a wider range of tree species and sizes than is the case today. Using a

wider range of tree species could lead to destruction of tropical forests and the depletion

of soil fertility.

Harvesting, Transporting, and

Handling

Improvements in harvesting methods, transportation, and handling can make substantial

contributions to the improved use and management of tropical forests. Likewise, the availability of technologies, the amount of planning,

and the commitment to management all can

reduce the logging damage to residual forests.

The residual vegetation left in a tropical

forest after logging is often severely damaged—usually about 50 percent of the remaining forest is adversely affected. Considerable

loss occurs during felling and extraction. Furthermore, about one-third of the logged area

typically suffers erosion as a result of soil compaction by heavy equipment (6). A major improvement in harvesting practices is possible

simply by matching the appropriate practice

to particular site conditions to minimize environmental damage.

Intensive harvesting (clearcutting) of small

areas reduces the number of roads built, and

so reduces road-induced erosion and access by

agriculturalists. If fewer roads are built, more

capital could be available to improve existing

roads and to purchase suitable trucks and hauling vehicles.

Clearcutting, on the other hand, could increase nutrient depletion and reduce biological

diversity. Erosion is likely to be severe on clearcut sites during and immediately after logging,

and if logging is followed by fire, erosion is

even greater (6). In addition, the quality of secondary forests and their suitability for both economic use and as habitat capable of maintaining biological diversity are largely unknown.

Intensive logging of tropical forests has significant adverse impact on animal life that is sensitive to microclimate and food supply

changes. Other animals, however, can survive

in logged forests (12).

Opportunities exist to experiment with various practices that would minimize negative impacts of intensive harvesting. A technique that

warrants field testing is the harvesting of all

merchantable size trees from narrow bands of

forest followed by natural and/or artificial regeneration. If harvested strips are oriented

along contours and kept quite narrow (approximately 100 meters), many of the disadvantages

of clearcutting may be avoided, Animals still

would have access to a large forest habitat,

recolonization of plants from surrounding

forest would be enhanced, and the soil microorganism populations, which play a crucial

role in the physical-chemical properties of tropical soils, probably would be quickly reestablished after logging. This method, however, has

economic and engineering drawbacks that limit its commercial appeal (7).

Harvesting technologies that can reduce forest damage include the use of improved cable

logging systems, hand tools, self-loading trucks,

and large skidder vehicles to reduce the need

for crawler tractors. Efficiency in handling can

be improved if equipment is selected to match

the character of the particular site.

Simply applying existing knowledge about

the transport and storage of logs and lumber

could reduce losses from mold, stains, insects,
Ch. 8—Technologies to Reduce Overcutting . 179

—

Photo credit: Dr. Miedler, FAO

Selective logging to remove only the most commercially valuable trees can lead to resource degradation because

the remaining trees are typically damaged by felling and extraction operations. Also, as more roads are built, erosion

problems increase and new areas are opened to shifting agriculturalists

splitting, decay, improper drying, and damage Use of More Tree

from poor handling practices (32). At present,

large quantities of logs deteriorate at roadsides. and Sizes

This occurs in Burma, South India, Bangla- Markets

desh, and other places where roads are impassable during the rainy season (11).

To encourage responsible management, tropical countries could institute longer term licensing agreements with logging concessions,

together with tax incentives. With longer agreements, for instance, operators would have incentive to build roads to a higher standard because they could amortize the costs over two

logging cycles (11).

A variety of factors—some biological, some

commercial, and some logistical—interact to

determine how intensely a forest is exploited,

including the composition of the forest, the

form of the trees, and character of their wood

(11). Selective logging is common in closed

tropical hardwood forests in part because use

of such forests has been export-oriented. Export markets require large quantities of a

uniform product, preferably a single species of
180 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

good appearance. Thus, very few species and

only large logs were acceptable.

When only select individuals of a few tree

species are logged in most tropical forests,

forest resources are degraded. This damage

could be reduced if more species were used

and if the size and form criteria were less

limiting.

Considerable research has been conducted

on lesser known tropical tree species. The

physical and chemical properties of tropical

timbers are assessed according to their wood

processing use. However, the results of this

work are scattered and frequently unknown to

wood users (26).

Many lesser known tree species have disadvantages that are difficult to overcome, such

as poor form, extreme hardness or abrasiveness, unacceptable loss of quality in drying,

and lack of durability (11). The rectification of

these features can be costly. Thus, importing

countries are reluctant to take such species

when well-known tropical woods and temperate softwoods are available at acceptable

prices.

Standardized descriptions of wood properties and units of measurement, together with

some classification system that distinguishes

degrees of suitability for specific purposes, are

basic marketing requirements. Standardization

and grading are complicated because wood

products have a great degree of variability and

versatility. Inadequate lumber standards contribute to inefficient tropical lumber marketing and use in both producing and importing

countries. Without a grading system directed

toward efficiency of use and without prices

that correspond to quality, the tendency is for

local wood users to demand higher quality

material than the end use requires. This puts

added demand on forests for high-quality

material and often unnecessarily removes tropical forest products from export markets. It also

limits local markets from fully using lower

grade lumber and contributes to high prices

(26). Thus, improved standardization of dimensions and grades could minimize waste, reduce

product cost, and increase the profitability of

intensive forest management.

A prospect for increasing the use of lesser

known species and smaller trees is to group

species according to their capacity to meet specific end use requirements—e.g., group all species suitable for construction material together

(11). Species could then be marketed by group

instead of by species name. But first, performance requirements for various end uses must

be identified and systems of matching properties to those requirements must be developed.

Firms in Australia and Great Britain are experimenting with end-use grouping of timber.

The Australians devised 12 general end-use

categories, each referenced to a well known

and widely used wood species to compare new

species or species groups with the reference

wood (14). The British classification system is

more elaborate. It identifies the specific wood

properties required for each major wood use

and identifies the available timbers with required properties at acceptable and preferred

levels. Flexibility is provided by indicating

special processing technologies that can be applied to species rated below the preferred level.

Timber lists can be expanded as available timbers with established properties become available (4).

In the short term, the end-use approach may

be better for local timber markets in tropical

countries, particularly in those countries where

the forest resources are small or have been depleted. Demand from the export market will

come when other sources cannot meet the

price, quantity, and quality specifications (11).

Preservatives

Some tropical woods with generally satisfactory physical properties are not used, or they

give poor service, because they are susceptible to attack by termites, other insects, or fungi.

For example, the sapwood of many durable

species is perishable and usually is cut away.

With smaller size trees, the portion of sapwood

is greater and the waste in conversion is often

so large that they are not used.
Ch. 8–Technologies to Reduce Overcutting Ž 181

Many wood preservatives are available, together with a range of techniques for applying

them, to counter different degrees of hazards.

Some of these technologies—e.g., impregnation

with creosote through pressure cylinders—are

effective for timber in contact with the ground.

But they require considerable expenditure on

equipment and chemicals, and creosote is now

difficult to obtain. Other techniques, such as

pressure treatment with water soluble copperchrome-arsenic compounds, though less costly and suitable for wood in some forms of construction, are still considered expensive (11).

This confines their application to public works

and to higher cost construction.

Simple and inexpensive preservative treatments for wood used at the village level and

in low-cost urban housing need to be developed

and promoted. At the village level, the social

and economic benefits of wood treatment could

be considerable. In the hot, wet Tropics, a treatment that increases the life of a simple wooden

house from 5 to 10 years could reduce by half

a villager’s time spent on building and rebuilding (17). For simple techniques that already exist, information is needed on the performance

of wood so that cost effectiveness can be

evaluated (18).

Processing

The use of smaller sizes of both currently desirable tree species and of lesser known tree

species raises some problems. For example,

sawmills in tropical countries are often designed to deal with large logs. Output and profits from existing facilities would be reduced if

small logs were used.

Investments are needed in equipment for

small log sawmills and for separate, small log

lines in the mills normally used for large logs.

Machines for sawing small logs are available

and could be manufactured locally in many

tropical countries. Existing machines and mill

designs need to be appraised, tested, and

demonstrated. A further contribution could be

made by installing small sawing and planing

machines that convert defective material into

small dimension stock for furniture, joinery,

and flooring, thus reducing waste (11). In the

philippines and Sri Lanka, low-cost solar

heated kilns designed by the U.S. Forest Service Forest Products Laboratory have demonstrated the ability to reduce waste in drying.

The percentage of high-density wood in tropical forests exceeds that from temperate forests. However, most processing technologies

were developed in the temperate countries.

Thus, processing technology will need to be

modified to accommodate high density timbers

as a wider range of tropical tree species is used.

Milling close to the harvesting site is another

way to reduce waste. Portable sawmills are relatively inexpensive compared with equipment

for permanent mills. However, existing portable machines include heavy components that

are difficult to handle. Also, by reducing the

inaccessibility of forests to processing centers,

it could allow deforestation in areas now untouched by commercial leggings.

An important development would be the use

of a small unit set up to mill logs at the stump.

Milling at the stump, and transporting the

timbers to roadside manually, could be more

profitable and cause less environmental damage than hauling logs to mills. Such mills for

use at the stump are still in the research and

development stage.

Great progress toward making intensive harvesting profitable has occurred where multispecies wood chips are produced for wood

pulp or fuel. The market for wood chips from

tropical hardwood forests has been limited

because softwood chips, which come mostly

from temperate forests, make better paper.

However, a new papermaking process promises to increase greatly the world markets for

hardwood chips. This is the “press-dry paper

process” developed at the U.S. Forest Products

Laboratory. The process is successful on a

pilot-scale, and U.S. firms are working to

develop it on an industrial scale. When that is

done, a decade or more should still remain

before markets for tropical wood chips are

greatly affected because of the long investment

lag in paper mills.
182 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

If in the meantime forest departments can

develop management and enforcement technologies to complement the opportunities for

clearcutting, the impact on tropical forest

resources could be beneficial. Otherwise, this

technological breakthrough could result in increased deforestation.

Fuller use of the tropical forests can lead to

increased revenues per unit area of forest cut

and to development of a wide range of rural

industries, including construction and manufacture of furniture and agricultural tools. Use

of many tree species and sizes can supply

growing domestic markets without reducing

foreign exchange earnings from export.

Current logging practices are often environmentally destructive and wasteful. Yet existing

technologies for harvesting, transportation,

and handling methods could substantially improve management of tropical forests. Some of

these have been developed in the United States,

and U.S. expertise could play a significant role

in the continued development and promotion

of these technologies.

Intensive harvesting that would accompany

fuller use of tropical forest trees could result

in reducing the areas degraded by extensive

logging. Enforcement of strict regulations regarding road building, site protection, and forest restoration would be more feasible if the

amount of land to be regulated were reduced.

However, without strict enforcement of such

regulations, intensive harvesting could prove

far more destructive than current practices.

Efforts to market a greater variety of tropical timbers are increasing. Much, however, remains to be done. Some species have characteristics that make them difficult and costly to

harvest and process and that severely limit

their end-uses. For such species and for forest

residues, improved technologies and markets

are needed for products for which species, size,

and shape are not critical (e.g., charcoal, wood

chips for pulp, and reconstituted wood panels).

For poorly known but potentially marketable

lumber species, the emphasis should be on

more efficient technologies for processing and

for improving use characteristics (preservation

and drying) at an acceptable cost, and on marketing techniques, such as grouping of species

by end-use requirements.

Although preservative treatment can and

does expand international marketability, it is

particularly important in moist tropical nations

where wood deterioration is greatest and

where wood substitutes are often used because

of this problem. More consideration needs to

be given to preservation technologies that are

cheap, technologically simple, but effective.

WOOD FUELS

Although wood is the fourth largest source

of fuel in the world (after petroleum, coal, and

natural gas), knowledge regarding its production and consumption is very imprecise. Most

fuelwood is used in tropical nations, and for

many it is in short supply. This is a hidden

energy crisis. It does not enter GNP accounts

and statistics on it are poor for several reasons.

Wood often is gathered locally by users rather

than being marketed. Even where it is marketed, it is often collected, without payment to

landowners, from trees and shrubs near roads,

around houses, on farms, or in poorly policed

public forests. Fuelwood gatherers often take

limbs rather than felling whole trees, so quantities taken are difficult to estimate.

Thus, much of the wood fuels data available

for country-level planning and policymaking

come not from actual measurements but rather

from multiplying the population size times per

capita consumption figures derived from small
Ch. 8—Technologies to Reduce Overcutting ● 183

sample studies. In some cases, the source of

the consumption figures cannot be found,

much less checked for accuracy.

The ability to design and implement effective policies and projects for solving the wood

fuels problem requires a thorough understanding of local consumption patterns and production possibilities. Many wood fuel projects of

development assistance agencies and national

governments have been unsuccessful because

insufficient effort was devoted to studying

these factors in advance (22]. Fortunately, interest in wood fuels has increased greatly in

the past decade. More studies are being done

and the estimates of wood fuel use are improving. FAO’S Forestry for Local Community Development Programs has recently published a

useful collection of such studies (9).

Approximately 80 percent of the estimated

1 billion cubic meters (m3

) of wood removed

annually from tropical forests is used for fuel

(27). Thus, the sustainability of wood fuel production is inseparable from the sustainability

of tropical forests. Whereas in the past fuelwood has been gathered mostly from natural

stands, in the future it must come increasingly from tree plantations (30). The rate of tree

plantings for firewood production throughout

the world will have to be increased at least

fivefold if fuelwood shortages are to be eased

(8).

Three categories of actions could affect the

imbalance between the demand and supply of

wood fuel products:

1. Actions that directly influence the present

and future demand for wood fuels (e.g.,

introduction of improved wood use or

conversion technologies and substitution

of nonwood-based energy sources).

2. Actions that affect the production of

wood for fuel and, thus, reduce the pressure on natural stands (e. g., woodlots,

plantations, and integrated land-use management).

3. Actions that do not directly affect production or use of woodfuel products but that

have an impact on the socioeconomic

conditions of the population drawing on

forest resources (e.g., population, land

tenure, etc.).

The third category influences the wood fuel situation only indirectly and is beyond the scope

of this assessment, even though in the long run

it may be the most important.

Technologies

Fuelwood and CharcoaI Conservation

Technologies

Four-fifths of the fuelwood consumed in developing countries is used for domestic purposes: cooking, space heating, and hot water

(27). The form of fuel chosen, and method of

use, can affect the total amount of wood consumed. For instance, many traditional cooking

stoves and open fires use wood inefficiently

because they focus the flames poorly on the

cooking surface or give relatively incomplete

combustion. Most stoves or open fires in tropical areas deliver only 5 to 15 percent of the

fuel’s energy content to the food being cooked

(15).

Charcoal production is also energy inefficient. Traditional earth-covered pit or mound

kilns can require 10 tons of air dried wood (15

percent moisture) to make 1 ton of charcoal

Photo credit’ OTA staff

The three-stone fireplace—shown here in the

Philippines—wastes much of the heat from the wood,

but has esthetic and cultural appeal that inhibit

acceptance of enclosed stoves
184 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

(24). Because a ton of charcoal has roughly

three times the energy content of a ton of wood,

this equals about 30 percent energy conversion

efficiency (27). However, this loss is offset

somewhat because traditional charcoal stoves

tend to be more efficient than traditional wood

stoves.

Reducing heat losses during conversion of

wood to energy, including during conversion

to charcoal, can conserve wood supplies. In

other cases, simply changing from open fires

to stoves increases efficiency. In many cases,

fuelwood savings can be realized simply by

drying (seasoning) wood before burning (27).

Moist wood produces only half as much heat

as air dried wood. However, this seemingly

simple change may not be feasible where termites and fungi infest wood rapidly; or where

there are heavy, frequent rains; or where people cannot afford to purchase or store an inventory of wood.

Improvements in stove design could reduce

wood requirements fivefold to tenfold by increasing stove conversion efficiency from the

5 to 10 percent achieved now to an efficiency

of 20 to 30 percent (20). Improved stoves typically are designed to provide better draft and

more complete combustion and to concentrate

heat on the cooking surface. Most improved

stove designs use various insulating materials—for instance, a ceramic or clay-vermiculite

lining–to reduce heat loss through the stove

walls. In addition to increasing the efficiency

of wood use, the wide dissemination of such

stoves, if properly maintained and used, could

reduce the time, energy, and money that tropical country women now spend collecting fuel

(20).

More than 100 stove models, both traditional

and experimental, are described in a recent

compendium of stove designs (5). These stoves

represent a broad spectrum of candidates for

improving fuel-use efficiency. For example, the

Lorena stove used in Guatemala can cut fuelwood consumption in half. It is molded from

mud and sand, fitted with a metal damper and

pipe, and costs the equivalent of only US$5.

The Indian Junagadh stove is also simple and

cheap and is reportedly 30 percent efficient.

It is made with bricks or mud to absorb more

heat, is designed with a tighter fitting hole for

the pot to reduce heat loss, and in some cases

is equipped with a metal damper to control

combustion (22).

Few such stoves, however, have been readily accepted by local populations. Acceptance

is determined not only by fuel efficiency but

by cost, simplicity of operation and maintenance, availability of materials, cultural

preferences and patterns, and the mechanisms

chosen to promote the new stoves. These factors vary from region to region, so a stove

designed in one place may not be accepted or

used efficiently elsewhere (20).

Obtaining the widespread use of an improved stove design is more important than

design details if the improvements are expected

to have a significant impact on fuelwood demand. Many programs to design improved

stoves have failed to meet expectations because

they underestimated the economic and social

constraints involved. Further, claims about efficient stoves have seldom been adequately

documented. Thus, it is especially important

to field test (onsite) a design before promoting

its widespread use (19). A strategy to design

and

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

promote any new stove should include:

a survey of traditional cooking practices

to ascertain sociocultural criteria that the

stoves must meet,

field testing of existing stoves,

assessment of alternative designs,

laboratory testing of alternative designs,

design work or modification of existing

stoves,

limited, followed by extended, field testing

of the improvements, and

national or regional extension programs

and support (13).

Introduction efforts have focused on lowcost, owner-built stoves. Two models that have

achieved some acceptance are the Louga stove

(Senegal) and the Lorena stove (Central Ameri-
Ch. 8—Technologies to Reduce Overcutting • 185

ca and various African countries). Because a

relatively lengthy period is needed for the initial promotion and for household training to

build, use, and maintain the stoves, the extensiordtraining cost per stove is high and the dissemination rate is slow (limited by availability, skills, and mobility of extension staff’). Consequently, more attention is being given to

using existing artisans and their marketing network to speed the dissemination process.

Charcoal production can be improved on a

large or small scale. As traditional earth-covered kilns give way to improved designs, including kilns built of brick, concrete, or metal,

there is better carbonization control, higher

conversion efficiencies, and production of a

cleaner end product. The conversion efficiency of a traditional earth kiln can be improved

50 percent at low cost simply through improved kiln operation: use of only dense, dry

wood chopped into relatively uniform pieces;

assuring that the wood is packed as tightly as

possible; assuring the earth covering the kiln

is sufficiently thick to prevent complete combustion; proper spacing of initial air vents; and

careful monitoring of combustion and later carbonization conditions (27).

At minimal cost, flattened metal cans or

other scrap sheet metal can be inserted between the stacked wood and the insulating

earth layer, reducing dirt contamination

(which in some kilns reduces the efficiency of

20 to 30 percent of the charcoal produced) (27).

More sophisticated designs and building materials (brick, concrete, or metal) can be even

more efficient but may require substantially

higher capital investment.

A relatively expensive alternative is the portable steel charcoal kiln, which consists of two

cylindrical steel shells, a conical lid, and four

chimneys. It has been used throughout the

world for many years. The chief advantages of

such kilns are ease of operation, increased rates

of recovery (15 to 20 percent), relatively short

production cycle (72 hours), and relative portability (by truck or animal-drawn cart). The

high capital cost makes it prohibitively expensive for traditional producers who do not reap

much economic benefit from improved conversion.

However, these kilns have been used successfully in conjunction with large-scale agricultural land clearing and on large plantations

where periodic portability is desired. For example, the “Char-Lanka” project in Sri Lanka

takes advantage of an expanding market for

charcoal to make beneficial use of the timber

cleared from a large agricultural development

project area. A major U.S. bank helped finance

both small-scale artisans to fabricate portable

metal kilns and small-scale charcoal producers

to lease such kilns. Eventually over 200 kilns

will be built locally (27).

In some tropical countries, charcoal already

accounts for a significant fraction of total wood

fuel use and it is increasing its market share,

particularly in urban centers. Given the low

conversion efficiency of most charcoal production, the increasing substitution of charcoal for

wood with its attendant energy losses will exacerbate problems of wood supply/demand

imbalance.

Because most charcoal is produced part-time

by small cottage industry laborers, many or

most of whom operate illegally or extralegally, it is particularly difficult to launch national

or regional campaigns to improve charcoal production efficiency. Char-Lanka is one potentially promising model that could help small-scale

kiln producers function more effectively. The

peace Corps and others sponsor many local

efforts to improve traditional charcoal producers’ operating efficiencies, but so far substantial improvements in forest resource depletion rates have not been demonstrated.

Resource Substitution

Resource substitution can be used to protect

forests in two ways: by substituting alternative

energy sources for fuelwood, or by substituting

fuelwood cultivated in plantations for fuelwood collected from natural forests. Nonwood

energy substitutes can be conventional (kerosene, electricity, or natural gas) or innovative

(solar, wind, small hydro, or biogas). Detailed

25-287 0 - 84 - 13
I&3 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

analysis of these technologies is outside the

scope of this assessment.

Substituting Nonwood Fuels. Through the

1950’s, 1960’s, and early 1970’s, large-scale

shifts occurred from traditional fuels (wood

and charcoal) to petroleum fuels—primarily

kerosene. It is unlikely, however, that substitutions will usurp the primary place of fuelwood

in developing countries while wood resources

still exist. Further, it is unlikely that financial

subsidies of such fuels can continue indefinitely. However, such subsidies can be a way to

achieve important temporary reductions in

wood demand, while the productivity of natural forests is recovering or while fuelwood plantations are being established.

Many efforts to develop and apply alternative

energy sources are under way worldwide, but

they seem to be widely scattered, uncoordinated, and generally underfunded (32). Actual

adoption of these technologies is constrained

by their financial and managerial feasibility

and by the enormous logistical difficulty in

changing the habits of millions of dispersed

and often isolated villagers. The substitution

of various forms of energy for fuelwood by

these people probably will be influenced largely

by changes in their lifestyle, standard of living,

the location of their settlements, and access to

available technologies. Conscious policy decisions to affect fuelwood consumption, production, or substitution will have a much greater

prospect for success if the policies build on the

energy and economic changes already occurring throughout the rural areas of the Tropics

(27).

Still, the energy demand/supply imbalance

must be met mainly through improving the supply, distribution, and use of fuelwood and charcoal. A preparatory committee for the U.N.

Conference on New and Renewable Sources

of Energy concluded that there is “no alternative source of energy that could provide a

viable substitute for fuelwood on a scale which

could permit a major reduction in dependence

on it by the world’s poor in the next quarter

century. Their poverty, and the remoteness of

many of them, will inescapably remove other

energy sources from their range of possibilities” (31).

Fuelwood Plantations. The idea of growing

fuelwood in plantations is not new. But there

is not extensive technical experience growing

trees for firewood because foresters traditionally have planted trees primarily for timber and

pulpwood (19). Most fuelwood produced from

plantations is used for cooking, with some for

heating and charcoal manufacture. Some largescale plantations do, however, supply fuelwood

for industry and transportation.

Three different types of plantations can be

envisioned: plantings by individual farmers,

more concentrated village woodlots, and largescale plantations for concentrated demand.

Individual plantings—increasing emphasis

in forestry development programs has been focused on technologies aimed at bringing rural

populations into direct participation in forestry

and fuelwood production projects. This can include farm forestry, where individual farmers

grow just enough trees for their own fuel needs

or for a cash crop, and agroforestry, where

trees are combined with food-producing systems in the form of shelterbelts, windbreaks,

or more complex mixtures.

Individual tree planting can make use of

otherwise little-used areas. Because wood for

fuel need not be large, fast-growing and coppicing shrubs can be used along roads and field

edges. Multipurpose trees that provide fuelwood as a byproduct of food or forage production may be accepted even by rural people with

little land. Where water is adequate and a market for fuelwood exists, closely spaced plantings of fast-growing, coppicing shrubs or trees

can be grown on relatively small areas to both

provide domestic needs and generate income.

In many countries, fuelwood is becoming

part of the market economy providing farmers

with income that offsets the costs associated

with establishing or maintaining tree cover for

environmental stability or rehabilitation. Tree

planting by individual farmers in Gujarat, India, has spread to such an extent that the 50

million seedlings distributed by the Forestry
Ch. 8–Technologies to Reduce overcutting Ž 187

Photo credit: OTA staff

Eucalyptus fuelwood supplied by Farm Forestry

Projects in India. Farmers are encouraged to plant trees

to supply their fuelwood needs as well as provide

income from sales

Department in 1980 (equivalent to an annual

planting of at least 25,000 ha) were insufficient

to meet demand (22).

Village Woodlots—Village or communal

fuelwood plantations are larger in scale than

individual plantings. Management of these

plantations resembles conventional forestry in

many respects, except that even existing lowquality coppice trees are exploited. Trees may

be multipurpose or for energy production only.

Rotations vary between 5 and 30 years, depending on species and site conditions. Because

the area cropped generally is larger than where

trees are in individual holdings, and because

the land is dedicated entirely to tree crops,

harvesting techniques can be similar to those

used in conventional forestry.

The management techniques for many species suitable for village woodlots are relatively well-known. But sociocultural and economic

problems can affect acceptance. Constraints

that can impede village forestry include:

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

heterogeneous social structure that hinders village-level decisionmaking and

cooperation;

competition with other village priorities

for limited village resources;

loss of whatever production currently

comes from the woodlot site (especially

grazing);

lack of government and forestry department support for promotion, extension,

free seedlings, technical advice, etc.;

lack of an institutional structure to define

ownership and distribution of woodlot

products;

shortage of labor for plantation maintenance; and

tendency of foresters or other outsiders to

dictate what species to use in village woodlots with too little consultation with villagers, especially women, who are most likely to tend, harvest, and use woodlot products (22).

Too little is known about how village people

make decisions about land use, land tenure,

and tradeoffs in production of different goods

and services. In a World Bank project to establish 500 ha of village woodlots in Niger, for example, village people either pulled out seedlings as fast as the trees were planted or allowed uncontrolled grazing to take place. The

villagers had not been involved in formulating

the project and perceived the woodlot area as

a traditional grazing ground (22).

Trees in some fuelwood plantations (e.g.,

Eucalyptus camaldulennsis) in some Sahelian

countries have not been well accepted locally. Fast-growing plantations generally supply

fuelwood only. But the native brushland they

replace also supplied other products such as

gums, medicines, food, and forage. In some cases

native brush could be managed to maximize

fuelwood production while sustaining production of other products. One opportunity is in-
terplanting native brushland with fuelwoodproducing, nitrogen-fixing shrubs. Development of such systems will require more research on subjects such as management techniques and species compatibility (2).

There is no complete package that can be

universally applied to encourage participation

in a village woodlot program; each must vary

according to the needs and priorities of a

village. Several general guidelines can be extracted from recent experience. For village

woodlot programs to succeed, there must be:

1) strong government commitment to village

forestry, 2) perception of the forestry department’s role in rural forestry, 3) villager participation (especially village women) in program formulation, 4) understanding of village

perceptions, priorities, sociocultural framework, and economic needs, and 5) design of

a program understandable to village people

that caters to their needs and provides incentives effective within the particular sociocultural framework (e.g., improved agricultural

practices, monetary incentives, improved infrastructure, employment) (22).

Industrial fuelwood plantations–Although

much more wood is consumed for household

use in tropical countries, wood fuel used for

processing and service activities is still very

substantial. According to available surveys,

these uses account for between 2 and 15 percent of total wood fuel use in Africa and Asia.

Though some of these uses are scattered (e.g.,

charcoal for commercial food preparation, firewood for brickmaking and cement), others give

rise to vary large demands concentrated in
Ch. 8—Technologies to Reduce Overcutting • 189

single locations or small areas. For example,

tobacco-curing is estimated to have required

1.1 million m3 of fuelwood in Tanzania in 1970

and, together with rubber preparation fuelwood, nearly 300,000 m3 in Thailand (23). Industrial demand is growing much faster than

household demand (3).

In Brazil, about 2 million ha of plantations

produce an estimated 3 million tons of charcoal from Eucalyptus wood to support the

country’s metallurgical industry. The planted

area is expected to exceed 4 million ha by the

year 2000 (16). In Kenya, large-scale charcoal

production is a byproduct of the use of bark

to produce tanning extract.

Recently, opportunities to run factories on

wood have been enhanced by the availability

of wood chips and pellets. These standardized

forms are more convenient to store and use

than logs or split wood and, thus, are gaining

acceptance as a source of industrial energy.

High-speed chipping machines have been developed that make standard, matchbox-sized

wood chips and then shoot them into a waiting

van. The chips are suitable to use in woodfired

boilers for industrial applications. Wood-chip

machines are especially advantageous alongside logging operations, since they can make

a useful product from the debris left by loggers.

wood chippers also can cull old, diseased, or

contorted trees from forests managed for timber.

Wood chips are bulky and contain about 50

percent water so they cannot be profitably

hauled over long road or rail distances for use

as fuel. Wood chips can be transported over

long distances by ships, however, as the per

mile cost is relatively low. Wood pellets are

smaller than wood chips; they are made from

wood waste bound together under heat and

pressure. These can be used in coal or charcoal furnaces without modifications. Since

pellets are drier and denser than wood chips,

they can be transported economically over

greater distances. The use of wood chips and

pellets is confined largely to North America,

but the practice is spreading to other countries

(30).

Large-scale energy plantations are also used

by forestry agencies to protect timber reforestation sites and protected areas from illegal fuelwood gathering. In Indonesia, 341,000 ha of Calliandra have been established as a buffer zone

around national forests to protect the natural

trees from fuelwood gatherers.

The removal of trees for fuel eventually can

exhaust the soil. In energy plantations, the nutrient drain may be more severe than in conventional timber plantations because younger

trees contain a proportionately larger share of

some nutrients. Furthermore, wood chipping

machines shred leaves and twigs as well as

trunks and branches. This depletion could be

alleviated in industrial energy plantations by

spreading furnace residues around the trees.

Nitrogen fertilizer would still be required for

trees that do not have nitrogen-fixing microorganisms. Growing several kinds of trees in

plantations could alleviate some of the wildlife

disruption problems. In theory, this and the use

of indigenous species could also make plantations less susceptible to catastrophic damage

by insects and disease.

Eucalyptus, Acacia, Calliandra, Leucaena,

and Prosopis are among many potentially useful trees that are beginning to be used in plantations, village woodlots, and individual sites

(20), The trees most likely to prove useful for

fuelwood plantations are fast-growing species

that can withstand degraded soils, exposure to

wind, and drought (20). The ability to coppice

(regrow from cut stumps or root suckers) is important for fuelwood species because this allows repeated harvest without the cost and effort of replanting. For example, Leucaena

IeucocephaJa is a legume tree that supplies

fuelwood, fodder, and timber and enriches the

soil. On favorable sites yields of 40 to 100

m

3

/ha/yr can be expected from selected strains

of Leucaena. These trees can be harvested

every 3 to 6 years and the seedling generation

rotation can be followed by three or more coppice generations, all of which give comparable

yields (21).

To achieve sufficient profits at all levels, from

farm forestry to large-scale projects, the aver-
190 Ž Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

age net energy harvested needs to be high per

area and per time unit. Since labor costs may

be formidable, productivity must be sufficiently

high to make product prices competitive with

available commercial fuels. But high productivity usually needs high-quality land. This can

lead to conflicts between wood fuel production

and food production (29).

The following types of land are likely to be

most readily available for forestry because they

are least in demand for agriculture: abandoned

farmland, low-grade coppice forest, sedge or

cane-growing coastal or riverine areas, saline

land, mountain slopes, dry areas; sludge deposits, other types of unproductive land. Few of

these are suited to high-input, short-rotation

forestry. In many cases, low-input, fuelwood

forestry may offer a better prospect.

Unless it is clearly profitable within a few

years, growing wood for fuel, whether on a

large or small scale, demands social and political commitments that may be difficult to obtain and maintain. High investment costs for

fuelwood plantations also serve as a disincentive. In areas where substantial forest or brush

cover remain, it is cheaper to harvest wood

from the forests (even though they may be badly overcut) than to pay for plantation-grown

wood.

Gathering wood from natural forests, as long

as they remain, requires no investment outlays.

In such situations, fuelwood plantings are

more likely to succeed if natural forests are protected from cutting and if plantations provide

additional marketable products, serve some additional desired function, or are integrated with

agriculture. In areas where no natural forests

remain within a considerable radius of a town,

village woodlots or wood fuel plantations can

be highly profitable.

Evidence throughout the developing nations

shows that cash incentives are among the most

widely and readily received. Recent studies

have shown that the economic and financial

(primarily cash) benefits of tree growing derive

from products other than fuelwood (25,28) and

that the increased availability of fuelwood is

almost always a byproduct of stepped-up tree

growing for other purposes. In other words, although it maybe socially worthwhile to plant

more trees, the incentives to do so will be influenced by how well those trees serve as income-producing assets (28). Increased supplies

of fuelwood, therefore, maybe best promoted

by recognizing the secondary financial importance fuelwood holds relative to other forest

products (27).

Development or expansion of fuelwood markets, however, may induce relatively powerful

villagers or people from cities to gain control

of fuelwood supplies. This would then deny

landless people access to needed subsistence

resources (l).

The rate at which forests are converted to

other, less sustainable uses can be reduced by

decreasing the demand for wood. This can be

done by enhancing the efficiency of wood use

or by substituting alternatives for wood from

foresters.

The efficiency of domestic wood use can be

improved through better stove and kiln technologies. Since most fuelwood and stove projects have been initiated only recently, it is

premature to stipulate which techniques are

most likely to achieve widespread diffusion.

Several observations, however, can be made.

●

●

●

●

To develop effective methods of technology dissemination, high priority must be

given to social and economic research and

to field evaluation of the technologies.

Farmers, artisans, and entrepreneurs are

most likely to adopt and spread improved

techniques for wood growing, charcoal

production, and stove design if they can

profit from the improvements through existing market channels.

Improvements in charcoal production

should generally be introduced as incremental changes in existing methods.

Dissemination strategies for fuelwood

technologies must take into account the

differences in male and female roles and

incentives as they relate to how house-
Ch. 8—Technologies to Reduce Overcutting ● 191

holds’ land and labor resources are used,

who makes purchase decisions, who benefits from alternative tree products, etc. (27),

● The greatest potential for farmers to profit from tree growing comes not from

single-purpose fuelwood plantations but

rather from sale of other forest products,

for which market development may be

needed, and from agroforestry, which not

only produces wood but also improves

yields of associated crops.

Improved stoves may reduce the range of

fuels that can be used, may be too expensive,

or simply may be outside the abilities of local

craftsmen. Improved charcoal production does

not necessarily lead to expected reductions in

the wood consumed to make charcoal. Unless

there is an effectively enforced ceiling on the

exploitation of woodlands, charcoal makers

may use the time they gain from using more

efficient kilns to make even more charcoal,

thus accelerating the depletion of wood

resources rather than slowing it.

Securing future wood supplies is a political,

economic, and social problem. It is affected by

problems of land ownership, local customs,

and social organization. until these are resolved, measures to reduce demand will fail to

reach the root of the problem. Demand reduction creates no incentives for increased supply; it may even achieve the reverse. where

fuelwood has sufficient commercial value

above the cost of harvesting and transport, it

is more likely that someone will be prepared

to invest in planting trees (10).

Interest and experiments in the use of smallscale, renewable energy technologies (solar

1. Agarwal, A., OTA Technology Transfer Workshop Comments, Nov. 17-19, 1982,

2. AID/USDA Bioenergy Team, “Energy Potential

From Native Brushland in Niger: The Economic Perspective, ” report prepared for the Office

of Energy, AID, 1979.

driers, small hydropower, etc.) are widespread.

Such technologies are not yet able to substitute

for wood use, however, and their adoption is

inhibited by economic and managerial constraints. Further, it will be difficult to achieve

widespread adoption of these technologies because of the problems inherent in trying to

change the long-held habits of large, diverse,

and often isolated rural populations.

Similarly, substituting nonwood fuels (kerosene, bottled gas, electricity, etc.) for fuelwood

has potential to reduce demand temporarily for

forest wood while plantations are being established and while the natural forest is recovering. However, the costs of obtaining and distributing these fuels are often prohibitive. Subsidies to facilitate the adoption of nonwood

energy sources may be necessary in regions of

critical deforestation, but they cannot be seen

as a long-term remedy. Substituting plantationgrown wood for natural wood is the more sustainable option for many tropical regions.

Tree planting is constrained where access to

“free-for-the-taking” forest wood is not restricted. In such cases, people are unlikely to

invest land and labor in fuelwood plantations

even if other inputs are government-subsidized.

The economic feasibility of fuelwood plantations can be improved if they also are designed

to provide marketable products other than

woods, such as fodder, or to provide some additional service, such as shelterbelts. However,

even in these cases, the regulatory controls on

fuelwood gathering from the natural forest

must be enforced.

REFERENCES

3. Arnold, J. E. M., and Jongma, J., “Fuelwood and

Charcoal in Developing Countries,” Unasylva

29(118):2-9, 1978.

4. Brazier, J, D., “Property Requirements for Use—

A Basis for Timber Selection and a Contribution to Marketing,” Proceedings IUFRO Divi-
192 • Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

sion 5 Conference, Oxford, England, 1980, pp.

117-126.

5. De Lepeliere, G., et. al., A Woodstove Compendium (Eindhoven, The Netherlands: Eindhoven

University of Technology, 1981). ln: Shaikh, et

al., 1983.

6. Ewel, J., “Environmental Implications of Tropical Forest Utilization,” International Symposium on Tropical Forests Utilization and Conservation, F. Mergen (cd.) (New Haven, Corm.:

Yale University Press, 1981), pp. 156-167.

7. Ewel, J., and Conde, L., “Environmental Implication of Any Species Utilization in Moist Tropics,” Papers for Conference on Improved Utilization of Tropical Forests, Madison, Wis., 1978,

Pp. 63-82.

8. Food and Agriculture Organization, Map of the

9

10

Fuelwood Situation in [he Developing- Countries, 1981.

Food and Agriculture Organization, Wood Fuel

Surveys-GCP/INT/35/SWE (Rome: U.N. Food

and Agriculture Organization, 1983).

Foley, G., “The Future of Renewable Energy in

Developing Countries,” Ambio, X(5) 200~205,

1981.

11. Hughes, J. F., Plumptre, R. A., and Burley, J.,

“Technologies to Improve the Use of Tropical

Forest and Woodland Products,” OTA commissioned paper, 1982.

12. Johns, A., “Wildlife Can Live With Logging,”

I’Vew Scientist, July 21, 1983, pp. 206-211.

13. Joseph, S,, and Shanahan, Y., “A Design Strategy for the Implementation of Stove Programmed

in Developing Countries, ” Energy From Biomass (Allied Science Publishers, 1980).

14. Keating, W, G., “Utilization of Mixed Species

Through Grouping and Standards,” Proceedings IUFRO Division 5 Conference, Oxford,

England, 1980, pp. 135-156.

15. Knowland, B., and Ulinski, C., “Traditional

Fuels: Present Data, Past Experience and Possible Strategies,” prepared for the Agency for International Development, September 1979.

16, Lanly, J. P,, and Clement, J., Present and Future

Plantation Areas in the Tropics (Rome: Food

and Agriculture Organization, 1979).

17. Levy, C. R., “Why Treat?” Proceedings of a

Seminar on Utilization of Timber in the Tropics

Through Wood Preservation in Papua New

Guinea, 1975. In: Hughes, et al., 1982.

18. McQuire, A. J., “Wood Preservation in the

Rural Sector–Research Needs,” 8th World Forestry Congress Paper FID 11/22-12, 1978. In:

Hughes, et al., 1982.

19. National Academy of Sciences, “Stove Design

for Efficient Wood Burning,” Development Digest, XIX(3), July 1981, Report by an ad hoc advisory panel of the Advisory Committee on

Technology Innovation,

20. National Academy of Sciences, Firewood

Crops: Shrub and Tree Species for Energy Production (Washington, D. C.: National Academy

of Sciences, 1980).

21. National Academy of Sciences, Leucaena:

22,

23,

24.

25,

26,

27.

28.

29,

30,

31.

32,

Promising Forage and Tree Crop for the Tropics (Washington, D. C.: National Academy of

Sciences, 1977).

Noronha, R., “Village Woodlots: Are They a

Solution?” paper prepared for the panel on the

Introduction and Diffusion of Renewable Energy Technologies (Washington, D. C.: National

Academy of Sciences, 1980).

Openshaw, K., “Energy Requirements for

Household Cooking in Africa With Existing and

Improved Cooking Stoves,” paper presented at

the Bioenergy 1980 Conference, Atlanta, Ga.,

Apr. 22, 1980. ~n: Shaikh, et al,, 1983.

Openshaw, K., “Charcoal Stoves, Charcoal Conversion and Biomass” (Washington, D. C.: Agen- -

cy for International Development, 1982). In:

Shaikh, et al., 1983.

Poulsen, G., “Important Forest Products in Africa Other Than Wood and Wood Extractives”

(Rome: Food and Agriculture Organization,

1981). In: Shaikh, et al., 1983.

Preston, S., “Needs for Effective Utilization of

Natural Tropical Forests,” Proceedings IUFRO

Congress, Division 5, Japan, 1981, pp. 103-116.

Shaikh, A., Qadri, T., and Hale, S., “Fuelwood

Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources,” OTA commissioned paper, 1983.

Shaikh, A., “The Economics of Village-Level

Forestry: A Methodological Framework” (Washington, D. C.: Agency for International Development, 1981).

Siren, G., “Silviculture for Energy,” Unasylva

34(138):22-28, 1982.

Smith, N., Wood: An Ancient Fuel With a New

Future, Worldwatch paper No. 42, 1981.

United Nations General Assembly, Report of

the Technical Panel on Fuelwood and Charcoal,

A/CONF: 100/PC/34 (New York: United Nations, 1981).

U.S. Interagency Task Force on Tropical Forests, “The World’s Tropical Forests: A Policy,

Strategy, and Program for the United States,”

A Report to the President by the U.S. Interagency Task Force on TropicaZ Forests, Department

of State, Publication No. 9117, Washington,

D. C., 1980.
Chapter 9

Forestry Technologies for

Disturbed Forests
Page

195

195

195

195

196

196

196

196

196

200

200

200

201

201

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Introduction ..s,4.. .0....., ● ,**.**. ● ...,**. ..,..,.. . . . . . . . . . . . .*..*., ,. .

Constraints and Opportunities ● .***** ??.0.0.0 ..00.... ● ***,..* .***.... .,, .

Reforestation of Degraded Lands ****,*. . . . . . . . , . . . .

 Background ● ..... ● , . . . .

Technolologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Land Preparation

..... .

.... ●☛✐✌✎✎✎ ● ...**.. . . . . .

Species Selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

..*..*. 

.****** ● *.*$*** . . . . . . . . ..,.*

Planting Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Tree Care and Maintenance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Investment Analysis .*..*.* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Constraints and Opportunities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

● ...,,* ● . * *

Chapter preferences ● *****9 ● *****.* ...**.,. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ...,*.

.

Figure
Chapter

Forestry Technologies for

Disturbed Forests

HIGHLIGHTS

Management of Secondary Forests Reforestation of Degraded Lands

●

●

About 400 million hectares (ha) of poten- ●

tially productive closed secondary forests

exist in tropical nations. If managed properly, secondary forests could satisfy the

growing wood needs in the tropical nations that have substantial closed forests.

●

Technologies to manage secondary forests

are not yet adequate to assure suitable returns on investment. Technologies are

needed to reduce costs and increase yields.

Approximately 2 billion ha of tropical

lands are in various stages of degradation.

Opportunities exist to increase productivity of these extensive areas and, at the same

time, meet the growing need for forest

products and environmental services.

Plantation management, like secondary

forest management, is constrained by a

lack of investment. Again, the solution

seems to lie in reducing costs and increasing benefits.

INTRODUCTION

Growing populations and increasing needs

for fuel, food, fodder, building materials, and

work opportunities have caused selective logging and tropical deforestation. When cleared

forest land cannot sustain the new land use,

the consequences include land degradation,

abandonment, and varying degrees of recovery. After either logging or agricultural clearing, the type of vegetation that returns generally depends on the intensity of land use and degree of degradation that have occurred and on

whether the site has been grazed or burned.

Usually, second growth forests appear; sometimes grasses invade, sometimes only barren

wasteland is left.

The selection and application of forestry

technologies on these lands will vary depending on the vegetation. If enough valuable trees

exist in the secondary forest and the site is not

too degraded, some form of canopy or understory manipulation can be applied. If the site

is severely degraded and natural tree regeneration is difficult, complete clearing foIlowed by

site preparation and field planting may be more

appropriate. The following describes various

forestry technology options according to vegetative cover.

195
196 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Background

Where tropical forests have been exploited

by wood harvesting and/or by shifting cultivation, the land is commonly “returned to nature” and secondary forests are allowed to

develop. Secondary forests, for the purpose of

this report, include both residual forest that has

been cut once or several times during the past

60 to 80 years and second growth forests that

invade after periodic cultivation. This includes

the “logged” and “forest fallow” categories

discussed in chapter 3.

In the past, foresters considered tropical

secondary forest trees of little use because the

trees were perceived as having poor form, being inferior species, or simply too small. Most

of these trees are not used except as poles or

fuel. Unless an especially good market for fiber

or fuelwood exists, secondary forest land usually is left idle or converted to marginal croplands.

These reasons for not investing in secondary

forest management technologies are being

dispelled as knowledge of secondary forest species improves. Secondary forests often are

more homogeneous than mature forests

because the vegetation that grows after a site

has been cleared usually is dominated by a few

pioneer tree species. This can simplify management, harvest, and use of the secondary forest.

Furthermore, pioneer tree species are fastgrowing, their wood is uniform and light, and

their stems tend to be straight and dominated

by a single leading shoot. Such characteristics

can make these species marketable. Since the

leaves of these species usually are large and

thin, adequate light can reach the understory

to permit development of dense undergrowth.

This understory frequently includes late successional hardwood species that are valuable

for timber–e,g., Meliaceae. Finally, the wood

of the secondary pioneer species usually lacks

resins and silica and this facilitates wood processing, although it makes the trees vulnerable

to damage (19).

Technologies

Desription

There are several technologies that could be

used to improve the productivity of secondary

forests. These technologies vary in intensity of

treatment. The choice depends on the quality

and quantity of tree species found in the forests

as well as the management objectives. The following technologies are presented from least

to most intensive:

●

●

●

●

No Treatment—No silvicultural treatment

is applied. The success of regrowth is dictated by the duration and severity of past

forest modifications and by soil quality,

moisture availability, and access to the

area by missing components of the former

forest, including tree seeds and animal life.

Refining-This is also known as improvement felling and timber stand improvement. Some trees are removed to give

more growing space to other, more desirable trees. The underlying premise is that

potentially valuable trees, unless tended,

will be constrained by competition with

less valuable trees for light, moisture, or

nutrients. It is justified only in forest

stands that already contain enough valuable trees to promise an economic crop.

Tropical shelterwood—This treatment

consists of removing the upper layer of

canopy in one or more cuttings to promote

either germination or the growth of existing understory seedlings or saplings. Periodic weeding is necessary.

Underplanting—Trees are planted under

some living portion of the former forest to

ensure a rapid-growing new crop of acceptable tree species.

Assesment

Each of these secondary forest management

technologies has certain technical, environmental, economic, and sociopolitical constraints.
Ch. 9—Forestry Technologies for Disturbed Forests ● 197

No Treatment.—Untreated secondary forests

are low-input/low-output. The attractiveness of

no treatment, with its lack of initial expense

and investment, is offset by low harvestable

yields (61). For instance, a 20-year record from

unmanaged residual forests in Puerto Rico

showed an annual yield less than 5 cubic

meters per hectare (m3/ha) (5). This calculation

is based on merchantable timber. Thus, yields

might be increased by expanding the market

for the materials produced.

Repeated harvesting may cause an eventual

decline in site productivity due to nutrient

losses. Harvesting all the stemwood from a

moist tropical forest can remove 10 percent of

the ecosystem’s nitrogen, 39 percent of the

phosphorus, 38 percent of the potassium, 20

percent of the calcium, and 57 percent of the

magnesium (20). However, development of harvesting systems that leave forest structure* and

its nutrient-cycling mechanisms intact is constrained by financial considerations. For instance, although small-scale clearings recover

more quickly than large disturbed areas, this

approach often is not suitable for commercial

forestry because of higher costs incurred in the

transportation of labor and machinery.

Nevertheless, harvesting systems are being

designed to reduce nutrient loss. A harvesting

method used with some success in the United

States has been proposed for adaptation to the

Amazon forests (34). In this scheme, a strip of

forest is harvested on the contour of a slope.

A haulage road is built along the upper edge

of the strip. After harvesting, the area is left

alone until saplings appear. Then a second

strip is cut above the road. Nutrients washed

downslope from the freshly cut second strip

can be captured and used by the new trees in

the original strip. The remaining mature forest

can provide seeds for regeneration. Once a network of roots is reestablished in a strip, another

strip farther up the slope can be cut, the timber

used, and the newly cut strip then regenerates

naturally (fig. 27).

