In the northeastern Cambodian province of Ratanakiri, agricultural expansion has been a significant factor in the decline of forest coverage. As forests are essential for rural populations’ livelihoods and a healthy environment, this... more
In the northeastern Cambodian province of Ratanakiri, agricultural expansion has been a significant factor in the decline of forest coverage. As forests are essential for rural populations’ livelihoods and a healthy environment, this study presents the dynamics of this transformed forest landscape resulting from changes in farming, land accessibility and policy changes. A multitemporal dataset consisting of two ALOS/AVNIR-2 images in 2007 and 2011 were used to compare changes in land cover, and the panchromatic image of 2012 Worldview-1 acquired at 100 km 2 was used to access specific land-use patterns. Qualitative research methods ranging from an ethnographic method to qualitative data analysis were performed for gathering in-situ information to understand human-induced changes in land use. The results illustrate three triggers found at the local level, actively changing the forest landscape: (1) indigenous people transforming the swidden farming system to the mono-cropping system without external support and agricultural market information, (2) chaotic property market resulting from migrants purchasing existing farms or forest lands from indigenous people via land brokers, and (3) the introduction of land concessions by government via the 2001 Land Law, which allows agricultural cooperation to develop plantations.
Assessments of forest cover, forest carbon stocks and carbon emissions from deforestation and degradation are increasingly important components of sustainable resource management, for combating biodiversity loss and in climate mitigation... more
Assessments of forest cover, forest carbon stocks and carbon emissions from deforestation and degradation are increasingly important components of sustainable resource management, for combating biodiversity loss and in climate mitigation policies. Satellite remote sensing provides the only means for mapping global forest cover regularly. However, forest classification with optical data is limited by its insensitivity to three-dimensional canopy structure and cloud cover obscuring many forest regions. Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) sensors are increasingly being used to mitigate these problems, mainly in the L-, C-and X-band domains of the electromagnetic spectrum. S-band has not been systematically studied for this purpose. In anticipation of the British built NovaSAR-S satellite mission, this study evaluates the benefits of polarimetric S-band SAR for forest characterisation. The Michigan Microwave Canopy Scattering (MIMICS-I) radiative transfer model is utilised to understand the scattering mechanisms in forest canopies at S-band. The MIMICS-I model reveals strong S-band backscatter sensitivity to the forest canopy in comparison to soil characteristics across all polarisations and incidence angles. Airborne S-band SAR imagery over the temperate mixed forest of Savernake Forest in southern England is analysed for its information content. Based on the modelling results, S-band HH-and VV-polarisation radar backscatter and the Radar Forest Degradation Index (RFDI) are used in a forest/non-forest Maximum Likelihood classification at a spatial resolution of 6 m (70% overall accuracy, κ = 0.41) and 20 m (63% overall accuracy, κ = 0.27). The conclusion is that S-band SAR such as from NovaSAR-S is likely to be suitable for monitoring forest cover and its changes.
Plantation Establishment and Livelihood Improvement Scheme (PELIS) is a scheme introduced after enactment of the Forest Act, 2005. It is a governance scheme by Kenya Forest Service (KFS) to help increase forest cover and restore degraded... more
Plantation Establishment and Livelihood Improvement Scheme (PELIS) is a scheme introduced after enactment of the Forest Act, 2005. It is a governance scheme by Kenya Forest Service (KFS) to help increase forest cover and restore degraded forests in the country. Forest adjacent communities (FAC) benefit from the scheme where they allocated plots upon which they plant seedlings, take care of them till the area form a closed canopy while they practise agriculture on the farms. This research sought to determine the extent to which PELIS has helped increase forest cover through plantations and decreased forest dependency. Both quantitative and qualitative data was used. It also sought to determine how the programme has helped improve community livelihoods.Cloud-free satellite images of 2001 to 2016 were selected for the study. The spectral bands 1–5 and 7 were chosen for Landsat 7 while bands 2–7 were used for Landsat 8. These were used to analyse forest cover and forest cover change for the period 2001 to 2016. The 2001 satellite image was used to analyse forest cover before PELIS and the 2016 image was utilized to analyse forest cover during the PELIS programme. Open and closed ended questionnaires, interviews and discussions were used to determine benefits of PELIS and how it has helped improve their livelihoods. It was found that forest cover experienced a positive increase from 366.9 ha in 2001 to 481.4 ha in 2016, an increase of 114ha (51%). This was occasioned by increased areas under plantations under the PELIS programme. The respondents admitted that they get food produce for their families like maize, beans, and potatoes. They also sell some of the produce and realize income of between Kshs.5, 000-15,000 annually from the parcel of land they are allocated. 90% of the respondents did agree that the programme has helped decrease forest dependency as most used to go to the forest to get timber and firewood to sell to get some cash. The success of this programme in Malava could be emulated in other forests in the country that will lead to an increase in forest cover and help improve their livelihoods.
The intensity of forest degradation is linked to landowners’ decisions on management of their shifting cultivation systems. Understanding the processes involved in this land use type is therefore essential for the design of sustainable... more
The intensity of forest degradation is linked to landowners’ decisions on management of their shifting cultivation systems. Understanding the processes involved in this land use type is therefore essential for the design of sustainable forest management practices. However, knowledge of the processes and patterns of forest transition that result from this practice is extremely limited. In this study, we used spatially-explicit binary logistic regression to study the proximate factors that relate to forest degradation by combining biophysical and socio-economic variables. Our study region is within the Ayuquila Basin, in Western Mexico, a typical fragmented tropical dry forest landscape dominated by shifting cultivation. Through a survey and semi-structured interviews with community leaders, we obtained data on the forest resources and on the uses that people make of them. Detailed forest cover maps for 2004 and 2010 were produced from high-resolution SPOT 5 data, and ancillary geographical data were used to extract spatial variables. The degree of social marginalization of each community and the ratio of forest area to population size were the main factors positively correlated with the probability of the occurrence of forest degradation. Livestock management and use of fence posts by the communities were also positively associated with forest degradation. Among biophysical factors, forest degradation is more likely to occur in flatter areas. We conclude that local drivers of forest degradation include both socioeconomic and physical variables and that both of these factors need to be addressed at the landscape level while developing measures for activities related to REDD+.