*Forest structure: distribution and arrangement of trees in a

forest stand.

Strip logging, like clear-cutting, has economic problems because many of the tree species

cut do not have well-developed markets.

Refining. —Forest refinement has advantages and disadvantages. Few good trees are

needed for this treatment. As few as 100 saplings per hectare, if refined, could produce

a fully stocked crop of mature trees (11). But

logging damage and post-logging mortality

can limit the use of this treatment (49,55).

The application of logging controls throughout

the Tropics might greatly increase the area of

forest meriting refinement. For instance, successful control of logging damage in the Philippines has enabled the use of refining in large

areas (22).

Refined moist secondary forest produces

about 6 m

3

/ha/yr of merchantable wood (14),

a quantity similar to that from untreated forest.

There is an improvement, however, in wood

quality. Results vary widely with forest stand

history. Although yields are low relative to

those of more intensive management technologies, the required investments are also low

and often in line with available financial

resources (38,51). Thinnings seem to shorten

the time between harvests (31). Also, when the

full costs of more intensive technologies are

taken into account, refining may compare favorably with the intensive treatments (38).

Nevertheless, more research data are needed,

especially about costs and financial returns, for

complete analysis of this treatment.

A variation of the refining practice is known

as “liberation thinning.” In this technique,

desired trees are identified and liberated from

competition with less desired tree species, It

is an important element in the silviculture of

residual Dipterocarp stands in Sarawak (31).

However, in general, only large clearings are

needed to stimulate understory growth, and

sometimes even these fail (12). The selected

trees, if subordinate in canopy position in early

life, may be incapable of later accelerated

growth.

Another variant of the refining practice is the

polycydic system (or selection silvicultural
198 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Figure 27.-Harvesting Scheme

1 ye

c

yea

Cu

yea

SOURCE: C. F. Jordan, “Amazon Rain Forests,” American Scient/sf 70(4): 394-401, 1982.

system), which preserves the natural forest

structure. Mature trees are harvested periodically, thus liberating immature trees. It has

been successful in some Dipterocarp forests of

the Far East because those forests are dominated by a single type of tree and natural

regeneration of that type usually occurs (41).

Sometimes all the high-quality tree species are

extracted, thereby leaving behind a commercially useless forest. Also, the widespread use

of girth limits for determining maturity means

that the most vigorous, rapid-growing trees are

removed, leaving behind what could be poorer

seed-bearers.

The criticisms of the polycyclic system

should not, however, preclude its future use.

Markets are developing for trees with smaller

crowns, and felling these should do less damage to surrounding trees. The growing local

marketability of many additional species

should increase the feasibility of more complete fellings.

Yet another variant of the refining practice

is the monocyclic system. The objective is to

have all trees reach maturity simultaneously

for a single harvest. It starts with the removal

of all undesired species down to 10 cm in diameter at breast height (15). Drawbacks to this

treatment are the initial sacrifice of larger trees

and a lack of intermediate harvests for added

income. Moreover, monocyclic management

leads ultimately to more complete harvests

with greater prospects for erosion. Heavy cuts

from monocyclic management can be expected

to lead to periodic interruption of nutrient

recycling, since large volumes of logging slash
Ch. 9—Forestry Technologies for Disturbed Forests ● 199

will be decomposing at a time when an effective network of roots to capture the nutrients

is lacking.

Refinement directly reduces an ecosystem’s

diversity, gradually eliminating as many as half

of the tree species, especially those small at

maturity or with extremely light or heavy

woods. It calls for ranking species in order of

desirability. Consequently, criteria must be

determined for selection that consider not only

marketability but also the capacity of the system to capture and conserve energy and nutrients, and the risks of catastrophic damage

following reduction of biological diversity.

At present, the case for refining secondary

forest can best be made where the need for soil,

water, and wildlife conservation is critical and

where soils are unsuited for other purposes. If

carefully coordinated with land-use planning,

forest refining may provide seasonal employment in farming regions.

Tropical Shelterwood.-This complex practice stimulates growth of existing seedlings and

saplings chiefly by removing unwanted mature

trees (58). It requires a reasonable number of

existing seedlings, and a new seedling crop

rarely appears unless there are at least 2 or 3

mother trees (7,10,27,40). A variation, the Malayan Uniform System, is applied chiefly in the

lowland Dipterocarp forests of Peninsular Malaysia, where there are at least 2,500 seedlings

of good species. It requires nearly complete removal of all trees except desirable species of

less than 30 cm in diameter.

The practice, so far, is not profitable. Average expected timber yields are about the same

as from refining, about 6 m3/ha/yr. However,

labor costs are higher because the treatment

requires removal of the overstory and continuous weeding before harvest. It has been abandoned in Malaysia, Borneo, and India because

of labor costs (23,32). Better techniques are

needed to reduce treatment costs and improve

economic returns. At present, tropical shelterwood is applicable only in places with low

labor costs, extensive secondary forests, and

little capital to invest in plantations (61),

In addition, this treatment may lead to loss

of nutrients by leaching or erosion because the

canopy is kept open for a number of years. If

the technology were used for several rotations,

there would be progressive simplification of the

forest ecosystem.

Underplanting. —This practice is intermediate in intensity between natural regeneration

and plantations. The objectives are the rehabilitation of cutover forests after selective felling of marketable trees and the assurance of

full stocking, species control, crop uniformity, short rotations, and competitive yields (6).

There are several variations of underplanting. In forests containing most of the trees required for a future crop, individual trees are

planted to fill small vacant areas. This is called

“enrichment” planting. The main disadvantage

is that uneven growth rates between the natural

forest and the underplanted trees produce an

uneven stand that is difficult to manage and

harvest. “Gap” planting of trees spaced at 2 to

3 m inside openings of 20 m or more in diameter is another variation. It seems to have the

same disadvantage as enrichment planting.

“Group” planting is made up of closely spaced

clusters of 9 to 25 trees in openings as small

as 10 m in diameter. Only one tree per cluster

is intended to survive.

In forest stands with an insufficient number

of trees to form a significant portion of the next

crop, underplanting maybe done systematically in rows or lines. This provides more tree/site

selectivity and requires less planting stock.

Line planting seems to be the successor to

most of the other underplanting techniques;

however, it also has problems [61). Not only

must overhead shade be removed initially but

weeding must be so drastic that most of the

former forest quickly disappears (8). Clearing

lines and keeping them open until the new

trees are well established also can be expensive. Since most failures in the past have been

a result of competition with natural trees, selfpruning tree species capable of 1.5 m/yr of

straight growth are suitable (63). The list of

marketable species that meet the growth re-
200 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

quirements is limited. Also, line plantings typically are of a single species, producing a loss

of stand diversity, even though natural regrowth may be permitted between and below

the crowns of the planted trees. Finally, maximum yields to be expected from line plantings

are about 12 m3/ha/yr (13). The constraints may

make line planting a risky investment.

Underplanting, however, is less costly and

less intensive than plantations. It requires less

planting stock and may rehabilitate poor sites

and degraded forests. The problem of having

a longer wait before harvest may be ameliorated where a planted understory can be harvested on a relatively short rotation for poles,

fiber, or fuelwood.

Constraints and Opportunities

Existing secondary forests, if managed properly, could satisfy the wood needs of the growing populations in tropical nations for many

decades. However, the various technologies for

managing secondary forests are often complex,

slow, and laborious. Yields are often too low

relative to costs, which discourages investments. New technologies are needed to reduce

management costs and to sustain and increase

the yields of secondary forests.

An often appropriate technical approach to

increasing yields is improved harvesting. SimREFORESTATION OF

Background

Tropical nations have about 650 million ha

of cropland compared with 2 billion ha of land

in various stages of degradation (21,59). Degradation of tropical land is a physical, chemical, and biological process set in motion by activities that reduce the land’s inherent productivity. This process includes accelerated erosion, leaching, soil compaction, decreased soil

fertility, diminished natural plant regeneration,

disrupted hydrological cycle, and possible salinization, waterlogging, flooding, or increased

ply reducing logging damage can increase the

number of trees available for a future crop as

well as improve natural regeneration. This can

be accomplished through the use of appropriate harvesting equipment. In addition, regulations to control logging practices need to be

developed and enforced. Perfection of these

practices requires additional research on the

relationships between harvesting intensity and

growth of the residual forest.

Another opportunity to increase yields and

enhance the value of secondary forests is to

develop markets for lesser-known tree species.

Market development requires information on

wood properties of lesser-used species, the further development of processing techniques,

and juxtaposition of wood production areas,

processing plants, and market outlets. Expanded markets would then justify more complete and efficient harvesting. Developing markets for underused species and size classes may

do more to enhance the value of secondary forests than silvicultural improvement (61).

Finally, management of secondary forests

may be made more attractive by reducing the

cost of various silvicultural treatments. For example, survivorship and yield of planted trees

can be increased by developing less expensive

and better quality forest tree planting stock.

Labor costs could be reduced by developing

less expensive and longer-lasting methods of

weed control.

DEGRADED LANDS

drought risk, as well as the establishment of

undesirable weedy plants. There is a strong relationship between inappropriate land-use

practices and land degradation. In some places,

degradation is manifest (e.g., desertification),

where in others it is inferred (e.g., declining

crop yields).

Deforestation in mountainous regions is one

of the most acute and serious ecological problems today (17). Disturbance of vegetative cover

on montane areas with thin soil and steep

slopes results in land instability (e.g., land
Ch. 9—Forestry Technologies for Disturbed Forests . 201

slides) and soil erosion. Excessive erosion not

only impairs site productivity but may also adversely affect other sites or water bodies farther down the watershed. No precise estimates

of the scale of the problem exist. However, data

from the Food and Agriculture Organization

(FAO) and other agencies indicate that some

87 million ha of tropical montane watershed

land need reforestation (63).

Conversion of tropical moist forest into farm

or grazing land commonly results in rapid depletion of the soil’s plant nutrient supply and

accelerated soil erosion. In some places the degradation process leads to takeover by persistent, aggressive weed species of low nutritive

value (3). Often the combined problems of low

soil fertility and weed infestation become so

great that the land is abandoned. Such lands

are subject to frequent uncontrolled fires and

are often covered by coarse grasses. Whenever

the vegetation is burned, erosion may increase

and productivity may be reduced further. The

extent of these grasslands is not well

documented. Imperata, the main invader grass

in Southeast Asia and part of Africa, occupies

some 16 million once-forested hectares in Indonesia (36]. If the percent coverage of the rest

of Southeast Asia is similar to that of Indonesia,

there may be 40 million ha of Imperata grasslands in the region.

In many arid and semiarid open woodlands,

overgrazing and repeated fires have converted

the vegetation to a degraded fire climax stage.

Consequently, soils become dry and little

woody plant regeneration occurs. Fire-tolerant

vegetation—commonly unpalatable to animals—persists, leading to a desert-like state. An

estimated 20.5 million ha of tropical arid lands,

an area about the size of South Dakota, become

desertified every year. To date, an estimated

1.56 billion ha of tropical land have undergone

human-caused desertification (63).

Each year, approximately 500,000 ha of excessively irrigated lands become saline or

alkaline as a result of inadequate drainage or

use of salty irrigation water (63]. Capillary action draws moisture to the soil surface where

it evaporates, leaving salts in or on the topsoil.

In some cases, salts can be leached from upland soils and bedrock, raising the salinity of

runoff from deforested slopes. The increased

runoff harms agricultural soil in lowland areas

by causing temporary or lasting waterlogging

and salinization (4).

The best solution to such problems is to prevent inappropriate land-use practices on forested lands. Where it is too late for this approach, reforestation is an alternative. Trees

planted on degraded lands will not give such

high yields as trees planted on rich, fertile

lands. However, it maybe the only way to raise

the productivity of the most degraded lands.

Furthermore, in many countries, fertile sites

are reserved for agricultural activities. Given

the dwindling reserves of good land and the

increasing amount of degraded tropical lands,

reforestation is a technology with potential to

rehabilitate soils and to provide many goods

and services for industrial and local needs. For

example, fuelwood plantations can alleviate the

worsening shortage of firewood in some areas

and prevent shortages from occurring in

others.

Technologies

An OTA background paper, Reforestation of

Degraded Lands, covers this subject in detail.

This section summarizes the mechanics of reforestation and focuses on pertinent issues and

problems that may prevent reforestation

success.

Land Preparation

Many degraded sites need some type of preplanning preparation, such as clearing stumps

and competing weedy vegetation, loosening the

soil, or applying fertilizers or lime. Under some

circumstances, site cultivation controls weeds

and improves soil aeration, soil biochemical activity, percolation of water, pH regulation, nutrient application, and surface evenness. The

degree and type of land preparation depends

on several factors: site and soil conditions, vegetative cover, species to be planted, and available capital and labor.

25-287 0 - 84 - 14
202 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Land preparation can be done by hand or by

machine. Manual methods are less constrained

by the rainy season, they require few skills, and

the capital cost is relatively low. They also provide temporary employment to laborers and

cause minimal damage to soil. A disadvantage

of manual clearing, however, is the need to recruit, manage, and provide logistical support

in remote areas for large numbers of laborers.

Mechanical clearing, on the other hand, requires high capital inputs for equipment maintenance, supplies of fuel and spare parts, and

operator training and supervision. And heavy

machines degrade the site through topsoil disruption. Yet, in general, mechanical clearing

is cheaper than manual clearing (18). The

choice between manual and mechanical land

preparation must be made on a case-by-case

basis, determined by all these considerations.

Sometimes physical structures must be built

and heavy machinery must be used to prepare

sites. Artificial barriers of brushwood or other

materials constructed in a grid pattern, or

grasses and trees planted in a similar pattern,

can be used to immobilize drifting sand. Plowing the soil surface to increase water infiltration, ripping across the slope to retain water,

plus construction of bench terraces on steeper

slopes, and funneling moisture onto a smaller

area are all conservation measures used to

maximize planting success. Minicatchments

built to concentrate water into the rooting

zones of individual trees are a particularly important technique in arid zones.

It maybe necessary to add nutrients during

land preparation. Several techniques exist including mulching with organic matter, planting nitrogen-fixing trees, applying green manure (especially herbaceous legumes), and commercial fertilizers. Mulching suppresses

weeds, improves soil moisture conditions, and

augments soil organic matter (53), but it may

increase problems with rodents or other pests.

Nitrogen-fixing trees can improve soil with

their ability to produce nitrogen fertilizer. Foliage dropped by legumes is nitrogen-rich and

will augment soil fertility as it decays.

Historically, tropical foresters have relied

more on seed provenances and thinning practices than on commercial fertilizers to increase

productivity (52). But the benefits of fertilizers

have been impressive in some forest plantations. Fertilizer placed in the planting hole may

accelerate early height growth and thus reduce

weeding. Carton de Colombia, a timber growing company in Colombia, has experimented

successfully with the application of about 50

g of commercial fertilizer in planting holes on

extremely nutrient-poor soils (39). Since small

amounts of fertilizer can produce significant

results, further research is justified to determine the best types and quantities of nutrients

to apply for various species under various soil

conditions.

The use of commercial fertilizers in forestry

generally has been based on a presumed or predicted shortage of nitrogen, phosphorus and

potassium. Dosage has been based on experience from trial and error experiments. However, some highly weathered tropical soils are

difficult to fertilize effectively with essential

plant nutrients such as phosphorus and potassium. For instance, phosphorus can become so

tightly held by soil minerals that plants can extract little for their benefit, whereas potassium

is not held by the soil and is easily leached

away by tropical rains (24,37). Use of the wrong

fertilizer, or incorrect amounts of fertilizer, can

reduce yields. Application of 100 g of potassium chloride per Pinus caribaea tree depressed

growth and increased mortality on Nigerian savanna sites (35). Moreover, fertilizer use may

cause water-associated environmental problems, such as increased eutrophication that

hampers navigation (29) and may trigger the

onset of health problems. Thus, fertilizers can

be both beneficial and detrimental, so the impacts of applications need to be examined thoroughly before widespread use.

Some experts adamantly believe commercial

fertilizers should not be promoted for the

developing world on the grounds that they

must be imported and are not, or soon will not

be, affordable. Certainly, sustainable nonchem-
Ch. 9—Forestry Technologies for Disturbed Forests “ 203

ical techniques to enhance fertility should be

investigated. For example, one of the less obvious soil deficiencies, occurring particularly

in eroded soils in the drier climates, is the lack

of necessary micro-organisms. An ancient and

effective method to add micro-organisms is to

inoculate either nursery soils or planting holes

in the field with a few grams of topsoil from

well-established plantations. The method is not

practical, however, where well-established

plantations do not exist.

It seems unlikely that timber crops can be

harvested repeatedly from the same site without replenishing soil nutrients. Significant decline from successive timber crops has not yet

been observed (16,42,44). The quantities of nutrients removed with tree harvests have been

measured, however, and they are sufficient to

suggest that with repetitive cropping a decline

in yield eventually will occur. Nutrient drain

can be more rapid in fuelwood plantations

where the cutting cycle is every 5 to 10 years

in contrast to commercial forests that are cut

every 30 to 100 years. This difference is even

greater than the time difference implies, since

younger trees contain a proportionally larger

share of phosphorus, potash, and calcium (56).

Nutrient levels and fluxes in plantations should

be monitored to determine the prospective benefits and cost effectiveness of soil amendments.

Species Selection

Tree species selection is important to plantation success. If a tree is grown under unsuitable soil or site conditions, it will be stressed

and thus become susceptible to attacks from

insects or competition from weeds. Several factors influence species selection, including the

objectives of reforestation, seed availability,

and costs associated with reforestation alternatives. For many degraded sites, the species

need to be those that can add nitrogen to the

soil as well as provide products wanted by local

communities.

The importance of matching tree species

with site cannot be overstated. The problem of

species selection is complicated in the Tropics

by intricate climatic and soil patterns, and in

areas that have been deforested by the highly

variable degree of site degradation. Inadequate

information on planting sites is a major cause

of plantation failure (61).

Exotics and Monocultures. Plantations cannot substitute wholly for natural forests as reservoirs of germ plasm or as components of the

natural environment—they are really an agricultural crop. Plantations contribute to preservation of the natural environment because

they concentrate wood, food, and forage production within a minimum area, thus relieving some demands on natural forests. However, where plantations are established on land

with good potential for annual agricultural

crops, the effect actually may be to increase

pressure on the natural forests.

Most large-scale tropical industrial timber

plantations use species that are indigenous to

the Tropics but are exotic to the planted area

(24). The widespread use of exotics maybe a

result of the preponderance of information, experience, and research on them, especially on

Pinus, Eucalyptus, and Tectona. Also important to their use is the abundance, availability, ease of storage, and germination of seeds

of these exotic species. The use of exotic tree

species involves risks. One of these risks is the

susceptibility to pests and diseases. Proponents

point out that exotics may be at an advantage

because they have left behind pests and diseases that evolved along with them in their native habitats. Opponents disagree, saying that

exotics may have no resistance to pests and diseases in their new environment. A third side

believes that the risk of pest and disease problems depends on plantation size more than geographic origin of species. Native pests and diseases tend to switch to plantation crops (where

resources are more uniform and abundant) (57’).

The evidence still is inconclusive. Because of

the high yields possible with exotic species,

however, the risks will continue to be taken.

The potential of using native species in plantations has been largely ignored. Reasons for

this vary from lack of familiarity with many

tropical tree species to lack of seed supplies.

A reason often cited is the slower growth of
204 . Technologjes to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

native species. Nevertheless, the growth rates

of exotics and native species usually are similar

in the arid and semiarid parts of Africa (62].

Native species are adapted to the local environment and, thus, may be less susceptible to

stress, serious disease, and pest damage. Local

people are more familiar with their native

plants and have more uses for them (30).

Nearly all tropical plantations are grown in

monoculture. * The main reason is that silviculture** for such plantations is simple and

thus more cost effective. Since monoculture

plantations may be susceptible to rapid spread

of pest and disease outbreaks, some diversity

can be achieved by alternating species, or genetic varieties of the same species, in blocks

of land being planted. This method might

prevent pests that develop and multiply in one

plantation block from spreading rapidly to

other blocks having the same genetic makeup (64).

Multiple species (polyculture) plantations, in

theory, mimic the natural forest, yield a greater

variety of products, and are less susceptible to

pests than are monoculture. However, little

actual experience has been gained dealing with

polyculture plantations either on an industrial

scale or in village forests (63). Only recently

have projects been established where mixtures

of species are planted for a variety of end uses.

Legume trees are interplanted with commercial tree species to reduce the amount of fertilizer required after successive rotations. In experimental plantations, Indonesians are interplanting Calliandra with Pinus merkussi and

with Eucalyptus deglupta to yield firewood for

local use. Calliandra and other legume trees are

sometimes used as “nurse trees” for timber

such as teak, which requires shade initially for

better growth (46).

Managing mixtures of tree species for wood

production is biologically complex, especially for more than two species. It becomes even

more difficult where multiple products are ex-

“Monoculture: one species planted over a large area.

* *Silviculture: the science and art of cultivating forest crops,

based on a knowledge of forest tree characteristics.

Photo cradt: J. Bauer

In the Caribbean National forest, Kadam

(Anthocephalus chinensis) is intercropped

with mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla)

tracted from multiple species under different

harvesting regimes. Information is lacking on

the optimum species mixtures and spacings.

Little is known about the relative benefits of

different species or canopy densities and

whether the density that is best for high yields

is also satisfactory from other standpoints.

Potential benefits from compatible mixtures of

trees suggest that new concepts and combinations should be tested.

Forest plantations in the past usually served

industrial purposes and grew only one product,

usually sawtimber, pulpwood, or fuelwood.

Now, with an increasing demand for food, fuel,

and fodder, plantations are needed to serve a

wider variety of objectives. Thus, the use of

multipurpose trees is becoming increasingly

important, especially in areas with high populations. For example, Acacia mangium, which

has potential for sawtimber, veneer, furniture,

firewood, pulp, and particle board, outperforms other species on degraded lands in Malaysia. Its leaves also can be used as forage for

livestock (48). The foliage of species such as

Calliandra is readily eaten by cattle and goats

and its flower provides rich nectar to produce

honey (47). Because of its fast growth, Calliandra competes with and can eventually suppress

Imperata cylindrical, a tough perennial grass

that invades and dominates many cutover

areas of Southeast Asia.
Ch. 9—Forestry Technologies for Disturbed Forests ● 205

Thousands of other tropical trees exist whose

potentials are unknown. Little is known of the

variability in growth and performance of multipurpose tree species. Variation is related to

habitat so that each planting site should be

tested with a variety of species and with genetically different varieties of the same species.

Even when correct species and provenances

are known, there is still a major gap in the

knowledge of silvicultural techniques for multipurpose tree plantings.

Tree Selection and Breeding. Since most tree

species used in reforestation are found over

broad geographic ranges, different races* within the same species can be adapted to different

environments. Thus, the species’ suitability to

a particular site varies depending on the races

used. Increases in yield and resistances to

disease can be achieved through selection and

use of appropriate seeds. Only by planting species and races on the sites for which they are

adapted can maximum yields be obtained.

Most plantations in the Tropics use seeds without testing them to see whether they are genetically appropriate for the site.

Selection of tree species for each site continues to be too arbitrary in spite of, or possibly

because of, long experience and tradition. Plantation yields within large regions with extensive plantations of the same tree species, such

as southern Brazil, vary widely from place to

place with no technical explanation. Even

large, long-established planting projects continually encounter new sites where results are

unlike those of past plantings. Within genera

such as Eucalyptus, selection among species

and races should be made on the basis of natural range and corresponding climate and soil

conditions for which each has proven acclimatized, and on the basis of demonstrated adaptability to altered environments and growth

habits (9).

A well-established technique to match races

with sites is called provenance testing. * Seeds

of the desired species are collected from various sites and tested at the site to be reforested

or at a site with a similar environment. Once

the best provenance has been identified, several options are available to obtain planting

materials. Seeds from the desired provenance

sometimes can be purchased. Alternatively, individual trees from the provenance test can be

selected as parent material and used to establish seed orchards or to produce rooted cuttings for planting materials.

Another technique is to use superior trees

from an environment similar to the reforestation site to establish a seed orchard without

provenance testing. If the desired species already grows on the reforestation site and if

superior trees have not been eliminated, it is

possible to obtain planting materials adapted

to the site from those trees. This is probably

the fastest and least expensive approach. However, seed orchards established from phenotypically* * selected trees ideally should be provenance-tested.

Conventional provenance testing is a major

undertaking. For proper statistical analysis,

hundreds of trees from each seed source are

planted in replicated blocks and grown to maturity. The process generally takes so long that

the original seed source may be unavailable by

the time results are available. When that happens, the test plots must be developed as seed

orchards, further prolonging the process. This

usually takes too long for an individual reforestation program to accommodate. Many provenance tests do not yield results because of premature termination of the project or departure

of the investigator. Therefore, provenance testing must be carried out by established institutions that can maintain long-term programs.

*Race: subdivision of a species distinguished by heritable physiological or morphological characteristics resulting from adaptation to a specific environmental condition. Tree species races

are often described by referring to the geographic location where

the race is found naturally.

*Provenance testing: testing populations of the same species

to study their performance under a range of site and climatic

conditions.

* *Phenotype: detectable expression of the interaction between

the tree’s genetic characteristics and the environment.
206 • Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Potential to shorten the time needed for tree

selection is increasing as new techniques are

tested. Tissue culture can rapidly mass-produce clones of chosen individuals from a provenance test. The clones can then be tested for

particular microsites or planted at the reforestation site. Establishment of international networks of cooperating scientists to collect seeds

or planting material and to record environmental data for each parent tree can reduce the

number of provenances to be evaluated for

each test. Another technique, by which many

provenances are planted in one stand (single

tree randomized plots), allows the testing of

many more provenances without a corresponding increase in budget or personnel. Then,

propagation of clones can ensure that the

provenance with the exact genetic materials is

used, thus allowing more types to be tested.

The U.S. Forest Service, in experiments with

Eucalyptus, successfully used single tree randomized plots and cloning to shorten the time

for screening provenances.

After the initial selection of parent trees,

breeding for desired characteristics can greatly

accelerate tree yields and survivability on degraded sites. Plant breeding has been responsible for about half of the spectacular gains in

agricultural crop yields accomplished in the

past three decades. Tree breeding takes longer

because generations are longer than with annual agricultural crops. Nevertheless, tree

breeding programs in industrialized nations

have already achieved important productivity

gains—10 to 20 percent gains in first generation and 35 to 45 percent in second generation

seed orchard progeny in industrial timber plantations (50). For energy plantations, breeding

has produced gains of as much as 50 percent

(54).

With Eucalyptus in Brazil, selection alone

has nearly doubled yields (60). Additional gains

from the use of parent trees selected by strict

criteria are predicted at 5 to 10 percent and the

use of seed orchards of these trees should add

10 to 20 percent more. Tests to match the seed

orchard progeny to specific microsites are expected to provide further gains of 35 to 45 percent. Eucalyptus breeding has produced hybrids that at 4 years show an improvement of

30 percent in height growth and 80 percent in

diameter at breast height (dbh) growth over the

parent trees. Yields of more than 100 m3

/ha/yr

are projected from the combination of selection and breeding. Hence, genetic tree improvement may promise larger gains in yields

than refinement of silviculture techniques.

In addition, tree selection and breeding could

accelerate genetic improvement of trees for

characteristics other than yield. For example,

with pines, improvements similar to the eucalyptus yield gains are expected in straightness,

reduction in forking, and other characteristics.

Further, the risks of forestry investments on

degraded land could be reduced. For example,

drought-resistant species could be improved

through genetic programs designed to identify,

breed, and propagate the most productive of

the drought-tolerant provenances.

Planting Materials

To reforest lands, seeds of various species

must be available in great quantities. Today,

quantity falls short of need. The seed supply

for species most commonly used in tropical,

industrial plantations is adequate. However,

the seed supply for multipurpose, agroforestry

species is small. Often the seed that is used

does not have its source identified. This makes

it impossible to trace the origin of seeds that

produced a promising stand or a stand of bad

form to be avoided. Full records of all forest

seedlots should be made and copies should accompany all seed distributions. Most importantly, every seed shipment should show how

the species was identified, where and when the

seed was collected, and specific site and stand

information about the seed source. In that way,

the recipient would know the quality and origin

of a seedlot if problems or opportunities were

to develop later.

The customary way of raising planting stock

in the Tropics is to grow seedlings in a forest

nursery either in open beds for bare-root planting or in containers. Good nursery practices

are essential to produce a hardy plant with a

well-balanced, straight root system. Bare-
Ch. 9—Forestry Technologies for Disturbed Forests Ž 207

Photo credit: A. Isaza for WFP/FAO

These 200,000 Eucalyptus seedlings will be used to reforest some 700 hectares of overgrazed land in Colombia

rooted seedlings are susceptible to desiccation.

Containerized seedlings are more costly and

bulky to handle in the field and are subject to

root coiling if closed-bottom containers are

used. The latter can be avoided if the containers have an open bottom and are suspended

above the ground. Recent developments with

cardboards and plastic tubes used as seedling

containers are increasing the efficiency of reforestation projects.

Another technique for producing planting

material is vegetative propagation—reproduction of planting stock without the use of seed.

Vegetative propagation is widely used for tree

crops such as rubber, coconut, tea, coffee,

cocoa, and oil palm. Methods include cuttings,

air layering, budding, grafting, and tissue culture. Rooted cuttings remain the most popular

of these. Once the technique for a particular

species is developed, the production cost is

modest.

Vegetative propagation has the advantage of

hastening massive reproduction of genetically

superior plants, ensuring that all are of the

desired genetic type. It has the disadvantage

of increasing plantation risks due to lack of genetic diversity. Tissue culture is another technique that can produce thousands or even millions of plants rapidly from a single parent.

This technology is established in tropical

agriculture and horticulture, but it is still in the

developmental stage for most tree species.
The use of tissue culture can shorten the time

necessary to reproduce a large stock of planting material with exactly the necessary characteristics. The cost of plantlets and the sophistication of the technique, however, make it unlikely to replace the use of cuttings for largescale reforestation in tropical areas. Its nearerterm use is likely to be in establishing “supertree” orchards to produce seeds or cuttings.

Seedling survival and growth rates in the

nursery and at the planting site sometimes can

be improved by using special kinds of fungi

and bacteria. For most tropical trees, associations between tree roots and mycorrhizal fungi

are essential for healthy growth. The fungi are

active in the transport of nutrients and water

to plant roots, and in some cases are important for the release of nutrient elements from

mineral and organic soil particles (43). Trials

have shown that seedlings inoculated with fungi show improved growth and survival over

uninoculated controls (33). populations of

mycorrhizae are found naturally in soils, but

these can be depressed after long-term clearing and/or topsoil removal, making reestablishment of vegetation on degraded lands difficult.

Various methods for reinoculating damaged

soils with mycorrhizal fungi are being developed.

Legume trees can grow well on degraded

land because their roots can be a symbiotic host

for Rhizobium bacteria which produce nitrogen fertilizer, an essential nutrient for plant

growth. The bacteria convert nitrogen gas in

the soil into a form the plant can use. Most soils

contain Rhizobium, but degraded soils prob-
Ch. 9—Forestry Technologies for Disturbed Forests Ž 209

Photo credit: T. Wood

Nitrogen-fixing nodules formed on the roots of Acacia

Pennatula by Rhizobium bacteria enable legume trees

to grow well on degraded lands

ably contain fewer types and lesser amounts

of the bacteria. Thus, the appropriate type of

Rhizobimn may not be present at the site of a

reforestation effort, or present in enough quantity to infect the tree roots.

Inoculants are living organisms that must be

transported and stored carefully and used correctly to retain their viability. These requirements can be difficult to satisfy, especially at

remote tropical sites needing reforestation.

Most importantly, inoculants for tropical legume trees usually are not available because of

lack of production. Even where inoculants are

available, they may not be used because treeplanters are not convinced that they will be

helped. These constraints are being overcome

slowly.

An old inoculation technique is to collect

root nodules from a vigorous legume tree, grind

them up, and use the product to inoculate other

trees of the same species. The newer technologies using inoculants from laboratory produced cultures are relatively simple to use and

cheap, costing only a small fraction of a cent

per tree. Inoculation of legumes with Rhizobium has been practiced in agriculture in industrialized nations for many years. Inoculants for

some tropical legume trees, such as Leucaena

and Calliandra, are available commercially.

The roots of some nonlegume trees also can

be infected by micro-organisms that produce

nitrogen fertilizer for the tree. Techniques to

culture these micro-organisms are not yet available. However, the use of ground-up nodules

from already established trees is possible and

practical for areas where these trees are native.

The major limiting plant nutrient in arid and

semiarid regions is likely to be nitrogen; hence,

the use of nitrogen-fixing trees can be extremely valuable.

An alternative to using seedlings in nurseries

is to plant or sow the seed directly at the reforestation site. This method is feasible where

seed is plentiful and where seed and seedlings

mortality is low. Direct sowing of drought-resistant species is sometimes preferred, especially for species that have long and fastgrowing taproots that may be damaged in a

nursery or in transfer to the field. The advantage is that no nursery is required and planting costs are low. On the other hand, seedling

survival may be low because of weed competition, lack of tending, poor weather, or animal

damage.

Coating seeds with pest repellent may be necessary to avoid damage by small mammals,

birds, or insects. Thus far, few species have

been planted this way in the Tropics. Sowing

seeds from the air is unproven in the Tropics,

but shows promise in accelerating reforestation programs through its ability to seed large

areas quickly (45). It is a tool to consider when

reforesting remote, rugged sites. The technique

has many logistical problems, including lack

of aircraft and logistic, administrative, and

communications support, and lack of large

quantities of seeds.
210 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Tree Care and Maintenance

Proper care and maintenance of the planted

site is essential to ensure that trees survive to

maturity. Once grown, there is the problem of

monitoring timber harvests and of systematic

replanting. The main causes of reforestation

failure, other than inappropriate technologies,

are uncontrolled grazing and fires, competition

from weeds, and uncontrolled cutting for fuel,

fodder, poles, and lumber.

Direct protection through fencing or guards

tends to be expensive. Other, less costly methods include planting unpalatable trees (e.g.,

Cassia samea) or thorny trees (e.g., Parkinsonia)

as barriers around the plantation. The use of

living fences is becoming a more widespread

practice because they provide a number of auxiliary benefits including shade, fodder, windbreak, fuel, and wildlife habitat. Another alternative is subsidizing farmers with livestock

feed or with cash to purchase feed during the

period when trees are most susceptible to animal damage. Grazing beneath the tree canopy

sometimes can be beneficial as a means of

weeding. However, livestock grazing on recently reforested watersheds can be harmful

because animals compact the topsoil, leading

to poor tree growth and increased runoff.

Weeding is an important aspect of plantation

establishment and maintenance. Weeds comPhoto credt: K. Parker

Using trees as living fence posts in the Dominican

Republic has several benefits. The fence itself provides

protection and shade for animals, while the foliage can

be harvested for forage, fuelwood, or green manure

pete directly with seedlings for light, soil

nutrients, and water. Their shade can smother

and eventually kill young trees. They also can

increase fire hazards and shelter harmful animals (18). There are three main methods of

weeding—manual, mechanical, and chemical.

The manual method is the most common and

requires little skill or capital. Mechanical

methods may be used in large plantation projects but generally are not considered profitable

in the Tropics. In many tropical countries,

chemical weed control techniques have been

tested and found successful, but because of

safety and cost problems they seldom become

the main means of weed control (1).

Whatever the type and location of tree planting, the cooperation of local people is essential if newly planted trees are to survive (2).

Because most trees do not yield much benefit

for several years, the options offered must demonstrate explicit benefits to the people. Tree

planting programs are most successful when

local communities are involved and when the

people perceive clearly that success is in their

self-interest.

In local communities, support can be generated through local involvement in project design, demonstration plantings, commercial

plantings by entrepreneurs with larger land

holdings, education of community leaders, extension and training programs working directly with farmers or laborers, and direct financial assistance or provision of substitutes (63).

Village woodlots provide an alternative to cutting in larger areas reforested for other purposes. Subsidizing kerosene is also an option

until wood can be harvested on a sustainable

basis in reforested areas.

Incentives must be created to encourage people to care for and maintain the reforested area

until the benefits can be reaped. For example,

a village woodlot project in the State of Gujarat

in India that involved tree planting on degraded communal grazing lands was able to

meet people’s needs by allowing grass to be cut

for fodder and carried to livestock during the

second year of tree growth. This approach enabled people to continue feeding their livestock
Ch. 9—Forestry Technologies for Disturbed Forests ● 211

and simultaneously to care for and maintain

the reforested area (2).

Other incentives include guaranteed provision of inputs, credit, and technical assistance

when required. Where land tenure is a problem, measures can be formulated to offset the

risk to participants caused by the lack of secure

ownership of the trees—e.g., giving title to the

land or title to the trees, short-term licenses,

or improved financial incentives.

Investment Analysis

Reforestation projects may fail to receive adequate funding and support because benefiticost

analyses do not include indirect benefits such

as environmental services, import substitution,

and higher productivity of rural labor. Plantations have substantial technological requirements which, combined with the long-term nature of forestry, often result in low short-term

profits when compared with those of alternative investments. This is often in conflict with

government priorities for projects that produce

quick returns (for which leaders receive more

political credit) and with bankers who use discounting methods that assign low value to returns that occur 10 years or more in the future.

Adequate analysis requires comprehensive

data on costs, benefits, and man- or machinetimes and productivities. Yet much of this information is unknown when projects are being planned. Price estimates often are unreliable and do not account for inflation. Information on labor requirements is usually missing

as well. Forestry yields are difficult to predict

because of the long-term nature of the enterprise, climate and management uncertainty,

and, more importantly, a lack of accurate information on site/species interactions. Although technologies such as tissue culture to

accelerate vegetative propagation and bacterial

inoculation to increase seedling survival are increasing yields on reforested degraded lands,

methods are not yet developed to measure the

important but indirect benefits that could help

justify investment in reforestation.

Constrains and Opportunities

Reforestation technologies are available to be

applied directly to degraded lands. However,

forestry has low priority in many tropical countries. Tree planting sometimes does not compete well, in economic terms, with other landuse activities. The solution seems to lie in creating better economic terms by reducing the

costs and increasing yields of plantations, by

reducing plantation failures, and by developing methods to quantify indirect benefits of

reforestation.

Overall costs could be reduced if land preparation were adequate to prevent weed invasion and ensure a favorable environment for

the seedlings. The use of nitrogen-fixing tree

species can add fertilizer to degraded soils. The

use of native species may reduce the risk of

disease and insect outbreaks and increase local

enthusiasm for reforestation. Plantation yields

can be increased through selecting high-yielding, fast-growing, soil-enriching, and stresstolerant species and provenances. Multipurpose tree species can increase the diversity of

products yielded. Development and implementation of tree selection and improvement programs can produce high-yielding varieties as

well as other characteristics for particular tree

species. Careful provenance testing, matching

the appropriate race to a particular site, should

improve species performance and reduce mortality. Perhaps most important is the proper

maintenance of reforested sites. Incentives for

local people should be created to minimize the

incidence of fire, grazing, and fuelwood

cutting.

Shortage of seeds is a major technical constraint to reforestation. No mechanism exists

to control the quality of planting stock. It is

often difficult to trace the origin of seed that

does perform well to obtain more. Some mechanism needs to be developed to coordinate collection, certification, and international distribution of quality seeds in commercial quantities. This could be accomplished through 1) the
212 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Photo credit: J. t?auer

Mahogany seed sun-drying for storage. Shortage of seeds is a major constraint to forestry. Implementation of

programs to collect and disseminate seeds could increase reforestation efforts

creation of a new institution, 2) expansion of

the FAO seed program, and/or 3) expansion of

the seed banks of the CGIAR system to work

with private tree seed production enterprises.

Oftentimes, inappropriate tree species are selected because information on optimum species and provenances for specific sites is

unavailable. Much information on proven plantation establishment techniques and silvicultural data exists and some of it is being published. Yet, such information is seldom easily

available to or studied by those who embark

on planting projects. FAO could provide abstract/microfiche/hard copy services for published literature to operational and research

personnel, especially at the field level; provide

bibliographies, monographs, and manuals on

relevant species, techniques, and systems; and

provide incentives to publish local research

and management techniques.

Furthermore, information on planting sites

often is inadequate. The need exists for international coordination to disseminate what is

already known about sites and species/site interactions so there is some uniformity of approach, at least at the regional level. Following this, there should be application of a comparable site classification to those areas most

eligible for planting. There may be reason to

establish two intensities of classification, one

generic to narrow down the choice of prospectively adapted tree species, and one more specific to distinguish good, fair, and poor productivity within each broad class. Given the present large uncertainties in selecting the best

method for reforestation of a degraded site, it
Ch. 9—Forestry Technologies for Disturbed Forests ● 213

may be advisable to try out several approaches

(28).

Reducing the frequency of plantation failures

may attract more investors to forestry and,

thus, increase the extent of land reforested in

the future. Also important are the indirect

benefits from reforestation efforts. International development banks treat many of the

nonmarket considerations qualitatively rather

than trying to develop artificial values for them

(25), However, simply listing nonquantified

variables may serve to remove them from consideration. So increased effort must be expended to develop, test, and refine methods of

quantifying indirect benefits so that decisionmakers have an understanding of the economic

value of reforestation.

Successful reforestation requires sufficient

funds, strong political will, massive popular

support, and cooperation among all involved

parties. A technical package, once accepted by

funding institutions and the host-country government, may solve certain problems, but

many obstacles to its acceptance usually

remain. Foresters and policy makers must

remember that “forestry is not, in essence,

about trees. It is about people. It is only about

trees so far as they serve the needs of the people” (26).

CHAPTER 9 REFERENCES

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

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1982.

Arnold, J. E. M., “Community Participation in

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Bettenay, E., “Trees for Managing Land for

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In: Wadsworth, 1982.

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Dawkins, H, C., “New Methods of Improving

Stand Composition in Tropical Forests,” Caribbean Forester 22(1/2):12-20, 1961. In: Wadsworth, 1982.

Dawkins, H. C., “The Productivity of Tropical

High Forests and Their Reaction to Controllable

Environment,” Ph. D. thesis, University of Oxford, England, 1963, In: Wadsworth, 1982.

Dawkins, H. C., “The Productivity of Lowland

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Earl, D, E., “Latest Techniques in the Treatment
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16. Earl, D. E., “Does Forestry Need a New Ethos?”

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17. Eckholm, E., Losing Ground (New York: W. W.

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18. Evans, J., Plantation Forestry in the Tropics

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19. Ewel, J. J., “Secondary Forests: the Tropical

Wood Resource of the Future,” Simposio International sobre Zas ciencias forestalls y su Contribution al Desarrollo de la America Tropical,

San Jose, Costa Rica, 1979, pp. 53-60.

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TropicaZ America (4 VOIS.) (Rome: FAO/UNEP,

1981).

Fox, J. E. D., “Selective Logging in the Philippine Dipterocarp Forest,” MaZayan Forester

30(3):182-190, 1967. In: Wadsworth, 1982.

Galinato, P. F., “Management and Silviculture

of Philippine Dipterocarp Forests,” special subject, Commonwealth Forestry Institute, Oxford,

England, 1966. In: Wadsworth, 1982.

Gallegos, C. M,, Davey, C. B., Kellison, R. L.,

Sanchez, P. A., and Zobel, B. J., “Technologies

for Reforestation of Degraded Lands in the

Tropics,” OTA commissioned paper, 1982.

Gregersen, H., “Valuing Goods and Services

From Tropical Forests and Woodlands,” OTA

commissioned paper, 1982.

Gribbin, J., “The Other Face of Development,”

New Scientist 96(1334):489-495, 1982.

Griffith, A. L., “India’s Tropical Wet Evergreen

Forests,” Forest Research Institute, Dehra Dun

(5th British Empire Forestry Conference, Great

Britain, vol. 2), 1947. In: Wadsworth, 1982.

Hirschman, A. O., Development Projects Observed (Washington, D. C.: The Brookings Institution, 1967).

Helm, L. G., Weldon, L. W., and Blackburn, R.

D., “Aquatic Weeds,” Man’s Impact on the Environment, T. R. Detwyler (cd.) (New York:

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Hoskins, M., “Community Participation in African Fuelwood Production, Transformation, and

Utilization,” paper prepared for workshop on

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Hutchinson, I. D., “Processes of Optimizing and

Diversifying Uses of Resources: Approach to

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Management of Mixed Dipterocarp Forest in

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Lumpur, 1980. In: Wadsworth, 1982.

Iyppu, A. L, “The Silviculture and Management

of Evergreen Forests of Kerala State, ” Indian

Forester 86(9):509-519, 1960. In: Wadsworth,

1982.

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Kadeba, O., “Nutritional Aspects of Afforestation With Exotic Tree Species in the Savanna

Region of Nigeria,” Commonwealth Forestry

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1976. In: Wadsworth, 1982.

Ladrach, W., forester for Carton de Colombia,

personal communication, 1982.

Lancaster, P. C., “Investigation Into Natural Regeneration in Tropical High Forest in Southern

Nigeria, ” Nigerian Forestry Information

Bulletin, No. 2, 1960. In: Wadsworth, 1982.

41. Liew That Chin, “The Practicability of Climber

Cutting and Tree Making Prior to Logging as

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Cycling Under Natural and Plantation Forests

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Ch. 9—Forestry Technologies for Disturbed Forests ● 215

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45. National Academy of Sciences, Sowing Forests

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4 7

48.

Tropical Reforestation V: Calliandra (Washington, D. C,: National Academy Press, forthcoming).

National Research Council, Innovations in

Tropical Reforestation W: Casuarina (Washington, D. C.: National Academy Press, forthcoming).

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Malaysian Forester 21:235-245, 1958. In:

Wadsworth, 1982.

50. Nienstadt, H., “Tree Improvement and Its Place

51

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1982.

52. Pereira, H. C., “Soil and Water Management

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Nigeria Forestry Information Bulletin (N, S.) No.

10, 1960, In: Wadsworth, 1982.

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Resource in Developing Countries,” Interciencia 6(51):336-343, 1981.

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Accumulation in Phytophagus Insect Communities: The Pests of Cacao, ” Scienc e

185:1064-1066, 1974.

Synnott, T. J., “Tropical Rainforest Silviculture:

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No. 10, 1979. In: Wadsworth, 1982.

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Plan of Action, and Resolutions (New York:

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Venekatesh, D. S., “Expected Genetic Gains

From Forest Tree Breeding, ” Indian Forester

102(6):402-407, 1976. In: Wadsworth, 1982.

Wadsworth, F., “Secondary Forest Management and Plantation Forestry Technologies to

Improve the Use of Converted Tropical Lands,”

OTA commissioned paper, 1982.

Weber, F. R,, forestry consultant, personal communication, 1982.

Wood, P. J., Burley, J., and Grainger, A., “Technologies and Technology Systems for Reforestation of Degraded Tropical Lands, ” OTA commissioned paper, 1982.

Zobel, B., tree geneticist, North Carolina State

University Department of Forestry (professor

emeritus), personal communication, 1982.
Chapter 10

Forestry Technologies to
Highlights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Agroforestry. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Watershed Management. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Agroforestry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Agroforestry Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Classification and Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Technology Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Constraints and Opportunities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Watershed Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. .. ... ... .

Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ...............

Watershed Management. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. .. ... ... ... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . .

General Technical Principles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Specific Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Constraints and Opportunities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter IO References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ...

Page

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219

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220

220

220

224

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228

229

229

230

230

231

232

237

238

List of Tables

Table No. Page

29.Some Prominent Agroforestry Systems in Developing Countries . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221

30. Organizations That Work on Agroforestry Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ...6..... 228

List of Figures

Figure No. Page

28. Effects of Poor Watershed Management~ .................... . . 230

29. Slopes and Appropriate Conservation Measures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231

30. Cut-Off Drain to Protect Steep Forested Scarps From Landslip Hazard . . . . . . . 232

31. Cross-Sectional View of Eight Types of Conservation Structures . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
Chapter 10

Forestry Technologies to

Support Tropical Agriculture

● The medium- and long-term maintenance of

tropical forest resources may depend more

on sustaining lands under cultivation than

on refining the use of the remaining forest.

Agroforestry

● Agroforestry, systems that use trees, crops,

and/or animals on the same land, holds great

promise for improving and sustaining the

productivity of lands under cultivation,

● Genetic improvement of multipurpose tree

species has great potential to increase the

productivity of agroforestry systems,

● Rigid boundaries between disciplines have

deterred agroforestry development. There is

a need for a thorough rethinking of the appropriate institutional homes for agroforestry,

● Implement at ion of agroforestry systems relies on removing obstacles to adoption, improving extension services, and creating incentives to encourage farmers to adopt agroforestry practices.

●

●

●

Watershed Management

Damage to tropical watersheds is most ecologically and economically significant where

subsistence farmers and their livestock move

onto steep uplands. Improved farming systems are needed that can ensure and enhance farmers’ short-term returns and at the

same time modulate water flow.

Where flood protection for large populations

in lower reaches of river valleys depends on

protecting the vegetation on steep upper watersheds, costs for conservation practices in

the uplands should be subsidized by the lowland communities.

More research on the relationship between

land use and hydrological systems is necessary to give watershed managers a better understanding of various management systems

and their tradeoffs.

INTRODUCTION

The major cause of deforestation and forest

degradation in most countries is land clearing

for agriculture. In many places, the quality of

land is degraded by conventional farming or

grazing practices, so the farmers and herders

must keep clearing more and more forest. This

practice continues because people have no alternatives.

Many of the technologies discussed in this

report can help to sustain forests by making

forested land more productive and thus can

help reduce the need for converting the land

to nonsustainable uses. However, increasing

the productivity of forests alone is unlikely to

provide enough jobs or income for rapidly

growing rural populations, For that, the pro219
220 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

ductivity of agriculture has to be sustained and 1.

increased.

Agricultural productivity can be increased

by enlarging the area farmed, maintaining the

quality of the land already in use, and increas- 2. ing the per hectare yields. Chapter 11 addresses

planning technologies to direct land clearing

onto sites that are appropriate for agriculture.

This chapter addresses forestry-related technologies for the other two approaches. The objectives of these technologies are:

to enable farmers on marginal soils to continue farming in one location and to maintain or gradually increase land productivity so they can stop clearing more and more

forest, and

to protect and allow improvement of agriculture in the more fertile river valleys by

modulating waterflows and reducing erosion and siltation from upland watersheds.

.,

AGROFORESTRY

Background

Traditional farming methods used in tropical countries were developed to reduce the risk

of crop failures more than to provide maximum

production. As a result, the traditional cropping and grazing systems used on relatively infertile, dry, or erosion-prone sites often involve

multiple crops, intercropping, and complex

crop rotation schedules. However, the traditional systems are not productive enough to

provide for the rapidly expanding populations

of the Tropics. They need to be modernized

and further developed.

On fertile and well-watered alluvial soils

where traditional farming was based on monocropping of rice or wheat, it has been possible

to increase yields by adapting modern temperate-zone technologies, including applications

of fertilizers and pesticides. But in the less well

situated sites, many attempts to replace complex, traditional farming systems with modern

monocrop agriculture have failed, apparently

because of high risks from climate, pests, and

difficult soils and because of the complex socioeconomic conditions that often prevail. So,

in recent years, some scientists have begun developing modern technologies to improve,

rather than replace, the traditional farming systems (26). This approach to tropical agricuhure

development is still promoted by only a small

number of agricultural scientists.

Agroforestry is a name for a collection of

land-use systems and technologies where

woody perennials (trees, shrubs, palms, bamboos, etc.) are deliberately grown on the same

land with agricultural crops and/or animals in

either spatial arrangements or temporal sequences. Agroforestry is a new word, not a

new concept. The novelty lies in formally recognizing that many different tree-based landuse systems possess certain common features

that hold great promise in the Tropics.

On fertile lands, intensive agroforestry systems, like intensive agriculture, can support

dense populations. Agroforestry, however, is

probably more important for improving and

sustaining the productivity of the lands with

soil fertility and soil moisture problems, and

where lack of rural infrastructure and cash

make it necessary for people to produce most

of their own basic needs for food, fodder, fuel,

and shelter.

Agroforestry Systems

Description

Agroforestry encompasses many well-known

and long-practiced land-use systems on cultivated or grazed lands in the Tropics (table 29).

Traditional shifting cultivation, bush fallow

systems, and all forms of “taungya” afforestation* fall under this term, as do the home gardens of the wet tropics and the use of fodder

trees and shrubs in the dry Tropics.

*Taungya: Burmese for hill cultivation. Agricultural crops are

planted with trees used for wood production.
Table 29.—Some Prominent Agroforestry Systems in Developing Countries

Mediterranean and Eastern, Central, and Arid and semiarid

Middle East West Africa American Tropics

1. Olive + cereals

(on terraces, ‘banquettes’, ‘cuvettes’,

etc.)

2. Poplars along irrigation canals

3. Trees for sand dune

reclamation

Southeast Asia Humid West Africa

1. Agro-silviculture

Southern Asia

Trees in perennial

cash crops (coffee,

cacao, tea)

Trees for organic

matter and mulch

with annual crops

Tree live fences

Windbreaks and shelterbelts

Trees as support for

climbing commercial

crops

Taungya

Shifting cultivation

systems

1. Taungya

2. Plantation crops +

arable crops

3. Commercial trees and

fruit trees with crops

4. Live fences + shelterbelts

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

1.

2.

1.

Taungya

Cacao/food crops/

forest complex

Plantation crops (oil

palm/rubber) and root

crop complex

Coffee + banana

Mixed perennial crops

Gum arabic + millet

Shifting cultivation/

bush fallow systems

1.

2.

1.

2.

3.

1.

Use of trees on farmlands for protective

role (windbreaks,

dune fixation)

Productive + protective role of trees on

farms (A. albida/Leucaena + agriculture

crop systems)

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

1.

2.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

Commercial trees

among crops

Fruit/shade trees

among crops

Live fences

Shelterbelts

Taungya

Shifting cultivation

systems

Intercropping in plan5. Various trees on farmlands for productive

functions

Various forms of

shifting cultivation

Medicinal plants +

agriculture species

4. ‘Huertas’ - small plots

irrigated crops +

fruit trees

5. Aromatic, medicinal

arid fruit trees with

crops

tation crops (rubber,

oil palm, coconut)

6.

7.

2. Silvo-pastoral

1. Pasture in forest

plantation

2. Pasture in secondary

forests

3. Commercial trees in

pastures

4. Fruit/shade trees in

pasture

5. Fodder trees

6. Coconuts + pasture

3. Agro-silvo-pastoral

Pasture under trees

Plantation crops +

cattle grazing

Fodder trees and

shrubs

Fruit trees and commercial trees in

pastures

1. Oak forest + grazing

2. Pig breeding and

forestry

3. Range land

improvement

Gum arabic +

livestock

Plantation crops

(coconut/cashew

pasture

Nomadic/seminomadic/transhuman

Sedentary livestock

grazing systems/

browsing systems

Fodder tree/shrub

systems

Trees in pasture

Pasture in natural

1.

2.

3.

4.

1.

2.

regeneration forest

3. Trees lopped for

fodder

4. Trees used for

+

browsing

Agriculture plantation

crops (coconut, rubber,

fruit, trees) with

crops and pastures

Plantation crops +

arable crops +

livestock

Agriculture tree crops

+ grazing in forest

Range land management

1. Coconuts/other plan- Forestry dominating

2.

3.

4.

Crops and grazing in

plantations

Agriculture tree crops

+ grazing in forest

plantation

Multipurpose trees

with crops/animals

Integrated farming

systems with agriculture plantation crops

(rubber, coconut, oil

palm)

1.

tation crops + food

crops + grazing

2. Coffee + banana +

dairying

3. Horticultural complex

systems

4. Plough culture complex systems

(forest lands)

2. Agriculture dominating

(crop lands)

3. Livestock dominating

(crop lands)
Table 29.—Some Prominent Agroforestry Systems in Developing Countries—Continued

Mediterranean and Eastern, Central, and

Southeast Asia Southern Asia

Arid and semiarid

Middle East Humid West Africa West Africa

4. Home gardens

Various forms of 1. Multistory plant

multispecies canopies in humid

combination

2.

5. Others

1. Silviculture in 1.

mangrove forests

2. Agri-silvi-fishery 2.

3. Trees on bunds in 3.

fish breeding ponds

4. Swidden farming 4.

5. Fuelwood agroforestry

regions

Arid/semiarid systems

Mixed perennial 1.

cropping

Irrigation systems

Various site-specific

systems 2.

Fuelwood systems

3.

4.

Mainly in large cities Various forms

New system in

Morocco (spice

1. Pastoral systems

plan- with corral farming

tation for erosion (highland/lowland)_

control) 2. Mixed perennial

Agriculture + cropping

forestry

Fruit trees in deserts

Mushroom cultivation

in forest

SOURCE: Anonymous, “A Global Inventory of Agroforestry Systems,” Biomass :241-245, 1983

Various forms

1. Oasis

2. Irrigation systems

3. Various site-specific

systems

American Tropics

Various forms

Mixed perennial

cropping
Ch. 10—Forestry Technologies to Support Tropical Agriculture ● 223

—

Rubber trees interplanted with a cover crop of Pueraria phaseoloides and grazed by cattle is one type

of agroforestry system

Agroforestry systems attempt to optimize ●

ecological and economical interactions between various components (trees and shrubs/ ●

crops and animals) to obtain a higher, more

diversified, and/or more sustainable total production than is possible with any single land

use. Typical characteristics of such systems ●

are: 1) two or more species of plants (or plants

and animals), at least one of which is a woody ●

perennial; 2) two or more outputs; and 3) a production cycle of more than 1 year.

Agroforestry can provide many goods and ●

services. Depending on the particular situation,

it may:

increase and improve food production

yields;

produce firewood and a variety of other

raw materials from shrubs and trees for

farmers’ subsistence, for local sale, and

sometimes for export;

protect and improve the soil’s productive

potential;

improve social and economic conditions

in rural areas by creating jobs and income

and reducing risks; and

develop land-use systems that draw on

both modern technologies and traditional

local experience and that are compatible
224 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

plantation trees has attracted much attention

as a promising way of increasing total yield

from the land. An example is the Jari Project

in Brazil, where seeding the pine plantation

(Pinus caribea) with forage grass (Panicum

maximum) reduced the need for weed control.

The cattle then increased the total income from

the system (21).

Many commercial timber and pulpwood

plantations in the Tropics have been established through the “taungya” system. Farmers

or forest laborers are allowed to grow crops for

a few years during land preparation and early

plantation phases. In exchange, they weed and

care for the young trees. After an agreed-upon

period, the farmers move on. Taungya has been

used for more than a century and has been applied throughout the Tropics. Although wellplanned taungya can provide a sequence of

new ground for shifting cultivators, it removes

the land from agriculture for a period dictated

by the biology and economics of the forest crop

and not by the needs of farmers or forest

laborers.

The widespread use of this system and its

many local variations is a clear indication of

its success (25). The practice has been successful with Terminalia, Triplochiton, and several

Meliaceae in West Africa; Cordia in Surinam;

Tectona in Trinidad; and Swietenia in Puerto

Rico (45). In Nigeria, the system has been applied in both wet and dry zones for tree and

food production. In that country, it has been

credited with providing enough food for about

700,000 people, or about 1 percent of Nigeria’s

food needs (13).

The increased use of commercial, commodity-oriented agroforestry is attractive in theory.

However, the areas under perennial agricultural tree/shrub crops occupy about 8 percent

of total arable area in developing countries today (27). Of this, only a minor part is used for

intercropping or grazing. Another 2 million

hectares of perennial agricultural tree plantations could be established by the year 200 0

without encountering serious marketing problems (38). But this approach has limited potential for substantially alleviating land problems.

Since commercial agroforestry will be intro-
Ch. 10—Forestry Technologies to Support Tropical Agriculture ● 225

duced only where opportunities for profits are

clearly perceived, it is unlikely to be used on

infertile land or by people who are not entrepreneurs. This objection applies less to timber

plantation land, where small improvements in

taungya could produce significant increases in

food production. Forest plantation lands could

then support considerably more people than

they do now.

Intermediate agroforestry systems are where

farmers with small to medium sized landholdings combine production of perennial crops for

cash with annual crops for subsistence. Some

of these systems are oriented toward commercial production, but they are small and the land

is operated by individual farmers. Others are

similar to subsistence systems. An example is

the combination of gum arabic trees (Acacia

senegal), which can provide good cash income

to farmers, with millet in the Sudan. Another

intermediate level agroforestry system occurs

when commercial firms enter into contracts

with small- and medium-scale farmers to produce raw materials. The British-American

Tobacco Co. in Kenya has contracts with

farmers who grow tobacco and the fuelwood

needed for curing it, together with their own

food crops.

Coffee forms the economic basis for many

integrated land-use systems in this category,

particularly on fertile soils in tropical uplands.

In the East African highlands, multistory production is common. Timber trees such as Albizzia and Grevillea shade coffee interplanted

with bananas and beans (33). Similarly, in Costa Rica coffee is grown under the shade of both

timber trees (Cordia alliodora) and multipurpose trees (Erythrina spp.) (7,8). Another

important crop in tropical small-holder agroforestry is coconut. Planting food crops and

grazing cattle under coconuts are common

practices in the wetter parts of Sri Lanka, India,

Southeast Asia, and the Pacific regions (28).

Most of the economically and ecologically

successful examples under this category are

found in areas having relatively fertile soils,

good communications, and existing market infrastructure. But many obstacles can be encountered when expanding permanent cash

crops into less favorable areas, where infrastructure and markets are underdeveloped,

where land tenure is uncertain, or where the

environment imposes serious restrictions on

intensive land use. Still, there is promise for

improving existing systems through the introduction of improved varieties of tree crops,

fruit trees, and compatible food crops, as well

as application of fertilizers.

Subsistence agroforestry systems are

oriented toward satisfying the basic needs of

farmers for food, fuel, and shelter, with some

products sold for cash income. Such systems

are practiced by a large portion of the population of the tropical world, from livestock herders in semiarid areas to shifting cultivators in

rain forests. These systems usually are practiced where serious ecological and/or socioeconomical constraints exist. Infertile soils, erosion, and/or drought can be major physical limitations. Insecure land tenure and lack of infrastructure, capital, extension services, and

education are common socioeconomic constraints.

Many different subsistence agroforestry systems exist. Shifting cultivation and bush fallow

are practiced in many forms throughout the

tropical world. One well-known form of permanent traditional agroforestry is the home

gardens of Southeast Asia, characterized by a

multistory mixture of many species of trees,

shrubs, climbers, palms, tubers, and often animals (pigs and poultry) (16). Other agroforestry

in Asia integrates rice production with trees

for windbreaks, boundary demarcation, and

fuelwood production (6,16).

Oases are a prototype of agroforestry in arid

lands. They contain ponds to water livestock

as well as an upper story of multifunctional

trees and a lower story of agricultural or horticultural plants. Though only comprising a

small area endowed with water and fertile

soils, they can be extremely well-balanced human ecosystems with species mixture, multistory structure, and near-perfect recycling

processes (44).
226 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

.

Photo credit: K. Parker

Chinarnpas in Mexico are centuries-old food production systems used where water is available year round. Narrow

irrigation/drainage canals surround the plot and control water supply; mud dredged from canals serves as organic

fertilizer; aquatic vegetation serves as “green manure;” fish that colonize the canals provide additional protein; trees

planted along the canals hold the soil in place as well as providing other products

Millions of people practice agroforestry in

areas with serious physical and socioeconomic

constraints. The problem of improving the productivity and sustainability of these people’s

agriculture and agroforestry methods is of an

entirely different magnitude than that of improving commercial and intermediate agroforestry systems. Reaching farmers can be difficult, and where subsistence farmers can be

reached, they need to be convinced that the

costs, risks, and benefits of new technologies

are favorable. The time between planting a tree

and achieving significant yields may involve

risks that subsistence farmers cannot take. It

also can be difficult to convince land users to

make long-term investments when land tenure

is uncertain. Subsistence agroforestry holds

great potential for improving land use but has

urgent need for technology improvement.

Technology Issues

In general, the concept of agroforestry as a

sustainable approach to land use is sound. The

aim is to create productive farming systems

able to supply an increasing and sustainable

output of basic needs, including cash. Maintaining soil fertility, preventing erosion,

moderating microclimate, and other environment-enhancing roles of the tree/shrub component apparently do help sustain production.

A growing body of information exists on the

various agroforestry technologies, but this is

mainly descriptive and qualitative. Most scien-
Ch. 10—Forestry Technologies to Support Tropical Agriculture . 227

tists’ interest has been in the tree/shrub component (e. g., potential tree species, their use,

and management) because of the novelty of

using trees and shrubs in agricultural and

pastoral lands,

During the last 5 years, many agroforestry

research projects have been initiated at university forestry departments and forestry research

institutes. These generally study the long-term

economic and ecological productivity of various trees, planted at different spacings, and

combined with a food crop, which is often used

as a “test” crop to quantify the competitive or

soil-improving influences of the tree.

Only certain trees and crops prove to be compatible, Rubber trees, for instance, produce so

much shade that underlying pasture often becomes useless within 3 years. Oil palm soils are

often clayey and wet and animals tend to compact the soil and damage tree roots (17). Some

crops such as sorghum, millet, and pigeon pea

are highly competitive with other plants and,

thus, may not be suitable for intercropping.

Other crops—maize, cotton, and dry rice—are

less competitive and can be intercropped. Each

system has complex problems of intraspecific

and interspecific competition. The aim of experimental research is to optimize combinations of agriculture, pastoralism, and forestry

over space and time.

Tropical research and development organizations have become much more interested in

multipurpose trees. The legume family has attracted particular attention. In general, legumes, through their bacterial relationship, can

improve soil fertility and produce good-quality

fuelwood as well as leaves and pods with

fodder and food value. Different legume species also are adapted to a wide range of ecological conditions. Many multipurpose species are

found in the legume genera Acacia and Prosopis. Several nonlegume multipurpose species

are equally interesting because of their general

versatility, adaptability to less favorable sites,

and yield of valuable products. An example is

the neem tree (Azadirachta indica) which

originated in the dry zones of Asia. It is an excellent timber, fuelwood, and shade tree and

produces tannins, insecticidal chemicals, and

fuel/lubricant oil (35).

The greatest potential for improving agroforestry systems lies in the practically unexplored

field of genetic improvement of multipurpose

trees and shrubs (26). Selecting the species and

varieties that are best adapted to particular purposes and site conditions for which the agroforestry systems are intended is the first step.

Traditional agroforestry systems have been

doing this gradually for centuries, but now with

modern communications and techniques for

reproducing, transporting, and testing varieties, it is possible to greatly accelerate the

process.

Because the scientific attention to multipurpose trees is so new, examples of the gains that

can be achieved by this selection and matching

process are rare. The interest in single-purpose

use of trees is older, and gains with these illustrate the potential for multipurpose trees.

For example, results from 32 sites in 18 countries show that productivity gains of several

hundred percent could be achieved in eucalyptus trees simply by selecting the best-adapted

provenances for prevailing conditions (31).

The second step, which can begin before the

first is completed, is tree breeding—crossing

plants to combine particular desired characteristics, such as fodder and fuel production quantity and quality, rooting characteristics, phenology favorable for interplanting with annual

crops, nitrogen-fixation, pest resistance,

drought resistance, or the ability to withstand

other stresses.

The potential for agroforestry systems improvements to be adopted on a large scale by

farmers and pastoralists is difficult to assess.

If the relevant land-use problems have been

identified and an ecologically, economically,

and socially well-adapted agroforestry solution

is demonstrated to be feasible, then agroforestry improvements may be adopted, However,

finding locally acceptable solutions to problems that are perceived by farmers is crucial.

Sophisticated trials on the best spacing of trees

over crops are, for example, not particularly
228 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

relevant if farmers are not interested in that

particular tree species.

The constraints and problems encountered

in developing and disseminating agroforestry

systems are many. Millions of farmers and

landless people are spread over vast expanses

of tropical lands. Rapid population growth, insecure land tenure, erosion, droughts, floods,

declining soil fertility, lack of infrastructure,

political instability, illiteracy, and other development problems often characterize those

broad regions where agroforestry approaches

have a potential role to play. Therefore, agroforestry development cannot occur in isolation

from general social and physical constraints

on rural development.

Constraints and Opportunities

Agroforestry techniques can be used to

address particular land productivity problems.

However, most information on the technique

is qualitative and advocative. Present research

and field implementation efforts are more ad

hoc than systematic.

Critical analyses of agroforestry’s constraints

and opportunities must be made if it is to benefit from application of the scientific method.

Systematic quantitative information can provide a basis from which researchers can formulate hypotheses and design efficient research

strategies to develop new agroforestry systems,

refine old ones, and adapt proven ones to other

areas. This is necessary to ensure that only

technologies with high probability of success

are brought to large-scale field implementation.

The effort to organize and assess existing national and international experience in traditional agroforestry technologies and to identify promising technologies for further development is under way at the International Council for Research in Agroforestry (ICRAF). Technologies that need refinement and farm validation include alley cropping, improved fallows,

live fences, contour hedges, mulch production

with tree species, and fodder production. Some

such programs already exist, but efforts should

be made to strengthen these (table 30).

Table 30.—Organizations That Work on

Agroforestry Systems

1. International Council for Research in Agroforestry

2. Centro Agronomical Tropical de Investigation y

Ensenanza (CATIE)

3. International Tree Crop Institutes (U. K., U. S. A., and

Australia)

4. Nitrogen-Fixing Tree Association

5. National Academy of Sciences (fuelwood and legume

tree species)

6. Commonwealth Forestry Institute (information,

research, and training)

7. East-West Center (dissemination and exchange of

agroforestry information)

8. United Nations University (workshops and research

programs at cooperating institutions)

9. Some components of UN ESCO/MAB research

program

10. Some developed country universities

11. Some CGIAR institutions (e.g., IITA in Nigeria on alley

cropping and CIAT in Colombia on Leucaena and

Erytherina)

12. FAO’S Panel of Experts on Forest Gene Resources

(data collection and assessment)

SOURCE: B. Lundgren, “The Use of Agroforestry to Improve the Productivity to

Converted Tropical Land,” OTA commissioned paper, 1982,

Since agroforestry cuts across several disciplines, it requires an integrated and multidisciplinary approach. Agronomists, foresters,

ecologists, sociologists, anthropologists, and

experts in other related disciplines have accumulated much data on various tropical

mixed-cropping systems. Such information can

become the foundation for research programs

to explore ways to integrate sustainable production of food, forage, and fiber needs on appropriate lands. However, too little communication or coordination occur among these disciplines to formulate a strategy for development of agroforestry technologies. This constraint would be alleviated if interdisciplinary

teams were established to conduct research on

integrated land-use systems (26).

Agroforestry needs an institutional home to

ensure its implementation. It is considered a

subdivision of forestry, but forestry institutions

deal with forest land. They seldom address the

problems facing individual users of small and

medium size holdings of cultivated lands. Forestry institutions, in general, do not have the

range of expertise needed to develop agroforestry’s full potential. The major potential for

agroforestry lies in the integration of trees into
Ch. 10—Forestry Technologies to Support Tropical Agriculture “ 229

agricultural and pastoral lands. The development of these lands is the mandate of agricultural institutions, which are not explicitly mandated to deal with agroforestry.

Rigid boundaries between disciplines affect

funding of agroforestry research, development,

and implementation. Forestry and agriculture

often compete for both funds and land. In international agencies, agricultural divisions are

better institutionalized, more prestigious, and,

thus, better funded than forestry divisions. The

forestry funds that do exist usually are channeled to conventional forestry activities.

The ratios of international financial support

for research in tropical agriculture, forestry,

and agroforestry, respectively, are about

200:1O:I (26), This may underestimate the relative magnitude of agricultural research support. Although the importance of research is

clearly recognized in agriculture, the attitude

of development assistance donors toward research in forestry is cool. Thus, as long as agroforestry funding is channeled through forestry

departments, little hope exists that sufficient

research funds will be available. A thorough

rethinking and revision of the appropriate institutional home for agroforestry is needed.

The large-scale promotion of agroforestry

would require incentives to encourage farmers

to adopt practices that involve initial risks and

delayed returns. Integrating trees into agricultural or pastoral systems is unlikely to succeed

where short-term, insecure leases for use of

land are prevalent, where trees automatically

become the property of the government, or

where nonrestricted communal grazing or tree

cutting rights exist. Neither are farmers likely

to achieve large-scale cash crop production of

wood (i.e., fuelwood, poles, pulpwood, etc.]

where prices are set so low that growing trees

is not profitable.

To alleviate these constraints, tropical governments will need to identify and remove constraints in land tenure and provide incentives

and extension services. Incentives may take the

form of credits and loans that reduce initial

capital outlay and minimize risk of failure. Extension services can facilitate supply of materials, train farmers, and make followup visits

to monitor progress of agroforestry development. Unfortunately, forestry and agroforestry

extension efforts often suffer from: 1) lack of

staff with adequate training, 2) lack of networks

of on-farm demonstration plots, 3) inconsistent

efforts, 4) difficulty obtaining good seeds of

multipurpose tree species for mass distribution

to farmers, and 5) lack of infrastructure.

As institutional interest and support for agroforestry increase, it is necessary to take steps

to ensure that the enthusiasm does not lead to

disappointment and a sharp reduction of support. Development assistance agencies and

research institutions have not begun, collectively or individually, to formulate a strategy

to assure that the necessary and sufficient steps

are taken to develop the potential of agroforestry,

WATERSHED MANAGEMENT

Background

In an undisturbed watershed, the disposition

of rain and snow melt is determined by a complex interaction of terrain, soil, climate, geology, and vegetation. Unfortunately, some

common land uses seriously disturb the

vregetative cover so that both the amount of

water that upper catchments can hold temporarilv during prolonged or heavy rains and the

proportion of rain that percolates into the soil

are seriously reduced. This results in much

greater variations in the seasonal river flows,

greater sediment loads during peak flows, and

often a greater proportion of the total rainfall

running off before it can be used by trees or

crops (fig. 28),

For example, denudation of water catchment

areas in the Indus River svstem has led to
230 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

— .

Figure 28.-Effects of Poor Watershed Management

1.

Overgrazing, deforestation, misplaced cultivation, or carelessly bulit roads In

floods far higher in the last 25 years than during the previous 60 years and has increased serious silting in the reservoirs and canals of

Pakistan’s irrigation system (32). In recent

years in India, the cost of repairing flood damage below the Himalayan catchments has been,

on average, US $250 million a year, in addition to losses of production and livelihood suffered by millions (39).

Technologies can probably be developed and

implemented to help reduce these economic

and human costs. The solution to these problems of land misuse depends foremost on developing improved methods of land use that are

both more profitable to local communities and

also give appreciably better control of the water

flow. Soil conservation structures (e.g., terracing), revegetation, and appropriate farming systems are technically adequate to contain the

current land degradation trend, but many of

these techniques are too expensive for the

farmers living in the upland areas.

Watershed Management

Description

Watershed management is concerned with

controlling water flow above and below the

Earth’s surface from the upper to lower regions

of drainage basins. Management of the upper

watersheds aims to maintain or to improve the

timing, quantity, and quality of water that is

used in more intensively developed lowlands.

The natural vegetation on tropical mountain

slopes that receive high rainfall is closed

canopy evergreen forests, sometimes interrupted by shallow-soiled grass or swamp areas.

Evergreen forests provide temporary storage

for heavy rainfall, thus delaying water’s movement into streams and reducing peak storm

flow. The temporary storage occurs partly on

the wetted canopy, partly in the deep forest

ground-litter, and partly in the topsoil made

porous by vegetation and soil fauna. Some water drains through these porous surface layers

to streams. Some water infiltrates to recharge

ground water and thus maintain dry-season

spring flows. Some water is evaporated from

the wet canopy and some is transpired back

into the atmosphere through the foliage.

Watershed management includes soil conservation, road planning, contour cultivation,

grassed waterways, cutoff drains, grass planting on steep banks, and other techniques to
Ch. 10—Forestry Technologies to Support Tropical Agriculture ● 231

control water’s impact. Soil stability, agricultural productivity, and the quality of water supplied to the lower reaches of the watershed can

thus be maintained. Watershed management

is an economic necessity where there is investment downstream in reservoirs for hydropower and irrigation or densely settled areas in

zones of flood hazard.

General Technical Principles

The choice of technologies for watershed

management and rehabilitation varies with topography, accessibility, and population density. One of the best ways to protect downstream

populations from excessive siltation and flooding is to maintain forests on all slopes steeper

than 100 percent grade (45 O). Where steep

slopes have been cleared, they should be closed

to livestock, protected from fire, and then stabilized by planting trees for fuel and fodder,

In some cases, simple protection will suffice

to permit natural regrowth. For slopes between

100 percent and 20 percent, land should not

be cultivated except where the soil is stable and

deep. Here, cultivation can be done safely only

where level or preferably backsloping terraces

are maintained. For slopes less than a 20 percent grade, a variety of agricultural technologies for minimizing soil loss can be used

(fig. 29),

In sparsely populated watersheds, where

there are few or no people living in the upper

regions of river basins, tropical watershed

management is a matter of maintaining or restoring the vegetative cover that controls water

flows. If forests are intact and populations are

low, intensive management is not necessary,

The best and least expensive method of protecting these forests is to designate them parks

or protected areas. However, effective park

management can be difficult to obtain. It

should be based on a comprehensive plan that

takes into account the previous, current, and

future resource needs of people who live

around and below the protected forest.

The greatest watershed problems in the Tropics, however, are not in the upper sparsely populated reaches of river basins. They are in populated watersheds, where the upper regions

Figure 29.—Siopes and Appropriate Conservation Measures

Stone-walled

level bench

terrace “

●

.

●

narrow-based

terraces or

hillside

ditches

SOURCE: H. C. Pereira, “Soil and Water Management Technologies for Tropical Forests,” OTA commissioned paper, 1982,
232 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

are farmed and grazed, and where maintenance of natural closed forest cannot be

accomplished without displacing substantial

numbers of people.

In some cases watershed management technologies can be used without displacing people from upland areas. For example, where forests cover steep escarpments below settlements, runoff from the upper slopes can overload the forest soils and cause large-scale landslips, especially on geological dip-slopes (fig,

30). Such landslips are common in Nepal, parts

of Zaire, and in other places where sedimentary rock formations are tilted. It maybe possible to stabilize these areas through reforestation and cutoff drains, which intercept and

convey runoff to stable drainage lines and,

thus, protect the soils from saturation. These

drains need to be protected as well, possibly

with tree cover.

The most critical need for watershed management occurs in the forests immediately

above the limits of cultivation (32). Often, these

Figure 30.-Cut”Off Drain to Protect Steep Forested

Scarps From Landslip Hazard

Cut-off drain

SOURCE: H C. Pereira, “Soil and Water Management Technologies for Tropical

Forests, ” OTA commissioned paper, 1982.

are under great pressure from population

growth. Such forest areas are usually too steep,

shallow-soiled, and rock-encumbered for continuous cropping. Yet, agricultural communities have in many countries established traditional rights for grazing or for collection of fuel

and fodder from these lands. Massive overgrazing inflicts most damage, often preventing the

emergence of any effective ground cover.

These activities promote erosion, which consequently forms major gulleys (29). Some areas

are so steep and unstable that the only option

is to prohibit all active use. In moist forest

areas, if soil nutrients have not been eroded or

leached away, the ability of the land to recuperate can be high. However, sustainable alternatives must be found for the displaced people, or they will, sooner or later, begin to overuse the slopes again.

Tropical forests on land with easy access and

gentle topography are likely to be cleared for

agriculture or other land uses. When such areas

are logged and cleared, soil and water management problems do occur. Governments should

restrict the use of more damaging heavy equipment to well prepared roadways. Cable ways,

winching, and use of lighter logging and land

preparation machinery, though likely to be

more costly, can be less damaging to the soil.

Operational trials with equipment designed to

reduce soil damage should be conducted to test

and demonstrate its utility (32).

Specific Technologies

The primary technologies available to deal

with watershed problems are those associated

with alteration of the surface geometry, revegetation, and improved farming.

Soil Conservation STRUCTURES

A common method to reduce soil erosion

from hills in the humid tropics is to change the

slope steepness and length. For example, a

steep slope can be changed to many continuous

flat strips running along the contour across a

hillside (terraces), or a long slope can be

changed to a series of shorter slopes by using
Ch. 10—Forestry Technologies to Support Tropical Agriculture Ž 233

discontinuous types of structure. The objective

of both measures is to divert runoff along the

contour toward protected drainage channels

or waterways at a velocity that reduces erosion,

These and other technologies not only have

physical requirements but financial, labor, and

land-use rights requirements. The cost of various conservation structures per unit area depends on slope, soil, type of terraces, width of

bench, presence of rocks or tree stumps, and

the tools needed to build them, Since the structures can be expensive, a cost-sharing or subsidy scheme may need to be introduced by the

government. Farmers often are reluctant to invest the time and effort to build such structures

because of insecure land tenure. Further, labor

often is not available,

Few critical, full-scale studies of terracing

have been reported from the Tropics. Many

small runoff plot measurements are made, but

these do not reproduce the conditions of cultivation by oxen or tractor that determine infiltration, runoff, and erosion on a practical

scale.

REVEGETATION

Steep mountain areas that have been cleared

should be reforested to protect water and soil

resources. If the objective is to stabilize soil and

streamflow, the least expensive method is to

protect the area from grazing livestock and fire

so it can regenerate naturally. In some cases

where erosion has been severe, natural regeneration needs to be augmented by seeding with

grasses, legumes, and shrubs. More expensive

reforestation investments are appropriate

where the objectives include production of

fuel, fodder, and timber of desirable species;

where grasses and shrubs will not provide

Terracing

Terraces not only control erosion but also can be used to facilitate irrigation and drainage,

as well as cultivation. Reversed-slope benches, continuous or discontinuous, differ in width to suit

different crops and slopes. Benches improve drainage by concentrating runoff at the outside of

the bench and then drain it along a controlled lateral gradient to a protected waterway. They are

suited to annual, semipermanent, and mixed crops and can be applied on slopes up to 300. Variations of conservation structures include (fig. 31):

● Bench terraces: a series of level strips running across the slope supported by steep risers.

These can be used on slopes up to 25° and are mainly used for upland crops.

• Hillside ditches: a discontinuous type of narrow, reverse-slope bench built across the hill

slope in order to break long slopes into many shorter ones. The width of the cultivable strips

between two ditches is determined by the slope of the land. They are inexpensive, flexible,

and can be built over a period of years. This treatment can be applied to slopes up to 250.

● Individual basins: small, round benches for planting individual plants. They are particularly useful for establishing semipermanent or permanent tree plots to control erosion. They

should normally be supplemented by hillside ditching, orchard terracing, and crop covering.

● Orchard terraces: a discontinuous type of narrow terrace applicable on steep slopes up to

300. Spacing is determined by distance between trees. Spaces between terraces should be

kept under permanent grass or legume cover.

● Intermittent terraces: bench terraces built over a period of several years.

● Convertible terraces: bench terraces with the spaces between terraces planted with tree crops.

● Natural terraces: constructed initially with contour embankments (bunds) 50 cm high on

slopes not over 70 and on soils having high infiltration rates.

Ž Hexagons: special arrangement of a farm road that surrounds or envelops a piece of sloping

land treated with discontinuous terraces which are accessible to four-wheeled tractors. This

treatment is primarily for mechanization of orchards on larger blocks of land and on slopes

of up to 20°.
234 • Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Figure 31 .-Cross-Sectional View of Eight Types of Conservation Structures

(All reverse-sloped benches)

l-bench terraces

6-convertible terraces

I

5-intermittent terraces

7-natural terraces

8-hexagonS

Unit hexagon

SOURCE: T c, Sheng, “The Need for soil Conservation Structures for Steep Cultivated Slopes in the Humid Tropices, ”

E. W. Russell (eds.) (New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1981), pp. 357-372.

Tropical Agricultural Hydrology, R. Lai and
Ch. 10—Forestry Technologies to Support Tropical Agriculture • 235

enough runoff control; or where protection

from fires cannot be sustained indefinitely.

Efforts to establish tree cover on long steep

slopes must overcome the erosion and landsliding that may be common to those sites. For

instance, primitive dams made of rock, soil,

and, if available, tree stems and branches can

be built in gullies to slow water and trap soil

until trees can be established. Channels and

walls can be built to divert water flow from

vulnerable areas. Water-spreading techniques

can be used to distribute runoff water over

relatively flat areas, reducing its erosive potential, Terracing, contour hedges and furrows,

and low retaining walls can control sheet erosion. To establish trees it may be necessary to

use contour planting, with graded hillside

bunds or narrow-based terraces at suitable intervals to lead runoff into prepared drainage

lines.

Perennial tree crops such as tea, oil palm,

rubber, or coconut can be almost as effective

as natural forest to regulate water flow, provided that soil conservation measures such as

terraces and sound engineering of roads are

included. Stormflow control, however, may not

be fully restored, In Kericho, Kenya, where

measurements of runoff from a tea plantation

were taken, stormflow peak, although small,

remained twice that from a comparable undisturbed forest. Thus, if large areas of forest are

to be converted to tea or other estate crops, additional reservoir storage will be needed to

modulate peak flows (32),

The same is true for fast growing forest plantations with short harvesting schedules. Care

is needed during harvesting to minimize negative impacts. Selection of tree species also is

important. Eucalyptus, for instance, planted

close together will eliminate all vegetative

ground cover and this can accelerate soil erosion (40). Pure stands of trees that may have

their leaves closed during rainstorms, such as

Leucaena, provide only partial soil protection

(5), Therefore, it maybe necessary to include

a second story of shrubs to minimize the impact of rain drops falling through or from the

canopy.

In areas with a dry or seasonally dry climate,

flood control and ground water recharge may

not be considered so important as maximizing

the amount of water delivered to reservoirs or

to farms and cities in the lower regions of the

watershed. In this case, watershed managers

may decide that the closed forest consumes too

much water and may prefer to maintain a grass

cover, since evapotranspiration loss is greater

from tall trees than from low shrubs or grass.

On the other hand, in some dry, mountainous

areas, trees that collect moisture on their leaves

from wet air are the best mechanism to recharge ground water (9). Overall, the negative

and positive impacts of grass and tree cover

under tropical conditions are poorly known.

Grass cover may increase the amount of runoff

and flow rates may not be modulated, thus

making dams necessary. Improvements in the

science of hydrology are needed to provide better data to calculate the tradeoffs of management options,

Complete grass cover is an acceptable vegetation for tropical watersheds only where dry

season grazing and burning can be rigorously

controlled. Thus, watershed management becomes livestock and fire management as well.

A strategy to reduce livestock damage in watersheds should include improving draft power

and milk production per head so as to encourage farmers to keep fewer and better quality

animals. This can be accomplished by introducing superior animals, by providing effective marketing systems, and by establishing

livestock exchange programs. The danger exists that farmers will be encouraged to keep

more livestock in addition to or in place of

farming.

Fire is used to eliminate old grass growth and

improve the quality of grasses for grazing.

However, repeated burnings can damage soil

by destroying soil organic matter and consequently reducing soil microbiological populations. Human-induced fire is common in grasslands and is difficult to control. If grass is going to be the primary vegetative cover or even

the cover while trees are small, methods must

be devised to control fire as well as regulate

its use.
236 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Encouraging stall or pen feeding also reduces

livestock damage. On steep slopes in Pakistan,

farmers participating in a reforestation program cut naturally regenerated grass under

young trees and carry it to their stall-fed

livestock. More fodder is produced this way

than when the animals graze the hillsides.

Another way to encourage stall-feeding is to

provide incentives—e.g., employment of residents to plant fuel and fodder trees and tall fodder grasses on denuded common land and in

eroding gullies. Stall feeding also facilitates the

collection of manure for use as fertilizer.

However, stall feeding can be difficult to implement. Local constraints can develop such

as increased need for labor to carry water, to

harvest and transport fodder, and to clean up

and spread fertilizer. Therefore, information

on who does these jobs (often women) and

whether they have time to take on these new

tasks should be gathered before implementing

such a program.

Fodder supplies can be increased by planting

fodder trees or by introducing annual fodder

species as a second rotation crop in permanent

cropping areas. Fodder trees, pasture grasses,

and legumes can be planted on embankments

of terraces, on risers of terraced farmlands,

near houses, and on other marginal land spots.

Once vegetation is reestablished on the denuded site, controlled grazing may be allowable. However, soil compaction by livestock

sometimes inhibits later natural regeneration

and increases surface runoff, thus causing erosion again.

Livestock management problems in watersheds become more difficult in drier climates.

Semiarid lands present the most urgent challenge. They characteristically have higher rainfall variability and greater stresses from temperature and dessication, so the land and vegetation are more prone to rapid deterioration

under misuse. Creative measures must be formulated to make it profitable for livestock

raisers to limit the number of livestock and to

control the timing of grazing.

FARMING SYSTEMS

Damage to watersheds is most ecologically

and economically significant where subsistence farmers and their livestock move onto

steep uplands because they lack other alternatives. Mechanical structures and replanting

programs will not be implemented adequately unless farmers and herders have incentives

to invest their labor in conservation practices.

Where much of the population in a catchment area is dependent on agriculture, the

most effective component of a watershed management strategy may be to increase production per unit area of land on the best sites.

Other components include: agroforestry and

other cropping systems that eliminate tillage

or reduce it, contour plowing, timely sowing

of seeds on contours, increasing crop plant

density, and using improved seeds, fertilizers,

and pesticides (48). On steep slopes farmers can

be encouraged to plant hedges of nitrogen fixing trees or bushes on the contour, adopt

mulching techniques, and interplant with legumes and pulses to reduce sheet erosion. In

some places, fodder tree farming or bamboo

plantations may be appropriate (39).

Some constraints to adoption of these practices are the farmers’ skepticism toward new

technologies, lack of capital, lack of infrastructure for effective input distribution, and lack

of agricultural and forestry extension services

to accelerate the diffusion of new technologies.

Before new technologies are introduced, anthropological studies are needed to define the

current practices, including what rewards people are getting, what shortfalls they are experiencing, and what benefits they expect from

technology improvements. Both technical

agents and local residents need to understand

the incentives for change. Residents must be

convinced that the benefits will be what they

want if their cooperation is to be gained.

Inducements that can improve the quality of

life for farmers living in upland watershed

areas and encourage shifting cultivators to

adopt more stable agriculture practices in-
Ch. 10—Forestry Technologies to Support Tropical Agriculture Ž 237

elude: compensatory payments to farmers excluded from upland grazing areas; timely provision of inputs such as improved seeds, fertilizer, and credit; construction of improved access roads and feeder tracks; and the provision

of social services, such as improved water supplies, schools, and health clinics. Such social

measures, on the other hand, can have adverse

effects unless combined with rigorous exclusion of people and livestock from the steepest

slopes. Improved amenities may attract larger

populations into areas of critical hydrological

sensitivity.

Constraints and Opportunities

Upper watersheds tend to be misused because destructive land-use systems usualIy give

the greatest profit in the short term to the local

population. The solution to this problem necessitates: 1) developing methods of land use that

are more profitable to the local community and

at the same time give appreciably better control of water flows, and 2) testing the new technologies and getting them adopted by the local

community. New systems that minimize ecological damage will be accepted willingly only
238 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

—

if people can see that it will maintain or increase their standard of living without an increase in the risk of crop failure.

The key issue in watershed management is

not the construction of physical structures but

the need to provide people with improved landuse alternatives. Therefore, a high proportion

of total watershed project investment should

be devoted to farming systems and institutional

components rather than to soil conservation

structures or infrastructure.

The additional labor and capital costs often

incurred by new resource conserving systems

are a major constraint to watershed management. Furthermore, farmers in the upper

reaches of river systems generally do not

accept responsibility for damages their land

use may cause to farmers in the lower reaches.

Conversely, lowland farmers rarely consider

that they have a duty to help finance upland

farmers to adopt better systems of land use.

Watershed management projects usually have

been designed to benefit people in the more fertile lowlands and have neglected those in the

uplands whose lives are being affected more

directly. This implies that some of the benefits

gained downstream should be transferred upstream through taxes or perhaps user fees on

irrigation water or hydropower.

Finally, there are several important unknowns regarding the hydrology of tropical

watersheds. There is a dearth of first-hand

research evidence in the Tropics documenting

the quantitative relationships between various

land uses and their effects on watershed

hydrology (20).

The techniques for measuring and predicting tradeoffs of different management actions—e.g., grass cover versus tree cover—are

not well developed. For moist climates, trees

may be the best cover; for dry climates, grasses

may be the best cover if fire and grazing control are practical. But for much of the Tropics,

the choice is not clear. If more water rushes

off grass-covered surfaces, less will be absorbed

into the ground. Therefore, improved field

methods for diagnosis and interpretation of

watershed hydrology problems are needed to

improve management decisions. The interactions of the many variables are too complex to

expect neatly classified prescriptions for watershed management. Some basic measurement

could be included in all major projects that lead

to changes in land use in order to build a more

adequate data base for predicting outcomes.

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1981.
Chapter 11

Resource Development Planning
Page

Highlights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243

Resource Development Planning Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243

Biophysical Assessment .. .. .. .. ... .. ........ .. ... .. ..... . . . . . . . . . . . 243

Land Classification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244

Applications of Land Classification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245

Financial and Economic Analyses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246

Social Assessment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ...”...””” 247

Monitoring and Evaluation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248

Multiobjective Planning Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249

Constraints and Opportunities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250

Chapter 11 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .....0... . ........””””.. 252

Table

Table No. Page

31. Common Land Classification Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244
Chapter 11

Resource Development PIanning

● Greater use of resource development plan- ●

ning could help sustain tropical forest resources. The potential application is good in

tropical countries where large tracts of forest

land are under the custody of the government.

RESOURCE

The usefulness of planning techniques can be

improved by: 1) increasing the timeliness and

focus of analysis, 2) improving the data base,

3) encouraging public participation, 4) adopting a more interdisciplinary approach, and 5)

improving communication of findings.

DEVELOPMENT PLANNING TECHNOLOGIES

Most conversion of forest land to other uses

occurs without adequate consideration of

whether the natural and human resources

available will sustain the new land use (20). The

success of resource development projects is impeded by unforeseen (but foreseeable) natural

resource and socioeconomic constraints. The

problem is to match land development activities to the specific capabilities of the site.

Where intensive land uses are compatible

with natural and human resources at a site,

conversion to those uses may be sustainable

and result in greater long-term benefits than

keeping the land in natural forest cover. Sites

that cannot sustain intensive development can

be identified for reforestation or for protection

of natural forest cover. These sites can be managed for watershed maintenance, nonwood

products, preservation of biological diversity,

outdoor recreation, or closely regulated timber

harvest.

Some tropical countries have begun to use

resource development planning techniques to

help match land capability with land use. Resource development planning has four components: 1) biophysical assessment, 2) financial

and economic analyses, 3) social assessment,

and 4) monitoring and evaluation, Development planning is best viewed as a continuous,

iterative process that produces information as

needed rather than as a one-time, preproject

activity resulting in a blueprint for development. Having a flexible project design is especially important in development projects where

the risks are large and the approaches may be

innovative or experimental.

Biophysical Assessment

A biophysical assessment provides one dimension of information for effective land-use

management. The techniques are straightforward and relatively efficient. They can be carried out at different levels of detail with varying requirements for monetary resources, staff

expertise, and available data.

Many factors affect the biophysical suitability of a site, including:

●

●

●

●

climate—precipitation, temperature, wind,

droughts, floods, storms, fire potential, and

air pollution potential;

geomorphology and geology—slopes, location and uses of surface water and aquifers, mass movements of earth, depth to

bedrock, unique features;

soils—nutrients, structure, depth, erodability; and

flora and fauna—biological diversity, val243
244 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

uable species, ecosystem fragility, and

pests and diseases.

Resource development planning techniques

are most often used to select a site for a particular land use. After identification of the

desired land development, the planner identifies constraints that could inhibit that land use

and looks for sites where the constraints do not

exist or are manageable. The other, less often

applied, use of planning techniques is “land

classification’‘—identifying the most appropriate types of development for all sites within a

geographic area. Planning techniques are seldom used fully in tropical nations for either site

selection or land classification (42). The latter

approach has special potential as a technology

to help sustain the long-term productivity of

forest resources.

Land Classification

Land classification categorizes land in terms

of its suitability for various uses (table 31). The

objectives of land classification are to identify

the resources of a given area, determine appropriate management practices for existing land

uses, and predict the consequences of proposed

changes in land use and policies (36).

Classifications may be at the microlevel for

managing local parcels or at the macrolevel for

establishing national or regional priorities. The

most immediate need in developing countries

is for macrolevel land classification (9,19). Microlevel analyses subsequently will be necessary (32).

In macrolevel land classification, overlay

mapping techniques are often used to select

Table 31.—Common Land Classification Methods

1. Australian Land System. –The Australian Land System (10)

2.

3.

4.

uses aerial photos to survey large areas for agricultural,

forestry, and recreational potential. A “site” is defined as

a uniform land form with common soil types and vegetation. A “land unit” is a collection of related sites with a

particular land form. A “land system” is a group of

geomorphologically and geographically associated land

units, usually bounded by a geological or geomorphogenetic feature or process.

Ecological Series Classification.—The Ecological Series

Classification (37) describes forest habitat types in bioclimatic terms: a plant community’s soil, water, and nutrient

regimes; soil surface characteristics; and undergrowth

plant distribution. The technique produces site indices for

each habitat type that vary with the productive capacity

of the trees, natural regeneration capability, the appropriate

species for tree-planting, fertility requirements, and engineering properties.

Holdridge Life Zones System.—Holdridge Life Zones (24)

are broad bioclimatic units defined by mean annual precipitation, mean annual biotemperature (air temperatures

adjusted to eliminate negative values), and potential

evapotranspiration. These broad units can be subclassified

by soil, seasonal rainfall distribution, drainage, and mature

vegetation associations.

Canadian Biophysical System.-The Canadian Biophysical

System (30) is a-hierarchical classification. The basic unit

used is “land type, ” characterized by a homogeneous soil

series and sequence of vegetation. Land types are

subdivided into “land phases” according to their stage of

vegetative succession. “Land systems” are groups of land

types with a recurring pattern of land forms, soils, and a

sequence of vegetation. The next broader unit, the “land

district,” has a distinct pattern of relief, geology, geomorphology, and a sequence of vegetation. Finally, there are

“land regions,” distinct climatic zones associated with a

particular climax vegetation.

5. Webb% Structural Classification of Humid Forests.—This

is a classification system for humid forests based on

vegetation structure and physiognomy including such factors as forest structure, composition, canopy closure, type

of emergents, species growth forms, and leaf size (54). The

system correlates vegetation, structure, and physiognomy

with rain, altitude, cloudiness, temperatures, soils,

drainage, and wildlife habitat.

6. Krajlna’s Biogeoclimatic Zonation System.—Krajina’s Bio7.

8.

geoclimatic Zonation System (29) is based on forest habitat

types, Each zone is characterized by a climatic climax

vegetation, climate, and soil type. However, “climatic

climax” might be deflected into an “edaphic climax” due

to poorly or excessively drained soils or a “topographic

climax” on steep slopes or alluvial flats.

USDA Soil Conservation Land Capability System.—The

USDA Soil Conservation Land Capability System (28) uses

soil survey mapping units grouped into eight classes

according to the capability to sustain cultivation, grazing,

forestry, wildlife, and recreation without erosion. The

classification system indicates the degree of limitation to

intensive uses.

California Soil Vegetation Survey.—The California Forest

and Range Experiment Station (5) developed a classificat ion system predicated on the assumption that soil types

are correlated with differences in vegetation on

undeveloped lands. Aerial photos are used to observe the

type, age, density, and structure of the vegetation.

SOURCE: Adapted from: L. Hamilton, “Land-Use Planning Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest and Woodlands,” OTA commissioned paper, 1982.
Ch. n-Resource Development Planning ● 2 4 5

sites for particular land uses. One such technique is to produce a separate map for each

of several biophysical attributes, using white,

black, or shades of grey to show the suitability

of locations for a specific type of development

(33). The suitability ratings are combined by

laying the maps over each other and examining the distribution of shading intensities. This

procedure assigns an equal weight to each biophysical attribute, The “METLAND” technique (15), an extension of the map overlay approach, uses computers to manipulate data and

generate alternative plans. Thus, variables can

be given different weights to reflect their relative importance and more variables can be included.

Both these techniques assume natural system

relationships are determined by land physiography, They are not well-suited for analyzing

indirect or cumulative impacts of land uses,

Unless combined with simulation modeling,

these techniques do not reflect changes in the

magnitudes or types of impacts over time.

Other techniques reveal site potential for specialized uses, such as the Habitat Evaluation

Procedure, which assesses the impacts of land

use changes on the quantity and quality of habitat for selected fish and wildlife species (51),

The procedure relies on aerial photos or field

work and modeling, Since a proposed action

often results in gains for some species and

losses for others, the Habitat Evaluation Procedure has a provision for calculating relative

value weights for the indicator species,

Wadsworth’s watershed value index (53) is

a numerical scoring system that can be used

as a rule-of-thumb in deciding where forest

cover should be retained for watershed protection. The index accounts for slope and critical

environmental factors.

Land classification systems can be helpful in

resource development planning, but they have

limitations. Some systems are oriented toward

a particular land use such as agriculture or

forestry and therefore tend to assess suitability for that use rather than overall land suitability (31,35,42). No single land classification system measures land productivity directly; the

cost would be too great and the activity too

time-consuming. Some techniques are more appropriate for use in ecological studies than for

helping decisionmakers answer land management questions (6). None of the techniques

identifies the direct or indirect biophysical impacts of land use conversions. Moreover, the

techniques neglect gradual changes in biophysical factors that can eventually limit various

land uses (31).

Applications of Land Classification

Malaysia has one of the best tropical 1and capability planning systems. The system includes

geological surveys, regional soil surveys, and

forest inventories, combining the approaches

of the Canada Land Inventory and the U.S. Soil

Conservation Service. It has been particularly

useful in designating areas for tin mining;

large-scale oil palm, rubber, and wood plantations; and resettlement projects. One reason for

the effectiveness of the Malaysian system is

that it is carried out by a national economic

planning unit that is able to ensure that its provisions are implemented (22,34).

Resource planning techniques have been

used in a number of other tropical nations,

though not often as a regular planning process

by a government agency or private firm in control of a large area of land. For example, the

techniques have been researched and demonstrated in Venezuela (21) and Mexico (32). Organizations promoting conservation have

worked out ways to integrate several of the major techniques to determine optimum locations

for parks and protected areas in Venezuela and

Brazil (4).

Development assistance agencies have sponsored resource development planning for river

basin development programs. For example, the

planning for development of the Mekong River

basin, sponsored by the united Nations Development Programme, the Agency for International Development (AID), and several other bilateral agencies, uses many of the planning

techniques.

AID has a number of projects involving resource development planning in tropical coun-
246 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

—

tries. For example, the AID-funded “Benchmark Soils Program” in Brazil, the Philippines,

Indonesia, and Cameroon identifies soil types

and tests similar soils for crop yields under different agricultural practices. The Government

of Nepal, with AID assistance, has completed

a national land inventory that includes topography, geology, vegetation, climate, and soils

(l). Some land classifications have been attempted in Indonesia (45), Pakistan (43), and

the Philippines (49). AID also has undertaken

a major effort to help Sri Lanka plan the resettlement and watershed management associated

with the Mahaweli reservoir (41).

An AID project in the Eastern Andes (the

Central Selva Resource Management Project)

was completely redesigned as a result of land

capability analysis (23). The original project

was to resettle large numbers of households for

farming corn. A Holdridge Life Zone analysis

involving aerial photos and field work showed

that the land would support only natural forest.

Consequently, the project was changed to resettle a smaller number of people who are to harvest 2 hectares of natural forest per household

per year over 30 years.

Financial and Economic Analyses

After the biophysical suitability of a site has

been determined, the next step is to analyze financial and economic benefits and costs. The

purpose of these analyses is to provide information on: 1) how to maximize the values obtained from natural resources while conserving resources for the future, and 2) how to obtain an equitable distribution of income.

A financial analysis considers the anticipated cashflows to the owner or users of the

land. An economic analysis is made from the

perspective of society. The financial and economic impacts of land conversion depend on

the previous land uses; capital, labor, and energy-intensiveness of the technologies; existence of markets and infrastructure; income

levels; and site location, accessibility, and size.

Conflicts often exist between decisions made

by individuals on the basis of their own financial cash flows and the decisions that would

be preferred from a societal perspective.

Financial and economic analyses can provide an additional quantitative dimension on

the desirability of land-use changes and offer

a systematic way to organize information for

decisionmaking. Marketable goods and services are easiest to value in benefit-cost analysis.

Thus, this technique is most applicable in assessing agricultural, industrial, or residential

development. It is most appropriate where decisionmakers agree on values and goals (including production and the distribution of income)

and where unintended effects offsite are likely.

The fundamental limitations of benefit-cost

analysis are:

●

●

●

●

●

imperfections that tend to distort prices

observed in real markets, *

inability to assess the distribution of costs

and benefits among segments of the population and across generations,

inadequate techniques to measure benefits

or damages associated with environmental effects and insufficient empirical information on cause-effect relationships,

de-emphasis of long-term effects due to

discounting,** and

inadequate treatment of risk and uncertainty.

Within the past 15 years, a variety of techniques used to assign value to environmental

impacts for benefit-cost analysis have been developed and refined. Four basic types are:

1. Revealed preference measures examine

actual consumer behavior and estimate

prices for extramarket goods and services

by examining expenditures to avert damages, replacement costs to repair damages,

travel costs to recreational facilities, property values, and wage differentials;

2. Hypothetical valuation methods rely on

direct questioning, bidding games, useestimation games, or tradeoff analysis to

*In many cases, estimated values (“shadow prices”) must be

used where market prices do not exist or are presumed to reflect

societal values poorly, However, the use of estimated values can

increase the potential for political manipulation of an economic

analysis (55).

**Discounting is based on the time value of money–i.e., the

presumption that a dollar’s worth of consumption now is worth

more than a dollar’s worth of consumption in the future. The

time preference is separate from the effects of inflation.
Ch. 11—Resource Development Planning ● 247

3.

4.

elicit the maximum amount that consumers are willing to pay for a gain or minimum amount of compensation that they

are willing to accept for a loss;

Human capital methods are used to place

values on human mortality and morbidity; and

Threshold analysis asks how large the

benefits of preserving land in its current

state would have to be in order to outweigh

the benefits of conversion to other uses.

However, careful attention must be paid to

the assumptions behind these techniques and

their susceptibility to problems of validity, reliability, and biases. Many of the techniques

tend to underestimate environmental values.

This is not a severe problem where decisionmakers only need a minimum estimate to support conservation decisions (18), such as in

cases where some preservation values clearly

exceed the value of a proposed land-use conversion. For example, an analysis for the Peruvian Amazon showed that wildlife values exceeded wood product values (14). But since

many situations are not so clear-cut, more sensitive techniques are needed. The most important constraint on economic evaluation of environmental benefits is not the inadequacy of

the techniques but the dearth of scientific data

on cause-effect relationships for various land

uses (8).

Another problem arises because most economic analyses determine the environmental

value of forest resources “at the margin” which

can be significantly different from the average

value of forest resources. For example, if the

value of genetic resources in any small piece

of a forest is not large, economic analyses may

justify clearing the forest piece by piece until

it is all converted to nonforest uses, without

ever accounting for the overall loss of genetic

resources (18).

Establishing monetary values for the multiple benefits of forests can be useful in making

decisions on the choice of outputs, production

techniques, regulatory policies, fees for concessions and leases, compensation for eminent domain or offsite damage, and priorities for industrial or social forestry projects (18). The potential users of this information include the private sector, multilateral development banks,

U.N. agencies, bilateral assistance agencies,

and tropical governments.

The influence economic analyses have in decisions about resource development depends

on how well they address the issues important

to decisionmakers, Generally, economic analyses are used to justify decisions that already

have been made on other grounds (18). Furthermore, economic analyses rarely consider how

benefits and costs affect distribution of income

within or across generations.

Social Assessment

The social dimension increasingly is acknowledged as an essential part of resource

development planning, The extent to which social assessments are carried out varies among

projects and among organizations. However,

such analyses can contribute greatly to the success of development projects. In the past, multilateral development banks viewed large-scale

forestry operations for their economic impacts

alone. The poor records of many of those projects have led to an awareness of the importance of the social and institutional dimensions

of land-use decisions (39).

Some proposed development activities are

not feasible because the necessary human resources are unavailable or cultural values preclude implementation. Variations in the success rates of projects often can be explained

by differences in the capabilities of local institutions. ” The most common problems are the:

1) lack of strong leadership accepted by the

community and willing to take the initiative;

2) domination of decisionmaking by elites for

their own special interests; and 3) factionalism

or segmentation by socioeconomic, ethnic, or

religious groups that makes it difficult to build

a consensus or get people to work together (52).

Government laws and policies also can have

unintended effects on people’s decisions to par-

“Institutional capacity includes the framework of laws and

policies in the forestry sector and the ability of national and local

governments, cooperatives and associations, or private voluntary organizations to carry out a project.
248 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

ticipate in projects. In particular, land tenure

and commodity pricing policies are important.

A development project that involves local

people is more likely to be successful if the intended beneficiaries are brought into the planning process. Otherwise, 1) the intended beneficiaries might be unwilling to participate in

the project; 2) the benefits may be captured

only by people with relatively high incomes,

social status, and advanced educations; or 3)

tasks may be planned with unrealistic assumptions about the participants’ skills, capital, or

access to inputs.

Culture-specific information is needed on

how incentives should be structured to: 1) encourage two-way communication between

technology transfer agents and local people; 2)

reduce risks facing innovators (e. g., adopters

of new techniques); 3) encourage activities that

provide offsite benefits not captured by individuals undertaking the activities (e.g., reduced

soil siltation); and 4) give landless people a

stake in resource conservation. For example,

one common reason why social forestry projects fail is that the local people are not interested in the species of seedlings that are distributed or are unfamiliar with their growth requirements or products (2).

Most negative impacts of reforestation or social forestry projects on communal lands fall

on the previous users of the land. Little land—

even that labeled uninhabited—is totally unoccupied by people. Forest reserves in most tropical countries contain farmers, hunters and

gatherers, and livestock herders. Communal

lands that at first glance appear to be useless

scrub forests frequently are used for raising

crops, grazing animals, or the collection of

fuelwood, polewood, grasses, and a wide variety of nonwood products. Land tenure is particularly important to consider in a social

assessment where much of the land remains

untitled or under communal status because

large landholders or the landless poor may

have appropriated these lands.

Good social assessments can help planners

avoid or mitigate some of these problems or

suggest ways to compensate the people who

bear negative impacts. If the interests of past

users are not considered, they may undermine

the success of proposed development (25).

U.S. AID conducts some social assessment

for its projects (including analysis of impacts

and absorptive capacity) but the amount and

type are variable. There are written guidelines

to prepare a “social soundness analysis” as part

of each project paper (50). However, these

guidelines do not provide detailed, operational

guidance on ways to conduct the analysis (44).

The World Bank’s Operational Manual for

Project Analysis is being revised to incorporate

social assessment procedures (39). written

guidelines have been prepared for Bank projects affecting tribal groups or involving resettlement of populations. All project officers are

directed to consider social factors as part of

their regular activities (16).

Monitoring and Evaluation

The preproject planning phase is when least

is known about development problems to be

solved and about the biophysical and human

resources of the site, Yet, for many projects this

has been the only time when a substantial effort is made to determine how the project’s

products and services will contribute to larger

development goals.

Monitoring is a continuous process of collecting, measuring, recording, analyzing, and

communicating information on project s

regarding 1) timely and appropriate provision

and use of inputs, 2) operation and management logistics, and 3) production of outputs.

Monitoring takes place during implementation

and is intended to meet the needs of day-to-day

project management. It can indicate a need

to change the timetable, scale, geographic location, resource allocation, or staffing of

activities.

Evaluation measures a project’s outputs and

impacts on intended beneficiaries and assesses

the project’s unintended impacts. Evaluations

emphasize performance, rather than operation

and management, and analyze reasons for attaining or nonattaining objectives. Evaluations
Ch. 11-Resource Development Planning • 249

performed before implementation is completed

can be used to formulate recommendations for

changes in objectives, strategies, techniques,

institutional arrangements, priorities, and government policies. Their effective use depends

on the project’s flexibility-i. e., whether it can

respond to recommended changes. Such evaluations have a secondary purpose of facilitating communication among project staff, project management, local people, and external organization. Evaluations conducted after a project

●

●

●

●

is complete can:

identify a need to compensate people adversely affected by environmental impacts,

suggest followup or complementary projects that build on the original project,

assist in reformulating broader policies

and strategies, and

provide lessons for planning other projects

elsewhere.

Monitoring and evaluation produce very different measures of project success or failure.

Monitoring may indicate that a project is successfully reaching its targets, while evaluation

of the same project may show that the problem has been incorrectly identified.

For example, planners working in the preproject period may identify reforestation of

private lands as the appropriate objective for

an area experiencing rapid deforestation and

a lack of freely available seedlings as the problem hindering this reforestation. Thus, they

may recommend establishing nurseries to produce seedlings for distribution to local farmers.

Monitoring may show that the nurseries are

operating successfully and producing the desired number of seedlings. Evaluation, on the

other hand, may show that the problem was

misidentified, that lack of extension programs

for landowners and not seedling availability is

the actual constraint to reforestation.

The distinction between monitoring and

evaluation has been recognized only recently

by development assistance organizations. U.S.

AID and the World Bank, among others, are

emphasizing the importance of both. Comprehensive monitoring and evaluation systems are

a planned component of social forestry projects

in Nepal (3) and Tamil Nadu in India (46). However, the development assistance agencies are

only beginning to learn how to use the information from evaluation to improve projects.

Even where continuous evaluation is made

a part of the project, the resulting information

may not lead to a project change. One reason

for this inflexibility is that persons administering resource development projects are usually rewarded when they achieve certain targets

(e.g., seedlings distributed per year) from the

original project plan, regardless of whether

those targets prove to be unimportant. Moreover, the usefulness of final evaluations can be

compromised by agencies’ reluctance to discuss why their projects were not entirely successful.

Multiobjective Planning Methods

Once information is available on the likely

biophysical, economic, and social/cultural aspects of a development project, decisionmakers

need some way to judge the relative importance of the various findings. Too frequently,

decisionmakers avoid confronting tradeoffs

among conflicting objectives and only consider

the most obvious and serious effects. But considerable progress has been made in the past

two decades in developing multiobjective planning techniques that address these tradeoffs

(12,38). These techniques have been applied

mainly in water resource planning, but with

adaptation they are applicable to tropical forest

land-use planning as well.

Multiobjective planning is broader than more

traditional single-objective approaches to planning. Single-objective planning techniques

such as benefit-cost analysis require that all the

effects of alternate projects be measured in

terms of a single unit, usually money. Multiobjective planning attempts to compare effects

within categories, but does not force all effects

into the same measurement units. The techniques also provide formal means for decisionmakers to assign relative values to each category account (e.g., income, numbers of people

employed, reduction in peak waterflow).

25-287 0 - 84 - 17
250 Ž Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Using multiple objectives in the planning natives usually is identified, and the relationprocess can improve resource development in ship between alternatives can be described

at least three ways. First, value judgments are clearly. Third, the analyst’s perceptions of a

determined by decisionmakers rather than by problem will be more realistic if the full range

the analysts. Second, a wider range of alter- of objectives is considered (12).

Insufficient appreciation by decisionmakers. Many decisionmakers do not understand resource development planning techniques or their potential utility. Consequently, they may make decisions on the basis of political feasibility or intuition rather than planning (3 I). Resource development planning often is not used until after resource use decisions have been made. Furthermore, decisionmakers often have the misperception that planning leads to permanent land-use dedications.

Limited availability of land use data. Problems associated with collection have led to a

dearth of land use data. Ground surveys are

slow, expensive, and sometimes inadequate.

Aerial photographs can only cover a small area

and are relatively expensive. Remote-sensing

images from orbiting satellites are becoming

more widely used. However, with the technology generally available in tropical countries,

interpretation of Landsat can be inaccurate.

New optical enhancement techniques improve

the quality of the Landsat images and computer

analyses can increase interpretability. These

refinements are expensive, but minicomputers

are lowering the cost.

Governments in tropical countries have been

able to purchase satellite images at low prices

because the fixed, capital costs have been borne

by the U.S. Government. This policy may

change, however. The U.S. Government has

proposed selling Landsat to the private sector.

Scarcity of expertise. Effective resource

development planning requires expertise in

many disciplines: geology, hydrology, climatology, ecology, geography, agronomy, forestry,

economics, sociology, and planning or public

administration. Even if sophisticated methods

such as remote sensing and computer analyses

are cost effective, the lack of trained government staff can preclude their use. The scarcity of expertise is a principal constraint to resource development planning (35).

Cost. Detailed resource development planning activities can require a high initial investment because large land areas are involved. At

the same time, the benefits often are diffuse—

spread among large groups of people in present and future generations rather than among

a few identifiable individuals who would be

willing to bear the costs. Thus, it is likely that

major resource development planning efforts

in poor countries will require substantial foreign assistance.

Dominance of decisionmaking by interest

groups. In some countries, there is little actual

governmental control over public lands because of the influence of large logging, mining, or agricultural interests and the inability

to enforce sanctions in remote locations

against large numbers of illegal forest occupants, nomadic grazers, or tribal groups with

customary rights. Even where the government

has effective control over public lands, selfinterest still can be a constraint. Prerogatives

over government lands often are jealously

guarded by key decisionmakers (47). Forestry

departments may resist any analyses that could

result in land classifications that remove land

from forest reserves (40). In some cases, short

time horizons, personal favoritism, influence

of special interests, and opportunism may characterize decisionmaking.

Increasing the timeliness and focus of analysis. An analysis will be of most use to decisionmakers if it is timely and geared to their
Ch. n-Resource Development P/arming • 251

needs. If the scope of the analysis is too narrow or superficial, decisionmakers will not obtain the information they need. On the other

hand, if the scope is too broad, delays will occur. The usefulness of the techniques can be

improved by clearly defining the specific objectives of the analysis and setting priorities for

study. For some uses, techniques that are relatively less precise and less expensive will be

satisfactory.

Improving scientific, economic, and social

data. Although the basic techniques to analyze

scientific, economic, and social data for resource and development planning are reasonably well-developed, the inadequacy of baseline

data and the limited understanding of causeeffect relationships have hindered application

of these techniques. Much existing information

on the connections between biophysical factors and land uses is derived from studies of

temperate zone countries (42). The degree of

transferability of this information to the Tropics is questionable. It also may not be appropriate to transfer information obtained in one

part of the Tropics to other parts (13).

Encouraging public participation. Inadequate social assessment is a weakness suffered

by most resource development planning efforts

(35). Greater public participation in the planning process could improve social assessments

and increase the ability of local people to solve

their own problems.

However, this can be difficult to obtain. For

the most part, foresters have not been trained

to facilitate a dialogue with local people to

determine their needs, priorities, and resources

or to convince them of the desirability of better land-use management (47). Furthermore, in

some cases the rural poor do not speak openly for fear of retaliation or simply because they

speak a different language from the project

staff. Sometimes, individuals with vested interests can dominate participation, while the general interests of the local population are underrepresented (26). Where the rural poor are excluded from political participation in government, it is unlikely that they will be allowed

to participate effectively in the design or operation of development projects (27).

Adopting an interdisciplinary approach.

Many government agencies conduct activities

that affect land use, especially those concerned

with agriculture, forestry, military operations,

water resources, mining, human settlements,

transportation, and wildlife. Yet, there is little

coordination between agencies with different

responsibilities, and each agency concentrates

on its own relatively narrow mission. Forestry

departments in many tropical countries, particularly those that retain the model set up

under British and French colonial rule, remain

detached from other sectors of public administration (11).

But an interdisciplinary approach using the

skills available in the various agencies is the

most effective way to plan resource development. Alternatively, forest departments could

hire expertise in a broader range of disciplines

and train existing staff. Rural sociologists and

anthropologists, in particular, should have a

larger role in resource development planning

(11), The United States offers substantial expertise in the various disciplines related to resource development planning.

Improving the communication of findings.

Scientific information needs to be presented

in a simple, yet realistic, form that decisionmakers can understand. Key assumptions

should be stated explicitly and tested. Sufficient budget and staff time should be devoted

to communication of the fundings or the plans

are likely to receive little attention.
252 • Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

CHAPTER 8

1, Ackerson, K., U.S. Soil Conservation Service,

personal communication, 1982.

2. Arnold, J. E. M., Food and Agriculture Organization, personal communication, 1982.

3. Bhattarai, T., and Campbell, J. C., Monitoring

and Evaluation System for Community Forestry

Development in Nepal, Kathmandu Government of Nepal, HMG/UNDP/FAO Community

Forestry Development Project Field Document

No. 4, 1982.

4. Burley, F. W., “Sharing the Heritage Concept,”

Nature Conservancy News 32(4), 1982, pp.

23-25,

5. California Forest and Range Experiment Station, Soil Vegetation Surveys in California (Sacramento: Department of Natural Resources,

1958).

6. Cameron, D., “Problems of Forest Land Classification in Tropical and Subtropical Australia.”

In: Carpenter, 1981.

7. Carpenter, R. (cd.), Assessing Tropical Forest

Lands: Their Suitability for Sustainable Uses

(Dublin, Ireland: Tycooly Press, 1981).

8. Carpenter, R., East-West Center Environment

and Policy Institute, personal communication,

1983.

9. Catterson, T., U.S. Agency for International Development, personal communication, 1983.

10. Christian, C., and Stewart, C., “Methodology of

Integrated Survey s,” Proceedings, Toulouse

Conference on Aerial Surveys and Integrated

Studies (Paris: UNESCO, 1968).

11. Cleveland, D,, International Agricultural Programs, University of Arizona, personal communication, 1983.

12. Cohon, J. L., Multiobjective Programming and

Planning (New York: Academic Press, 1978).

13. di Castri, F., and Hadley, M., “A Typology of

Scientific Bottlenecks to Natural Resources Development, ” Geographic Journal 3:513-522,

1979.

14. Dourojeanni, M., Animales Sobre—ExpZotados

y Sub-Utilizados en la Amozonia, 1974. In:

Gregersen, 1982.

15. Fabos, J., Greene, C., and Joyner, S., Jr., The

METLAND Landscape Planning Process: Composite Landscape Assessment, Alternative Plan

Formulation, and Plan Evaluation (Amherst,

Mass.: University of Massachusetts Agricultural Experiment Station, Research Bulletin No.

653, 1978).

REFERENCES

16.

17.

18,

19.

20!

214

22.

23.

24.

25.

26.

Fisher, H. B., World Bank, personal communication, 1983.

Green, K., U.S. National Zoological Park, personal communication, 1982.

Gregersen, H., “Valuing Goods and Service

From Tropical Forests and Woodlands,” OTA

commissioned paper, 1982.

Hamilton, L., “Some Unbiased Thoughts on

Forest Land Use Planning—From an Ecological

Point of View. ” In: Carpenter, 1981.

Hamilton, L., “Land-Use Planning Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest and Woodlands,” OTA commissioned paper, 1982.

Hawes, R., and Hamilton, L., A Method of

Watershed Land Classification and Assessment

for the Tropics: A Case Study of Rio Guanare,

Venezuela (Ithaca, N. Y.: Cornell University International Agriculture Mimeograph 77, 1980).

Hepburn, A., “The Forest Resources of Sabah

and Their Development in the Light of Land Capability Classification,” The MaZaysian Forester 37(1974):215-223.

Hester, J., U.S. Agency for International Development, personal communication, 1983.

Holdridge, L., Life Zone Ecology (San Jose,

Costa Rica: Tropical Science Center, 1967),

Hoskins, M., “Benefits Foregone as a Major

Issue for FLCD Success,” Proceedings of the

U.S. AID Workshop on Community Forestry,

Washington, D. C., 1982.

Huizer, G., Preliminary Guidelines for Participation Monitoring and Ongoing Evaluation of

People’s Participation Projects (Rome: Food and

Agriculture Organization, 1982).

27. Joslyn, D., U.S. Agency for International Development, personal communication, 1983.

28. Klingebiel, A., and Montgomery, P., Land Ca29.

30.

31.

32.

pabi]ity Classification (Washington, D. C.: Soil

Conservation Service, Agricultural Handbook

210, 1961).

Krajina, V., “Biogeoclimatic Zonation as a Basis

for Regional Ecosystems,” Symposium on

Planned Utilization of Low Land Tropical Forests, Cipayung, Bogor, Indonesia, 1973.

Lacate, D., “Discussion of Biophysical Land

Classification in Canada.” In: Carpenter, 1981.

Lee, Peng Choong, “Forest Land Classification

in Malay sia. ” In: Carpenter, 1981.

Marten, G., “A Landscape Approach to Regional Land Use Planning in Tropical Mexico.”

[n: Carpenter, 1981.
Ch. 11-Resource Development Planning • 253

33,

34,

35,

36,

37.

38,

39.

40.

41.

42.

43.

44.

45.

McHarg, I., Design With IVature (New York:

Natural History Press, 1969).

Moss, M., “An Evaluation of Some Existing Biophysical Land Classification Schemes in the

Context of the Felda Land Developments in Malaysia. ” IZZ: Carpenter, 1981.

Mounkeila, Goumandakoye, Assistant Director

of Forests for Niger, personal communication,

1983,

Mueller-Dombois, D., “The Ecological Series

Approach to Forest Land Classification.” In:

Carpenter, 1981.

Mueller-Dombois, D., and Ellenberg, H,, Aims

and Methods of Vegetation Ecology (New York:

John Wiley & Sons, 1974).

Nichols, R., and Hyman, E., “An Evaluation of

Environmental Assessment Methods,” Journal

of the Water Resources Planning and Management Division, American Society of Civil Engineers 108, No, WR1 : 87-105, March 1982,

Noronha, R,, Sociological Aspects of Forestry

Project Design (Washington, D. C.: World Bank,

1980).

Pandey, J., “Problems of Forest Land Classification for Sustainable Uses in India. ” In: Carpenter, 1981.

Philley, M., U.S. Agency for International Development, personal communication, 1983.

Qadri, S., comments on the paper by Hamilton

(2o] prepared for the Office of Technology Assessment, 1982.

Quereshi, A., “Forest Land Classification and

Capability Assessment in Pakistan. ” In: Carpenter, 1981,

Runge, C. F., U.S. Agency for International Development, personal communication, 1983.

Sandy, I. M,, “Land Classification System for

46,

47.

48.

49.

50.

51.

52.

53.

54.

55.

Land Use Planning in Indonesia.” In; Carpenter, 1981.

Sida, —, Social Forestry in Tamil Nadu: Appraised Project Document (Stockholm: Swedish

International Development Assistance Organization, 1981).

Stevens, M., U.S. Forest Service, personal communication, 1983.

Umali, R., “The Application of Remote Sensing to Forestry in Developing Countries, ” 1981.

In: Carpenter, 1981.

Umali, R., “Forest Land Assessment and Management for Sustainable Uses in the Philippines, ” 1981. In: Carpenter, 1981.

U.S. Agency for International Development,

“Social Soundness Analysis,” AID Handbook

3, Appendix 3F (Washington, D. C.: U.S. AID,

1982).

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Habitat Evaluation Procedures (Washington, D. C.: Government Printing Office, Documents ESM 101-104,

1980).

Van Heck, B., Participation of the Poor in Rural

organizations (Rome: FAO, 1979].

Wadsworth, F., “Techniques for Surveys and

the Ecological Exploitation of Tropical Forests, ” AnaZs. Acad. BraziZ Ciene. 41 (Supplement: 101-109), 1969.

Webb, L., et al., “Structural Classification as a

Method to Predict Site Potential in the Development and Conservation of Tropical Humid Forest Lands, ” Transactions International MA13-

LVFRO Workshop on Tropical Rain Forest Ecosystems Research, E. Brunig (cd.), Hamburg-Reinbeck, University of Hamburg, 1977.

Wisdom, H., comments on the paper by Gregersen (181 me~ared for OTA. 1982.
Chapter 12

Education, Research, and

Technology Transfer
Highlights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... . .

Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Technology Transfer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Introduction .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .....

Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..... .

Professional Education and Technical Training

Forestry Education and Training Programsin

Environmental Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Principles of Environmental Education . . . . . . . .

Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Fundamental and Applied Research

Research Priorities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Fundamental Research . . . . . . . . . .

Applied Research. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Dissemination of Research Findings

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ........1

Technology Transfer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

● ✌☛✎✎✎✎ ✎ ✎ ✎

✎✌✎✎✌✎✎ ✎ ✎ ✎

✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎

✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎

☛✎✎✌✎✎✎ ✎ ✎ ✎

✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎

✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎

✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ ✎ 0..

. . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ● ✎✎✎✎✎☛✎✎ ✎ ✎

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Tropical Countries . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Necessarv Conditions for Successful Technology Transfer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Opportunitiesto Improve Technology Transfer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Coordination of Development Assistance Agencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Need for Professionals .

Technology Transfer Timing

Chapter 12 References . . . . . . . . .

List of Tables

Table No,

. . . . . . . . . . . .

and Follow up

 . . . . . . .

32.U.S. Priorities for Applied Research . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

33. World Bank/FAO Priorities for Forestry Research in Developing Countries . . .

34.The East-West Center’s Priority List for Scientific Forestry Research. . . . . . . . .

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Chapter 12

Education, Research, and

Technology Transfer

●

●

●

●

Education

Most education to support sustainable use

of tropical forest resources must be done by

tropical nations’ own universities and technical schools. But these schools generally are

new, small, and not yet capable of the task.

U.S. universities can help sustain tropical

forest resources both by educating professionals for work in tropical areas and by supporting the development of the tropical universities’ capabilities.

To provide adequate instruction in tropical

forest issues, U.S. universities need to make

fundamental curriculum changes, adding

more anthropological and sociological

perspectives to the education of resource

development specialists,

Environmental education programs suffer

from a lack of behavioral science expertise

and from a lack of literature documenting

the reasons for success and failure of past

programs.

Research

• Fundamental and applied research, especially in the social sciences, are needed to develop more techniques that produce sufficient profits for investors and simultaneously conserve the renewability of forest resources.

● Research on tropical forest resources is poorly coordinated. Fundamental researchers

know too little about what information applied researchers need, and applied researchers know too little about the needs of

technology implementors.

Technology Transfer

● Innovative technologies, even successful

ones, often do not spread beyond subsidized

pilot projects. Improved technology transfer

efforts are needed among researchers, between researchers and project managers,

and between project managers and individual decisionmakers.

INTRODUCTION

Many technical opportunities to reverse tropical forest degradation are attracting attention

from development assistance organizations

and from tropical government agencies. Yet,

neither governments, private entrepreneurs,

nor local people are investing enough capital,

land, and labor on these techniques. Methods

to overcome these constraints on such investment include increased professional, technical,

and environmental education, some research

redirection, and improved technology transfer.

Inequitable and insecure land tenure and

population growth cause forest resource management problems even more basic than those

addressed by forestry education, research, and

technology transfer. These problems are not

amenable to direct action by the U.S. Con257
258 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

gress—they must be resolved by the tropical na- also indirectly can help improve tropical nations themselves. tions’ abilities to make fundamental changes

U.S. assistance can enhance education and in economic and social institutions.

research, particularly in the social sciences. It

EDUCATION

Professional

and Technical Training

Progress in developing and implementing

new forestry technologies is severely constrained by the scarcity of appropriately educated personnel. A severe shortage of field

technicians and extension agents with suitable

training further constrains implementation of

existing technologies (4,18).

In the short term, an efficient mechanism for

matching qualified people to the available jobs

is necessary, and sufficient money and other

incentives must be provided. Expatriates, including U.S. professionals, can carry out certain critical functions. However, over-reliance

on expatriates is expensive, maintains dependency, may lead to adoption of inappropriate

technologies, and contributes little to building

a political consensus on the value of tropical

forests. For these reasons and because the

scope of tropical forest development problems

and opportunities is so large, improvement in

both the quantity and quality of education within tropical countries is essential to sustain tropical forest resources in the long run.

Forestry Education and Training

Programs in Tropical Countries

Forestry degree programs are offered by 23

universities in tropical Africa, 55 in tropical

Asia, and 39 in tropical America. In addition,

tropical Africa has 59 technical schools offering forestry courses, tropical Asia has 118, and

tropical America has 51. Nearly all of these,

however, are new and produce few graduates

each year.

Most of these professional and technical forestry programs have focused on commercial

timber production and industrial processing.

Now, however, the emphasis in tropical forest

resource development is changing to include

social forestry, agroforestry, and fuelwood

forestry. To support this shift, the tropical

forestry schools need to make some fundamental changes.

ENCOURAGE INTERDISCIPLICIPLINARY APPROACH

Professionals, including foresters, sometimes

become too narrowly focused (8). This tendency is particularly troublesome in tropical forestry because the interactions between natural

systems and social systems are so complex. Despite widespread agreement that the major constraints on improved forest resource management are socioeconomic and institutional, social perspectives remain underrepresented in

forestry curricula.

Forestry education has been strongly oriented toward biological sciences. It has not

filled a critical need for professional understanding of and competence in determining

the potential of forests in rural development;

the social values in rural income and employment; reduction of urban migration; land use

planning; diversification of agriculture; the

linkages of the variety of products from forest

resources with other sectors of the economy

such as supplying raw material for low cost

housing; nor with the way forest industry development can be directed to fit the various

stages in the country’s development (15).

Special efforts need to be taken to incorporate social science components into forestry and

related program curricula. Too often, rural sociology, applied anthropology, education methodology, political science, and history are ignored. Although forest economics is included

in many forestry curricula, it needs to incor-
Ch. 12—Education, Research, and Technology Transfer ● 259

porate an orientation more than industrial

wood production and demand. Natural resource development planning, environmental

quality assessment, and administrative and

managerial skills also have been neglected.

Knowledge of agronomy, soil science, range

management, and animal husbandry is also important for forestry professionals in most tropical countries.

There are two ways to broaden forestry education: provide continuing education in social

and agricultural sciences to forest professionals and forestry school faculty, and support the

addition or joint appointments of social scientists as faculty in forestry schools. The disadvantage of the first approach is that many of

these people may not have an inclination or aptitude for the social sciences. The problem with

the second approach is that social scientists in

tropical nations may not understand the relationship between their discipline and forestry.

This can be ameliorated by providing in-house

training in forestry and the natural sciences for

social scientists. It would not, however, solve

the problem of how to attract top quality social

scientists into a field that is undersupported

and generally viewed as less prestigious than

other fields such as health and education.

DEVELOP TEACHING MATERIALS AND FACILITlES

Many faculty members in tropical universities were educated in developed countries.

Thus, they are likely to teach concepts and use

course materials appropriate for capital-intensive production forestry in temperate zones.

But under tropical conditions the temperate

zone forestry technologies may not be economically feasible or socially desirable. Further,

temperate zone techniques can be poorly

adapted to ecological conditions in the Tropics

and may require equipment or skilled labor that

is not available (35).

Teaching materials relevant to tropical forests are scarce. While some appropriate information and course materials are available, they

are poorly distributed. This situation could improve if teachers and researchers were to receive support to develop original course materials. Teaching materials developed in

tropical countries can be evaluated for their applicability in other countries. Funds could be

provided to modify, translate, and distribute

these materials internationally. Some surprisingly simple and inexpensive efforts can be

very effective. For example, botanists have produced inexpensive and accurate tree identification handbooks by photocopying leaf, twig,

flower, and seed specimens that are available

in U.S. herbaria (21).

Many tropical forestry schools also lack adequate library and computer facilities, field and

laboratory equipment, and arboretum or herbarium facilities. Computers, programmable

calculators, and software can greatly facilitate

teaching, research, and forest management.

For tropical forestry schools, minicomputers

are advantageous because they are relatively

inexpensive and easy to operate and repair.

Museums can be teaching tools of great importance to tropical forestry. In the United

States, the Smithsonian Institution, Chicago’s

Field Museum of Natural History, the Missouri Botanical Garden, New York Botanical Garden, and certain museums affiliated with universities are examples. Museums in tropical

countries unfortunately are seldom teaching

museums. They are underfinanced and not

particularly useful to forestry education. Supporting development of good teaching museums with well-stocked and well-curated herbarium and arboretums would be an effective

way to improve tropical forestry education (4).

RECRUIT APPROPRIATE PEOPLE

Forestry education is not a prestigious profession in most tropical countries. Careers in

this field do not offer the social or financial

benefits that many other fields offer. Forestry

school faculties in many countries are poorly

paid and many of the best quickly move on to

other occupations. In some countries, teaching

staff are borrowed from the Forestry Department but are selected on the basis of seniority

rather than teaching ability. Consequently, forestry education is severely constrained by a

shortage of qualified teachers (28) and univer-
260 Ž Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

sit y forestry programs have difficulty competing with other programs for funds, facilities,

and top quality students and scientists.

U.S. scientists could increase their effort to

help their colleagues in tropical schools gain

international recognition and, thus, prestige in

their universities. Development assistance

agencies also could invest additional money in

graduate programs for tropical forestry

schools, provide continuing education opportunities for faculty, provide scholarships, sponsor research, and develop facilities (e.g., libraries, laboratories, field stations). Developing facilities alone can be a waste of foreign assistance funds, however, if expert personnel are

not available or developed simultaneously (4).

DEVELOP GRADUATE PRORAMS

Few forestry schools in the Tropics offer

graduate degrees. Although the development

of a strong undergraduate program is the first

priority in forestry education, graduate schools

are important to produce future educators, researchers, and upper-level decisionmakers.

Graduate programs also are important because

they involve students and faculty in modern

current research. Without a research component, it is difficult for forestry and related

disciplines to attract and retain top quality

students and faculty.

SUPPORT TECHNICAL SCHOOL PRGORAMS

The shortage of adequately trained forestry

extension agents in rural areas probably is a

greater constraint on resource-sustaining technologies than the lack of professional personnel. The need for field technicians and extension workers will increase as tropical nations

begin to manage forests, promote agroforestry,

and disseminate improved wood-use technologies. In particular, more women should be

educated as foresters, technicians, and extension agents because women are heavily involved in using forest resources and in many

cultures they can be reached best by other

women (20).

Recruiting students to work as forestry technicians is a problem. Few students who complete technical training take field jobs and

many who do may leave them soon. Educated

people generally prefer to live in urban areas,

making it difficult to retain good field staff, Innovative approaches to this problem need to

be developed, supported, and documented. For

example, it may be useful to increase recruitment from rural areas, although this might necessitate expanding technical schools’ programs to offer remedial work in basic academic

skills.

U.S. forestry schools can improve technical

schools in the Tropics by helping produce

training materials. Also they can support

education of technical school instructors

through training programs organized by the

Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) or

other organizations. U.S. forestry schools generally do not have the ability to contribute more

directly to training technicians and extension

agents for tropical forestry and agroforestry (4).

IN-SERVICE TRAINING

Even if actions to improve forestry education

programs begin soon, a substantial lag will occur before those students are in influential positions. Therefore, it is also important to update

training of resource management professionals

and technicians.

In-service training enables staff to keep up

with advances in forestry techniques and in related fields such as agriculture, livestock management, and soil and water conservation. It

is particularly important for social forestry

projects because conventional forestry education has included so little training on social aspects of resource development. Unfortunately, with the existing shortages of qualified professionals and technicians, it often is difficult

to release forest department staff for extended

training courses (40).

The United Nations FAO Forestry Department has developed a program to support

in-service training of forestry personnel in developing countries. This program receives

some financial support through the U.S. contribution to FAO, and this seems an effective

channel for continued or increased U.S. support of in-service training. However, at present
Ch. 12—Education, Research, and Technology Transfer . 261

U.S. experts play only a small part in the FAO

Forestry program.

Opportunities for the U.S. in Tropical

Forestry Education and Training

The United States has important expertise

and experience in forestry education and has

some experts in tropical forestry, botany, zoology, soils, and related topics scattered among

U.S. academic institutions. These experts are

contributing in a piecemeal but significant

fashion to education of U.S. and tropical country foresters and other professionals interested

in tropical forest resources.

In the fall of 1982, some 487 students from

developing countries were enrolled at U.S.

forestry schools, and a survey of 44 North

American forestry schools found 33 were anticipating expansion of their international

forestry activities (25). Newsletters, directories,

and other networks to facilitate communication among tropical forest experts are being established, for example, by the International

Society of Tropical Foresters.

IMPROVE THE CAPABILITIES OF U.S. UNIVERSITIES

Most U.S. universities have had only peripheral interests and activities in tropical

forestry. This is, in part, because few U.S.

faculty have experience in tropical forestry.

Many of those work for State-supported universities where overseas work is not well-regarded

(43). Consequently, those who seek overseas

forestry work often are professionals at the beginning of their careers or those nearing retirement (4).

Few courses offered by U.S. forestry schools

focus on the Tropics or on international economic and political interactions and resource

interdependence (34). Some U.S. universities

can give foreign students an excellent education in the fundamentals of basic science, forest

management, forest industries, and quantitative methods (26). But education on the applied

aspects of tropical forest management and

ecology mostly is lacking. If U.S. forestry

schools are to play an effective role in technology transfer to the Tropics, changes must be

made in the curricula. Special attention has to

be paid to the appropriateness of the technologies taught. Otherwise, students from the

Tropics will not be able to apply their newly

acquired knowledge. Few U.S. schools are well

equipped to train U.S. or foreign students in

social or community forestry.

The training of foresters gives them a sense

that they command an expertness and set of

skills which permits them to diagnose and

prescribe for society. Community forestry

turns that upside down so that the professional becomes a coordinator and facilitator of

diagnoses and prescriptions made by the community (6).

This change requires development of communications and public relations skills as well

as sensitivity to cultural factors (13,30).

Lack of a tropical setting for field courses

constrains U.S. universities’ ability to serve the

needs of students who are to work in the Tropics. Education cannot be limited to the classroom. Field courses and internships including

field work are essential (38). Both the social and

natural science aspects of tropical forestry involve problem-solving skills that are better

learned in the field than in classroom lectures

and laboratory exercises (28).

ENHANCE COMMUNICATION ● ITV9SSN TROPICAL

SCHOOLS AND U-S. INSTITUTIONS

The faculty, administrators, and students in

tropical schools often find it difficult to locate

particular expertise in U.S. universities. Twinning and consortia are two mechanisms that

are used to facilitate communication between

U.S. and tropical nation schools. Twinning refers to the establishment of a special long-term

association between a forestry school in the

Tropics and one in another country.

A twinning arrangement can help develop

teaching and research capabilities in both institutions (4,47). It offers the advantage of continuity, providing time for faculty and administrators on both sides to understand the problems and opportunities in the other country.
262 Ž Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

It also provides the opportunity to develop

good working relationships.

Twinning could be used to broaden tropical

forestry education. For example, some U.S.

universities have strong social science expertise that could be applied to forest resource development issues. U.S. faculty can help develop teaching materials, design or conduct research, and temporarily substitute for tropical university faculty when they are absent for

course material development, advanced education, or in-service training.

Twinning, however, has disadvantages. U.S.

universities are likely to perceive little benefit

to themselves from participating. Thus, twinning activities may be assigned a low priority

unless there is sufficient external funding (4).

The exchange of faculty, students, and information may end up being one-way—from tropical country institution to developed country

university. Also, since no single U.S. university offers a comprehensive program in tropical

forest resources, limiting access to the expertise available in just one U.S. university could

be a disadvantage to the tropical university.

Consortia of U.S. universities can resolve

some of twinning’s disadvantages because they

can provide a wider range of expertise to the

tropical institutions. The consortium can direct

tropical faculty, administrators, or students to

programs best suited to their needs. Some such

consortia already exist (ch. 5). However,

neither twinning nor consortia are able to resolve several major constraints on development

of U.S. expertise in tropical forestry (4). These

include:

1.

2.

3.

4.

5*

Insufficient faculty competence in tropical

forest resource fields.

Lack of tropical forest environments in

which to teach tropical forest resource

management.

Lack of a suitable setting for relevant faculty and graduate student research.

Lack of a center for exchange of ideas

among tropical forest resource scholars.

Lack of a center to house necessary collateral institutions, including a tropical herbarium, tropical wood collection, and tropical arboretum.

These constraints could be overcome by designating and developing institutions, located

in U.S. humid tropical and semiarid areas, to

serve as centers of excellence in tropical forest

resource development. The primary purpose

of such centers would be to advance tropical

forest resource education. They also could conduct research programs and act as information

clearinghouses. For these centers, tropical forest resources would not be a peripheral interest; they would be the main focus. And because

the research and teaching could be applied to

resource development in the area where the

centers are located, they should receive support from State and territorial organizations.

If emphasis on the special importance of social sciences, economic botany, and other disciplines were written into the charters of such

centers, they could become more truly interdisciplinary than are conventional forestry

schools. It would be difficult to assign permanently at one location the breadth of expertise

necessary for an excellent program on tropical

forest resources. This could be accomplished

by using a core staff of research scientists

together with a series of short-term assignments of faculty from various institutions (4).

The information clearinghouse function of

the centers of excellence could serve not only

education organizations but also resource development agencies in tropical nations. The

centers could identify:

●

●

●

●

●

appropriate U.S. organizations where people from tropical countries could obtain

graduate and post-graduate training,

U.S. organizations where tropical universities can find institution-building expertise,

tropical organizations interested in collaborative research and instruction with U.S.

universities,

sources of funding available for these exchanges, and

expertise on various new or existing technologies.

The U.S. Forest Service has a program providing such information for AID projects. Evaluations indicate that the quality of AID’s forestry-related projects has been substantially im-
Ch. 12—Education, Research, and Technology Transfer ● 263

proved by this relatively inexpensive effort.

Centers of excellence could extend this broker

function to institutions other than AID.

Locating the centers of excellence in the

United States would help assure continuity and

stability of funding, thus giving better opportunity for long-term research, training, and

service capabilities (4). Associating such centers with existing institutions could avoid the

costs and risks of establishing entirely new facilities. For example, the U.S. Forest Service

Institutes in Puerto Rico and Hawaii could be

developed as centers of excellence to serve

tropical America and tropical Asia, respectively. Similarly, the Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute in Kingsville, Tex., which conducts

some research and training in semiarid land

forestry, could be strengthened and broadened

to become a center of excellence.

A major drawback to the center of excellence

concept is that substantial Federal funding

might be necessary. Another disadvantage is

that the U.S. tropical island locations are not

biologically typical of forest resources on tropical continents, and none of the U.S. locations

have sociological or institutional conditions

similar to tropical nations. The centers might

overcome these constraints by arranging to use

facilities at tropical universities as field stations

or by helping tropical schools develop new

field stations.

An alternative to establishing new centers

would be for the United States to offer support

to international institutions that are working

to provide tropical forest resource education

and research programs, such as the International Council for Research on Agroforestry

(ICRAF) located in Kenya, the United Nations

University (UNU) headquartered in Japan, and

the Centro Agrontimico Tropical de Investigacidn y Ensenanza (CATIE) in Costa Rica. These

institutions have cooperative programs with

universities in other tropical countries. Concentrating the U.S. effort on existing international institutions would not be a complete substitute for a U.S. center of excellence, however.

The forestry mandates of these institutions are

relatively narrow—their forestry efforts focus

mainly on agroforestry and, except for ICRAF,

their major emphasis is on annual crop agriculture.

Environmental Education

One reason why the forestry sector has been

relatively neglected in many tropical countries

is that decisionmakers and the general public

are unaware of the costs of forest degradation

and the benefits of forest maintenance. Environmental education is a term that covers a

broad range of efforts to change people’s behavior by 1) giving them knowledge regarding

interactions between natural resources and the

quality of their lives, 2) inspiring an emotional

commitment to environmental quality, and 3)

teaching what actions individuals and groups

can take to sustain or improve the productivity of their environment.

To change people’s attitudes toward natural

resources, an education program should be

based not only on technical knowledge of environmental sciences but also on knowledge of

the psychological and cultural factors that motivate human behavior (39). However, environmental educators are generally not trained in

the sciences of human behavior and so do not

apply the scientific method to improve environmental education techniques. Trial and error with little basis in scientific theory can lead

to improvements if the reasons for success and

failure are documented. Unfortunately, environmental education programs in tropical nations, perhaps because they are so small relative to the problems they address, seldom set

aside sufficient funds or time for evaluation

and documentation (45).

Ideally, environmental education should be

incorporated into regular curricula at the

primary school level. That is when basic attitudes and values are formed, and primary

school will be many tropical people’s only formal education. Practical considerations, however, constrain this broad and future-oriented

approach. The few environmental education

programs that exist are poorly funded and

understaffed. Thus, priorities must be set to en-
264 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

sure the effective use of very limited educational resources. For U.S.-funded efforts, the

most effective approach may be to focus first

on those who make decisions of greater longterm impact—politicians, government officials,

and faculty who are teaching potential future

leaders.

Mass media can provide effective means to

reach populations outside the classroom. They

can be used to teach principles of ecology and

resource management, to illuminate pressing

resource development problems, and to explain

how people can affect resource sustainability

directly or by influencing public policy. Radio,

newspapers, pamphlets, and comic books have

been cost-effective tools for education in tropical countries. Environmental education activities also can be tied into development projects

in their public outreach and monitoring and

evaluation functions (36).

Principles of Environmental Education

The state of the art in environmental education is not sufficiently advanced to predict specifically what techniques will succeed in various situations. But a review of development

assistance programs with environmental education components has indicated general principles for success in environmental education

(45). Programs should:

● address specific resource problems,

● reach particular audiences,

. reach all the decisionmakers who must

participate in the solution to the problem,

● be compatible with cultural values and

personal motivations,

● include opportunities for continuing evaluation, documentation, and adaptation,

and

● include opportunities and support to make

the education effort ongoing and capable

of spreading to other audiences. (45).

The environmental education task is straightforward only where benefits accrue directly to

the decisionmaker. For example, a social forestry project in Northern Pakistan that seeks

to change the use of steep deforested hillsides

has had enthusiastic participation from farmers who want to preserve their land’s productivity for the benefit of their children. However,

getting government officials to allocate scarce

resources to expand the program has not been

so easy. The program benefits some upland

farmers in a few years and more downstream

farmers in many years, but it may never directly benefit the government personnel by bringing political recognition.

Another example that demonstrates several

of the environmental education principles is

a Peace Corps project in Paraguay that trained

rural elementary school teachers in basic environmental education methods. The program

was designed to include the faculty and staff

from the schools, officials from the Ministries

of Agriculture and Education, and Peace Corps

staff. Ministry officials were convinced of the

importance of environmental education

through workshops and discussions. To encourage the teachers, the Ministries agreed to

provide salary increases for teachers in a pilot

program who developed and evaluated an environmental education curriculum for their

students. However, the importance of a multilevel approach became apparent when the

Peace Corps diminished its involvement with

ministry officials and focused only on the

teachers. Ministry support declined and so the

teachers could not spread the curriculum they

had designed beyond the initial pilot project

area. This suggests that the program may have

failed to provide for the personal motivations

of all levels of decisionmakers who would affect the program’s success.

Because changes in human attitudes are difficult to effect and measure, environmental education efforts will remain difficult to evaluate,

document, and duplicate. This gives the technology a disadvantage when competing with

other, better developed technologies that have

more easily measured results. Although environmental education lacks a strong basis in behavioral science, it can still progress if programs are documented by the practitioners.
Ch. 12—Education, Research, and Technology Transfer Ž 265

RESEARCH

Fundamental and Applied Research

Sustaining tropical forest resources depends

on implementing technologies that simultaneously can: 1) provide basic needs (food, fiber,

fuel, construction materials, and cash), 2) sustain the renewability of the resources, and 3)

be profitable and culturally acceptable to different groups with different levels of knowledge, skills, and resources. Technologies that

meet all these requirements exist for only a few

tropical forest situations, but probably could

be developed for other kinds of forests with

other socioeconomic conditions. Such technology development will require fundamental research on both natural and manipulated ecosystems, applied research on technologies appropriate for specific cultural and ecological

conditions, projects implementing the technolPhoto credit: U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization

Forestry research, both fundamental and applied, is

often poorly linked to development programs. However,

programs exist that can pay substantial returns on the

research investment. Here a Teca tree is prepared for

transplanting at the Magdalena Valley Corporation’s

research center at Santa Marta, Colombia

ogies, and evaluation research that leads to

continuous improvement and diffusion.

The purpose of fundamental forestry research is to increase understanding of the

structure and functioning of forest ecosystems,

the physiology of plants and animals, and their

use by humans (33). This work serves as the

foundation for the principles and techniques

used in applied forestry research, which is

directed toward solving particular problems or

improving the use and conservation of forest

resources (9). In practice, the distinction between fundamental and applied research often

is difficult to make.

Fundamental and applied research on forest

resource systems typically require long periods

of study before firm conclusions can be drawn

because:

● tree lifecycles are long,

● tropical forest components have complex

interactions,

• some of these interactions manifest slowly as cycles of plant succession and climate

occur, and

● interactions can be obscured by changes

in weather and hydrologic flows,

Longer terms for research funding (4-5 year

budgets) generally result in better research and,

in the long run, more efficient use of research

funds (12,33).

Moreover, applied forestry research usually

must be site-specific, and transferring the results to other locations often necessitates repeating some of the research. Ecological and

silvicultural research in natural forest management, soils, pests and diseases, watershed management, and wildlife are especially site-specific (9). Sociological research similarly is areaspecific because of differences in cultures and

local problems (20). Site-specificity, however,

can be overemphasized. Well-designed applied

research can produce general lessons that can

be extrapolated and can accelerate research at

other sites (12,46).

25-287 0 - 84 - 18
266 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Research Priorities

Fundamental Rsearch

Fundamental research on tropical forests has

concentrated more on evolutionary biology

than on tropical ecosystem processes (12).

Much research seems simply to reaffirm what

has been known for decades. Recognition that

the moist tropical forest exists essentially in

balance with its environment by recycling nutrients obtained from decaying plant material, not by drawing upon soil minerals, was

recognized in 1937 (17). The relationship of

chemistry and mineralogy to the hardening of

certain soils in the hot, wet Tropics after forest

clearing was described in 1956 (2). And because it was recognized that soils of the hot,

wet Tropics largely were devoid of important

plant nutrients, the overlying forest cover was

described as early as 1958 as being ecologically “a desert covered by trees” (10).

Scientists have begun to recognize the need

to shift research emphasis to include human

manipulation of the ecosystems. The National Academy of Sciences Committee on Research Priorities in Tropical Biology has concluded that tropical ecosystem studies should

concentrate on areas that are “selected because

they are representative, diverse, and capable

of experimental manipulation and because of

scientific and societal importance. ”

The NAS report calls for in-depth study of

four types of tropical ecosystems: infertile new

world moist lowland forest, fertile new world

moist lowland forest, Southeast Asian lowland

forest, and new world deciduous forest. The

report does not say what technique was used

to calculate tradeoffs in choosing these four

types. The semiarid open canopy forests and

shrublands of the Tropics are poorly represented in the ranking, which suggests that the

scientists on the NAS committee give higher

priority to the goals related to biologically

“rich” environments than to environments

where the effects of resource degradation on

humans are most immediate.

Regarding priorities for biological inventory,

the NAS committee cites areas that contain the

richest and most highly endemic biota and

those containing biota in immediate danger of

extinction. This includes the coastal forests of

Ecuador, coastal southern Bahia and Espirito

Santo in Brazil, the eastern and southern Brazilian Amazon, western and southern Cameroon and adjacent parts of Nigeria and Gabon,

Hawaii, Madagascar, Sri Lanka, Borneo, Celebes, New Caledonia, and forested areas in

Tanzania and Kenya.

The committee assigned highest priority to

anthropological studies and to interdisciplinary

rsearch on the historical, political, social, and

economic phenomena that lead to ecological

instability in the Tropics. In Mexico, Indonesia, and Thailand, ecological and anthropological research are being combined to investigate

traditional resource use systems (16). This approach seems especially likely to lead to modern techniques that are at once profitable and

resource conserving (16).

Applied Research

A common criticism of applied forestry research is that it is not focused on resource management needs. Many forest research institutes

in developing countries study highly specialized topics to serve academic purposes (27).

The management-oriented research that occurs

has emphasized short-term trials of exotic species and specialized plantation techniques (5).

Often research is based on outdated methods

or is implemented incorrectly (22). Furthermore, most of the applied research in tropical

forestry has been restricted to biophysical topics while many, perhaps most, of the real constraints are social, economic, or political

(23,27).

Applied forest resources research can be

made more relevant if the researchers understand the problems faced by technology implementors. Government project managers, extension agents, timber concessionaires, forest industry managers, users of nonindustrial private

forests, and other potential users of research

findings should help select the research topics

(24).

An exchange of information with local people also is usually necessary to correctly iden-
Ch. 12—Education, Research, and Technology Transfer ● 267

tify resource development problems. Yet, processes to allocate research funds usually involve

little interaction with local people until after

the topic is set (20). Researchers need to increase their sensitivity to what is achievable

in situations where capital and management

skills are scarce and where labor is abundant

but costly (14).

Before 1980, few systematic attempts had

been made to establish comprehensive priorities for applied tropical forest research or to

coordinate programs. Since then, various organizations have recognized that the limited

research funds must be used more efficiently

and have produced priority lists. Tables 32,

33, and 34 show priorities identified by the

Table 32.—U.S. Priorities for Applied Research

1. Reforestation and afforestation

A.

B.

c.

D.

E.

F.

Species selection

Erosion control

Maintenance of soil fertility

Nursery establishment and planting techniques

Protection

1. Grazing animals

2. Pests and disease

3. Fire

Shelterbelt configurations

Il. Meeting the demand for fuels

A. Alternatives to fuelwood

B. More efficient, culturally acceptable woodstoves

and charcoal production techniques

Ill. Industrial forestry and conservation

A. Properties of species currently not used by

industry

B. Techniques for decreasing wood losses in

harvesting, transport, storage, and processing

IV. Remote sensing applications

V. Integration of forest management into comprehensive

rural development

A. Multiple-use management

B. Combinations of activities

C. Incentives for carrying out sound management

VI. Economics

A. Relationship between forest land management and

watersheds

B. Value of wildlife

C. Relative merits of village woodlots, farm forestry,

reforestation, agroforestry, and strip planting

D. Demonstration effects of forestry programs

SOURCE: U.S. Interagency Task Force in Tropical Forests, The World’s Tropical

Forests: A Policy Strategy and Program for the United States

(Washington, DC.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1980).

Table 33.-World Bank/FAO Priorities for Forestry

Research in Developing Countries

1. Forestv in relation to agriculture and rural development

A. Sociological and institutional research

B. Farming systems using trees

C. Watersheds (catchments) and range management

D. Wildlife in relation to rural welfare

Il. Forestry in relation to energy production and use

A. Silviculture of biomass/fuelwood species

and systems

B. Yield, harvesting, and properties

C. Industrial research related to village technology

D. Comparison with alternative fuels (social, technical,

and economic efficiency)

E. Wood-based derivatives

Ill. Management and conservation of existing resources

(mainly natural forests)

A. Resource survey

B. Conservation

C. Silvicultural systems for natural forests

D. Whole tree use

E. Use and marketing of secondary species

F. Wood preservation

IV. Industrial forestry

A. Silviculture and management

B. Wood properties

SOURCE: World Bank/Food and Agriculture Organization, Forestry Needs in

Developing Countries: T/me for a Reappraisal? paper for 17th IUFRO

Congress, Kyoto, Japan, Sept. 6-17, 1981

Table 34.—The East-West Center’s Priority List for

Scientific Forestry Research

Rank

1

2

3

4

5

6

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

Subject

Ecology

Silviculture

Agroforestry

Reforestation, afforestation

Watershed management, hydrology

Fuel, bioenergy

Forest industries and use

Surveys and inventories

Education, research, and training

Policy and planning

Logging and transport

Nursery practice

Genetics

Marketing

Economics, especially of product processing

Land tenure

Soils

Protection of wood products

Forest products (technological)

SOURCE: E. Brunig, Summary Report on the Asia-Pac/fic Regional Workshop for

Forest Research Directors (Honolulu, Hawaii, East-West Center

Environment and Policy Institute, 1982).
268 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

U.S. Interagency Task Force (43), The World

Bank/FAO (47), and the East-West Center Conference (5).

The recent creation of research priority lists

suggests that organizations funding applied

tropical forestry research may begin to exert

more control over which topics are investigated. Other recent developments suggest that

the scientists who do forestry research are recognizing the urgency of tropical forest resource

problems and are ready to cooperate with coordination efforts.

For example, the International Union of Forestry Research Organizations (IUFRO) has concentrated on timber production for use in the

industrialized nations. Now, it is shifting its

focus to forestry in the developing nations and

is organizing a series of international workshops on fuelwood systems and multipurpose

trees for reforestation of degraded lands. These

workshops are expected to guide research

funding by donor agencies such as AID. Meanwhile, AID is substantially increasing its funding for forestry research over the next 10 years.

Dissomination of Research Findings

Within many tropical countries, little communication takes place between research organizations and the government agencies that

carry out resource development programs (47).

In some countries, language barriers and the

scarcity and cost of translation services cause

difficulties. However, even within the United

States a similar lack of communication occurs

between forestry researchers and technology

implementors (9). Researchers are not rewarded for publishing in popular literature,

and the planners and managers of forest resource development projects seldom have the

time or inclination to study technical reports

in scientific journals.

Obstacles to effective dissemination include:

● lack of public recognition of the relevance

and urgency of the situation,

• lack of political support,

● unwillingness to accept risks,

●

●

●

●

●

●

inadequate verification and demonstration

of findings,

incompatibility between donor objectives

and research needs,

failure to use the potential of the popular

media,

inadequate funding of dissemination activities,

incomprehensibility of dissemination presentations, and

insufficient experience in dissemination

(5).

Dissemination of research findings to decisionmakers and field staff could be improved

with better organization and funding (27).

IUFRO carries out some dissemination, but its

role could be increased. IUFRO’S official publications are issued in English, French, and

German; the lack ‘of Spanish translations is a

deficiency. More study tours and exchanges

among developing countries could increase

technical cooperation (47).

Computerized information storage and retrieval systems exist in the United States and

in other industrial nations that could be used

to improve the dissemination of research results and, thus, could greatly enhance the benefits derived from research on tropical forest

resources. Examples include the AGRICOLA

bibliographic systems of USDA’s National Library of Agriculture, Ecosystematics and other

data bases at USDA’s Economic Botany Laboratory, the Smithsonian Science Information

Exchange, the U.S. Forest Service Current Information System, and the Commonwealth

Forestry Institute System (Oxford, England).

The U.S. Forest Service has a popular periodical, Treeplanter’s Notes, that disseminates

research findings to forestry practitioners. The

FAO Forestry Department does have a publication, Unasylva, but it has a broad focus and is

aimed at government decisionmakers in the

forestry sector, so it seldom gives the detail

forestry practitioners need. Field-level managers need regional publications that are not

overly technical (23). The U.S. Forest Service

filled this role in one region with The Carib-
bean Forester until this publication was terminated in 1963.

AID supports a large number of small newsletters but these are not always well-publicized

and most of them have a narrow focus (23). One

effective newsletter published by AID, Resources Report, reviews technical reports and

will send copies to less-developed-country subscribers who request them. More efforts also

should be made to translate key research findings into local languages.

Summary

A number of institutional weaknesses in developing countries contribute to the inadequacy of forestry research. The most serious deficiency in many countries is the shortage of

qualified scientists. Researchers often lack

scientific skills as well as related skills in

research management and administration,

technical writing, research design and analysis,

foreign language, and data processing (5).

Mechanisms exist to provide in-service training to tropical nation scientists at universities

and herbaria in the United States, and at the

research stations of the Forest Service and

other agencies of the Departments of Agriculture and Interior. A thorough review of such

opportunities by the General Accounting Office or a similar agency might reveal ways to

use them more effectively.

Well-qualified scientists in tropical nations

often leave government service or emigrate

abroad because of low pay and recognition; inadequate funding; limited research facilities,

equipment, and libraries; or the shortage of

suitable colleagues. Research is hindered in

some countries by bureaucratic rigidities, overcentralization or fragmentation, lack of political support, and interagency rivalries (9,22,33).

In many tropical cultures, little prestige is attached to forestry research because the educated, urban class views field work in rural

areas as hardship duty appropriate only for

lower level staff (22). U.S. scientists concerned

about the degradation of tropical resources

could act through their various professional organizations to enhance the prestige of their colleagues in tropical nations.

Although the United States has recognized

strengths in the social sciences, the number of

U.S. social scientists with expertise relevant to

tropical forest resource development is not

known. They may constitute one of the major

U.S. academic strengths for research on technologies to sustain tropical forest resources.

One or more centers of excellence in tropical

forestry, as discussed earlier in this chapter,

could serve to better coordinate the scattered

U.S. research expertise.

TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER

Background choose, receive, adapt, and deliver technoloThe experience of U.S. forestry organizations

shows that many potentially profitable techniques languish for lack of effective technology

transfer among scientists and between scientists and technology users (9). The tropical nations facing severe deforestation and rapid

population growth cannot afford such inefficiency. Therefore, a concerted effort is needed

to build local organizations’ capacities to

gies appropriate to local circumstances.

Technology transfer is the business of the development assistance agencies, and the way in

which they conduct their business has a major influence on whether renewable resources

are kept renewable. The literature on technology transfer is voluminous but mainly theoretical, and little of this theory is focused on

forest-related technologies. So OTA convened
270 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

an interdisciplinary panel to consider the conditions necessary for successful transfer of

tropical forest resource technologies.

Necessary Conditions for

Succesful Technology Transfer

Nine key conditions for successful technology transfer were identified. First, the technology should be adapted to the local biophysical and socioeconomic environment of the

users. The technology to be transferred should

have been used successfully elsewhere under

similar conditions, at least on a pilot scale.

Technology transfer should not be confused

with experimentation or applied research.

Otherwise, the technology is likely to be unsuccessful and the adopters might become unwilling to try other innovations.

Second, technology is transferred most effectively by direct people-to-people actions.

People who are to adapt and apply the technology need to learn it directly from people

who have experience applying it. Successful

technology transfers seldom are based solely

on media presentations, such as pamphlets,

books, radio programs, or films. Rather, personal interactions are essential. Media presentations, however, can help motivate the personal interaction, supplement technology transfer

efforts, and support subsequent applications of

the technology (3).

Third, the technology transfer agents must

be well-qualified and able to communicate effectively to people who are capable of receiving and applying the technology. Agency personnel who are themselves learning the technology for the first time as they try to transfer

it are often a cause of failure. Thus, development assistance agencies need to employ substantial numbers of experienced technical

personnel.

A more significant constraint is the lack of

indigenous capacity to continue the technology

transfer beyond the boundaries of development

assistance projects. Thus, the task for development assistance agencies is to enable local

organizations to build an effective system of

transfer agents who use personal contact to reassure people about the appropriateness of an

innovation and who provide the information

needed for a fair trial.

Fourth, in addition to transfer agents and

capable recipients, “facilitators” or “middlemen” are needed. These people must understand the technology transfer process, especially the market for the technology and its products and the political, social, and economic

constraints and opportunities affecting the

other actors. Because technology transfer is

usually a long-term process, subject to mistakes

and setbacks, it needs advocates to help the

new technologies compete with established

ways of using resources. Thus, facilitators must

maintain their roles throughout the transfer

process.

The permanent staff of development assistance agencies could act as facilitators. Too

often, however, they are rotated to other parts

of the agency before the technology transfer

process is complete. An alternative is for the

development assistance agencies to locate and

work with facilitators among the indigenous

tropical people (31).

Fifth, users and transfer agents should be involved in choosing, planning, and implementing the technology transfer so it meets actual

needs and is appropriate for the situation. For

example, women are most directly affected by

community forestry projects but are usually excluded from problem identification and project

planning efforts (l).

Sixth, all parties involved must feel that they

are “winners” and must, in fact, be winners.

Each actor’s interests should be identified at

the start of the technology transfer process so

they can be addressed. Early in the transfer

process, the potential users must be shown the

merits of an innovation (31). Many ideas that

outsiders think will solve development problems may not seem so beneficial to the people

who are directly affected by them. For example, village woodlots maybe supported by local

women who otherwise must walk far to collect each day’s fuel but resisted by local men
Ch. 12—Education, Research, and Technology Transfer . 271

who may view them as an unprofitable use of

land and by herders who may view them as an

intrusion on grazing land.

For technologies designed to produce items

or services for sale, the intended adopters

usually must have information on markets in

order to anticipate benefits. With reforestation

or forest product technologies, the information

can be obtained through demonstration projects, surveys, and market research. Where education and research technologies are being

transferred, it is necessary to determine who

will reward the educator or researcher for

using the new technologies.

Seventh, the participants must be aware of

subsequent steps in the transfer process and

the relationship between their actions and

those steps. This requires early definition and

communication of roles for each person involved. A well articulated strategy must be devised. Of course, this strategy must be flexible,

since it is planned at the time in the transfer

process when least is known about how it will

work. In particular, plans must be made to disseminate the technology beyond the pilot

project.

Eighth, demonstrations of the technology

should take place under conditions similar to

conditions that will exist subsequently. Pilot

projects should not be made unrealistically

easy by being given unrealistic levels of funds

or other inputs, being located where there are

few socioeconomic or institutional constraints,

or being provided with artificial markets.

Finally, the initial commitment of resources

should be sufficient to carry the technology

transfer until it is self-supporting. A transfer

is self-supporting when the techniques have

been adapted to local conditions and are being adopted spontaneously by organizations or

individuals.

Opportunities to improve

Technology Transfer

In agriculture, development assistance agencies have had impressive technology transfer

successes. Yet, relatively little has been done

in the forestry sector. The need for international assistance in development of forest resources

has been realized only recently, but there are

already some indications that the level of such

assistance is leveling off (29). The assistance

agencies’ major opportunities, then, lie more

in increasing the likelihood of technology

transfer success than in increasing the number

of projects.

Coordination of Development

Assistance Agencies

Many organizations attempt to help tropical

nations develop forest resources, but these efforts are poorly coordinated. The causes of

tropical forest degradation are so complex that

no single assistance agency is likely to be able

to create sufficient conditions for the forests

to be sustained. To do that the various capabilities of all the development assistance agencies are needed. However, it is unlikely that

these capabilities will be applied at the right

places at the right times simply by chance.

The need for improved coordination was

stressed in the report of the U.S. Interagency

Task Force on Tropical Forests. In section 118

of the Foreign Assistance Act, Congress has

given AID a specific mandate to improve coordination of forestry and natural resource development assistance in tropical nations. But

the needed coordination does not occur because of the structure, staffing, and management of development assistance bureaucracies.

In the tropical countries, these organizations

are generally too understaffed to manage their

own programs sensitively and have no incentives to coordinate and collaborate with others

(42).

In theory, long range strategies and coordination should be administered by agencies of the

tropical nations. In practice, when funding is

from foreign or international donor agencies,

decisions to implement projects are often made

without reference to a long-term resource development strategy or to how the project compares with alternative investments. Because the

availability of the donor funds usually cannot

be separated from a specific project (41), the
272 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

immediate need to maximize foreign donor

funding interferes with the longer term need

to coordinate donor efforts.

One way to get around these bureaucratic

constraints is to establish ad hoc international

organizations with no programs or policies to

promote other than 1) design of long-term strategies for technology transfer to effect sustainable resource development, and 2) coordination of assistance agencies’ contributions to

carrying out those strategies. Coordinated Development in Africa (CDA) is such an ad hoc

organization that seems to be gaining the political influence and the technical expertise

necessary to make this approach work. Its efforts are directed to designing long-term strategies. Whether the coordination necessary to

follow such strategies will be politically feasible remains to be demonstrated.

Need for Profossionals

Another major constraint on successful technology transfer is misidentification of resource

development problems. This results from a lack

of public participation in planning technology

transfers and from a too-narrow technical approach to project planning (19). While the need

for participant planning and interdisciplinary

technical inputs is widely recognized, it is too

seldom realized. To a large extent this is because of the shortage of technically experienced personnel in development assistance

agencies’ offices in the tropical countries (42).

Chronic understaffing means that people in

charge must spend nearly all their time doing

bureaucratic functions. Technical inputs are

then left almost entirely to contractors. This

means the agency staff must make decisions

about technical matters which they are often

not qualified to decide.

One opportunity to overcome the shortage

of professionals is to encourage experts who

work for U.S. Federal agencies to take temporary assignments in development assistance

agencies (44). This probably cannot be done effectively without increasing some budgets,

however. Supporting U.S. nationals overseas

is more expensive than supporting them domestically, and their absence would disrupt the

programs of their regular agencies. Public Law

85-795 enables domestic agencies to assign personnel to international development organizations, but it is seldom used.

Technology Transfer Timing and Followup

Technology transfer, especially where the

emphasis is on building the capacity of local

institutions to select, adapt, apply, and disseminate technical innovations, is a long-term process. Periods of 10 to 20 years are typically

needed before progress can be measured in

terms of product or income. Yet, short development project planning and funding cycles

often mean that projects must be evaluated at

the end of 2 to 5 years to determine whether

funding is to continue. At this stage, a technology transfer project is barely under way and

should be expected to have revealed problems

and be experiencing setbacks. Thus, the function of an evaluation should be to develop information on how to deal with these. However,

this important function is compromised if participants in the evaluation fear that a seemingly

negative evaluation will lead to premature termination (42).

Once a technology transfer appears to have

become self supporting on a local level, continuing technical support is often necessary.

Unforeseen problems will arise during the

technology’s diffusion, and these may be beyond the technical capacity of the local institutions. Regional centers of technical expertise

that offer continuing education to technicians,

technology managers, and technology transfer

facilitators, and that disseminate further innovations and improvements in technologies,

could help solve this problem. This has proven

successful with remote-sensing technology

transfer projects sponsored by development

assistance agencies in Africa (7).
Ch. 12—Education, Research, and Technology Transfer Ž 273

CHAPTER 12

1. Agarwal, A., and Arnand, A., “Ask Women

Who Do the Work,” New Scientist, Nov. 4,

1982, PP. 302-304.

2. Alexander, L. T., Cady, J, G., Whittig, L. D., and

Dever, R, F., “Mineralogical and Chemical

Changes in the Hardening of Laterite,” Sixth

Soil Science Congress, vol. 11, 1956, pp. 67-72.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9,

10,

11.

12.

13.

14.

15.

--

Beal, G. M., and Bohlen, J. M., “The Diffusion

Process,” Agric. Ext. Spec. Rep. #18 (Ames,

Iowa: Iowa State University, 1957). In: Muth

and Hendee, 1980.

Bethel, J., Burch, W., and Thorud, D., “Professional Education and Technical Training to

Support Development and Implementation of

Technologies to Sustain Tropical Resources,”

OTA commissioned paper, 1982.

Brunig, E., Summary Report on the Asia-Pacifi”c

Regional Workshop for Forest Research Directors (Honolulu, Hawaii: East-West Center Environment and Policy Institute, 1982).

Burch, W., “Tropical Forests and U.S. Interests

—Some Reminders for Educational Programs,”

OTA commissioned paper, 1982.

Conitz, M., “Technology Transfer Case Studies

and Comments,” paper delivered at OTA Workshop on Technology Transfer, Shepard’s Ford,

Va., Nov. 17-19, 1982.

Coombs, P., “Education on a Treadmill,” Ceres

4 (3), 1971.

Dawson, D., “Applied Research in the United

States Relevant to Tropical Forests and WoodIands, ’’stems That Sustain Tropical Forest and

Woodland Resources, ” OTA commissioned

paper, 1982.

de la Rue, E. Aubert, “Man’s Influence on Tropical Vegetation, ” Proceedings of the Ninth Pacific Science Congress, 1958, pp. 81-94.

Emmelin, L., “Environmental Education at University Level, ” Aznbio 6(4):201-209, 1977.

Ewel, J., University of Florida, personal communication, 1983.

Flores-Rodas, M., “Forestry for Rural Development: A New Approach, ” Tropical Forests—

Utilization and Conservation, Francois Mergen

(cd.) (New Haven, Corm.: Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, 1981).

Flores-Rodas, M., Research Today for Tomorrow’s Forests: Forestry Research and Development for SeZf-ReZiance (Rome: Food and Agriculture Organization, 1981),

Fox, G., Forestry in Developing Countries

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17.

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Hilmi, H., Reappraisal of Education and Training Needs for Forestry and Forest Industries in

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17-19, 1982,

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I.aarman, J., North Carolina State University,

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Ladrach, W., Carton de Colombia, personal

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1982.

Miller, K., et al., Strategy for Training in

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Muth, R. M., and Hendee, J. C., “Technology
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36. Putney, A., Eastern Caribbean Natural Area

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38. Richardson, S. D., “Some Major Issues in Professional Education for Forestry: An International View,” Proceedings of the Second International Congress of the International Union of

Societies of Foresters, Helsinki, 1975.

39. Rokeach, M., Beliefs, Attitudes and Values: A

Theory of Organization and Change (San Francisco: Jossey Bass PubI., 1976).

40. Rukuba, M,, “Continuing Education Needs of

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41. Shaikh, A., “A Framework for Evaluating the

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42. Stegall, R., “Workshop on Technology Trans43

44,

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Wadsworth, F., “Secondary Forest Management and Plantation Forestry Technologies to

Improve the Use of Converted Tropical Lands,”

OTA commissioned paper, 1982.

Walton, D., and Wood, D., “Environmental Education Technologies as Applied to Tropical

Forest Management,” OTA commissioned

paper, 1982.

Whitmore, L., U.S. Forest Service, personal

communication, 1983.

World Bank/Food and Agriculture Organization, Forestry Needs in Developing Countries:

Time for a Reappraisal? paper for 17th IUFRO

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Yantko, J., and Golley, F,, World Census of

Tropical Ecologists (Athens, Ga.: University of

Georgia, Institute of Ecology, 1977).
chapter 13

Forestry Technologies for

U.S. Tropical Territories
Highlights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Forestry in the U.S. Tropics

Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . .

****O*.* . . . . . . . . ● *.,,*.. . .

*..**.. ...*.* .

● ,..*** ● ***..., ● O**..*. . . . . . . . . ● ,.$,... ..***** .

Technologies for Undisturbed Forests. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sample Ecosystems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..... .

Making Undisturbed Forests More Valuable. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Technologies to Reduce Overcutting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Industrial Wood. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... . 

Wood Fuels.... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Technologies for Disturbed Forests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Management of Secondary Forests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Reforestation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ● . . . . . . . .

Forestry Technologies to Support Agricuhure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Agroforestry .. ● ... ● ●

Watersheds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Resource Development Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Education, Research, and Technology Transfer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Environmental Education. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ........?

Professional Education and Technical Training . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Technology Transfer . . . . . .

Conclusion. ... ... .O.....

Chapter 13 References. . . . . . . .

Figure

Figure No.

32. Puerto Rico Commonwealth

,.,... .

,...,, .

0...0, ,

.0.... 0

Forests

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

.46.,.. . . . . . . . . . .*....** ● *O.. *

* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

..4. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Page

275

275

276

276

276

277

278

278

279

280

281

281

284

285

287

288

289

289

290

291

292

293

295

Page

276
Chapter 13

Forestry Technologies for

U.S. Tropical Territories

HIGHLIGHTS

●

●

●

The potential of forestry to contribute to economic development has been underestimated

in the U.S. tropical territories.

Although large-scale industrial forestry is not ●

practical in the island territories, many other

technologies exist that can help satisfy the

needs of growing populations and sustain

the forest resources.

Implementation of suitable technologies will

these regions and on raising decisionmaker

and general public awareness of forest resource potentials.

until local natural resource agencies have

adequate staff and funding, Federal assistance will be required. Without this, needed

resource productivity and development opportunities will be

rely on developing skilled personnel within

FORESTRY IN THE U.S. TROPICS

Until recently the forests in the U.S. tropical

territories have not been managed actively. In

fact, while overexploitation is not now a problem in most areas, poor land uses in the past

have left the islands with significant amounts

of abandoned agricultural land and relatively

unproductive secondary forests.

The U.S. tropical territories also are characterized by growing populations, rising imports

of food, fuel, and wood, dependence on Federal

income supports, and generally high unemployment. Unemployment in Puerto Rico, for

example, exceeds 20 percent in general and approaches 35 percent in rural areas (19). Development of appropriate forestry and agroforestry technologies could help alleviate some of

these problems. Such technologies could provide local substitutes

lost.

for imported products,

providing employment and income opportunities, and protecting against erosion, floods, and

similar environmental damage.

The following discussion of technologies that

offer opportunities for sustainable development of forest resources in the U.S. tropical territories is organized in parallel with chapters

7 through 10. It deals with conservation of undisturbed forests, reducing overcutting, managing disturbed forests, and forest technologies

to support agriculture. Two other sections, corresponding to chapters 11 and 12, discuss technologies for resource development planning,

professional and technical training, environmental education, research, and technology

transfer.

275
276 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Technologies for Undisturbed Forests

Few truly undisturbed forests exist in the

U.S. Caribbean and western Pacific territories.

Those remaining after the past century’s history of deforestation for agriculture are mostly

in inaccessible regions. There are, however,

considerable acreages of secondary forest,

some old enough to fit this report’s definition

of undisturbed forest. * Two methods are available to sustain these forest resources: 1) preserve samples of forest ecosystems in parks and

protected areas, and 2) make undisturbed forests more valuable by increasing sustainable

production of marketable nonwood products

(ch. 7).

Sample Ecosystems

Protected forest areas are well-established in

Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, but

few have been created in the western Pacific.

The most valuable areas of primary forest and

the remaining rare and endemic tree species

*Undisturbed tropical forests are areas where trees are the

dominant woody vegetation covering at least 10 percent of the

ground and where trees have not been cut during the past 60

years.

Figure 32.—Puerto Rico

are protected in Puerto Rico in the National

and Commonwealth Forest reserves and in the

U.S. Virgin Islands National Park. That park

covers nearly three-quarters of St. John Island.

The Caribbean National Forest in Puerto Rico

was established in 1903 and now encompasses

28,000 acres of rain forest. The first Commonwealth forest reserves were formed in 1918.

Now 13 of these cover 59,000 acres and they

include moist and dry forests and mangroves

(fig. 32). Protection policies for these areas have

been fairly effective and remain strongly supported.

In 1976, the Caribbean National Forest** was

designated a biosphere reserve under the

UNESCO Man and the Biosphere (MAB) program. This program is designed to protect representative samples of major ecosystems and

to promote ecologically sound land-use practices in adjacent areas. The forest was subsequently divided into a central zone where no

recreation or management activities are allowed, surrounded by a recreation zone that attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors each

**The Caribbean National Forest also is known as the Luquillo

Experimental Forest and the Luquillo Biosphere Reserve.

Commonwealth Forests

SOURCE: The Geography of Puerto Rico (Chicago: Aldine Publishing Co., 1974).
Ch. 13—Forestry Technologies for U.S. Tropical Territories ● 277

.

year, and an outer zone where the U.S. Forest

Service Institute of Tropical Forestry conducts

forest management research. Part of the Virgin

Islands National Park (11,000 acres) and Puerto

Rico’s Guanica State Forest (10,000 acres) also

have been designated MAB biosphere reserves

(10)0

Creation of a protected area system has been

considered in the Pacific Islands for some time,

but little has been done. In 1956, the High Commissioner of the Trust Territory of the Pacific

Islands established the Ngerukewid Islands

Wildlife Preserve (the Seventy Islands Preserve)

in the Limestone Islands of Palau (11). This includes war sites and sites where the Yapese

people carved wheel-shaped stone money that

reaches up to 8 feet in diameter. This preserve

also protects the endangered Micronesia megapode, the dugong, and other threatened plant

and animal species.

The U.S. National Park Service administers

the War in the Pacific National Historical Park

on Guam, which is forest-covered. The U.S.

Forest Service helped the Guam Department

of Agriculture establish the Patti Point Natural

Area on Andersen Air Force Base. In 1973, the

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service created the Rose

Atoll National Wildlife Refuge at the request

of the government of American Samoa. Since

then, little activity has been undertaken to

establish protected areas.

Opportunity: Characteristics of the western

Pacific Islands such as high endemism, fragile

ecosystems, and dependence on surface water

make protection of some forest areas on these

islands appropriate. National conservation

plans are needed to identify sites that should

be protected as permanent preserves and sites

to be protected until management’s plan can

be instituted.

A team effort by appropriate island agencies,

U.S. Federal agencies, and local colleges could

be used to inventory resources and to design

parks and reserves. This would build local

managerial capacity and ensure that protected

areas fit local needs and conditions.

Current resource inventories conducted

cooperatively by local and Federal agencies

provide a base of information for protected

area establishment. These efforts could be expanded to produce comprehensive natural resource surveys on all the major islands.

Making Undisturbed Forests

More Valuable

One method to sustain forest resources is to

promote the profitable and sustainable use of

animals and plant products other than wood.

This could increase the perceived value of the

forest without increasing the motivation to

overcut its trees. The potential to develop such

products is not large in Puerto Rico and the

U.S. Virgin Islands, but some opportunities

exist, such as small-scale production of honey,

bamboo products, eucalyptus leaves and oil,

molluscicidal Phytolacca, and sphagnum moss

for nursery planting (12). The U.S. Forest Service has no permanently assigned economic botanist and local governments have no plans to

assess or develop such resources.

The potential for this sort of development

‘seems greater in the western Pacific islands

because they have more subsistence-oriented

economies. Gathering activities are a normal

part of subsistence life on the largely communally owned western Pacific islands. However, this has endangered the Micronesia

megapode, a ground-nesting bird whose eggs

are considered a delicacy; the dugong, whose

vertebrae have been used as wrist and ankle

ornaments; and the fruit bat, among others,

Efforts to manage the fruit baton a sustained

basis, including maintenance of its forest habitat, are under way. The Yapese fruit bat is endemic and is Yap’s only indigenous mammal.

These bats are a traditional food in Yap and

are highly sought after by inhabitants of the

Marianas as well. The fruit bats also are believed important for fruit tree pollination and

seed distribution, especially for mango trees (6).

Recently the Government of Yap State banned

hunting of the bat. The U.S. Forest Service is
278 • Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Examples include harvest of nonwood forest

products such as essential oils and mangrove

aquatic organisms, and innovative forest resource management programs that have the

potential to reverse a trend of overharvest.

Technologies tO Reduce Overcutting

Methods to reduce the rate of forest degradation from wood harvest and use include: 1) improved harvesting and transport technologies

to reduce the extent of forest harvested and to

reduce the adverse impacts of harvesting and

transport; and 2) reduced demand for wood

products through more efficient use of available products (ch. 8).

Industrial Wood

Relatively little potential for full-scale industrial forestry exists in the U.S. territories due

to limited forest acreages, topographical factors, competing land uses, small landholdings,

high land prices, and uncertain land tenure.

However, potential does exist for small-scale

industries that can serve domestic markets and

contribute to rising living standards (24).

For example, portable sawmills were introduced in Puerto Rico in 1982, Teak, mahogany,

and Caribbean pine have been successfully and

economically thinned, milled, and marketed by

the Puerto Rico Forest Service. There are plans

to expand this program. Portable sawmills,

combined with regulation of exploitation, are

probably the best-suited harvesting systems for

the western Pacific as well.

Portable sawmills are especially appropriate

for cooperative use because they can be used

as needed and temporarily retired without significant economic disadvantages. They require

little operator training (24). Because they can

be pulled to the harvest site behind small vehicles, they cause less harm to thin soils than larger systems. They do not require an extensive

road system and they leave bark and branches

on the site, thus reducing nutrient loss.

Small-scale sawmills in rural areas can stimulate development of local workshops with corresponding effects on rural employment. These
Ch. 13—Forestry Technologies for U.S. Tropical Territories Ž 279

Photo credit: Williarn Balrner

This plant in Cambalache State Forest, Puerto Rico, is treating posts from both private and Commonwealth lands and is helping

demonstrate the opportunities for growing and using local wood.

effects could be expanded by introducing facilities such as simple and inexpensive solar kilns

or wood preservation equipment. This type of

forest industry development can be upgraded

as workers improve their skills, local management masters the task, and local markets grow

to absorb increased production (24).

Opportunity: Small-scale forest industries

that supply local markets could serve as a starting place for a more comprehensive local forestry industry. Rural centers could process

wood products from portable mills. This would

encourage the creation of a forest constituency to encourage local private organizations and

governments to take action to sustain the forest

resources. Governments in both the Caribbean

and Pacific territories are promoting the creation of private cooperatives in agriculture, although none have yet been organized in forestry.

Wood Fuels

Little need exists to reduce demand for most

local wood products in the U.S. territories. Imports have substituted for products previously

derived from local forests. However, wood

fuels are in short supply in some areas, and

wood fuel technologies can be used to increase

the efficiency of forest product use.

25-287 0 - 84 - 19
280 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropica/ Forest Resources

Firewood is not in high demand in Puerto

Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, except for

some recreational uses. There is significant demand for charcoal for roadside food stands and

home uses; charcoal is imported from the

United States, Germany, and the Dominican

Republic (12). Locally produced charcoal is

made by traditional labor-intensive methods

using earth kilns. As costs of importing fossil

fuels increase, the demand for biomass fuels

should increase.

The U.S. Forest Service uses a more efficient,

portable kiln on St. Croix, to produce charcoal

with wood from thinning and other timber

stand improvement work in the Estate Thomas

Experimental Forest (23). The Puerto Rico

Forest Service operates one demonstration kiln

but more activity in this area maybe necessary

to encourage timber stand improvement (22).

In addition, because the demand for fuelwood

is relatively low in U.S. tropical forests, they

offer an opportunity to study charcoal production and conversion technologies in a stable environment.

The demand for fuelwood in the U.S. western Pacific is rising because of increasing populations and high fossil fuel costs. Perhaps onethird of the Micronesia people have left their

rural lands and are concentrated in urban areas

(38). They need inexpensive energy for cooking. The availability, transport, and price of

fuelwood can vary greatly on an island and

from one island to another. Some towns no

longer have readily available sources of fuelwood, although accessibility to distant supplies

is increasing as roads are improved.

Improved small-scale charcoal production

technologies could make wood a more important energy source. Markets for charcoal may

exist in Japan and other Asiatic nations. However, this type of commercial involvement

should not be promoted until it has been determined that the islands could meet their own

needs on a sustained basis. It is likely that manmade plantations and woodlots would be required, although this could also provide a use

for scrub and for senescent coconut trees.

Opportunity: Senescent coconut plantations,

a major vegetative cover in the U.S. Pacific

Islands, could be used to produce charcoal until conventional firewood plantations are established. Old coconut stems cannot be left to rot

because of the risk of infestation by the Rhinoceros Beetle, which breeds in the old stems and

attacks the newly planted nuts. Unmanaged

coconut plantations also provide larval mosquito habitats in water-filled old nuts. The mosquitos have been known to carry elephantiasis,

encephalitis, and dengue* (13).

Coconut stems are unsuitable as firewood

due to a high moisture content and low density,

but they have high thermal efficiency as charcoal. The technologies for producing coconut

stem charcoal are simple and well-known. For

example, after air-drying, short billets can be

burned in simple kilns or 40-gallon drums.

Development of a coconut stem charcoal industry also could provide some spinoff benefits. Coconut shells produce a high grade pharmaceutical charcoal suitable for activation that

is used as a filter in many industrial and pharmaceutical uses. High-value, low-volume commodities such as this are potential export products (18).

Technologies for Disturbed Forests

Most of the island territories were cleared in

the late 19th and early 20th centuries for export

agriculture—primarily sugarcane, tobacco, and

coffee. When production declined, rural populations reverted to subsistence and local cash

crop production, allowing forests to return on

some areas. More recently, as populations migrate to urban areas and as income support

programs replace subsistence agriculture, the

area of abandoned agricultural lands is again

expanding and much of this is reverting to secondary forest.

Data on the extent of secondary forest are not

yet available for most of the western Pacific territories, but Guam is estimated to have about

*OTA is conducting an assessment of biomedical research and

related technologies for dealing with tropical diseases.
Ch. 13—Forestry Technologies for U.S. Tropical Territories ● 287

70,000 unmanaged acres covered with brush

or trees and 50,000 acres of open or grass-covered land (38). Secondary forest covers 800,000

acres of Puerto Rico. Forest and brush cover

30,000 acres of the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Much of this land could be used to produce

timber and other forest goods, as could some

lands that are not naturally regenerating, particularly the savanna lands of the western Pacific. Significant potential for commercial forest plantations exists only for the larger islands

of Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, Ponape, and Palau. But small-scale timber stand

improvement and village woodlots could supply some needs on smaller islands.

Management of Socondary Forests

Brush and secondary forest in the U.S. Virgin

Islands generally is scrubby and of little interest for wood production. A small area on St.

Croix might be suitable for this use, but high

land prices and land speculation probably prevent secondary forest management from being

perceived as a profitable investment.

Puerto Rico has large areas of secondary forest and its management is a primary focus of

the U.S. Forest Service Institute of Tropical

Forestry (ITF). ITF is conducting an inventory

of secondary forest in Puerto Rico. Although

most of the trees have little commercial value,

the inventory reveals that some valuable timber

species are regenerating on abandoned lands.

Standard timber stand improvement techniques

could result in valuable future timber stands

(22).

Some of these techniques such as enrichment

line plantings of mahogany are being used in

the National and Commonwealth forests. Subsequent harvest provides income for the Puerto

Rico Division of Forestry and supports further management of the National Forest. Even

though improved timber stands probably will

not become a major land use they do have potential to increase the value of private forest

landholdings held for other purposes, such as

recreation, second homes, or inheritance.

Wood harvest in the western Pacific is limited

to fuelwood, some home construction materials, individual tree use by the crafts industry,

and some commercial harvest of mangroves

(32). Little of the forest has significant potential for commercial timber exploitation because

of low volume and poor-quality trees (38). Secondary forest management, however, has considerable potential to provide locally used

products—crafts, poles, construction materials,

firewood, and charcoal. Cottage-based industries could be developed around local forest

products.

Opportunity: Even though managed secondary forest is not likely to become a major land

use in the U.S. territories, it merits consideration as an improvement over unmanaged, lowquality brush or forest land unsuitable for agriculture. In Puerto Rico, managed secondary

forests can provide a first harvest before conversion to plantation forestry or increase the

value of land deliberately held out of intensive

production [e.g., recreation sites).

Additionally, secondary forest management

will provide a means for the National and Commonwealth forests to gain income for further

forestry and preservation efforts. In the western Pacific, managed secondary forests can

sustain the supply of raw materials for locally

used products. Both efforts require further information on the extent, composition, and

quality of secondary forests, and on the current and potential uses of both native and introduced species.

Reforestation

Plantations require more intensive management and a greater initial capital outlay per

acre than secondary forests, but usually produce greater wood yields because stocking

rates and species composition are controlled.

Plantation forestry has greater potential in

Puerto Rico than in the other territories because of higher average per capita income and

greater land tenure security. An estimated

200,000 acres are suitable for plantation for-
282 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

estry (35,36). No plantation inventory has been

conducted in Puerto Rico, but between 35,000

and 95,000 acres of plantations, primarily Caribbean pine, are estimated to exist. Many of

these plantings were established in public forests during the 1930’s (19).

The yield of a pine plantation in Puerto

Rico’s moist and wet forests is about 25 cubic

meters per hectare per year (2,000 board feet/

acre/year) if production is averaged across the

rotation (40). Intensive thinning could increase

this yield and produce 1,000 or more posts per

acre across a 20-year rotation. Thus, establishment of 100,000 acres of softwood plantation

could produce 2000 million board feet of lumber

per year once sustained yields were achieved.

In 1981, 83 million board feet of softwood

lumber, 58 million square feet of softwood

panels and veneers, and 195,000 poles were imported to Puerto Rico. The land potentially

available for plantations could satisfy that level

of demand. However, demand is growing at

about 5 percent annually. The planting of 5,000

acres per year for the next 20 years would result in 100,000 acres of plantation, but major

harvests would not begin until the 21st year.
Ch. 13—Forestry Technologies for U.S. Tropical Territories ● 283

Similarly, if 100,000 acres of high-value hardwood plantations were established, the average

annual production would be about 70 million

board feet. In 1981, 11 million board feet of

hardwood lumber and 97 million square feet

of hardwood panel and veneer were imported.

Here again, the current demand could support

a planting program of this scale. Puerto Rico,

however, would still import other products such

as paper, furniture, veneers, and composites.

Plantation forestry has not attracted much

private investment on Puerto Rico for several

reasons:

Ž Private landholdings tend to be small,

reducing cost effectiveness of intensive

forestry activities and increasing the competition between forestry and other land

uses (e.g., agriculture or recreation).

● Shortages of capital and credit for smallplot landholders may not permit investment by rural people in plantation

forestry,

● Many private landholders in Puerto Rico

hold land for its recreational or future

development values and may not be interested in its productive value.

Ž High land prices and a law limiting

private or corporate landholdings to 500

acres may be disincentives to investment

in plantation forestry.

Two Federal programs administered by the

USDA Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service (ASCS) are designed to aid private

landowners in forestry activities: the Agricultural Conservation Program (ACP) and the Forestry Incentive Program (FIP). Both provide

cost-sharing to small-plot landowners.

FIP and ACP were used only in Puerto Rico.

Between 1975 and 1980, there had been only

23 participants in the FIP program in Puerto

Rico, reforesting only 213 acres (27). ACP

allows greater eligibility and is an older program. From 1936 to 1980, Federal ACP incentives helped to plant over 30,000 acres in Puerto

Rico for soil erosion control and commercial

purposes. There have been no participants in

FIP or ACP in the U.S. Virgin Islands or the

U.S. western Pacific territories.

ACP is designed to take land out of annual

crop production that would presumably be

worth more to society for its environmental

services when fallow than for its products

when cropped. FIP is oriented toward the

greatest return on invested money rather than

to widest spread reforestation and, thus, landowners with greater earning capacity have

preference over those with greater need for

assistance. Neither program assures income

during the years before harvest (7).

In recent years, Federal policy has changed

emphasis from cost-sharing to income tax incentives to effect forestry practices on private

lands. So the budget has been reduced for the

ACP and FIP programs. Forestry incentives in

Puerto Rico are lost with this change, as

citizens there are exempt from paying U.S.

Federal income taxes.

Successful programs to stimulate private investment in forestry require the simultaneous

development of extension and education programs, nursery production and delivery systems, and trained foresters and forest technicians. Loggers, sawmill operators, and lumber

treating and drying experts must be trained,

and marketing systems must be developed (19).

Since it takes years to develop some of these

systems, their simultaneous development must

be part of a long-term continuing effort. This

requires a stable political commitment.

Until recently, slow progress in forestry has

been due to a lack of Federal and local funding

and political support. The Commonwealth government for at least 15 years had not put a high

priority on forestry. But Puerto Rico now has

the legal (Forest Law No. 133 of 1975) and administrative structure (through the Department

of Natural Resources) to develop a strong and

effective Forest Service.

The Puerto Rico Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has recently embarked on an

ambitious program to bring private landowners

into commercial forestry. This program relies

heavily on U.S. Federal cost-sharing programs

for private landholders and on funding from

U.S. Forest Service State and Private Forestry

grants. Unfortunately, these Federal funds are
284 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

declining. The program is organized into three

phases, as follows: a media program, harvest

technology demonstration, and organization of

forestry cooperatives.

The U.S. Virgin Islands also has a reforestation program for private landowners, funded

by the U.S. Forest Service State and Private

Forestry program and by the local government.

This program, in operation since 1967, operates a nursery, runs an urban forestry program

on public lands, and runs a rural reforestation

program, An average of 25 to 30 acres are reforested each year (3).

The goal of the reforestation program is to

provide a local supply of high-value hardwoods, especially mahogany. As incentives, the

Virgin Islands Forestry Program offers lowcost rental of land-clearing equipment as well

as free seedlings and technical advice. In addition, the U.S. Virgin Islands Government offers a 95 percent property tax rebate for lands

retained in agriculture or forestry, Most

reforested lands are those too steep for cultivation or grazing and, thus, the program indirectly reduces runoff and erosion.

The urban forestry program sponsors planting of mahogany and other species on public

lands. Since the potential volume of wood is

small in the U.S. Virgin Islands, local production of high-value products seems appropriate.

Small and low-value trees removed during thinning could be used for fence posts and charcoal. Even street and yard trees can be valuable: an estimated 500,000 board feet of merchantable mahogany exists in the islands (23).

A small wood crafts and specialty furniture

industry exists on St. Croix. Urban and roadside trees that must be removed for other

reasons supply much of the raw material. Branches and crotches in the trunk provide figured

wood and can be the most valuable part of the

tree. This use of available wood could be a

model for economic use of wood where largescale commercial forestry is not feasible.

Transportation costs and insecure land tenure hinder timber production for other than

local uses on most western Pacific islands.

Some commercial exploitation of lumber for

local use could be allowed on larger islands,

but in general the forests of the western Pacific

islands are too meager to sustain commercial

development of forest products such as

sawlogs, lumber, wood chips, or paper pulp

(15). Local markets for firewood, charcoal, local

construction materials, crafts, and fruit crops

provide opportunities for investment in tree

plantations. Research and demonstration plots

of native and introduced species and methods

of transferring technologies to villages and

private landholders need to be established, especially for intensive firewood plantations.

Opportunity: The U.S. Congress and the U.S.

Forest Service could jointly provide political

and financial support for DNR and Virgin Islands Department of Agriculture programs to

encourage plantation forestry to increase selfsufficiency and build local forest industries.

Congress could communicate to the heads of

U.S. Caribbean governments the importance

Congress places on sustainable development

of local forest resources. The Forest Service

could provide support for local programs

through State and Private Forestry grants. Such

actions are needed to ensure continuity of programs despite political changes.

The Forest Service could provide increased

technical assistance to U.S. tropical territories

in the Pacific to identify areas suitable for investment in plantation forestry and to develop

technologies appropriate for forest management under the tropical island conditions. The

Forest Service, in cooperation with the Federated States of Micronesia, is using soil and vegetation maps to perform the first forest resource assessment of those islands. Similar assessments could be done to develop plans for

other areas.

Forestry Technologies to

Support Agriculture

Agroforestry and watershed technologies are

designed to use trees to support agricultural

and other resources. Coastal resources, in particular, are affected by island forest manage-
Ch. 13—Forestry Technologies for U.S. Tropical Territories ● 285

Photo credit: William Balmer

Urban forestry in the U.S. Virgin Islands. These trees (hybrid mahogany) will be harvested for lumber

ment. Elevated tropical islands (“high islands”)

have steep slopes and, where cleared, tend to

have high erosion rates. The estimated erosion

rates in the U.S. Caribbean compared with the

continental U.S. average are 15 times higher

for ungrazed forest land, nearly 10 times higher

for cleared cropland, and 18 times higher for

rangeland.

Agroforestry

Agroforestry is a traditional practice in Puerto

Rico (coffee/shade tree, fruit tree/plaintain) and

on many Pacific islands (tree/yam, coconut/

breadfruit). Teak/forage agroforestry has been

practiced in the U.S. Virgin Islands, although

this has little potential for expansion (23).

Traditional agroforestry systems are becoming obsolete because of Federal food assistance

programs and other alternatives to subsistence

food production. The necessary skills and

knowledge gradually are being lost on many

islands or may reside only in the oldest generation (38). The U.S. Forest Service is beginning

a small project to evaluate traditional agroforestry in Micronesia. Through its vegetation

mapping project of the Federated States of Mi-
286 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

— —

Photo credit: C. Whitesell

Breadfruit—used here to make a canoe—is often used in traditional agroforestry practice in the western Pacific. Although

agroforestry has declined in these islands, it retains considerable potential as a productive and sustainable land use

cronesia and Palau, the Forest Service has located considerable acreage that is still used for

traditional agroforestry. It can be a sustainable

and productive land use, especially on slopes

where open-land, bare-soil types of agriculture

result in erosion and subsequent siltation.

The U.S. Forest Service Institute of Pacific

Islands Forestry is pursuing some research in

agroforestry. It includes species trials and

nursery development in the Marshall Islands

and Yap, studies of the effects of fertilizer on

growth and yield of certain agroforestry crops,

and growth studies of some tree species. The

Institute of Tropical Forestry in Puerto Rico

has performed a survey of agroforestry techniques in Latin America (37) but is not conducting further research on this topic.

Opportunity: Improved agroforestry systems

alined with traditional techniques should be acceptable to people already using agroforestry

and transferable to new practitioners. Agroforestry in place of cleared-land agriculture, especially in mountainous areas, could reduce

erosion and siltation and provide a sustainable

use for some degraded and marginal lands.

In Puerto Rico, which has better road systems and markets than the other islands, agroforestry producing a cash crop would probably

be best accepted. The USDA Mayaguez Institute of Tropical Agriculture in Puerto Rico

could perform trials on its experimental lands

in cooperation with the U.S. Forest Service.

In the western Pacific, subsistence agroforestry could be appropriate in the short term,
Ch. 13—Forestry Technologies for U.S. Tropical Territories ● 287

—

combined with research on species suitable for

cash-crop agroforestry that could be implemented as markets develop. Western Pacific

trials could be performed jointly by the U.S.

Forest Service, the University of Guam, the

Nekken Forestry Experiment Station on Palau,

the Metalinim Forestry Station on Ponape, and

with other island organizations and agencies.

Watersheds

The most pronounced impacts of forest loss

in the U.S. tropical territories are on island

streams and coastal resources. Deforestation

has caused permanent streams on some islands

to disappear and it contributes to increased

runoff, flooding, water shortages, and erosion.

Siltation has harmful effects on lagoons and

reefs, affecting fish and other marine resources

important to island people,

Most upper watersheds in Puerto Rico have

steep slopes and many should remain forestcovered. In general, these lands are also too

steep for significant wood harvest. With appropriate regulation, however, some gathering,

recreation activities, and residential development might be allowed.

The U.S. Virgin Islands have major water

problems. There are no permanent streams on

the islands. Island aquifer water levels are

declining as growing populations pump out

more water than is recharged. Water supplies

are derived primarily from costly desalinization of sea water and water barged in from

Puerto Rico. Watersheds in the U.S. Virgin Islands are privately owned and mostly brush

covered. Some livestock is run on these lands,

but there is little agriculture, except on St.

Croix. Nothing is done collectively to manage

these lands for water retention and erosion prevention.

Natural siltation in the western Pacific region

is greatest around high islands. Elevated watersheds collect and accelerate runoff. Around

these islands, however, mangrove forests and

stands of seagrass act as filters to remove

sediments before the runoff water reaches

lagoons or reefs. In many areas, erosion and

marine siltation have been accelerated by dePhoto credit: William Balmer

This plantation of blue mahoe (Hibiscus elatus), a valuable

hardwood that gorws well on many moist sites in Puerto Rico

like others planted on private lands, was established for

watershed protection

forestation, so that plumes of eroded soils often

are seen near the mouths of streams in Micronesia. The silt represents a lost resource and

pollutes the marine environment. Activities

that aggravate soil erosion include cultivation

practices, construction, roadbuilding, and

burning, which removes vegetative cover from

hills, Due to repeated burnings on Northern

Babeldaob (Palau), formerly permanent streams

now run only when rain falls, and then they

are often fast and muddy (5),
288 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Opportunity: Resource managers disagree on

the relative advantages of reforesting watersheds or leaving them in grass and brush cover.

Reforestation reduces runoff and erosion rates

and so increases catchment lifetimes and protects coastal resources. Some experts believe

it might increase aquifer recharge. On the other

hand, trees use more water than grass and

brush, so tree planting reduces the amount of

water immediately available to catchments. Degraded pasture and brush are more susceptible

to frequent burning and conversion to unsustainable land uses than are managed forests

(22). A careful assessment is required to determine the optimal vegetation cover for each

watershed area. There seems little doubt that

steep coastal slopes should be forested to reduce erosion and, thus, reduce siltation of lagoons, reefs, and mangroves.

Resource Development PIanning

Most conversion of tropical forest land to

other uses is done without adequate consideration of whether the natural and human resources available at the site can sustain the new

land uses. Resource development planning is

a systematic attempt to match land development activities to the capabilities of the specific

sites (ch. 11).

Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands have

been extensively studied and are classified under the Beard system, based on floristics and

species composition (1,2); the Holdridge Land

Classification System, based on precipitation,

biotemperature, and potential evapotranspiration (8,9); and the USDA Soil Conservation

Land Capability System (28). Because land uses

and vegetation are continuously changing, detailed land classification data require continued updating and revision.

In the U.S. tropical territories, little use has

been made of economic and social assessments

for forestry development. The Puerto Rico

Department of Natural Resources has conducted a benefit-cost analysis of an expanded

forest tree planting and wood-use program based on small-scale harvesting (19). DNR has also

prepared a financial analysis of small-scale

private forestry (20).

Knowledge of the remaining tropical forests

in the western Pacific, the local uses of tropical

forest products (e.g., medicines), and local customs involving forests is insufficient for planning. Information on the nature and magnitude

of the forest resources, including vegetation,

land use, watershed, wildlife, commercial

timber, and ecosystems is either lacking or too

scattered to assist forest management planning and protection programs.

The U.S. Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (TTPI) Government contracted with the

U.S. Soil Conservation Service and the U.S.

Forest Service to map the soils and vegetation

cover types of the Republic of Palau and the

four states of the Federated States of Micronesia. These soil and vegetation maps are used

in land-use planning and are being used to conduct the first forest resource assessment of the

Federated States of Micronesia. Preparation of

State/Territorial Forest Resource Program

Plans is expected to be completed in 1983.

Similar assessments could be conducted elsewhere in the western Pacific (38). Current

guidelines and funding permit the U.S. Forest

Service to conduct resource inventories and

forest management research only when

cooperating island governments provide funding and field assistance (4). The U.S. Forest

Service has memoranda of understanding with

each of the island governments regarding

resource assessments, but inadequate funding

has hindered completion of these efforts.

A complementary series of assessments by

the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service could determine damage by and control measures needed

for introduced animal species, effects of land

uses on coastal organisms, conservation measures for endemic species, and other topics. The

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has recently

completed an ornithological and botanical survey on Guam. Additional “terrestrial surveys”

in the northern Mariana Islands are under way.

Similar surveys are expected to be undertaken

on Ponape, Truk, Yap, and Kosrae (17), but
Ch. 13—Forestry Technologies for U.S. Tropical Territories ● 289

budget reductions have postponed these efforts

(39).

Opportunity: Resource development planning could help identify where agricultural activities should be limited and where they might

require special designs. Similarly, such planning could help determine optimal sites for

roads from both ecological and social points

of view. To supplement this, island government

agencies could prepare environmental impact

statements, hold public hearings, and seek approval from the appropriate local resource

agency to control and monitor logging, land

clearing, road construction, coral mining, etc.

(38). The U.S. Forest Service and Army Corps

of Engineers could provide assistance when

road-building activities are being planned.

Education, Research, and

Technology Transfer

Lack of awareness of forest resource values,

shortages of forest resource professionals, and

insufficient technology transfer are institutional constraints that inhibit development of

sustainable forest systems in the U.S. Caribbean and western Pacific territories (ch. 12).

Environmental Education

Government decisionmakers in the U.S. territories have expressed growing interest in sustaining and developing their forest resources.

However, this interest may be temporary unless people at all levels of society seek alternatives to resource-degrading activities and invest

in resource-sustaining technologies. Motivating such action is the goal of environmental

education.

Like other New World colonies, many Caribbean islands were almost completely cut over

to produce agricultural export crops between

1800 and 1898, producing a “burn the forests”

attitude toward development (14). As yet, rising

incomes and education have not brought about

a widespread environmental awareness movement such as that in the continental United

States. The result has been a continuing view

that the forest is useful for recreation and tourism but must be removed to make way for more

productive investments (7). This has begun to

change only recently.

A primary forestry objective of the Puerto

Rico DNR is to change public attitudes through

education and incentives to involve people in

forestry policy and activities. DNR has one or

two field agents in each of the five regions of

Puerto Rico who receive 2 weeks of forestry

training. This training is to be updated regularly. In addition, pamphlets on forest planting

may now be found in all Agricultural Extension Offices and a new pamphlet on the financial opportunities of timber production on

private lands will soon be disseminated (21).

Education also has been a major focus of U.S.

assistance to the western Pacific territories. Primary and secondary education are compulsory

in Micronesia, and the Federal Government

has helped create several community colleges

and the University of Guam. Each of these has

been designated a land-grant college, giving

them access to Federal support for agriculture

and forestry.

Many of the inhabitants of the island territories can be reached through education because of the young age structure. For example,

44 percent of Micronesia’s population in 1980

was under the age of 15. Under the Compact

of Free Association agreement, the U.S. Government will continue to fund public education, including a $3 million grant for a higher

education scholarship fund. But many of these

scholarships are based on financial need and

not on the field of study needed for economic

growth (33). Increased exposure to environmental education in primary and secondary

schools, together with awarding scholarships

to students interested in resource development,

may be the first steps toward creating environmental awareness.

Opportunity: The Puerto Rican Government

could begin to encourage resource-conserving

attitudes by increasing environmental education at all levels. Three interacting activities

that could have significant effects are:

1. Create training courses for primary and

secondary level teachers using protected

forests as demonstration areas.
290 • Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Photo credit: USFS-ITF

Youth conservation worker programs can introduce local people to basic principles of ecology and forest management.

Here, Young American Conservation Corps enrollees plant mahogany” in a Puerto Rican public fores{

2.

3.

Increase use of local youth conservation

workers in National and Commonwealth

forests and other natural resource areas. *

Make forest resource management an area

of study at the University of Puerto Rico

either by developing a resource management curriculum or by creating a “center

of excellence” to provide a focus of interest and efforts on tropical forest resources

(ch. 12).

Environmental education in the U.S. western

Pacific seems to have had little effect (15). The

U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service, National Marine

Fisheries Service, Peace Corps, and local col-

*Currently, Young American Conservation Corps (YACC)

workers in Puerto Rico are trained by ITF personnel and assigned to Commonwealth and National Forests (30).

leges could collaborate to produce course materials that stress resource awareness and

encourage the territorial governments to include resource and conservation programs in

school curricula. They could also translate

technical environmental information for general public use (29).

Professional Education and

Technical Training

The U.S. tropical territories do not have a

strong constituency concerned with forest conservation. Developing such a constituency and

integrating natural resource considerations into

economic development both will require personnel with substantial knowledge and expertise in natural resource management in general

and tropical forestry in particular. In the short
Ch. 13—Forestry Technologies for U.S. Tropical Territories ● 291

term, a limited number of resource professionals with expertise in tropical forestry can be

attracted to the islands from the mainland. But

the Forest Service reward structure inhibits

this, and lack of scientific facilities and funding hinder university personnel. In the long

run, an effective method to educate and train

local people is needed.

The University of Puerto Rico lacks a forestry

curriculum. Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin

Islands support only two students per year in

forestry and forest ecology training. A similar

dearth of forestry specialists exists in the U.S.

western Pacific. No forestry curriculum exists

at the University of Guam, although officials

have expressed a strong interest in developing

one (4). The closest forestry school is at the forest ranger school at the University of Bulolo

in Papua New Guinea. The need for trained foresters and forest technicians is particularly

acute as the island governments expand their

government forestry agencies and forestry

plans.

Opportunity: Fostering natural resource management training and education in the U.S. territories could be achieved in four ways:

1.

2.

3.

Students interested in natural resource

management could be encouraged to apply

for scholarships at U.S. schools and internships with private organizations. The best

sponsors for such scholarships might be

private firms with production facilities or

markets in the territories.

Scholarships also could be provided for

forest technician students to attend natural

resource management programs in tropical country schools (e. g., Costa Rica, Venezuela, Papua New Guinea), where technical training may be more relevant.

Forestry/forest ecology/conservation curricula could be developed at the University of Puerto Rico and the University of

Guam, possibly using McIntyre-Stennis

funds. *

*The McIntyre-Stennis Act of 1962 authorizes cooperative

forestry research between the U.S. Department of Agriculture

and state and land-grant universities.

4. Forestry institutions in each region could

be designated “centers of excellence” in

education and research related to tropical

forestry resources and as such could provide graduate study and research facilities

for students from U.S. and tropical universities (ch, 12).

Research

The U.S. Forest Service Institute of Tropical

Forestry (ITF) was established in 1939 as a result of congressional recognition that lack of

technical knowledge hindered successful reforestation and forestry efforts in Puerto Rico. ITF

uses the National Forest, some Commonwealth

forests, and the 124-acre Estate Thomas Experimental Forest in the U.S. Virgin Islands for

research. ITF conducts cooperative research

with agencies such as AID, the Peace Corps,

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and several universities and Caribbean nation governments.

Recent ITF research is intended to:

●

●

●

develop guidelines to establish and manage timber plantations (primarily pines

and exotic hardwoods) without adversely

affecting site productivity;

develop knowledge about biological potential of timber production from secondary

forests, with due regard for other environmental concerns; and

develop knowledge about forest wildlife

habitat requirements and techniques to

manage these habitats (focusing on the endangered Puerto Rican parrot and associated species).

ITF research activities have traditionally focused on basic ecology and industrial forestry.

The latter is not widely applicable to the U.S.

Caribbean. Only about 6 percent of landholdings are 100 acres or greater, but these cover

65 percent of farmland. Most of these larger

holdings are commercial farms on the coastal

plains or coffee plantations on hilly regions.

Many of the large-plot landowners in forested

regions may be real estate investors waiting for

land prices in the U.S. Caribbean to increase,

and as such may be uninterested in productive

uses of their land. Environmental education

and extension efforts could be made to change
292 . Technologies to Sustain Tropicat Forest Resources

this attitude and some commercial forestry research should be conducted for these landowners.

However, research directions have begun to

change in recent years. Since the Forest and

Rangeland Renewable Resources Research Act

of 1978 (Public Law 95-307) and the concurrent

growth in interest in international forestry, ITF

has conducted a survey of agroforestry in Latin

America (37) and studies of fuelwood production (30). Yet, ITF budgets have been cut back

continuously for the past few years and the primary focus is still on industrial production.

Industrial forestry research at the ITF could

be complemented by research aimed at the

needs of Caribbean society in general (e.g., environmental services, esthetics) and of the

small-plot landholder. Nearly 90 percent of the

farmland ownerships (covering 270,000 acres),

are less than 48 acres (26). Most of these landowners have low incomes. Rural unemployment is high, implying a need for labor-intensive

technologies. Profitable agroforestry systems

to produce both subsistence and commercial

products need to be developed and disseminated. Industrial forestry research could be

appropriate for this group if forestry cooperatives were organized. Research areas such as

watershed and wildlife management, which

provide benefits to society in general, deserve

more attention, particularly given the water

problems in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Although the U.S. Virgin Islands have little

agriculture and little potential for commercial

forestry, protective forestry activities are necessary to preserve resources for the inhabitants

and for tourism. ITF research in the Estate

Thomas Experimental Forest could be expanded to include experimental urban forestry, watershed analyses, and other appropriate topics.

More research personnel and funding and selection of research topics more relevant to local

research needs are necessary.

The American Pacific Islands Forestry Research Work Unit, at the Institute of Pacific

Islands Forestry, is part of the U.S. Forest Service Pacific Southwest Forest and Range Experiment Station. The Research Work Unit has

only three professional staff comprising 2

scientist-years. It is involved in:

●

●

●

●

•

●

●

●

conducting resource inventories in cooperation with Island governments;

testing native and introduced tree species,

especially nitrogen-fixing trees;

developing silvicultural methods for reforesting understocked savanna uplands and

deforested coastal areas, thereby increasing protection and use of critical watersheds, and/or for timber production;

publishing a nontechnical handbook on

forest reestablishment;

selecting, establishing, protecting, and

using natural areas;

analyzing performance of selected coconut

varieties on tropical islands and atolls;

studying potential for sustained-yield management of the indigenous fruit bat; and

developing cultural practices to maximize

yields - o f

- selected- agroforestry crops

(31,39).

As the U.S. Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands government infrastructure is dismantled,

the Research Work Unit is developing close

working relations with the extant and emerging governments in American Samoa and Micronesia. More personnel and funding will be

required to make the best use of this institution.

Technology Transfer

Forestry extension agents and activities in

Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands are

few. Although there are a number of field

agents who advise landowners on land-use

alternatives in the U.S. Caribbean (Department

of Natural Resources, U.S. Soil Conservation

Service, and U.S. Agricultural Extension Service agents), few have been trained in forestry.

Field agents have little incentive to seek this

training because they typically are responsible

for many areas of extension and little of their

time is devoted to forestry. Rural landowners

must rely on the extension and media activities

of the Puerto Rico DNR and the ITF to become

informed of techniques and available incentives.
Ch. 13—Forestry Technologies for U.S. Tropical Territories • 293

One U.S. Forest Service person is responsible for State and Private Forestry in Puerto

Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. He helps the

Puerto Rico DNR apply for U.S. Forest Service

grants and coordinates U.S. participation in the

Cooperative Forest Management Act. This act

allows the U.S. Forest Service to cooperate

with the DNR to promote reforestation and

protection of public and private lands (14).

There also is only one person assigned to State

and private forestry activities for Hawaii and

the western Pacific.

The forestry agencies in the western Pacific

do not have organized extension services. Distances between islands compound the problems of devising technologies appropriate to

the area and people. Scientists and technology

developers usually can visit only a few islands.

Opportunity: The U.S. Forest Service could

support Puerto Rican forestry programs through

increased State forestry grants. These grants

seem an effective means of stimulating the

Commonwealth Forest Service to support, coordinate, and demonstrate desirable forestry

practices. The flexibility and individuality of

the State grant program allow specific application of funding to U.S. Caribbean problems.

This would require increased personnel for the

U.S. Forest Service State and Private Forestry

in Puerto Rico. Foresters from the United

States who are experienced in aiding State forestry organizations can be effective in advising

on nursery operations, logging techniques, use

strategies, genetic improvement programs,

research needs, extension practices, and other

elements of program development.

Congress has made special allowance for the

Peace Corps to operate in the U.S. Trust Territory, at least until the Compact of Free Association is signed. These volunteers could provide

a means for technology transfer and for feedback to researchers regarding needed adaptations of technologies. The Peace Corps could

ensure that all its rural volunteers have at least

some forestry training and are in contact with

the appropriate agencies for technical aid.

A cadre of local, “grass-roots” naturalists

could be created in the U.S. western Pacific

with help from the U.S. Forest Service, Department of the Interior, Peace Corps, and island

governments and universities. Such a program

could provide general training that would qualify participants to assist both permanent and

visiting research scientists. They could help

spread information on appropriate land uses

and help integrate new technologies with local

customs (38).

CONCLUSION

If tropical forest resources are to be sustained assistance. The Federal institutions responsible

in the U.S. territories, indigenous resource man- for assisting forestry in the U.S. tropical terriagement organizations must be strengthened. tories are too small and their focus is too limited

Because these governments are still heavily to give adequate impetus to local investment.

reliant on U.S. assistance and their resource More research and more forestry technology

agencies are in their infancy, the United States transfer are required, as is greater response to

retains a substantial role in developing both the the changing needs of the territories.

agencies and resource-sustaining technologies. Application of U.S. Expertise: U.S. expertise

In the short run, U.S. technical assistance is relevant to tropical forest resources is not used

needed to design forest management plans. In effectively in the U.S. tropical territories. This

the long run, this assistance could be replaced is partly because many experts consider the

by a skilled cadre of people trained in natural U.S. tropical territories a relatively insignifiresource management at local institutions. Pro- cant part of the overall tropical forest resource

grams to encourage private forestry for each conservation problem and partly because organisland probably will also require U.S. Federal izations that might be used to focus professional
294 • Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

expertise on the U.S. tropics do not have the

necessary support to do so.

Definition of Roles in U.S. Western Pacific:

Resource development planning in the western

Pacific territories is constrained by a lack of

definition of the respective roles of local, U.S.

Federal, and international organizations. Little

analysis and no decisions have been made on

the question of whether the authority of the

U.S. Federal agencies is adequate or appropriate to serve the resource needs of Micronesia

and American Samoa (29). In particular, with

the political changes in the region, applicable

Federal programs must be identified and directed toward island needs. Under new agreements with territory governments, U.S. support

is planned to be offered primarily in cash

rather than through Federal categorical programs, although room is left for extension of

agreed-upon programs (34).

The Interagency Task Force on U.S. Territories* could conduct a comprehensive review

of Federal legislation applicable to natural resource use in the western Pacific area. This effort could identify legislation needed to support

sustainable natural resource development. It

also could identify alternative ways to implement legislation that would both sustain the resources and achieve the goals of the agencies

(29).

Local Resource Agencies: Opportunities exist to use forest-resource sustaining technologies in western Pacific territories. The territorial governments all have designated natural

resource agencies with a forestry component.

But these agencies are relatively new and do

not yet have adequate funding, professional

personnel or policies to take full advantage of

the opportunities.

Political support for the natural resource

agencies seems to exist. However, there has

been very limited planning for the forested

areas. In practice, some forestry has concen-

——. ------——

*The Interagency Task Force on U.S. Territories includes representatives from most Federal agencies, including Housing and

Urban Development, Health and Human Services, Education,

Defense, Commerce, Interior, Agriculture, and the Environmental Protection Agency. It is housed under the Department of the

Interior’s Office of Territorial and International Affairs.

trated on nursery planting and extension without operational plans or assignment of responsibility (4). without more outside assistance, development is likely to proceed so slowly that

needed resource productivity and economic

opportunities will be lost.

The Federal Resources Planning Act of 1974

(RPA) as amended, the Cooperative Forestry

Assistance Act of 1978, and other recent legislation have extended the prospects of Federal

forestry assistance to Pacific islands. The U.S.

Forest Service could increase aid to territorial

governments in developing natural resource

agencies, provide technical assistance for

resource assessments, help develop policies,

management, and enforcement plans, and provide technical assistance for implementation.

Private Forest Investment Programs: Programs designed for the U.S. continental States

to promote soil and water conservation and private reforestation usually do not apply well to

tropical island characteristics. For example,

small landholding size, low income, and lack

of technical knowledge prohibit many rural

landholders in Puerto Rico from participating

in reforestation.

Because the U.S. tropical territories are so different from the 50 States—politically, economically, culturally, and ecologically—investment

incentive programs designed for the States are

unlikely to be effective in the islands. And because the territories are themselves heterogeneous, a single program probably cannot be

designed to be effective on all islands. An alternative is to make funds and technical assistance available to private investors through individual territorial governments.

Congress could create a reforestation incentives program that could: 1) be operated jointly by the U.S. Forest Service and the territorial

governments, 2) be designed specifically for

local characteristics, 3) be integrated with other

natural resource development objectives, 4) include agroforestry and/or an annual loan to

provide early income before harvest, and 5) encourage organization of forestry cooperatives.

More generally, Congress could analyze all legislation involving proposed or actual natural

resource programs that might be applicable to
Ch. 13—Forestry Technologies for U.S. Tropical Territories . 295

the U.S. territories and write in language ensuring applicability to the needs of the territories

(20,25). Alternatively, it could create complementary but different natural resource conservation and use programs designed specifically

for the characteristics and needs of the

territories.

U.S. Forest Service Institutes located in

Puerto Rico and Hawaii are assisting the territories in developing technologies and institutions to sustain tropical forest resources.

However, both institutes have too few staff and

budgets that are small and declining. They cannot support the scale of development activity

necessary to sustain the U.S. tropical forest resources. If the institutions are given further

responsibilities in international forestry without new funding and personnel, their effectiveness will be diminished.

CHAPTER 13 REFERENCES

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

Beard, J, S., “Climax Vegetation in Tropical

America, ” Ecology 25:127-158, 1944. In:

Schmidt (19).

Beard, J, S., “The Classification of Tropical

American Vegetation-t ypes, ” Ecology

36:89-100, 1955. In: Schmidt, (19).

Bough, E. L., Director, Forestry Program, U.S.

Virgin Islands Department of Agriculture, personal communication, 1983.

Clayton, R., “National Progress Report on Forestry for Pacific Islands (USA), ” prepared for

the Asia-Pacific Forestry Commission, Eleventh

Session, January 1981.

Emmons, B. R., “Forestry in Micronesia,” Division of Agricuhure, Department of Resources

and Development, Trust Territory of the Pacific

Islands (available at the Forestry Library,

Ponape), 1971.

Falanruw, M. C, V., “Study Plan: Ecology and

Management of the Fruitbats of Yap,” U.S.

Forest Service Pacific Southwest Forest and

Range Experiment Station, Institute of Pacific

Islands Forestry, Honolulu, Hawaii, 1979.

Hess, A., “The Forestry Incentives Program in

Puerto Rico,” The Johns Hopkins University,

Public Policy Program, thesis, 1982.

Holdridge, L. R., Life Zone Ecology, Tropical

Science Center, San Jose, Costa Rica, 1967. IZI:

Schmidt (19).

Holdridge, L. R., Crenke, W. C., Hathaway, W.

H., Liang, J., and Tosi, J. A., F’orest Environments in Tropical Life Zones, A Pilot Study (Oxford: Pergamon Press, 1971). In: Schmidt (19).

International Union for Conservation of Nature

and Natural Resources (IUCN), 1982 United Nations List of National Parks and Protected

Areas. Gland. Switzerland, 1982.

11. Johnson, S. P., “Palau and a Seventy Islands

Tropical Park,” National Parks and Conservation Magazine 46(4):12-17; (7):4-8; (8):9-13, 1972.

12. Krochmal, C., “Identification and Development

of New Tropical Forest Resources in Puerto and

the U.S. Virgin Islands,” OTA commissioned

paper, 1982.

13, Lambrecht, F. L,, “Development and Health in

the Tropics, Part 1: West Africa, ” paper prepared for AID, Arid Land Study Office, University of Arizona, no date.

14. Liegel, L. H., “Woodland Conservation in Puerto Rico: Its Past, Present and Future, ” New

York College of Environmental Science and

Forestry, Syracuse, N. Y., thesis, 1973.

15, Owen, R. P., “Remarks Concerning Tropical

Forests in Micronesia,” personal communication, Jan. 6, 1982.

16. Pico, R., The Geography of Puerto Rico (Chicago: Aldine Publishing Co., 1974).

17. Philpot, C. W., “An Administrator’s Look at

Programs in the Pacific Islands, ” Moving Forestry and Wildlife into the 80’s, Proceedings of

Hawaii Forestry Wildlife Conference, USDA

Forest Service, Honolulu, Hawaii, 1982.

18. Richardson, D., “Coconut Charcoal Could Fuel

Ships,” Pacific Islands Monthly, May 1981.

19. Schmidt, R., “Forestry in Puerto Rico and the

Virgin Islands,” OTA commissioned paper,

1982.

20. Schmidt, R., “Forestry in Puerto Rico, ” F’orestry

in the Caribbean, U.S. Man and the Biosphere

Program, 1982.

21. Schmidt, R., Director, Forest Service, Puerto

Rico Department of Natural Resources, personal communication, 1982.

22. Schmidt, R., personal communication, 1983.

25-287 0 - 84 - 20
296 • Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

23.

24.

25.

26,

27.

28.

29.

30.

31

Somberg, S. I., “Virgin Islands Forestry Research: A Problem Analysis, ” College of the

Virgin Islands, Virgin Islands Agricultural Experiment Station, St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands,

Report No. 9, 1976.

Swiderski, J., “Small-Scale Forest Industries for

Developing Countries,” FAO position paper

prepared for the Eighth World Forestry Congress, Jakarta, Indonesia, Oct. 16-28, 1978.

Towle, E., Island Resources Foundation, St.

Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, personal communication, 1983.

U.S. Bureau of the Census, “1978 Census of

Agriculture” (Washington D. C.: U.S. Government Printing office, 1980).

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural

Stabilization and Conservation Service, “Forestry Incentives Program: From Inception of

Program Through September 30, 1980” (Washington, D. C.: U.S. Department of Agriculture,

1980).

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Soil Conservation Service, Soil Survey of Puerto Rico

(Washington D. C.: U.S. Government Printing

Office, 1942). In: Pico, 1974.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, The Pacific

Islands: The Challenge of the 1980’s, Department of the Interior, U.S. Fish and Wildlife

Service, Region 1, Portland, C)reg., 1978.

U.S. Forest Service, Institute of Tropical Forestry, “Annual Letter: 1981,” U.S. Forest Service, Southern Forest Experiment Station, Institute of Tropical Forestry, Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico, 1981.

U.S. Forest Service, Institute of Pacific Islands

Forestry, “Pacific Islands (Territories) Forestry

Research Unit,” Pacific Southwest Forest and

32,

33

34

35.

36.

37.

38.

39.

40.

Range Experiment Station Publication No.

1252, Honolulu, Hawaii, 1981.

U.S. Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Forest

and Range Experiment Station, “International

Forestry Plan for Oceania, Asia, and Western

Pacific,” U.S. Forest Service, Pacific Southwest

Forest and Range Experiment Station, Berkeley,

Calif., 1980.

U.S. General Accounting Office, The Challenge

of Enhancing Micronesia Self-suffi”ciency

(Washington, D. C.: U.S. General Accounting Office, 1983).

U.S. Congress, U.S. Senate, Energy and Natural Resources Committee, “Oversight Hearings

of Micronesia Political Status Negotiations,

June 3, 1980” (photocopy).

Wadsworth, F. H., “Timber,” Conceptos, plan

y programa para una agricultural moderna en

Puerto Rico, J. Vicente-Chandler Special Report

to the Secretary of Agriculture of Puerto Rico,

1978, pp. 325-340. In: Schmidt (19).

Wadsworth, F. H., “Timber and Forest Energy

Development Potentials for Puerto Rico,” 1982,

Symposium on Biomass Production in Puerto

Rico (in preparation). In: Schmidt (19).

Weaver, P,, “Agri-silviculture in Tropical

America,” Unasy]va 31(126):2-12, 1979.

Whitesell, C. D., Philpot, C. W., and Falanruw,

M. C. V., “Congressional Action to Improve the

Sustainability of U.S. Tropical Forests in the

Pacific,” OTA commissioned paper, 1982,

Whitesell, C., U.S. Forest Service, personal communication, 1983.

Whitmore J. L., and Liegel, L, H,, “Spacing Trial

of Pinus caribaea var. hondurensis,” U.S. Forest

Service Research Paper SO-162, Southern Forest Experiment Station, New Orleans, La., 1980.
PART III

Options for

Congress
●

—.—.

Chapter 14
301

301

303

305

308

311 .

315

us. Expertise 316 4 .
Chapter 14

Options for Congress

●

●

●

●

Forestry projects sponsored by the U.S.

Agency for International Development

(AID), the United Nations, the World Bank,

and other agencies are poorly coordinated. ●

Many opportunities exist to modify development assistance practices so they produce economic benefits while sustaining ●

renewable resources.

Resource development planning can help

maintain tropical forest resources and simultaneously make economic development more profitable, but the techniques

to do so are underused. ●

Research on tropical forest resources

linked more closely to the needs of technology users.

Developed nations benefit from the tropical forests’ biological diversity, so they

could pay a share of the costs of preserving natural forests.

Demand for U.S. expertise in tropical forest resources is increasing, but U.S. organizations are not well organized or supported to use the limited existing expertise

efficiently or to build more expertise.

Forest resources in the U.S. tropical territories generally are degraded, underdeveloped, and inadequately managed.

needs to be more interdisciplinary and

INTRODUCTION

Tropical forests in U.S. territories and in

other nations are important to the United

States. Forests support economic progress in

tropical countries, progress which is important

for humanitarian reasons and for political stability. They supply fuel, food, fodder, and

materials and will be increasingly important

as population doubles over the next 30 years.

Tropical forests also provide many materials

used by U.S. industry and consumers. Moreover, they contain a great diversity of biological

resources. This is important to U.S. agriculture

and medicine and will become more important

as nonrenewable resources are depleted. In addition, forests have significant beneficial effects on the conservation of soil and water resources and maintenance of environmental

quality.

Although data on the condition of tropical

forest resources are poor, information on their

extent and location is improving. Recent studies indicate that tropical forests are being degraded rapidly by unmanaged exploitation and

that substantial areas are being deforested for

unsustainable land uses.

Rates of deforestation and forest degradation,

and the severity of the consequences, vary

greatly from region to region. From a near-term

economic and social perspective, the loss of

trees is most damaging in dry areas, where deforestation is both a cause and an effect of

desertification, and in mountainous watersheds, where deforestation upsets the hydrologic cycle and accelerates soil erosion.

Resource degradation and deforestation in the

humid tropics are resulting in permanent loss

of biological resources.

Many organizations, some funded entirely or

partly by the US. Government, are grappling

with tropical forest resource problems. Funding and levels of effort have risen substantially during the past 5 years, and progress has

been made in developing and transferring tech301
302 Ž Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

nologies that can help sustain tropical forests,

both in natural and modified condition. Yet,

the rate of technology improvement does not

seem sufficient to overcome the processes of

forest resource degradation.

Further increases in U.S. and international

funding to develop and disseminate technologies will be necessary. But incremental changes

in current techniques alone will not suffice to

sustain tropical forests. The underlying causes

of deforestation and resource degradation are

institutional, social, and economic. Consequently, many needed reforms can only come

from the governments and people of the tropical nations. Here, too, the United States can

be effective by helping tropical country governments focus on root problems.

The ultimate objective of forest resource development is to support people. Future generations are expected to need forest products and

services as much as those of the past, so production of forest goods and services must increase as fast as population growth. Today, increasing yields of forest products are accomplished in most tropical regions by sacrificing

the renewability of resources.

Investment in technologies discussed in previous chapters of this report might make it possible to achieve the necessary production while

sustaining the inherent renewability, at least

for a time. However, if population growth is

not controlled, development and conservation

objectives eventually will not be attainable.

Technologies directly related to population

growth are outside the scope of this assessment

but have been addressed in another OTA assessment, World Population and Fertility Planning Technologies. 1

U.S. technology has helped stimulate institutional reforms. For example, U.S.-trained

analysts in tropical countries working with

U.S.-provided Landsat imagery have documented deforestation rates (e.g., 2,7 percent per

year in Thailand) that have motivated national

governments to institute new laws giving for-

 1World Population and Fertility Planning Technologies: The

Next 20 Years (Washington, D. C.: U.S. Congress, Office of Technology Assessment, OTA-HR-157, February 1982).

est conservation a higher priority. U.S. diplomacy—e.g., supporting and influencing the

United Nations’ Environment Program and

UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere program—

has been effective in raising international

awareness of tropical forest problems.

Forests in U.S. Caribbean and western Pacific island territories have hardly benefited

from the increased international awareness of

the importance of sustainable forest resource

development. Those forests continue to receive

little, if any, management, and data on erosion

indicate that their potential productivity is being reduced.

Tropical forest resources represent a great

opportunity for sustained development. However, because of complex institutional and technical constraints, too little such development

is occurring. Congress can encourage sustainable development of forest resources in the

U.S. territories by giving these areas higher priority in domestic natural resource programs.

It also could direct domestic agencies to adapt

programs to the special situations that prevail

on tropical islands. For other nations congressional action can help resolve some institutional constraints by enhancing tropical governments’ abilities to plan and coordinate resource development projects.

Some technical constraints can be addressed

directly through congressional actions. U.S. organizations and individuals have the capability to assist in developing forest use systems that

provide goods and services for the basic needs

of tropical people while conserving forest productivity. U.S. agencies already applying some

of this expertise include the Agency for International Development, Forest Service, National Academy of Sciences, National Park Service, Fish and Wildlife Service, and Soil Conservation Service.

Congress also could act to improve U.S. efforts in technology development. Some actions,

such as the establishment of U.S. centers of excellence in tropical forestry or increased U.S.

participation in multilateral agencies, would

require increased funding in the near term. In

the long term, however, these actions should
Ch, 14—Options for Congress ● 303

improve the tropical nations’ own abilities to This chapter identifies several major issues

use and sustain forest resources and, thus, where Congress could take significant action

should reduce the need for U.S. Government to improve conservation and sustainable develinvolvement. Other opportunities such as im- opment of tropical forest resources. For each

proved coordination of fundamental research, issue, options for specific actions and their adapplied research, and technology implementa- vantages and disadvantages are discussed.

tion do not necessarily require additional funding but could require redefinition of priorities.

Issue

Most forest resources in U.S. tropical territories are not now being overexploited, but

neither are they being managed or developed. The territories lack strong institutions

concerned about the productivity and sustainability of forest resources. Thus, when

the demand for land or jobs increases, the

productive potential of the forests is likely

to be sacrificed.

Most forests in the U.S. tropical territories

are substantially degraded from their original

condition. However, because of U.S. Federal

income supports and the relatively low population pressure on some islands, little incentive

exists to exploit them further. There is also little incentive to develop and conserve the forest.

Whether the forests are stable in their degraded condition, improving, or continuing to

degrade is unclear. Probably all these processes

are occurring in different places. Available

data on soil erosion rates and anecdotal evidence suggest that the potential productivity

of the islands forests is being lost gradually.

Continued existence of large acreages of relatively unproductive forest land may promote

the idea that forests should be removed to make

way for development. Forests need to be managed as an integral part of overall island resource development, especially to protect watersheds and coastal marine environments.

Over the long term, as populations grow and

Federal supports decline, the productivity of

the forests will become more important and yet

more difficult to sustain. Whether that productivity will be realized depends on how soon forestry becomes integrated into the economic development of rural areas. Getting the necessary

support for forestry depends on building an informed group of people who perceive that they

will gain from forest conservation.

The U.S. Forest Service’s Institute of Tropical Forestry (Puerto Rico) and Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry (Hawaii) will continue to

have the major roles in researching and demonstrating forestry technologies until territorial

natural resource agencies become sufficient.

Low levels of onsite research and demonstration will inhibit growth of a constituency that

wants and uses appropriate forest management

technologies. Meanwhile, without such technologies, rising populations and expectations

are likely to result in eventual degradation of

the forest resources,

Unfortunately, many experts consider the

U.S. tropical forests to be a relatively insignificant part of the overall tropical forest conservation problem. Further, the institutions that

might be expected to provide professional resource development expertise in the U.S. tropical territories lack the necessary support to

do SO.

Natural resource agencies in U.S. tropical

territories are small or exist in name only. They

require increased funding, professional personnel, and technical assistance to be effective. In

addition, Federal resource conservation and

production programs for privately owned for-
304 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

ests are, in general, not compatible with the

characteristics of the U.S. tropical territories.

These program funds might be more effective

if they supported private forestry programs designed and administered by territorial forest

agencies.

Option 1:

Congress could increase funding for U.S.

Forest Service research and technology development and could direct the Forest Service to increase coordination of its activities

with other resource agencies in the U.S. tropical territories.

The Forest Service institutes in Puerto Rico

and Hawaii have small budgets and have been

cut back recently. These organizations have too

few staff to support the scale of activity necessary to sustain U.S. tropical forest resources.

Increased budgets and greater participation by

U.S. tropical forest experts are needed.

This option might be coupled with option 22,

which is to establish U.S. centers of excellence

to focus U.S. research, teaching, and resource

development expertise related to forest resources. Such centers could demonstrate a variety of sustainable management technologies

at sites in the U.S. tropical territories. They also

would help develop the territories’ human resources by supporting education and training

activities.

More integration of U.S. Forest Service activities with the objectives and programs of territorial agencies responsible for resources other

than forests (e.g., water and coastal marine resources) could help ensure that technologies

are appropriate to the social and ecological

needs of individual islands. Also, cooperative

activities could provide a way to help the local

agencies prepare to eventually assume total responsibility.

This option would require increased funding

for the U.S. Forest Service institutes and could

require some reordering of research priorities

to increase emphasis on such topics as watershed management and agroforestry. Unless

new moneys were appropriated, the funds

might have to be transferred from other U.S.

Forest Service programs. Competition for such

funds probably would be great.

Option 2:

Congress could support natural resource

agencies in U.S. territories by increasing

funding for the cooperative State and private

forestry programs of the U.S. Forest Service

institutes in Puerto Rico and Hawaii. Congress could also create a program of grants

to territorial governments to encourage investment in privately owned forests.

Stronger local capacity to manage forest resources would contribute to the territories’ selfsufficiency. In the long run, it might reduce the

need for development assistance from the

United States. Forestry could provide rural employment and increase sustainable production

of food, wood, and other products that could

be used instead of subsidized imports. A

stronger local research capability could help

ensure applicability of technologies to local

conditions and could reduce dependence on

research performed by the U.S. Forest Service.

The Federal Government subsidizes private

forestry with cost sharing and direct payments

to forest owners. Replacing these subsidies

with a program of grants administered by the

territorial governments would provide the flexibility needed to respond to each island territory’s unique cultural, economic, and ecological characteristics. Furthermore, it would encourage the development of a constituency

concerned with sustaining the forest resources.

Such a program could be used to keep the benefits available if the Federal forestry costsharing programs in other areas were replaced

with income tax incentives as has been proposed.

This option would require increased funds

for the Forest Service institutes both for dispersal to local natural resource agencies and for

increased administrative and professional personnel. State and private forestry funds (for

grants, loans, subsidized inputs, and extension

services) have been declining and would need

to be increased. This could either be new money or money reallocated from other U.S. Forest
Ch 14–Options for Congress ● 3 0 5

Service programs, but these programs have ernments to determine the guidelines for forbeen cut substantially in recent years. In the estry program assistance. No resource proshort term, the local natural resource agencies grams are included under the Compact of Free

might not have the human and logistical re- association. The roles of local, U. S., and i nsources necessary to implement a greatly ex- ternational resource agencies in the U.S. Papanded program. cific territories need to be defined to coordinate

This option also would require new negotia- actions.

tions with the emerging Pacific territory govDEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE

Issue (Projects)

Development assistance is making progress

to sustain tropical forests, but the gains are

insufficient to offset resource degradation.

Many opportunities exist to continue and accelerate the progress. But congressional vigilance is necessary to ensure that forestry

projects receive an appropriate share of U.S.

development assistance funds and that other

types of projects complement the forestry

efforts.

The Foreign Assistance Act directs development assistance organizations in which the

United States participates to give higher priority to the problems of loss and degradation of

tropical forests. AID, the world Bank, the U.N.

Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and

some other multilateral organizations have increased funding for forest-related projects. Furthermore, AID has developed new forestry and

environmental strategies and policies. Additional opportunities for development assistance

projects to sustain tropical forest resources include greater support for:

●

●

●

Participation by local people in identifying resource development problems and

opportunities.

Agriculture and rural development programs that increase productivity for people who live near forests. This would entail allocating a larger share of agricultural

development assistance to relatively

remote areas.

Agroforestry and innovative crops and

techniques that can sustain permanent

agriculture on relatively poor soils.

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

Locating new agricultural settlements

where the natural and human resources

are capable of sustaining farming practices

used. In some cases, this would mean refusing support for settlement projects

planned for closed forest areas and redirecting settlements to sparsely populated

areas that are not forested.

Reforestation and management of natural

forests to sustain environmental services

and produce fuelwood, construction

wood, polewood, and nonwood products.

Development and dissemination of locally acceptable technologies to make woodfuel use more efficient.

Long-range planning for infrastructure development projects (e.g., hydroelectric

dams), so that wood from clearing operations is used effectively, displaced farmers

are resettled permanently, and watersheds

are protected by forest cover.

Institution-building to enable tropical governments to exercise improved control

over timber concession operators.

Technical improvement and increased application of technologies for sustainable regeneration in logged forests, including

mangrove forests.

Plantations of fast-growing industrial tree

species to help take pressure off the remaining natural forests.

Financing wood product development

projects that encourage domestic processing as opposed to log exports.

Innovative institutional approaches to forestry and agroforestry designed to ensure

participation of local communities and to
306 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

●

increase diffusion of appropriate technologies beyond the boundaries of subsidized

demonstration projects.

Livestock raising projects that do not result

in deforestation or forest degradation.

Option 3:

Committees of Congress could continue periodic oversight hearings requiring testimony

from AID and U.S. representatives to multilateral development assistance organizations

on the extent to which development assistance practices are being modified to accomplish the objectives set forth in section 118

of the Foreign Assistance Act.

Development assistance projects can be

planned to produce improvements in income

and income distribution and to simultaneously provide long-term conservation benefits.

Such projects are being pursued to some extent by the various agencies. AID has one of

the best records in this regard. However, the

total effort is still small compared with other,

more conventional approaches to agricultural

and industrial development. Continued pressure from Congress, especially on the multilateral organizations, might lead to greater investments in resource-conserving projects.

This in turn could result in more cost-effective

and sustainable economic development and,

eventually, in a reduced need for U.S. Government involvement.

Placing a higher priority on resourceconserving forest development might have

some disadvantages. First, higher priority for

these approaches means lower priority for

some others. For example, investment in agricultural development in remote areas at the

forest fringe may not produce short-term yield

increases as great as the same amount of investment in already-developed farms on more

fertile lands.

Projects designed to increase revenues available for forest management by making forestry

more profitable or more sustainable have some

other drawbacks. For example, promoting

manufacture of wood products within tropical

countries might reduce opportunities for employment and profits in industrial countries

that now import logs and do the manufacturing.

Issue (Coordination)

Development assistance organizations generally do not coordinate their projects effectively at the country or regional level. To improve effectiveness, projects could be organized as steps in a comprehensive strategy

designed to develop sustainable forest management systems. Individual development

assistance organizations have neither developed nor coordinated such strategies.

The scope of tropical forest resource problems is great relative to available capital and

human resources. No single project or single

organization’s program is likely to sustain a

substantial portion of the tropical forest resources in perpetuity. The U.S. Congress has

determined that improved coordination among

the various international organizations is

necessary to make forestry projects more cost

effective. Section 118 of the Foreign Assistance

Act specifically requires the President to seek

opportunities to coordinate public and private

development activities and investments that affect forests in tropical countries. It also instructs U.S. representatives to multilateral

organizations to promote such coordination.

AID recognizes this need in its Policy Determination documents on environment and natural resources and on forestry.

AID and other development assistance organizations do keep track to some extent of what

other agencies and host government departments are doing and try to develop projects accordingly. AID has participated in some important joint efforts with other international

organizations. Also, the International Union

for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, the united Nations Environment Programme, and the world Wildlife Fund have

jointly prepared a world Conservation Strategy

which calls for coordinated global efforts for

the conservation of natural resources. These

organizations plan to coordinate their endeavors to implement the strategy.
Ch. 14—Options for Congress ● 307

Several regional technical centers have informal coordination roles within their area of

expertise. At the country level, the United Nations Development Programme country representatives sometimes are able to assist with

coordination. Still, little progress has been

made in getting international organizations to

work together to develop national or regional

forest resource plans that would assign specific

tasks to each agency.

AID and other development assistance organizations are not likely to follow a long-term

plan devised by any one organization because

each organization works toward its own particular objectives, Each organization’s country

mission has specific pressures from its central

office—whether it is in Washington, Rome, or

elsewhere. Many bureaucrats are under pressure to spend an exact level of funds during

each fiscal year. That requires flexibility that

would be constrained considerably if they had

to follow a strict plan devised under the leadership of another organization.

International development assistance organizations are, however, subject to the decisions

and direction of tropical nations’ governments.

In theory, these host governments are responsible for coordinating development assistance

efforts. In practice, host governments get help

from each international organization in identifying projects for that organization and there

are few attempts to make the different agencies’ efforts complementary.

Why do host governments not coordinate the

international organizations’ activities more effectively? One problem is that tropical governments need to maximize assistance funds they

receive each year, even though that means accepting some projects that are poorly integrated into the nation’s long-term development

plans. Also, different government agencies,

and individuals within agencies, have different

goals. Diplomatic pressure to accept particular

projects can be another problem. Finally, the

development assistance organizations have little incentive to encourage tropical nations to

show strong leadership.

However, if the U.S. Congress believes that

close coordination of international development assistance is necessary and that achieving such coordination is worth relinquishing

some degree of U.S. control over what projects

are funded, Congress could mandate increased

U.S. efforts to enable the tropical nations to

do long-term development planning and to

coordinate international assistance more

effectively,

Option 4:

Congress could direct the Department of

State to report on whether various tropical

nations are able and politically ready to develop long-term action plans for sustained

development of renewable natural resources.

AID and the multilateral organizations

could use these assessments as a basis for

assisting tropical nations in planning and

coordination.

The purpose of these assessments would be

to indicate where institution-building and environmental education should be given a high

priority; it would not be to reduce funding for

nations where the political will to conserve and

develop natural resource productivity is weak.

Redirecting the type of aid offered could result

in more cost-effective use of limited funds.

The first steps in assessing institutional capabilities for sustainable development of forest

resources are being taken in AID’s Environmental Profile reports. However, those reports

now focus on environmental opportunities and

problems primarily from a biophysical perspective and, to a lesser extent, an economic perspective. The reports suggested by this option

would place more emphasis on assessing political will, values, and institutional capability. For example, does the government have effective control over logging concessionaries?

Does it maintain land tenure arrangements that

cause people to clear forest land that will not

sustain agriculture?

The Department of State has the expertise to

conduct political and economic analyses. The

assessment process could be undertaken in
308 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

stages, beginning with syntheses of information available in Washington, moving later

to work done under the auspices of U.S. embassies.

This option has some disadvantages. Since

U.S. embassies would need to make critical

judgments about political willingness and capabilities, any negative statements might offend host government officials. Thus, the Department of State might be reluctant to comply rigorously. If the reports were given security classification to minimize this effect, they

would be of limited use in planning development assistance activities.

Option 5:

Congress could direct the Department of

State and U.S. representatives to multilateral

development assistance organizations to promote international ad hoc committees

formed to assist tropical nations in planning

long-term forest development.

These ad hoc committees could include experts from the United States, other developed

countries, and the developing countries. They

would identify problems, plan a forest resource

development strategy, and coordinate various

assistance projects. The committees could be

modeled after the Coordination for Development in Africa program (CDA).

Many benefits can be anticipated from assisting tropical nations to take increased responsibility for planning and coordination. First, if

such efforts were effective, the cost effectiveness of U.S. and other nations’ development

assistance efforts could be improved. Effective

coordination increases the probability of meeting both the necessary and sufficient conditions for sustaining tropical forest resources.

Second, and perhaps most important in the

long run, improved planning and coordination

might encourage some tropical governments

to identify and resolve the institutional constraints, such as land tenure, that inhibit development of forests and other potentially renewable resources.

Increasing tropical nations’ responsibilities

for planning and coordinating assistance projects may be difficult and could have some negative effects. For instance, tropical governments might have to reject some inappropriate forestry projects and the funds that go with

them. This would be a hard decision politically, but such decisions are sometimes made, at

least by some of the wealthier tropical nations.

A greater obstacle would arise where governments do not have the necessary expertise for

resource development planning. Thus, in addition to the ad hoc committees for nation-level

planning, it may be necessary to provide increased support for development of local planning capabilities.

RESOURCE

Issue

DEVELOPMENT PLANNING

use is commonly a side-effect of narrowly

Although resource development planning is

essential for sustainable production of forest

products and environmental services, the

available planning technologies are seldom

applied to their full potential.

Tropical governments, development assistance organizations, and private firms often

make forest development decisions without

sufficient planning. Unplanned forest resource

planned development of some other resource

or other area of the forest. For example, roads

are built into forest land where logging and

agriculture are inappropriate. The spontaneous development that follows usually is not sustainable or economic in the long run.

There are several reasons why planning is

neglected. First, government and development

assistance agency decisionmakers maybe un-
Ch 14—Options for Congress . 30 9

aware or unconvinced of the cost effectiveness

of such planning. Second, decisionmakers may

doubt that planners can provide timely results

focused on relevant information and presented

in understandable form. Third, many tropical

countries have too little planning expertise.

Fourth, domination of resource-use decisions

by special interest groups can preclude comprehensive planning.

The effectiveness of planning in tropical

areas is hampered by shortages of data on biophysical, social, and economic factors and by

a lack of knowledge of how such factors interact. Many tropical nations need assistance to

build their own capacity to produce data bases

and to use them for planning. For example, improved information on biological diversity of

various sites is needed to make decisions about

where to locate protected areas.

Biophysical site capability and land classification are the most commonly applied components of resource development planning. These

techniques are usually not well integrated with

analysis of social, economic, or institutional

factors. As a result, many development projects

fail even though they may be suitable for the

biophysical characteristics of the chosen sites.

AID is required to consider environmental

impacts and has a policy requiring a “social

soundness analysis” as part of project design.

However, agency staff vary in their degree of

cooperation with these requirements; some extend such an analysis beyond its useful bounds

while others produce pro forma responses.

Option 6:

Congress could maintain the availability of

low-cost Landsat images to governments in

the Tropics.

Landsat images have proven useful in many

tropical nations for measuring forest cover and

identifying broad categories of forest types and

conditions. In some instances, images taken at

different times have been compared to identify rates and locations of deforestation problems. AID has had successful programs to train

tropical government analysts to use Landsat

imagery for resource development planning.

The Landsat images have been available at low

cost, but proposals to sell the U.S. satellites to

private firms have been considered. Private

ownership of Landsat could lead to increases

in imagery prices that might discourage the use

of this important tool for planning.

Resource planning can be greatly improved

in many tropical nations with maps based on

broad classifications of land capability. Using

Landsat images, such classifications can be

made rapidly and inexpensively for large areas.

This is important because timeliness and expense are two of the major constraints on the

use of planning analyses. Landsat is useful

even where computer analysis is not available

because the images can be interpreted visually. Small computers that can analyze the data

in digital form are becoming more widespread

in tropical nations and as a result, Landsat interpretation is becoming an even more accurate tool.

Constraints on the use of Landsat include

cloud cover that consistently obscures views

of some tropical areas. Many tropical governments do not yet have enough skilled personnel or facilities to use the imagery. Resource

planning agencies, in some nations, cannot get

images of certain forest areas because they are

classified for security reasons. The major disadvantage to this option is that the U.S. Government would have to continue paying the

costs of the Landsat satellites.

Option 7:

Congress could encourage AID to provide resource development planning assistance by

improving the use of macrolevel land classification and the analyses of social and institutional factors in AID’s “Follow-on

Country Environmental Profiles.” Congress

could direct the U.S. representatives to international development assistance organizations to promote similar policies.

AID’s Environmental Profile process is proving to be an effective mechanism for environmental education as host government agencies

are becoming involved in production of the second phase of profile reports. Still, this does not

guarantee that decisionmakers will consider
310 Ž Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

the environmental profiles useful for development planning. Thus, it is important to proceed

slowly with these activities until local interest

and participation are assured. Followup is necessary so that the environmental concerns are

incorporated in AID’s country development

strategies and in the host country’s development planning.

Much technical information on natural resources in tropical forest areas already exists

in the United States. It is scattered in such

places as the archives of the Soil Conservation

Service, the map collections of the Library of

Congress, the Central Intelligence Agency, and

the electronic data bases at USDA’s Economic

Botany Laboratory. This information can be

used to produce first approximations of landcapability or life-zone maps. These could then

be checked for accuracy in the subject nations,

as were the first drafts of the Environmental

Profiles.

Providing more pragmatic information on

natural and human resource capabilities may

make the reports more useful. Performing these

assessments cooperatively with the host nations provides opportunities for U.S. and tropical nation personnel to gain new expertise.

Cooperative production of the information also

enhances the likelihood of its use outside of

AID.

A number of objections to this option can be

anticipated. It calls for the production of more

reports not tied to specific development projects, so some tropical nations may perceive

that it is an activity that only benefits AID.

Preparation of such reports maybe perceived

by many AID and host country officials as a

distraction of available time and funds.

The fact that much data on tropical forest resources gather dust in U.S. archives may indicate that many such efforts do not produce useful reports. Also, AID has sponsored biophysical land capability assessments in the past,

and, when necessary, they might do so again

without special prompting from the Congress.

In countries where planning expertise is

scarce, promotion of these techniques may be

premature.

Option 8:

Congress could direct the U.S. directors of

multilateral development banks to promote

environmental assessments at an early stage

of project planning. Congress could follow

up on this request by holding periodic hearings to determine whether the banks are

using environmental assessment procedures

effectively.

A variety of development assistance projects

affects tropical forest resources directly and indirectly. The negative effects can best be identified and mitigated at the project level because

they tend to be highly site-specific. Thus, environmental quality and natural resource considerations should be integrated into the design

and continuing evaluations of development

projects.

For example, irrigation projects should in

some cases include funding for protection of

forested watersheds. The negative impacts of

projects that convert tropical forest to other

uses can sometimes be offset by funds to establish protected areas elsewhere. More thorough and analytical environmental review

processes could increase the long-term net benefits of development projects. They also might

help convince tropical governments of the importance of these factors.

The U.S. experience with environmental impact statements demonstrates the need to focus

on tradeoffs that arise in decisionmaking. The

U.S. process has at times been time-consuming

and expensive, but it has been an effective tool

for avoiding negative environmental effects.

The multilateral development banks are beginning to use such procedures. The World Bank,

for instance, has established an Office of Environmental Affairs. However, the environmental reviews occur late in the planning process, so the information they produce is less useful than it could be.

For the banks, it may be more desirable to

integrate environmental quality and natural resource considerations into the early stages of

planning than to require separate environmental impact statements. Follow-up monitoring

of environmental effects during and after proj-
Ch. 14—Options for Congress . 311

ect implementation also deserves higher priori- ernments do not perceive them to be an importy. However, such analyses could be pro forma tant tool.

and superficial if the banks and the host govRESEARCH

Issue (Research)

Fundamental research, applied

AND MARKET DEVELOPMENT

research,

and technology implementation related to

tropical forests are not well coordinated.

Moreover, interactions among factors that

constrain forest resource development are

poorly understood. Consequently, resource

development projects often fail, and promising technologies too seldom spread beyond

the demonstration areas. Expanded interdisciplinary research efforts in tropical forest

resources are needed and these need to be

more closely related to technology implementation.

Profitable technologies that can supply local

people’s needs and simultaneously sustain forest productivity do not exist for many types of

tropical forests, Incremental improvements of

existing technologies seem unlikely to accomplish these goals. Rather, new approaches in

both techniques and institutions also must be

invented. These must be based on improved

understanding of the biological, economic, and

social factors affecting forest resources. Thus,

new fundamental research is needed. But forest resource degradation is occurring too rapidly for fundamental research to be conducted

in the traditional, somewhat aloof fashion. Fundamental research could play a larger role in

conservation and development if scientists

would increase their efforts to understand the

needs of applied researchers and technology

users.

Interdisciplinary research on tropical forest

resources has seldom been based on an adequate understanding of the needs of technology

implementors. Research results often are presented in unusable formats and published in

academic journals that technology implementors have little time and incentive to locate.

Consequently, much applied research is not

used for technology development. When it is

used, there is often a time lag between completion of the research and its use.

Solutions to this problem include building

more research and training components into

the implementation stages of development projects and improving communication among researchers and between researchers and technology implementors. Reorganizing research

efforts to improve this communication should

be relatively inexpensive.

Option 9:

Congress could conduct hearings to determine 1) whether research agencies (such as

the National Academy of Sciences, the National Science Foundation, and the U.S. Forest Service laboratories and institutes) are

giving sufficient priority to interdisciplinary

tropical forestry studies that link research

and development, and 2) whether the results

are being disseminated adequately. Congress

could reward those agencies and programs

that follow such priorities.

Hearings are a relatively inexpensive way to

express congressional recognition of a need,

gather information, and provide impetus to

government agencies and the private sector to

redirect and expand their efforts. Hearings can

give recognition to individuals and programs

that have taken desired actions. If hearings

reveal that agencies are doing interdisciplinary

research that is used to sustain tropical forest

resources, Congress may choose to increase

funding for those agencies.

Hearings alone, however, do not carry legislative weight. They usually require followup

to affect agency behavior. Since they may reflect the interest of only a few Members of Congress, organizations may not be induced to

25-287 0 - 84 - 21
312 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

change their priorities simply as the result of

the hearing process.

Option 10:

Congress could appropriate funds specifically for UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere

program.

The International Man and the Biosphere

(MAB) program receives money from the general funds of UNESCO. Current levels of funding are low and much reduced from previous

years. Concurrently, the Department of State

support for U.S. liaison activities with the MAB

program is being cut back.

MAB provides a framework for international cooperation in problem-oriented research on

natural resource development. Part of its budget is earmarked for activities concerning the

Tropics. Continued U.S. support for MAB

would strengthen the ability of tropical nations

to conduct significant research and could facilitate communication of research results to

developers and users of resource-sustaining

forest management technologies. In addition,

it would help maintain U.S. scientists’ links to

this research network.

This option would require some additional

funding from Congress. Moreover, increased

support may not lead to improved coordination in tropical forestry research or to reorientation of research so that it addresses the real

needs of technology implementors.

Option 11:

Congress could determine the feasibility of

establishing agroforestry and forestry research programs at existing Consultative

Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) institutions.

CGIAR is a network of regional and international organizations that have experience in

conducting agricultural research in developing

countries and in linking research to technology

implementation. The mandates of the CGIAR

institutions do not include forestry and have

been interpreted to exclude agroforestry as

well. By developing and promoting agroforestry and forestry systems, CGIAR research

could help alleviate pressures to convert remaining tropical forests to other uses.

The addition of forestry or agroforestry programs to these institutions could facilitate interdisciplinary research cooperation and the

development of production systems in which

agriculture and forestry are integrated. Capital

outlay would be minimal because the network

and institutional infrastructure already exist.

Adding such programs would involve internal adjustments and priority shifts within and

between existing institutions, so the CGIAR institutions might resist an attempt to incorporate

forestry or agroforestry unless substantial additional funding were provided. Even with additional funds the changes might be disruptive

for CGIAR institutions, many of which are

oriented not to farming systems but rather to

production of particular agricultural commodities.

Option 12:

Congress could amend existing legislation

that allocates funds for tropical agriculture

activities to include tropical forestry and

agroforestry explicitly. To do so would improve the likelihood that forestry, agroforestry, and conventional crop production

would be viewed as complementary activities.

Some forestry activities take place under

agricultural programs. For example, Public

Law 480 funds have been used occasionally to

support reforestation, and a few forestry

schools have been awarded Title XII grants

where “agriculture” has been interpreted

broadly. However, without specific reference

to tropical forestry and agroforestry, important

opportunities to apply techniques that can sustain resource productivity may be lost.

Congress could amend Public Law 480, the

Food for Peace Act of 1966 (specifically sec.

406(a) 2 and 4) so that “agriculture” explicitly

includes forestry and agroforestry, Similarly,

Congress could broaden Title XII of the Foreign Assistance Act (specifically sec. 211(d)),
Ch. 14–Options for Congress • 313

which awards grants to help solve critical food

problems of the developing world, to increase

involvement by U.S. forestry schools and other

appropriate government agencies. These expanded mandates could be supported by diverting money from other development activities

or by allocating new moneys through existing

institutions.

Broadening existing agricultural funding

mechanisms to include forestry and agroforestry avoids overhead expenses that would occur if new programs were created. It also

would help promote a much needed interdisciplinary approach to deal with problems of

tropical land use.

The major argument against amending existing legislation would be that such an action

might hinder the achievement of other goals

by diluting limited funds and personnel. Many

experts believe that substantially more funds ●

will be necessary to advance agroforestry and

forestry significantly. Another problem is that

even with explicit direction from Congress, the

institutions committed to agriculture may continue to give forestry and agroforestry only a

small share of their resources.

Option 13:

Congress could establish a trust fund for the

Forestry Department of FAO to support improved communication among researchers

and technology implementors.

FAO has the world’s largest accumulation of

professional tropical forestry expertise. The

organization has strong connections to tropical

governments, tropical forestry experts, and

both multilateral and bilateral development

assistance agencies. FAO’S activities include

creating a world forest resource information

system and promoting social forestry. It publishes a forestry journal, Unasylva, and series

of technical forestry papers. FAO has been instrumental in focusing world attention on the

need to integrate forestry into community

development.

The U.S. contribution to FAO goes into a

general fund; FAO then allocates portions to

its various programs. Forestry receives only a

small share and the United States has a relatively minor role in FAO’S Forestry Department.

A trust fund is a way to ensure that the forestry

program receives additional money and to enhance opportunities for use of U.S. expertise

on tropical forests.

A trust fund also would permit the United

States to negotiate some particular priorities

for funding. For example, the United States

could establish a trust fund specifically to support interdisciplinary research components in

FAO forestry development projects and to enhance the communication of research results

and technical information. Such a trust fund

might support management training programs

or the preparation, publication, and dissemination of forestry information in appropriate languages for technical schools and practitioners.

However, FAO may not be the best place to

invest U.S. funds intended to support technologies to sustain tropical forest resources. This

would require additional funds beyond the current statutory limits on the U.S. contribution

to FAO. The United States has not had a strong

voice at FAO planning sessions for regular forestry activities. Finally, political benefits to the

United States from funds spent through a multilateral agency may be less than political benefits from a U.S. bilateral agency.

Option 14:

Congress could amend the Foreign Assistance Act (sec. 301, U.S. Voluntary Contributions to U.N. Organizations) to include funding for the United Nations University

(UNU).

UNU functions through and strengthens networks of existing universities and research institutions around the world. It provides a variety of courses, instructors, and research facilities. It is an international community of

scholars engaged in interdisciplinary research,

post-graduate training, and dissemination of

knowledge to international organizations, governments, scholars, policy makers, and the

public. The U.S. Government has never provided financial support to UNU. The main advantage of such a contribution would be promotion of interdisciplinary research.
314 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

The main objections to this option are that

it requires increased Federal spending and that

funds might be used more efficiently by the

U.S. National Science Foundation or by AID’s

technology transfer programs.

issue (Product and Market Development)

Sustaining forests in many tropical areas

will depend on developing markets for local

forest products. Many products that are

gathered on a subsistence basis do not attract

investment for sustainable development because they appear to be ‘free. Furthermore,

government agencies are often unaware of

the forest’s potential to support rural development.

Tropical forest ecosystems house complex

associations of vegetation, wildlife, and other

potential resources, some of which could be developed as commodities profitable to harvest

on a managed basis. Information gathered on

noncommercial tree species and nonwood forest products is abundant. But it seldom includes more than taxonomic identification and

a brief discussion of existing product uses by

tropical people. Developing markets for unused

or underused forest products could motivate

local people and development agencies to invest time and capital in managing forest resources. Thus, in some areas, product and market development could be a way to maintain

biological diversity and simultaneously provide

profitable rural development.

Option 15:

a) Congress could mandate and fund the U.S.

Forest Products Laboratory to develop new

products and market information for tropical forest resources and to increase its efforts

to transfer the technologies.

b) Congress could direct AID to expand its

support for dissemination of information on

underused tropical forest resources and to

pursue market development for those products that are sustainable with the kinds of

management likely to occur.

Using a wider range of tree species and sizes

should make intensive management of smaller

forest areas feasible and profitable. This would

allow larger harvests from smaller areas, protecting biological diversity in unharvested

areas while providing materials for export or

local development. Use of many tree species

and sizes can supply growing domestic markets and at the same time continue to produce

wood for export markets. Logging from smaller

areas would also make enforcement of strict

regulations regarding road engineering, site

protection, and restoration of the forest more

feasible.

The U.S. Forest Products Laboratory is conducting some research on tropical wood product use, and several of its projects for temperate

zone forestry are producing technologies that

can be used in the Tropics. A more specific

congressional mandate and additional funding

would ensure continuation and expansion of

such activities and could enhance technology

transfer to tropical areas.

Additional knowledge of the role of forest

products in subsistence economies and improved development of markets for nonwood

forest products could cause decisionmakers to

value forests more highly. More support could

be developed for local forestry investments and

conservation efforts, Development of production systems and markets for nonwood tropical

forest resources could provide employment

and income-generating activities for rural people while reducing incentives to convert forest

to unsustainable land uses.

AID has considerable experience with production system and market development for

agricultural products and this could be applied

to tropical forest products, Furthermore, AID

could increase its support for the BOSTID project that synthesizes, publishes, and distributes

information on underexploited tropical resources. This relatively inexpensive project already has been very effective in stimulating investment in such resource development.

Several constraints hold back development

of new forest products. Even if research were

increased, it is not clear that the potential new

products would attract investment. One problem is that inexpensive and reliable screening

techniques for evaluating potential forest prod-
Ch 14—Options for Congress Ž 31 5

ucts have not been developed. Another problem is that market research for new products

often must depend on unverified assumptions

about what the product price will be and on

unreliable consumer preference surveys. Also,

in many tropical countries capital earns high

rates of return and entrepreneurial talent is

highly rewarded in enterprises less risky than

new product development. Furthermore, information on traditional uses of minor forest products is difficult to collect.

Successful product and market development

should lead to higher profits from forest resource harvesting. If governments do not make

simultaneous investments in forest management and in regulation and control of those

who harvest the resources, however, market

development could lead to more rapid depletion of the resources.

BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY

Issue

Benefits from preserving biological diversity of tropical forests accrue to society as a

whole, including future generations, yet the

costs are borne by the present generation in

tropical countries.

Tropical forests are great reservoirs of biological diversity. They contain some 2 million

species of plants and animals. But diverse forest ecosystems generally do not produce high

yields per hectare per year of highly valued

products. So development usually entails replacing diverse systems with simpler ones.

Natural forests can be modified to make them

economically productive while maintaining

significant biological diversity. However, for

many types of forests this will not occur until

more profitable management technologies are

developed. For now, the full original species

composition of tropical forests probably can

be preserved only in areas that remain inaccessible or in areas set aside for research, education, and recreation.

Maintenance of some natural forest ecosystems can be justified because they are on steeply sloping watershed catchments. Cloud forests

are an example. For now, however, investments in protection and maintenance of other

biologically diverse natural forests will have to

be motivated by recognition of the potential

these areas and the genetic resources they contain hold for future generations.

Option 16:

Congress could conduct hearings on its recent amendment to the Foreign Assistance

Act which directs AID, in concert with other

appropriate agencies, to develop a comprehensive U.S. strategy to maintain biological

diversity. Congress also could encourage

U.S. representatives to multilateral organizations to promote similar strategies.

Over the past 5 years, AID, the World Bank,

and some other assistance organizations have

developed strategies for investing in forest

resources (mainly to produce wood) and for

ameliorating the negative environmental effects of development projects. The process of

developing and implementing these strategies

has helped educate decisionmakers about environmental consequences of economic development projects and about new approaches to

forestry. The strategies have begun to foster

more sustainable development projects.

The strategy to support biological diversity

can be expected to have a similar effect. If conservation of biological diversity were made an

explicit goal for development projects, development agencies would act to keep open future

options for development of renewable resources. This eventually could lead to new

ways of using and sustaining these resources

to meet basic human needs or to produce biological products for export. Maintaining biological diversity can complement sustainable

economic development because it fosters en25-287 0 - 84 - 22
316 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

vironmental stability and renewable resource

productivity.

Some AID officials may be reluctant to comply rigorously with the intent of the amendment. It may be perceived as another restriction that hinders AID and other development

assistance organizations. Actions will not necessarily stem from the strategy unless there is

strong commitment and support within the

agencies.

Option 17:

Congress could support the creation of an international fund to subsidize the establishment and maintenance of protected areas in

the Tropics.

Although there are many designated protected areas in the Tropics, most receive little

protection and many are being deforested or

degraded. Often this is because poor nations

can not afford the costs of adequate protection.

Various ways to finance protected areas have

been suggested. One proposal is to solicit contributions from developed countries or to tax

some internationally traded commodities to

create an international fund. The fund would

provide grants to tropical nation governments

to establish and manage protected areas. Another suggestion is for the assistance agencies

to finance an international fund that would

support a wide variety of development projects

outside the forests. These would be

Issue

designed

to reduce the motivation for exploiting the protected areas. The fund would support such

projects as compensation for the direct and indirect costs of protected areas. (Indirect costs

include the foreign exchange and income foregone as a result of restrictions on harvesting

forest products.)

Creating a major fund for tropical forest protected areas would increase opportunities to

preserve these habitats and their vast biological

diversity. The fund would make additional

moneys available for parks where and when

most needed. Some money is available for protected area establishment from scattered

sources, but it is not sufficient and is rarely

available to manage existing protected areas.

This option is likely to be expensive. The

tropical forests to be protected are often in

remote areas. The logistics of both policing the

protected areas and creating suitable economic

development opportunities for people outside

the protected areas would be difficult. Furthermore, the suggested funding mechanisms may

face serious objections. International funds for

work on environmental problems, such as desertification, have not had much success in soliciting contributions from developed nation

governments. Taxes on forest products would

raise consumer prices in importing countries

and reduce revenues to tropical countries. Diverting funds from existing development assistance activities could have adverse effects on

those activities.

U.S. EXPERTISE

tropical forest resources and has limited funds

to allocate to this field of growing importance.

U.S. expertise on tropical forest resources is

widely scattered and is not being developed

or used effectively.

Tropical governments and international

organizations are beginning to increase investments in tropical forest resources. As a

result, demands for U.S. technical and financial support are increasing. The United States

has few well-qualified, experienced experts on

Nonetheless, U.S. expertise is recognized in

fields that include reforestation, watershed

management, forest industries, resource inventory and mapping, resource development planning, information processing, botany, zoology,

and environmental education. Furthermore,

the United States has a wide variety of public

and private organizations that could contribute

to an expanded international program on trop-
Ch. 14—Options for Congress Ž 3 1 7

ical forests. Much more could be done to create

opportunities for U.S. expertise to help sustain

tropical forests.

U.S. science and technology alone cannot be

sufficient to sustain tropical forests because of

the scale of the problem and because most of

the tropical forests are the sovereign resources

of foreign nations. In the long term, science

and technology expertise must come from

within the tropical countries. However, U.S.

expertise is needed now both to assist directly

with technology development and implementation and to build indigenous scientific and

technical capabilities in tropical nations.

Option 18:

Congress could modify the organic legislation for those U.S. agencies* whose actions

affect forest resources in tropical nations

and U.S. tropical territories. The amendments would state in substance that the

agencies, in their regular activities: 1) will

not contribute to or fund conversion or degradation of tropical forests unless such activities are preceded by detailed resource

development plans indicating that the conversion will result in sustainable land use,

and 2) will act to maintain and enhance trop

ical forest resources and act to slow or stop

deforestation end degradation.

Ensuring that the Federal agencies do not

contribute to the unsustainable use of tropical

forest resources would be a significant first

step. Federal agencies also could do a great

deal to help develop and use resource-sustaining technologies. Such a mandate from Congress would signal the importance of maintaining tropical forests and the species they contain while developing them to benefit those

*Government organizations concerned with tropical forests

include the Department of State, Agency for International

Development, Council on Environmental Quality, Department

of Agriculture, U.S. Forest Service, Industry and Trade Administration, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration,

Bureau of Land Management, Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service, International Development Cooperation

Agency, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, National Science Foundation, Peace Corps, Smithsonian Institution, Department of Defense, Corps of Engineers, International

Executive Service Corps, Overseas Private Investment Corporation, Export-Import Bank, and Trade and Development Program.

who rely on their products and services for

livelihood.

The U.S. National Park Service, Fish and

Wildlife Service, and Forest Service have international offices, but their responsibilities are

not well-defined in the organic legislation. For

example, the National Park Service’s organic

legislation could be amended to direct that

agency to share its expertise in protected area

establishment, management, and related training with tropical countries. The Forest Service’s institutes in Puerto Rico and Hawaii could

be directed to provide research and training

in response to tropical nation needs. In addition, various agencies might provide more opportunities for foreign resource managers to

receive training.

One disadvantage of this option is that expanded mandates might conflict with existing

interests and abilities in some agencies. Thus,

the changes might not receive support from

agencies that perceive them as hindering their

abilities to function effectively, especially if

significant staff time is taken from other responsibilities. In addition, more funds and staff

might be needed, depending on how the mandate is implemented.

Option 19:

Congress could request the General Accounting Office to determine how Federal agencies are using existing legislation enabling

Federal employees with appropriate expertise to work in international assistance agencies, American embassies, and international

nongovernmental organizations. Where appropriate, Congress could hold hearings, up

date or amend existing legislation, and direct the Office of Personnel Management to

encourage the use of those laws.

Mechanisms exist that enable U.S. Government personnel to work on such problems as

tropical deforestation. To determine if this is

occurring, GAO could review the agencies’ use

of the Federal Employees International Service

Act, the Intergovernmental Personnel Act, and

appropriate Executive Orders in the Federal

Personnel Manual (e.g., Executive Order No.

11552 of Aug. 24, 1970, enables details and
318 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

transfers of Federal employees to international

organizations).

Updating or simply calling attention to these

mechanisms for overseas work may encourage

Federal employees to work on tropical forestry

issues. This would help build a cadre of experienced U.S. tropical forest resource experts

to support future U.S. tropical forestry initiatives.

Legislation alone may not be enough to increase substantially the participation of U.S.

forest resource experts overseas. To date, involvement of U.S. resource managers abroad

has been limited by absence of long-term career

opportunities. In fact, agencies may discourage

staff participation in international programs.

Federal agencies, already short on staff, are

reluctant to let personnel go abroad. Thus, employees who do work overseas commonly are

in the early stages of their careers or are nearing retirement. It maybe necessary for Federal

agencies to re-examine their reward structures

and ensure re-entry to responsible positions

upon participants’ return to the United States.

Option 20:

Congress could encourage the U.S. private

sector to develop and implement technologies that sustain tropical forest resources.

Congress could encourage the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) and the

Trade and Development Programs under the

International Development Cooperation Agency (IDCA) to give special help to U.S. firms that

have technologies appropriate for maintaining

and enhancing tropical forest resources. OPIC

and IDCA could help such firms establish or

expand operations in tropical nations. In addition, Congress could amend the Foreign Assistance Act to direct AID mission directors to

give such firms a preferred status in procurement of technologies, products, or services.

This incentive in conjunction with OPIC assistance might expedite transfer of resource-sustaining U.S. technology to tropical nations.

Another law that might be modified is the

Small Business Innovation Research Act,

which at present does not require AID’s compliance. In addition, the International Executive Service Corps could devote more effort to

recruiting volunteer retired executives with

expertise in managing natural resources. Further opportunities to influence the private

sector could be identified from congressional

hearings.

A wealth of information, technology, and expertise that could be used to help tropical nations resides within the private sector. U.S.

firms could stimulate investment in forest resource conservation and development, and, as

a consequence, the United States could benefit

from more reliable sources of goods and from

new investment opportunities. The private sector can be more efficient than government in

technology research, development, and implementation.

Reinvestment of profits into projects in developing countries, especially joint ventures,

is one important mechanism for technology

transfer. Another is private sector exchange

programs, including on-the-job instruction in

the United States, consulting, onsite workshops

and training programs, support of local scientific and educational institutions, serving as

guest instructors at foreign universities or management institutes, and sponsoring attendance

of developing country personnel at international symposia and conferences.

Increased involvement of the U.S. private

sector could cause some problems, however.

U.S. private businesses might displace or stifle

growth of some indigenous private businesses

in the forestry sector. Markets might collapse

or infrastructure might not be maintained

when U.S. firms leave a tropical area. In addition, most resource-sustaining ventures involve

long-term commitments of capital which many

private businesses may be unwilling to risk in

potentially unstable developing countries, even

with OPIC insurance. Finally, U.S. businesses

are not required to perform environmental im-
Ch. 14—Options for Congress ● 319

pact assessments overseas and may cause unintended damage to tropical forest resources.

Option 21:

Congress could authorize U.S. participation

in the United Nations Associate Experts

Program.

Under the U.N. Associate Experts program,

developed countries send technical personnel

to developing countries to work on U.N. agency projects, including forestry and rural development projects. The developed country pays

the salary of its own experts. The United States

does not participate in this program, although

most OECD countries do. U.S. participation

might be administered through existing offices

of the Peace Corps or the Forest Service.

U.S. participation in the Associate Experts

program could have advantages for both the

U.S. and the tropical nations. U.S. participants

would be able to transfer technical and managerial skills needed for resolving practical

forestry problems in the Tropics. This program

also would increase the visibility of the U.S.

role in tropical forestry and facilitate scientific

and cultural interchange between Americans

and decisionmakers in tropical countries.

The United States has few opportunities to

develop tropical forestry expertise beyond the

level acquired by Peace Corps volunteers. This

is one reason why few Americans work on forestry projects administered by FAO and other

multilateral development organizations. Participation in the Associate Experts program

would give U.S. experts the needed opportunities to acquire tropical experience. Thus, it

should lead to a greater role for U.S. citizens

in international agencies and increased marketability of U.S. consulting services abroad.

Since this would be a new program for the

United States, new funding would be required.

Only a small number of qualified U.S. experts

may be available for participation in this program. To some extent, the Associate Experts

program may overlap with bilateral programs

of U.S. AID and other agencies.

Option 22:

Congress could designate U.S. centers of excellence to focus U.S. expertise on tropical

forest resources and provide opportunities

for research, education, and technology

transfer.

Effective use and further development of

United States tropical forestry expertise are

constrained by a lack of institutions in which

tropical forests are an issue of prime importance. The U.S. experts with knowledge and

experience needed for sustainable development of tropical forest resources are scattered

among public, private, and academic institutions. The experts have too few opportunities

to practice or improve their expertise or to provide fieldwork for students. Development assistance agencies, private firms, and organizations working with forest resources in tropical

countries have difficulty locating expert scientists. Much of the work by U.S. experts is terminated before it succeeds because institutional continuity is lacking.

Centers of excellence could address many of

these faults. They could organize education

curricula and research programs that integrate

social, physical, and biological perspectives.

They could establish strong links between fundamental and applied researchers and communication between researchers and technology

implementors. They could act as brokers of information and expertise by directing tropical

governments, tropical universities and students, and assistance agencies by directing

them to appropriate U.S. experts. Also, they

could help U.S. experts and students locate

private firms, tropical universities, or government agencies interested in collaborative work,

and by identifying sources of funding for these

kinds of exchanges.

Centers of excellence in tropical forestry

could be established to correspond to each

geographic region of the tropical world (tropical America, Asia, and Africa), or centers could

be organized according to ecological categories

(dry open forest, moist closed forest, mountain

forest). Possible locations for such centers in-
320 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

elude the U.S. Forest Service’s Institute of

Tropical Forestry in Puerto Rico (perhaps in

conjunction with the USDA Mayaguez Institute of Tropical Agriculture and the University of Puerto Rico), the U.S. Forest Service’s Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry (in conjunction with the University of Hawaii and the

East/West Center), or the Klieberg Institute at

Texas A&I University (in conjunction with

other departments of that university).

Locating centers for tropical forestry excellence in U.S. tropical or semiarid environments

would have important advantages. Research,

demonstration, and education field work could

be conducted on technologies appropriate for

the biophysical conditions that prevail in tropical regions. The centers could be expected to

get more support from local organizations than

if they were located at U.S. sites where their

work had no local applicability. Centers in the

United States would be accessible to the U.S.

experts and students who are scattered among

many organizations. This accessibility would

be most important for the expertise brokering

function.

There are several arguments against this option. First is the problem of funding. Developing the institutes in Puerto Rico and Hawaii

as centers of excellence in tropical forestry

would require significant changes in the Forest Service budget. Another problem is that

many of the ecological, institutional, social, and

economic conditions typical of the tropical nations do not occur on the U.S. tropical islands

or semiarid sites. Institutes located in tropical

nations would be more accessible to indigenous tropical scientists and students and so

might be more effective in supporting the tropical nation’s own institutions. Another problem is that centers of excellence, whether located in the U.S. or tropical nations, might focus too narrowly on technical issues and biophysical sciences, thus neglecting institutional

and social issues that are fundamental constraints on forest development and conservation in tropical countries.

Appendix A

Status of Tropical Forests: Tables

Table A-l.—Closed Forests in Tropical Africa, America, and Asia, 1980

(thousands of hectares)

Closed forest Percent of Closed forest Percent of

Country Total area area total Country Total area area total

226,760

34,200

26,767

47,544

59,099

92,377

32,246

122,190

62,298

75,261

124,670

24,586

9,632

23,854

63,754

93,970

2,806

58,037

78,303

19,684

7,333

3,613

250,581

128,400

5,680

19,672

38,936

11,858

2,634

1,040

11,262

2,783

57,500

82,429

27,420

126,700

120,383

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Tropical America:

Brazil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Peru . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

2,176,279

851 ,1%

128,522

105,750

21,340

20,500

17,920

10,300

5,950

4,458

4,350

3,590

3,010

2,900

2,050

2,000

1,718

1,540

1,440

1,295

1,105

935

765

740

660

650

500

304

220

200

186

120

65

47

26

a

a

a

a

a

216,634

-----

Tropical Africa:

Zaire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Congo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Gabon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Cameroon . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Madagascar . . . . . . . . . . .

Nigeria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ivory Coast . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ethiopa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Central African Republic. .

Zambia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Angola . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guinea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Liberia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ghana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Somalia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Tanzania . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Equatorial Guinea . . . . . .

Kenya . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Mozambique . . . . . . . . . . .

Uganda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sierra Leone . . . . . . . . . . .

Guinea-Bissau . . . . . . . . .

Sudan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Togo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Senegal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Zimbabwe . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Malawi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Rwanda . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Gambia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Benin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Burundi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Botswana . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Namibia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Upper Volta . . . . . . . . . . . .

Niger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Mali . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

357,480

69,680

46.6

62.4

76.6

37.7

17.4

6.4

13.8

3.6

5.8

4.0

2.3

8.3

20.8

7.2

2.4

1.5

46.2

1.9

1.2

3.9

10.1

18.3

0.3

0.4

5.4

1.1

0.5

1.6

4.6

6.2

0.4

0.9

a

a

a

a

a

10.0

42.0

54.2

Colombia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113,889

Mexico . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196,718

Bolivia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109,858

Venezuela . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91,205

Guyana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21,497

Surinam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16,382

Ecuador . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27,067

French Guiana . . . . . . . . . 9,100

Nicaragua . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13,000

Guatemala . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10,889

Panama . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,708

Paraguay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40,675

Honduras . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11,209

Costa Rica . . . . . . . . . . . . 5,090

Cuba . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11,450

Belize . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,297

Dominican Republic . . . 4,840

El Salvador . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,099

Jamaica . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,142

Haiti . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,775

Trinidad and Tobago . . . . 513

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,679,121

Tropical Asia:

Indonesia . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191,930

India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 328,700

Papua New Guinea . . . . . 46,170

Burma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67,658

Malaysia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33,008

Philippines . . . . . . . . . . . . 29,940

Thailand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51,352

Viet Nam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33,433

Laos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23,680

Kampuchea . . . . . . . . . . . . 18,104

Pakistan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80,519

Bhutan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4,660

Nepal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14,080

Sri Lanka . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,558

Bangladesh . . . . . . . . . . . . 14,400

Brunei . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 577

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 944,769

46,400

46,250

44,010

31,870

18,475

14,830

14,250

8,900

4,496

4,442

4,165

4,070

3,797

1,638

1,455

1,354

629

141

67

48

208

678,655

113,895

51,841

34,230

31,941

20,995

9,510

9,235

8,770

8,410

7,548

2,185

2,100

1,941

1,659

927

323

305,510

aNo data; in most cases this is where the areas are very small,

40.7

23.5

40.1

34.9

85.9

90.5

52.6

97.8

34.6

40.8

54.0

10.0

33.9

32.2

12.7

59.0

13,0

6.7

5.9

1.7

40.6

40.4

59.3

15.8

74.1

47.2

63.6

31.8

18.0

26.2

35.5

41.7

2.7

45.1

13.8

25.3

6.4

56.0

32.3

SOURCE” Food and Agriculture Organization/United Nations Environment Programme, Tropical Forest Resources Assessment Project (GEMS} Tropical Africa, Tropical

Asia, Tropical Arnerica, 4VOIS. (Rome 1981)

323
324 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Table A-2.–Condition of Ciosed Forests in Tropicai Africa, America, and Asia, 1980

Physically Parks and

Undisturbed Logged Managed

Country

unproductive protected

(%) (%) ( % ) ( % ) areas

75

48

52

39

16

6

4

15

87

11

0

56

45

a

17

61

22

7

13

54

100

15

6

a

a

a

30

a

a

a

a

a

a

16

45

55

49

44

69

23

10

65

84

15

21

9

6

40

18

16

41

30

11

45

68

a

22

47

8

70

23

a

a

a

a

a

55

81

54

28

40

66

81

76

84

80

27

51

14

21

20

a

38

61

19

a

20

3

9

25

27

36

3

1

2

5

41

20

61

57

47

55

66

53

18

33

64

67 10

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

68

a

a

6

58

a

8

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

- i

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

2

a

14

a

a

a

a

a

7 —

a

19

35

3

5

26

50

12

62

3

16

16

29

34

94

14

22

4

49

5

36

47

17

65

100

a

40

92

15

a

a

a

a

a

5

1

a

a

9

15

a

a

7

a

a

23

28

52

3

8

a

a

a

a

29

78

13

a

62

a

a

a

a

a

20

36

10

47

32

26

27

12

21

15

9

31

29

23

20

13

32

34

9

82

30

48

29

4

1

1

5

1

14

a

4

2

a

a

1

2

20

a

a

a

3

a

a

21 2
App. A—Status of Tropical Forests: Tables ● 325

Table A-2.—Condition of Closed Forests in Tropical Africa,

America, and Asia, 1980—Continued

Physically Parks and

Undisturbed Logged Managed unproductive protected

Country (“/0) ( % ) (“/0) (“/0) areas

Tropical Asia:

Indonesia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 31 30 5

India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 8 63 4 13

Papua New Guinea . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 1 59 a

Burma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 11 24 1

Malaysia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 26 12 21 5

Philippines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 41 a 20 7

Thailand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 a 26 24

Viet Nam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 25 1 50 6

Laos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 a 57 a

Kampuchea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 11 28 a

Pakistan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 10 19 51 1

Bhutan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 30 a 13 a

Nepal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 20 a 18 17

Sri Lanka . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 73 14 12

Bangladesh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 1 86 3 6

Brunei . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84 5 a 10 1

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 20 13 28 6

‘No data, in most cases this is where the areas are very small.

SOURCE Food and Agriculture Organization/United Nations Environment Programme, TropicalForest Resources Assessment

Project (GEMS) Tropical Africa, Tropical Asia, TropicalAmerice, 4vols. (Rome: 1981).
326 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Table A.3.–Open Forest and Shrubland in Tropical Africa, America, and Asia, 1980

(thousands of hectares)

Open Percent of Percent of Open Percent of Percent of

Country forest total area Shrubland total area Country forest total area Shrubland total area

Tropical Africa:

Zaire . . . . . . . . . . .

Angola . . . . . . . . .

Sudan . . . . . . . . . .

Tanzania . . . . . . . .

Botswana ., . . . . .

Central African

Republic . . . . .

Zambia . . . . . . . . .

Ethiopia . . . . . . . .

Zimbabwe ... , . .

Namibia . . . . . . . .

Mozambique . . . .

Chad . . . . . . . . . . .

Senegal . . . . . . . .

Nigeria . . . . . . . . .

Mali . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guinea . . . . . . . . .

Cameroon . . . . . .

Somalia . . . . . . . .

Upper Volta . . . . .

Ghana . . . . . . . . . .

Ivory Coast . . . . .

Uganda . . . . . . . . .

Malawi . . . . . . . . .

Benin . . . . . . . . . .

Madagascar ., . . .

Niger . . . . . . . . . .

Guinea-Bissau . . .

Togo . . . . . . . . . . .

Sierra Leone . . . .

Kenya . . . . . . . . . .

Gambia . . . . . . . . .

Rwanda . . . . . . . .

Gabon . . . . . . . . .

Liberia . . . . . . . . .

Burundi . . . . . . . .

Congo . . . . . . . . .

Equatorial Guinea

Total . . . . . . . . .

Tropical America:

Brazil . . . . . . . . . .

Paraguay . . . . . . .

Bolivia . . . . . . . . .

71,640

50,700

47,000

40,600

32,560

32,300

26,500

22,600

19,700

18,420

14,500

13,000

10,825

8,800

8,800

8,600

7,700

7,510

7,200

6,975

5,376

5,250

4,085

3,820

2,900

2,900

1,445

1,380

1,315

1,255

150

110

75

40

14

a

a

486,445

211,200

28,640

24.700

31.7

40.7

18.8

43.2

56.6

51.8

35.2

18.7

50.6

22.3

18.5

10.1

55.0

9.5

7.3

35.0

16.2

11.8

26.3

29.2

16.7

26.7

34.4

33.9

4.9

2.3

40.0

24.3

17.9

2.2

14.4

4.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

a

a

22.4

24.8

70.4

22.5

11,300

16,150

87,000

13,800

20,000

7,000

3,200

25,000

900

37,315

29,000

9,750

1,365

36,800

6,000

7,000

9,500

53,000

3,000

300

60

100

380

3,075

4,000

6,000

17

2,265

3

37,500

360

90

100

a

1,400

10

442,740

61,200

9,000

5.0

13.0

34.7

14.7

34.8

27.3

4.2

20.5

2.3

45.3

37.0

7.6

6.9

39.8

5.0

28.5

20.0

83.1

10.9

1.3

0.2

0.5

3.2

27.3

6.8

4.7

0.5

39.9

64.:

34.6

3.4

1.:

4.1

0.4

20.3

7.2

8.2

Colombia . . . . . . .

Venezuela ., ...,

Mexico . . . . . . . . .

Peru . . . . . . . . . . .

Surinam . . . . . . . .

Ecuador . . . . . . . .

Honduras . . . . . . .

Costa Rica . . . . . .

Guatemala . . . . . .

Belize . . . . . . . . . .

French Guiana . .

Guyana . . . . . . . . .

Haiti . . . . . . . . . . .

Dominican

Republic . . . . .

Nicaragua . . . . . .

Panama . . . . . . . .

Jamaica . . . . . . . .

Trinidad and

Tobago . . . . . . .

Cuba . . . . . . . . . . .

El Salvador . . . . .

Total . . . . . . . . .

Tropical Asia

Thailand . . . . . . . .

India . . . . . . . . . . .

Laos . . . . . . . . . . .

Kampuchea . . . . .

Papua New

Guinea . . . . . . .

Indonesia . . . . . . .

Viet Nam . . . . . . .

Pakistan . . . . . . . .

Nepal . . . . . . . . . .

Bhutan . . . . . . . . .

Malaysia . . . . . . . .

Philippines . . . . .

Brunei . . . . . . . . .

Sri Lanka . . . . . . .

Burma . . . . . . . . . .

Bangladesh . . . . .

Total . . . . . . . . .

5,700

3,300

2,100

1,120

690

550

200

160

100

92

70

25

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

5.0

3.6

3.150

4.2

2.0

1.8

3.1

0.9

4.0

0.8

0.1

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

5,500

2,120

59,500

3,150

200

1,050

1,220

120

1,505

46

7

115

53

54

210

227

305

293

278,647

6,440

5,393

5,215

5,100

3,945

3,000

1,340

295

160

40

a

a

a

a

a

a

16.6

12.5

1.6

22.0

28.2

8.5

1.6

4.0

0.4

1.3

0.9

a

a

a

a

a

a

30,948 3.3

aNo data; in most cases this is where the areas are very small.

145,881

500

5,378

735

400

85

23,900

330

1,105

230

25

a

a

215

2,600

a

35,503

4.8

2.3

30.3

2.4

1.2

3.9

10.9

2.4

13.8

2.0

0.1

0.5

1.9

1.1

1.6

19.9

1.2

2.7

14.0

8.7

1.0

1.6

3.1

2.2

0.2

12.4

1.0

1.4

1.6

0.5

a

3.3

3.8

a

3.8

SOURCE: Food and Agriculture Organization/United Nati@ns Environment pro9ramme, Tropica/ Forest Resources Assessment Project (GEMS): Tropical Africa, Tropical

Asia, Tropical America, 4 VOIS. (Rome: 1981).
App. A—Status of Tropical Forests: Tables ● 327

Table A-4.—Forest Fallow in Tropical Africa, America, and Asia, 1980 (thousands of hectares)

Country

Tropical Africa:

Sierra Leone . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ghana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Liberia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ivory Coast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Angola . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Nigeria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sudan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Equatorial Guinea . . . . . . . . . .

Togo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guinea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Mozambique . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Burundi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Zambia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Cameroon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Madagascar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guinea-Bissau . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Rwanda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Benin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Tanzania . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Gabon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Zaire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Central African Republic . . . .

Congo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ethiopia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Kenya . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Uganda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Somalia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Zimbabwe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Botswana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Namibia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Malawi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Gambia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Mali . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Niger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Senegal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Upper Volta . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Total

Ration of forest Ration of forest

fallow to closed fallow to closed

Forest fallow forest Country Forest fallow forest

3,860

6,500

5,500

8,400

4,850

7,750

600

1,165

250

1,600

500

900

4,900

3,500

170

25

7

100

1,500

7,800

300

1,100

300

55

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

61,646

5.2

3.8

2.8

1.9

1.7

1.3

0.9

0.9

0.8

0.8

0.5

0.5

0.3

0.3

0.3

0.3

0.2

0.2

0.1

0.1

0.1

0.1

0.1

0.1

0.1

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

0.3

Paraguay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Mexico . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Cuba . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Dominican Republic . . . . . . . .

Belize . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Venezuela . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Trinidad and Tobago . . . . . . .

Nicaragua . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Colombia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ecuador . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Honduras . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

El Salvador . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Peru . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Brazil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guatemala . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Costa Rica . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Surinam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Bolivia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

French Guiana . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guyana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Panama . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Total

Tropical Asia:

Viet Nam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Brunei . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Laos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Burma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sri Lanka . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Philippines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Bangladesh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Malaysia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Indonesia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Thailand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Nepal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Bhutan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Papua New Guinea . . . . . . . . .

Kampuchea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Pakistan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Total

3,270

26,000

700

267

525

10,650

57

1,370

8,500

2,350

680

22

5,350

46,420

360

120

270

1,100

75

200

124

108,612

Tropical America:

Jamaica . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Haiti . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

aNo data; in most cases thisis where the areas are very small,

tforest fallow island that has been cleared forcultivstion and subsequently abandoned so that it may again have woody vegetation.

10,750

237

5,000

18,100

853

3,520

315

4,825

9,470

13,460

110

205

1,380

200

a

69,225

0.8

0.6

0.5

0.4

0.4

0.3

0.3

0.3

0.2

0.2

0.2

0.2

0.1

0.1

0.1

0.1

a

a

a

a

a

0.2

1.2

0.7

0.6

0.6

0.5

0.4

0.3

0.2

0.2

0.1

0.1

0.1

0.1

a

a

a

0.2

SOURCE Food andAgriculture OrganlzatlonlUnlted Nations Environment Pro9ramme, TropkxdFor estResourcesAssessmentPro/ect(GEMS)” TropicalAfrica, Tropical

As/a, Trcpca/Amenca, 4VOIS (Rome 1981)
328 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Table A-5.—Forest Plantations in Tropical Africa, America, and Asia, 1980

Total land Area of Industrial Nonindustrial

area plantations plantations

Country

plantations

(1,000 ha) (ha) (%) (%)

58,693

250,658

58,272

92,361

124,680

38,936

122,187

94,239

11,847

23,856

23,607

32,243

75,261

2,635

78,311

234,628

2,721

26,766

11,261

47,541

34,199

19,671

27,418

5,685

63,732

11,135

126,638

7,334

128,449

23,852

120,383

1,040

62,298

3,613

82,416

57,496

2,805

266,000

187,850

180,900

163,300

157,200

100,250

98,200

97,750

60,300

75,250

45,700

44,900

38,000

29,000

25,400

22,500

19,500

19,000

19,000

18,500

16,800

12,500

12,000

11,300

11,000

6,300

6,000

5,800

3,200

2,850

1,900

1,300

500

350

300

a

a

42

31

87

90

43

71

1

69

97

30

84

88

12

63

84

33

63

41

56

100

28

0

67

0

100

0

91

0

75

11

100

14

100

—

—

58

69

13

10

57

29

99

31

65

70

16

88

37

16

67

37

59

44

0

72

100

33

100

0

100

9

100

89

o

100

14

0

—

—

2,189,595

770,064

197,266

11,448

91,209

113,880

128,517

27,067

109,866

513

10,889

1,141

16,382

4,838

7,709

2,297

40,674

5,091

2,098

13,928

21,497

2,775

9,100

11,209

1,564,667

1,780,600

3,855,000

159,000

157,000

124,500

95,000

84,000

43,000

25,900

16,000

15,800

12,800

8,500

5,700

4,000

3,100

3,000

2,800

1,500

1,300

1,200

1,000

450

a

4,620,550

56

51

45

100

97

100

39

100

23

100

100

100

100

0

100

100

63

100

100

100

100

0

100

—

55

44

4 9

55

0

3

0

61

0

77

0

0

0

0

100

0

0

37

0

0

0

0

100

0

—

45
App. A—Status of Tropical Forests: Tables ● 329

Table A-5.—Forest Plantations in Tropical Africa, America, and Asia, 1980—Continued

Country

Tropical Asia:

India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Indonesia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Philippines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Viet Nam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Pakistan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Bangladesh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Thailand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sri Lanka . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Malaysia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Papau New Guinea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Nepal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Burma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Laos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Bhutan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Kampuchea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Brunei . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Total land Area of Industrial Nonindustria l

area plantations plantations plantations

(1,000 ha) (ha) ( % ) ( % )

328,742

191,914

29,981

33,433

80,519

14,284

68,152

6,560

33,068

46,172

14,140

67,801

23,679

4,662

18,105

576

944,841

2,0613000

l,918,000

300,000

204,000

160,000

128,000

114,000

112,300

26,000

21,700

18,700

16,000

11,000

7,000

6,800

a

5,111,500 –

74

1

2

8

0

100

55

100

25

0

74

3

70

100

59

—

66

26

99

98

92

100

0

45

0

75

100

26

97

30

41

—

34

SOURCE” Food andAgriculture Organization/United Nations Environment Programme, Trop@/ Forest Resources Assessrnerrf

Pro/ect (GEMS) Trop/ca/ Africa, Tropica/Asfa, Tropica/Arnerica, 4VOIS (Rome 1981)
330 Ž Technologies to Sustain Tropical forest Resources

Table A-6.–Deforestation–Tropical Africa, America, and Asia, 1981-85

Annual Annual

deforestation deforestation

of closed Percent of closed Percent

forests deforested forests deforested

Country (1,000 ha) per year Country (1,000 ha) per year

Tropical Africa:

Ivory Coast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Nigeria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Rwanda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Burundi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guinea-Bissau . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Benin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Liberia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guinea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Kenya . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Angola . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Madagascar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ghana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Uganda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Zambia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Mozambique . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sierra Leone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Togo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Tanzania . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sudan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Cameroon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Zaire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Somalia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ethiopia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Equatorial Guinea . . . . . . . . . . . .

Central African Republic . . . . . .

Congo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Gabon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Botswana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Namibia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Zimbabwe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Mali . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Malawi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Upper Volta . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Senegal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Niger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Gambia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Tropical America:

Paraguay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Costa Rica . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

300

3

1

17

1

46

36

19

44

150

22

10

40

10

6

2

10

4

2

80

182

4

8

3

5

22

15

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

6.5

5.0

2.7

2.7

2.6

2.6

2.3

1.8

1.7

1.5

1.5

1.3

1.3

1.3

1.3

0.8

0.7

0.6

0.4

0.4

0.2

0.2

0.2

0.2

0.1

0.1

0.1 ,

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

1.332

190

65

0.6

4

4.0

Haiti . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

El Salvador . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Jamaica . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Nicaragua . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Honduras . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ecuador . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guatemala . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Colombia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Mexico . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Panama . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Belize . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Dominican Republic . . . . . . . . . .

Brazil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Peru . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Trinidad and Tobago . . . . . . . . . .

Venezuela . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Bolivia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Cuba . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Surinam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

French Guiana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guyana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Tropical Asia:

Nepal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sri Lanka . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Thailand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Brunei . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Laos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Malaysia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Philippines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Bangladesh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Viet Nam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Indonesia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Pakistan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Kampuchea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Burma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Bhutan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Papua New Guinea . . . . . . . . . . .

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

2

5

2

121

90

34

90

820

595

36

9

4.0

1,480

270

1

125

87

2

3

1

3

4,339

84

58

252

5

100

255

91

8

65

600

7

147

25

105

2

22

1,826

3.8

3.2

3.0

2.7

2.4

2.4

2.0

1.8

0.9

0.7

0.6

0.4

0.4

0.4

0.4

0.2

0.1

0.0

0.0

0.0

0.6

4.3

3.5

2.7

1.6

1.2

1.2

1.0

0.9

0.7

0.5

0.3

0.3

0.3

0.3

0.1

0.1

0.6

afqo data. in mostcases this is where the areas are~y small.

SOURCE: Food andAgriculture Organization/United Nations Environment Programme, Tropica/ ForestResources Assessrnerrt Projecf(GEMS~ Tropica/Africa, Tropica/

Asia, Tropica/America,4 vols. (Rome: 1981)
App. A—Status of Tropical Forests: Tables Ž 331

Table A-7.—Per Capita Open Forest Areas in Tropical Africa, America, and Asia, 1980

Open forest Hectares of Open forest Hectares of

area open forest area open forest

Country (1,000 ha) per capita Country (1,000 ha) per capita

Tropical Africa:

Botswana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Namibia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Central African Republic . . . . . . . . .

Angola ... , , ... , . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Zambia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Zimbabwe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sudan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Zaire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guinea-Bissau . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Tanzania . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Senegal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guinea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Somalia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Mozambique . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Mali . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Benin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Upper Volta . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Cameroon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Malawi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ethiopia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ivory Coast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ghana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Niger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Togo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sierra Leone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Uganda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Madagascar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Gambia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Gabon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Kenya . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Nigeria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Congo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Equatorial Guinea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Liberia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Rwanda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Burundi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

TropicalAmerica:

Paraguay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Bolivia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

32,560

18,420

32,300

50,700

26,500

13,000

19,700

47,000

71,640

1,445

40,600

10,825

8,600

7,510

14,500

8,800

3,820

7,200

7,700

4,085

22,800

5,376

6,975

2,900

1,380

1,315

5,250

2,900

150

75

1,255

8,800

a

a

40

110

14

486,445

28,640

24,700

40.3

18.3

14,1

7.2

4.6

2.9

2.7

2.6

2.5

2,5

2.3

1,9

1.7

1.6

1.4

1.3

1.1

1.0

0.9

0.7

0.7

0.7

0.6

0.5

0.5

0.4

0.4

0.3

0.2

0.1

0.1

0.1

b

b

b

b

b

1.4

9.0

4.4

Surinam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Brazil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

French Guiana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Belize . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Venezuela . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Colombia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Peru . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ecuador . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Honduras . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Costa Rica . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guyana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Cuba . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Dominican Republic . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Trinidad and Tobago . . . . . . . . . . . .

Mexico . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Panama . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guatemala . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Haiti . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

El Salvador . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Jamaica . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Nicaragua . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Tropical Asia:

Laos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Papua New Guinea . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Kampuchea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Thailand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Bhutan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Philippines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Bangladesh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Viet Nam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Indonesia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Pakistan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Burma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Brunei . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Malaysia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Nepal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sri Lanka . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

690

211,200

70

92

3,300

5,700

1,120

550

200

160

25

a

a

2,100

100

a

a

a

a

278,647

5,215

3,945

5,100

6,440

5,393

40

a

1,340

3,000

295

a

a

a

180

a

30,948

1.8

1.7

1.1

0.6

0.2

0.2

0.1

0.1

0.1

0.1

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

0.9

1.4

1.3

0.8

0.1

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

aNo data. in m~~t cases this is where the areas arevqsmall.

b ’

Less than O.05fcrest hectares per capita.

SOURCE: Populaticm Reference Burew, 1983 WoridPopdatiorI Dafa SfreeLWashington, D,C; Food and Agriculture Organization/United Nations Environment Programme,

Tropical Forest ResourcesAssessment Proiect (GEMS) Tropicsl Africa, Tropical Asia, Tropical America, 4vols. (Rome. 1981)

25-287 0 - 84 - 23
Appendix B

Glossary

Archipelago: An expanse of water with many scattered islands; a group of islands.

Agroforestry: A collective name for land-use systems and technologies where woody perennials

(trees, shrubs, palms, bamboos, etc.) are deliberately used on the same land management unit as

agricultural crops and/or animals, either in some

form of spatial arrangement or temporal sequence. In agroforestry systems there are both

ecological and economic interactions between

the different components.

Alluvial soils: Soils made of materials deposited

by running water (e.g., clay, silt, sand, and

gravel).

Aquifer: A water-bearing stratum of permeable

rock, sand, or gravel.

Atoll: A coral island consisting of a reef surrounding a lagoon.

Biological diversity: Includes two related concepts,

genetic diversity and ecological diversity. Genetic diversity is the amount of genetic variability

among individuals in a single species, whether

the species exist as a single interbreeding group

or as a number of populations, strains, breeds,

races, or subspecies. Ecological diversity (species

richness) is the number of species in a community of organisms. Both kinds of diversity are fundamental to the functioning of ecological systems,

Biome: A major ecological community type (e.g.,

grassland); a major biotic unit consisting of plant

and animal communities having similarities in

form and environmental conditions,

Biotic: Of or relating to life; caused or produced

by living things.

Broadleaf forest: A type of closed forest where

broadleaf species (dicotyledons or monocotyledons) predominate. The broadleaf trees (especially the dicotyledons) are often referred to as

“hardwoods.”

Canopy: The more or less continuous cover of

branches and foliage formed collectively by the

crowns of adjacent trees and other woody vegetation. Layers (i.e., understory and overstory) of the

canopy may be distinguished.

Clearcutting: The removal of the entire standing

crop of trees. In practice, may refer to exploitation that leaves much unsalable material standing (e.g., a commercial clearcutting).

Closed forest: Includes land where trees shade so

much of the ground that a continuous layer of

grass cannot grow. The tree cover is often multistoried. Trees may be evergreen, semideciduous,

or deciduous. Closed forests grow where the climate is relatively moist. Also called moist forest.

Cloud forests: Forests where clouds impinge

almost continuously on tropical mountain vegetation. Generally a dense growth of trees of various diameters draped with mosses, ferns, and

leafy liverworts.

Coir-fiber: A stiff, coarse fiber from the outerhusk

of coconut.

Commonwealth: In the context of American territorial relations, the status currently held by Puerto Rico and approved for the Northern Mariana

Islands. Denotes a high degree of local autonomy

under a constitution drafted and adopted by the

local residents,

Conifer: Any of an order (Coniferales) of mostly

evergreen trees and shrubs including forms (as

pines) with true cones and others (as yews) with

an arillate fruit. Most are needle-leaved trees.

Often referred to as softwoods.

Conifer forest: A type of closed forest. It includes

only areas where conifer species (gymnosperm)

predominate. These trees are often referred to as

“softwoods.”

Conservation: The management of human use of

the biosphere so that it benefits present generations while maintaining its potential to meet the

needs of future generations.

Converted land: Includes any land that has

changed from a natural to a manipulated state,

such as cropland planted annually or every few

years with food or fiber crops and rangeland

covered permanently with grasses, legumes,

and/or herbaceous species and harvested by grazing livestock.

Coppice: A forest of trees that has grown from

shoots or root suckers rather than seed. Coppicing refers to cutting trees close to ground level

so they will regrow from coppice shoots.

Copra: Dried coconut meat yielding coconut oil.

Deciduous: Of perennial plants that are normally

leafless for some period during the year.

Deforestation: The conversion of forests to land

uses that have a tree cover of less than 10 percent.

Degradation: Refers to the biological, physical, and

332
App. B—Glossary ● 333

chemical processes that result in the loss of the

productive potential of natural resources—e.g.,

soil erosion and loss of valuable or potentially

valuable genetic types.

Dendrothermal: Caused by or relating to heat

generated by burning wood.

Desertification: A process of extreme degradation

of the biological potential of the land that can lead

ultimately to desert-like conditions.

Dipterocarp forests: Forests dominated by trees of

the Dipterocarpaceae family. These are tall trees

of tropical Asia, Indonesia, and the Philippines

that have a twowinged fruit and are the source

of valuable timber, aromatic oils, and resins.

Disturbed forest: Forest that has been cleared in

large areas within the last 60 years, commonly

for crops or pasture. Usually it is sufficiently degraded or harvested regularly so it does not

return to its original state. Trees maybe managed

or left to natural successions. The term includes

plantations.

Dry forest: See open forest.

Ecological diversity: See biological diversity.

Ecosystem: A unit of plant and animal life, within

its nonliving environment, the components of

which are linked together by a variety of processes, including the flow of energy through the

system and the cycling of nutrients within it.

Endangered species: Species threatened with extinction as listed in the Endangered Species Act

of 1973 and subsequent amendments.

Endemic: Restricted or peculiar to a locality or

region. Native.

Eutrophic: Rich in dissolved nutrients (as phosphates). Often shallow and seasonally deficient

in oxygen.

Environmental services: Benefits provided by the

environment or environmental processes, often

with values difficult to quantify. Examples include the erosion control function of vegetation

and the filtering function of mangrove forests.

Exotic: Introduced from another country; not native to the place where found.

Free association: Proposed status for the peoples

of Palau, the Marshall Islands, and the Federated

States of Micronesia—currently the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands. Provides for full internal self-government and substantial authority in

foreign affairs. The United States would have

responsibility for defense and some specified

economic assistance.

Forest fallow: Land that has been cleared of its

trees for cultivation and subsequently abandoned

so that it may again have some woody vegetation.

This includes patches of land that are being used

to grow crops and some patches where forest has

not been cleared which are too small to account

for separately, The category does not include

land where erosion or leaching have so degraded

the site that only shrubs or grasses grow after the

land is abandoned.

Forest resources: Includes trees, the organisms

associated with them, and the land, waters, and

microclimates that are substantially affected by

them.

Forest structure: Distribution and arrangement of

trees in a forest.

Fuelwood: Wood used as fuel for purposes of cooking, heat, or power production. Wood for charcoal, kilns, and ovens is included,

Genetic diversity: See biological diversity.

Geomorphology: Science that deals with the land

and submarine relief features of the Earth’s surface; the features dealt within geomorphology.

Germ plasm: Germ cells and their precursors serving as the bearers of heredity and being fundamentally independent of other cells; the hereditary material of the germ cells, Genes.

Hardwood: A conventional term for the timber of

broadleaved trees, and the trees themselves, belonging to the botanical group Angiospermae.

Hectare: One hectare equals 2.47 acres. One square

kilometer equals 100 hectares. One square mile

equals 259 hectares. Thus, the 1.2 billion hectares

of closed tropical forest is equal to 3 billion acres

or 4.6 milhon square miles.

Horticulture: The science and art of growing fruits,

vegetables, flowers, or ornamental plants,

Hydrology: The study of the circulation of water

in and between the atmosphere and the Earth’s

crust, with particular emphasis on the phases initiated by precipitation and ending with evapotranspiration. Water cycle.

Hyphae: The threads that make up the mycelium

of a fungus.

Indigenous: Native to a specified area or region,

not introduced. Endemic.

Industrial plantations: Sites where trees are

planted to produce sawlogs, veneer logs, pulpwood, and pitprops. The category excludes plantations that produce fuelwood for industrial use.

Industrial wood: Wood used for sawlogs, veneer

logs, pit props, pulpwood, chips, particles, or

other construction purposes. Does not include

fuelwood.

In situ: Protecting stock in the original habitat

rather than in cold storage or in places such as

gene banks and botanical or zoological gardens.
334 Ž Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Insular: Of, relating to, or constituting an island;

dwelling or situated on an island.

Laterite: A red residual product of rock decay that

has a high content of oxides of iron and hydroxide of aluminum.

Landsat: Originally called Earth Resources Technological Satellite (ERTS). A group of satellites

using electromagnetic sensors to record reflected

radiation from the Earth to provide imagery to

depict ground cover, etc. Remote-sensing tool important for resource inventories.

Leeward: Being in or facing the direction toward

which the wind is blowing; the side opposite the

windward.

Legally protected forest: Forests where logging is

prohibited by law. It includes a variety of types

of parks and protected areas. Illegal logging and

agricultural clearing does occur in some of these

areas.

Legumes: Any of a large family (Leguminosae) of

dicotyledonous herbs, shrubs, and trees bearing

nodules on the roots that contain nitrogen-fixing

bacteria, and including important food, forage,

and timber plants (as peas, beans, carob, or rosewood.)

Littoral: Of, relating to, or situated or growing on

or near a shore, especially of the sea.

Logged-over forest: Productive forest area that has

been logged or cleared at least once in the last

60 years but does not fit the criteria for managed

forest. This category is not applied to open forests.

Managed forest: Productive forest where harvesting regulations are enforced, silvicultural treatments are carried out, and trees are protected

from fires and diseases.

Mangroves: Any of a genus (Rhizophora, especially

R. mangle) of tropical maritime trees or shrubs

that throw out many prop roots and form dense

masses important in coastal areas.

Manmade forest: See plantations.

Marginal land: Land that is relatively infertile or

unproductive for agriculture without extraordinary capital imputs (as irrigation, fertilizer).

Merchantable: Of commercially acceptable quality. Salable.

Moist forest: See closed forest.

Monoculture: One species planted over a large

area.

Montane: Of, relating to, growing in, or being the

biogeographic zone that is made up of relatively

moist cool upland slopes below timberline and

that is characterized by large evergreen trees as

a dominant life form.

Mycorrhiza: The symbiotic association of the

mycelium of a fungus with the roots of a seed

plant.

New world: North, South, and Central America.

Open forests: Trees cover at least 10 percent of the

ground but still allow enough light to reach the

forest floor so that a continuous cover of grass

can grow. Generally occur where the climate is

relatively dry.

Open woodlands: See open forests.

Palmito: Any of several usually low-growing fanleaved palms. Strips of the leaf blade of a palmetto used in weaving.

Phenology: A branch of science dealing with the

relations between climate and periodic biological

phenomena (as bird migration or plant flowering).

Phenotype: Any organism as observed—i.e., as

judged by its visually perceptible characters

resulting from the interaction of its genetic characteristics with the environment.

Pioneer species: A plant capable of invading bare

or newly exposed sites and persisting there—i.e.,

colonizing them—until supplanted by succession

species.

Plantation: A forest crop or stand established artificially either by sowing or planting. The term

includes reforestation (reestablishment of a tree

cover on deforested or degraded forest lands) and

replacement of natural forest by a different tree

crop. It does not include artificial regeneration

(the application of postharvesting techniques to

accelerate the regrowth of the species that had

been logged).

Possession: Used to refer to any unincorporated

territory of the United States—i.e., any territory

to which the Constitution has not been expressly and fully extended. Includes American Samoa,

Guam, and the Virgin Islands.

Productive forest: The characteristics of the trees,

terrain, and forest regulations potentially allow

the production of wood for industrial purposes

(e.g., sawlogs, veneer logs, pulpwood, and industrial poles). Relates to both closed and open forests. The distance to consumption or export centers is not taken into account, so the category includes some forests that are not now economically accessible.

Propagule: A structure (as a cutting, a seed, or a

spore) that propagates a plant.

Provenance trials (or tests): Testing populations
App. B—Glossary ● 3 3 5

of the same species to study their performance

under a range of site and climatic conditions. In

a provenance test, seeds are collected from a

number of widely scattered stands and the seedlings are grown under similar conditions.

Race: Subdivision of a species distinguished by

heritable physiological or morphological characteristics resulting from adaptation to a specific

environmental condition. Tree species races are

often described by referring to the geographic

location where the race is found naturally.

Rhizomes: Underground, root-like stem of plant.

Roundwood: Wood in the natural state as felled,

or otherwise harvested, with or without bark,

round, split, or squared. It comprises all wood

obtained from removals. Commodities included

are sawlogs, veneer logs, pit props, pulpwood,

other industrial roundwood, and fuelwood.

Secondary forests: Forest growth that has come up

naturally after some major interference (e.g., logging, serious fire, or insect attack).

Selectively cut: The removal of only the most

valuable trees,

Shrubland: Land that has woody vegetation covering at least 10 percent of the ground, but the main

woody plants are bushy species with a height at

maturity of 0.5 to 7 meters, Shrubland maybe the

natural vegetation under dry or otherwise stressful conditions, or it may result from severe degradation of open or closed forest.

Shifting cultivation (also called slash-and-burn

agriculture): Any farming system where land is

periodically cleared, cropped, and returned to

fallow.

Siltation: To choke, fill over, or obstruct with silt

or mud.

Silviculture: The science and art of cultivating

forest crops, based on a knowledge of forest tree

characteristics.

SociaI and environmental plantations: Plantations

designed for soil and water protection or to produce fuelwood and charcoal, polewood, or construction wood for local use, or some nonwood

products such as gum arabics. The category excludes plantations for major nonwood commodities such as rubber, palm oil, coconuts, cloves,

coffee, and cocoa. It also excludes trees planted

to shade agricultural crops.

Softwood: A conventional term for both the timber

and the trees belonging to the botanical group

Gymnospermae. Commercial timbers of this

group are generally confined to conifers.

Sustain (sustaining, sustainable): To maintain or

increase the productivity and renewability of the

resources in perpetuity.

Symbiosis: The intimate living together of two

dissimilar organisms in a mutually beneficial

relationship.

Taungya: Burmese word for hill cultivation. The

principal objective is to plant crops of trees used

for wood production. People are allowed to grow

food crops among the newly planted trees for one

or a few years.

Tissue culture: Microbiological technique for asexual reproduction of plants in vitro from a selected

parent.

Tree: A woody perennial plant having a single,

usually elongate, main stem generally with few

or no branches on its lower part.

Trust territory: Areas placed under the international trusteeship system of the United Nations,

territories detached from enemy states as a result

of World War II, and territories voluntarily

placed under the system. Are administered pursuant to the terms of individual agreements,

Tropics: The region lying between the Tropic of

Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn, 23.5° North

and 23.50 South of the Equator. In this report,

tropical forest includes all forest of the 76 listed

nations, whether or not they are actually in the

Tropics.

Undisturbed forest: Productive forest that has not

been logged or cleared in the last 60 years, including both primary forest and old secondary

forest. Natural tropical forest with at most a few

small areas cleared by natural or human-induced

events, regenerating by natural stages of succession. The term is not applied to open forests

because nearly all open forests have been subject

to cutting, burning, and grazing.

Unproductive forest (for physical reasons): Forest

unsuitable for industrial wood production

because of rough or inundated terrain or poor

growth characteristics of the trees (stunted or

crooked),

Unproductive land: Land that has been so degraded that it produces few useful products and

provides minimal environmental services. It

usually supports very little growth of useful

species and does not return naturally to other

categories of land.

Watershed: A region or area draining ultimately

to a particular watercourse or body of water.

Weeding: Eliminating or suppressing undesirable

vegetation so as to reduce competition with

desirable vegetation.
Appendix

Commissioned Papers

Technologies to Increase Production From

Primary Tropical Forests and Woodlands

Peter S. Ashton

Harvard Arnold Arboretum

Mark J, Plotkin

Harvard Botanical Museum

Methods for Evaluating Tropical Forest and

Woodland Plants to Indicate Their

Potential as Resources

Michael J. Balick

New York Botanical Garden

Tree Crops: Key Elements in Sustaining

Tropical Forest Resources

Earle Barnhart

The New Alchemy Institute

Professional Education and Technical

Training to Support Development and

Implementation of Technologies to Sustain

Tropical Resources

James S. Bethel and David B. Thorud

College of Forestry

University of Washington

William Burch

School of Forestry

Yale University

Applied Research in the United States

Relevant to Tropical Forests and Woodlands

David H. Dawson

Forestry Sciences Laboratory

Causes of Deforestation and Forest and

Woodland Degradation in Tropical

Latin America

William M. Denevan

Department of Geography

University of Wisconsin-Madison

Technologies for Reforestation of Degraded

Lands in the Tropics

Carl M. Gallegos

U.S. Agency for International Development

Charles B. Davey, Robert L. Kellison,

Pedro A. Sanchez, and Bruce J. Zobel

Department of Forestry

North Carolina State University

Afforestation and Management of Tropical

Wastelands in India

R. C. Ghosh

Additional Chief Conservator of Forests

West Bengal, India

Causes of Deforestation in Tropical Asia

Christopher Gibbs

British Columbia Ministry of Environment

The Use of Traditional Knowledge in

Development and Implementation of ResourceUse Systems That Sustain Tropical Forest

and Woodland Resources

Stephen R. Gliessman

College of Environmental Studies

University of California-Santa Cruz

Valuing Goods and Services From Tropical

Forests and Woodlands

Hans M. Gregersen

Department of Forestry

University of Minnesota-St. Paul

Deforestation and Environmental Change

in the West African Sahel

Jeffrey Allman Gritzner

Board on Science and Technology for

International Development

National Academy of Sciences

Land-Use Planning Technologies to Sustain

Tropical Forest and Woodlands

Lawrence S. Hamilton

East-West Center

336
App. C—Commissioned Papers Ž 337

Technologies to Improve the Use of Tropical

Forest and Woodland Products

Joseph Frederick Hughes,

Robert Aubrey Plumptre, and Jeffery Burley

Commonwealth Forestry Institute

England

The Relationship of Basic Research to the

Development of the Technologies That Will

Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Daniel H. Janzen

Department of Biology

University of Pennsylvania-Philadelphia

Identification and Development of New

Tropical Forest Resources in Puerto Rico

and the U.S. Virgin Islands

Connie Krochmal

Economic Botanist

Agriculture and Science Associates

The Use of Agroforestry to Improve the

Productivity to Converted Tropical Land

Bjorn Lundgren

International Council for Research

in Agroforestry

Professional Education and Technical

Training to Support Development and

Implementation of Technologies to Sustain

Tropical Resources

Hank Margolis

Oregon State University

Methods for the Establishment and

Management of Protected Areas for Tropical

Primary Forest and Woodland Resources

Kenton R. Miller and Dennis Glick

School of Natural Resources

University of Michigan-Ann Arbor

The Importance of Tropical Forests and

Woodland Resources

Norman Myers

Consultant in Environment and Development

Soil and Water Management Technologies for

Tropical Forests

Charles Pereira

Consultant in Tropical Agricultural Research

and Land-Use Hydrology

England

Social Forestry in India: An Analytical

Framework for Evaluation of Its Problems

and Prospects

Christopher Prins

University of California-Berkeley

Basic Research—A Necessary Prerequisite

for Adequate Development of Technologies

to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Peter H, Raven

Missouri Botanical Garden

Institutions That Deal With Technologies to

Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Bruce Rich

Natural Resources Defense Council

Private Foundations That Support Projects

Relating to Technologies to Sustain

Tropical Forest Resources

Bruce M. Rich

Natural Resources Defense Council

Causes of Deforestation and Forest and

Woodland Degradation in Tropical Africa

James C. Ridden

Land Tenure Center

University of Wisconsin-Madison

Dynamics of Tropical Forest Conversion:

A Preliminary System Dynamics Model

Jennifer Robinson

Department of Geography

University of California-Santa Cruz
338 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Forestry: Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands

Ralph Schmidt

Forest Service

Department of Natural Resources

Puerto Rico

Fuelwood Technologies to Sustain Tropical

Forest Resources

Asif M. Shaikh and Samuel Hale, Jr.

Energy Development International

Tahir Qadri

CARE

Opportunities and Constraints for Improving

the Use of Tropical Mangrove Forests

Howard J. Teas

Department of Biology

University of Miami-Coral Gables

Common-Property Resources and

Individual Ownership

Denise M. Toombs

Resource Policy Center

Dartmouth College

Sustaining Tropical Forest and Woodland

Animal Resources

Noel D. Vietmeyer

Board on Science and Technology for

International Development

National Academy of Sciences

Secondary Forest Management and Plantation

Forestry Technologies to Improve the Use of

Converted Tropical Lands

Frank H. Wadsworth

Institute of Tropical Forestry

Puerto Rico

Environmental Education Technologies as

Applied to Tropical Forest Management

Diane Walton

International Institute for Environment and

Development

David Wood

National Wildlife Federation

Combatting Desertification With Trees

Fred R. Weber

International Resources Development and

Conservation Services

Halting Tropical Deforestation: The Role of

Technology

Jack Westoby

Consultant in Forest Economics

Italy

Congressional Action to Improve the

Sustainability of U.S. Tropical Forest

Resources in the Pacific

Craig D. Whitesell, Charles W. Philpot, and

Marjory C. Falanruw

Pacific Southwest Forest and Range Experiment Station

U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service

Technologies and Technology Systems for

Reforestation of Degraded Tropical Lands

P. J. Wood, J, Burley, and A. Grainger

Commonwealth Forestry Institute

England
Index
Index

African Development Bank, 119

American Samoa, 27, 29, 127, 128, 141-144, 277, 281

Angola, 68, 75

Asian Development Bank, 119

Australia. 180

Bangladesh, 47, 48, 74, 78

Belgium, 120

Belize, 64

Benin, 64

Bioenergy Development Corp., 27, 128

Bolivia, 68

Brazil, 45, 47, 48, 51, 109, 224

closed forests, 64, 66

deforestation, 85

forest ownership, 70

open forests, 68

plantations, 74, 189

wood exports, 49, 137

Brunei, 78

Burma, 64, 74

Burundi. 121

Canada, 50, 120, 137

Land Inventory, 245

Caribbean and western Pacific, 127-151

common characteristics, 129-132

dependence of coastal ecosystems, 132

dependence of water resources, 131

endemic species, abundance of, 129

invasion by exotic plant and animal species,

vulnerability to, 130

land degradation, 132

species-rich forests, 129

Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands, 133

forests resources, 133

history of forest use, 135

organizations dealing with tropical forests, 140

U.S. Pacific territories:

American Samoa, 141, 143

Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands,

141, 146

forest resources: status and trends, 141

Guam, 141, 147, 148

history of forest use, 148

organizations dealing with tropical forests, 149,

151

Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, 141, 144

Caribbean National Forest, 28, 140, 276

C. Brewer & Co,, 128

Chicago Field Museum of Natural History, 259

Civilian Conservation Corps, 136

Club du Sahel, 120

Colombia, 48

Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, 27,

141, 146

Congo, Republic of, 48, 74, 75

Congress:

issues and options for, 23-27, 31-32, 301-320

expand and coordinate development assistance,

24, 305, 308

expand U.S. expertise, 26, 316

improve research and market development, 25,

311

protect biological diversity, 26, 315

U.S. tropical forests, 303

Consultative Group on International Agricultural

Research (CGIAR), 26

list of, 111

Cooperation for Development in Africa (CDA), 105,

120, 272

Costa Rica, 45, 75

Centro Agronomic Tropical de Investigation y

Ensenanza, 263

Cuba, 85

deforestation and forest resource degradation, 85-100

historical context, 85

soil relationship to, 87

underlying causes, 98

visible agents of forest change, 89

commercial agriculturalists and cattle ranchers,

95

fires, 93

fuelwood gatherers, 91

logging, 97

nomadic herders, 90

shifting cultivation, 89

warfare, 94

disturbed forests, 195-213

degraded lands, reforestation of, 200-213

constraints and opportunities, 211

technologies, 201-21l

secondary forests, management of, 196-200

constraints and opportunities, 200

technologies, 196

education, research, and technology transfer, 257-272

environmental education, 263

principles of, 264

professional education and technical training,

258-263

research, 265-269

dissemination of findings, 268

fundamental and applied research, 265

priorities, 266

technology transfer, 269-272

forestry technologies, 275-295

agriculture, 284

disturbed forests, 280

education, research, and technology transfer,

289-293

341
342 . Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

reduce overcutting, 278

wood fuels, 279

resource development planning, 288

undisturbed forests, 276

France, 120

French Guiana, 75

Fulbright Grants, 121

Gabon, 75

General Accounting Office, 269

Ghana, 44, 64

Great Britain, 180

Green Revolution, 43

Guam, 27, 141, 147, 148, 172, 277, 281, 289, 291

Guatemala, 48

Gulf of Guinea, 45

Guyana, 75

Haiti, 54, 75, 85

Hawaii, 127, 128, 129, 131, 263

Bishop Museum, 128

College of Tropical Agriculture and Human

Resources, 27

Department of Land and Natural Resources, 27,

128

East/West Center, 27, 128, 267

Forest Service Institute of Pacific Island Forestry,

128

Pacific Tropical Botanical Garden, 128

Honduras, 48, 75, 120

Hong Kong, 49

India, 40, 47, 70, 74, 186, 249

Indonesia, 64, 66, 68, 74

Interamerican Development Bank, 119

International Council for Research in Agroforestry

(ICRAF), 112, 228, 263

International Development Cooperation Agency, 119

International Executive Service Corps (IESC), 122

International Union for Conservation of Nature and

Natural Resources (IUCN), 160

International Union of Forestry Research

Organizations (IUFRO), 105, 112, 268

Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone, 40

Ivory Coast, 49, 64, 75

Japan, 49, 51

Kenya, 40, 64, 112, 235

British-American Tobacco Co., 225

fuelwood, 16

Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute, Kingsville, Tex,,

263

legislation:

Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978, 292

Economy Act, 118

Endangered Species Act of 1973, 42

Federal Resources Planning Act of 1974, 294

Foreign Assistance Act, 25, 26, 118, 121, 271, 305

Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources

Research Act of 1978, 292

Government Employees Training Act, 118

McIntyre-Stennis Act of 1962, 294

Liberia, 75

Malawi, 121

Malaysia, 49, 50, 64

Mexico, 45, 66, 68

Micronesia, 27, 29, 127, 128, 141, 144, 149, 287

Missouri Botanical Garden, 259

Nepal, 246, 249

New Guinea, 66, 70, 171, 172, 291

New York Botanical Garden, 259

Ngerukewid Islands Wildlife Preserve, 277

Nigeria, 75, 224

Nitrogen-Fixing Tree Association, 27

nongovernmental organizations (NGC)S), 110, 121

Office of Management and Budget (OMB), 121

Organization for Economic Cooperation and

Development (OECD), 120

Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), 122

Pakistan, 44, 74

Panama, 45

Panama Canal, 47, 54

Peru, 66

Philippines, 48, 51, 78, 109, 181,

value of wood exports, 49

Puerto Rico, 127, 129, 224, 263, 277, 278, 280, 281,

286, 287, 289

center of excellence, proposed, 21

Commonwealth forests, 276

Department of Natural Resources, 28, 140, 283, 288

forest resources, 133, 135

geoclimatic regions, 137

Guanica State Forest, 277

imports, 27, 139, 280

organizations dealing with tropical forests, 140

University of Puerto Rico, 29, 140

Rose Atoll National Wildlife Refuge, 277

resource development planning, 243-251

constraints and opportunities, 250-251

technologies, 243-250

biophysical assessment, 243

financial and economic analyses, 246

land classification, 244

monitoring and evaluation, 248

multiobjective planning methods, 249

social assessment, 247

Sahel, 120

Senegal, 121

Singapore, 49

Smithsonian Institution, 106, 259

Somalia, 121
Index ● 343

South Korea, 49

Sri Lanka, 64, 181, 185, 246

Sudan, 64, 68, 225

Surinam, 75, 224

technologies to reduce overcutting, 177-191

industrial wood, 178

harvesting, transporting, and handling, 178-179

use of more tree species and sizes, 179-182

wood fuels, 182-191

fuelwood and charcoal conservation, 183

resource substitution, 185

technologies to support tropical agriculture, 219-238

agroforestry, 219, 220-229

constraints and opportunities, 228

organizations that work on agroforestry systems,

228

systems, 220

classification and assessment, 224

technology issues, 226

watershed management, 219, 229-238

constraints and opportunities, 237

description, 230

specific technologies, 232-236

terracing, 233

technical principles, 231

technology assessment, 14-23

disturbed forests, 17

management of secondary forests, 17

reforestation of degraded lands, 17

education, research, and technology transfer, 20-23

resource development planning, 20

reduce overcutting, 15-16

fuelwood, 16

industrial wood, 15

tropical agriculture, 18

agroforestry, 18

watershed management, 19

undisturbed forests, 14

maintaining sample ecosystems, 14

making undisturbed forests more valuable, 14

Thailand, 64, 68

fuelwood, 16

Togo, 64

Trade and Development Program (TDP), 122

Tribhuvan University, Nepal, 109

tropical forest:

importance of, 10, 37-55

basic human needs, 45-49

commercial forest products,

nonwood products, 5 2

products for medicine, 51

wood, 49

environment, 53-54

future generations, 5 4

mangroves, 49, 132

political implications, 54

49-52

social and economic context, 37-40

tropical agriculture, 43

U.S. interests in, 42

water and climate, 40-43

status of, 10-13

closed forest, 64

data base, 63

definitions of forest categories, 65

destruction of forest resources, 75-79

deforestation and degradation, 75

resource degradation, 78

forest fallow, 68

forest management, 69-74

legislation and policy, 69

plantations, 74

in tropical America, 73

wood production, 70-73

open forests and shrublands, 67

projection of changes, 79

tropical forest resources, organizations dealing with,

105-123

consortia, 107

constraints, 114-117

foreign bilateral organizations, 109

international nongovernment organizations, 108

multilateral development banks, 107, 120

U.S. representation, 119

nongovernment organizations (NGOS) based in the

United States, 107, 121

opportunities, 117-123

private sector, role of, 113

private U.S. foundations, 108

types of organizations in tropical countries, 109

U.N. agencies, 108

U.S. forestry firms operating in tropical countries,

list of, 114

U.S. Government organizations, 106

Uganda, 64

UNESCO Man and the Biosphere (MAB) program,

14, 23, 25, 123, 159, 165, 166, 276

undisturbed forests, 159-174

maintaining sample ecosystems, 160

protected areas, status of, 160

steps in planning a park or protected area, 164

techniques to design, establish, and maintain

protected areas, 160

why protect tropical forests?, 160

wildlife management categories, 163

making undisturbed forests more valuable, 167-174

food sources, 168, 170

game ranching, 170

innovative products, 171, 172

nonwood products, 167, 169

small animals, 169

United Nations (U.N.):

Commission on Trade and Development, 120

Conference on New and Renewable Sources of

Energy, 186

Development Programme, 245

Environment Program, 23, 63, 108
344 ● Technologies to Sustain Tropical Forest Resources

Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), 24, 26,

64, 105, 108, 111, 120, 183, 201, 212, 260, 267,

305

FAO/UNEP study, 63, 65, 68, 70, 75, 78, 79, 82,

160

shifting cultivation, estimate, 4 6

U.N. University, 26, 108, 112, 263

U.S. representation to U.N. agencies, 119

Upper Volta, 121

U.S. Agency for International Development (AID), 9,

23, 24, 26, 105, 106, 118, 120, 121, 122, 140, 245,

248, 262, 269, 291, 305

Benchmark Soils Program, 246

Central Selva Resource Management Project, 246

Environmental Profiles, 25

Forest Resource Management Project, 118

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 289

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), 106, 268

Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service

(ASCS), 283

Mayaguez Institute of Tropical Agriculture, 286

Natural Resource Inventory, 136

Soil Conservation Service, 24, 106, 245

U.S. Department of Energy, 128

U.S. Department of the Interior, 106, 127, 141

U.S. Department of State, 25, 106, 120, 123, 141

U.S. Department of Treasury, 119

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 24, 123, 140, 277, 288,

291

U.S. Forest Service, 23, 105, 106, 123, 128, 140, 262,

268, 284, 288, 289

congressional interests, 31, 32

Forestry Support Program, 118

Forest Products Laboratory, 50, 181

Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry, 27, 150, 286,

292

Institute of Tropical Forestry (ITF), 28, 136, 140,

281, 289, 292

State and Private Forestry grants, 28, 29

The Caribbean Forester, 22

U.S. Interagency Task Force on Tropical Forests, 271

U.S. Landsat program, 64, 302

U.S. National Academy of Sciences, 24, 106, 123, 266

U.S. National Cancer Institute, 51

U.S. National Park Service, 24, 277

U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF), 106, 123

U.S. Peace Corps, 106, 118, 140, 141, 185, 264

U.S. Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, 27, 141,

144, 277, 288

U.S. Virgin Islands, 27, 127, 277, 280, 281, 287, 292

College of the Virgin Islands, 140

Department of Agriculture, 28, 140, 284

forest resources, 134, 135

freshwater resources, 131

life zones, 134

Luquillo Experimental Forest, 140

National Park, 127, 134, 276

organizations dealing with tropical forests, 140

Thomas Experimental Forest, 140

Venezuela, 48

World Bank, 24, 44, 105, 119, 267, 305

Operational Manual for Project Analysis, 248

Zaire, 64, 66, 68

Zambia, 64

0