Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
3.7
3.9
Journals
Land
Special Issues
Carbon Emission Reductions and Removals in Tropical Forests
share announcement

Carbon Emission Reductions and Removals in Tropical Forests

A special issue of Land (ISSN 2073-445X).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 March 2015) | Viewed by 58977

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Nophea Sasaki

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Associate Professor, Graduate School of Applied Informatics, University of Hyogo Kobe 650-0044, Japan
Interests: sustainable management of forests and ecosystem services; tropical forestry and climate change mitigation; integrated international development; and renewable bioenergy management

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Sustainable management of tropical forests becomes increasingly important in improving local livelihood of forest-dependent communities, conserving biodiversity, and mitigating climate change. Repeated mismanagement coupled with growing human population and lack of financial incentives has resulted in rapid deforestation and forest degradation in tropical countries. Consequently, tropical deforestation and forest degradation were responsible for up to 25% of global carbon emissions, and about 89% of all threatened birds, 83% of threatened mammals, and 91% of threatened plants were affected by deforestation and forest degradation.

Foreseeing the adverse effects of mismanagement of tropical forests, international efforts have been made and a new financial compensation scheme was adopted: i.e., the Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation, Conservation of Forests, Sustainable Management of Forests, and Enhancement of Forest Carbon Stocks (REDD+) scheme of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The REDD+ scheme is a performance-based financial incentive that compensates activities that result in carbon emission reductions (reductions) or increasing carbon stocks (removals) in developing countries. It is obvious that appropriate carbon accounting systems are important for estimating such reductions or removals, or both, because they will be used as the basis for financial compensation. Although various carbon accounting systems were developed, no single accounting system was agreed for use in estimating reductions or removals for all elements of REDD+. This special issue is designed to focus specifically on carbon accounting methods for reductions or removals at project, subnational, and national levels, biodiversity assessment methods and safeguards, and management interventions for reducing deforestation and forest degradation or restoring degraded forests.

The call for papers is open to everyone; and all speakers at the REDD+ Symposium “Carbon Emission Reductions and Removals in Tropical Forests. February 22–23, 2014 in Kobe, Japan” (http://www.ai.u-hyogo.ac.jp/~nophea/symposium/reddsymposium2014.html) are encouraged to submit presented papers for publication consideration.

Dr. Nophea Sasaki
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Land is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Biodiversity assessment
  • biodiversity safeguards
  • benefit sharing
  • carbon emissions
  • deforestation
  • mission reductions
  • forest degradation
  • REDD+
  • removals

Published Papers (7 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

22344 KiB  
Article
Modelling Deforestation and Land Cover Transitions of Tropical Peatlands in Sumatra, Indonesia Using Remote Sensed Land Cover Data Sets
by Ian Elz, Kevin Tansey, Susan E. Page and Mandar Trivedi
Land 2015, 4(3), 670-687; https://doi.org/10.3390/land4030670 - 10 Aug 2015
Cited by 25 | Viewed by 8163
Abstract
In Southeast Asia land use change associated with forest loss and degradation is a major source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This is of particular concern where deforestation occurs on peat soils. A business-as-usual (BAU) land change model was developed using Dinamica EGO© [...] Read more.
In Southeast Asia land use change associated with forest loss and degradation is a major source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This is of particular concern where deforestation occurs on peat soils. A business-as-usual (BAU) land change model was developed using Dinamica EGO© for a REDD+ Demonstration Activity area in south-east Jambi Province, Sumatra, Indonesia containing Berbak National Park (NP). The model output will be used as baseline land change predictions for comparison with alternative land cover management scenarios as part of a REDD+ feasibility study. The study area is approximately 376,000 ha with approximately 50% on peat soils. The model uses published 2000 and 2010 land cover maps as input and projects land cover change for thirty years until 2040. The model predicted that under a BAU scenario the forest area, 185,000 ha in 2010, will decline by 37% by 2040. In protected forest areas, approximately 50% of the study area, forest cover will reduce by 25%. Peat swamp forest will reduce by almost 37%. The greatest land cover category increases are plantation/regrowth areas (which includes oil palm) and open areas which each increase by 30,000 ha. These results indicate that the site has great potential as an Indonesian REDD+ Demonstration Activity. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Carbon Emission Reductions and Removals in Tropical Forests)
►▼ Show Figures

Graphical abstract

5530 KiB  
Article
Assessment of Above-Ground Biomass of Borneo Forests through a New Data-Fusion Approach Combining Two Pan-Tropical Biomass Maps
by Andreas Langner, Frédéric Achard, Christelle Vancutsem, Jean-Francois Pekel, Dario Simonetti, Giacomo Grassi, Kanehiro Kitayama and Mikiyasu Nakayama
Land 2015, 4(3), 656-669; https://doi.org/10.3390/land4030656 - 04 Aug 2015
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 8502
Abstract
This study investigates how two existing pan-tropical above-ground biomass (AGB) maps (Saatchi 2011, Baccini 2012) can be combined to derive forest ecosystem specific carbon estimates. Several data-fusion models which combine these AGB maps according to their local correlations with independent datasets such as [...] Read more.
This study investigates how two existing pan-tropical above-ground biomass (AGB) maps (Saatchi 2011, Baccini 2012) can be combined to derive forest ecosystem specific carbon estimates. Several data-fusion models which combine these AGB maps according to their local correlations with independent datasets such as the spectral bands of SPOT VEGETATION imagery are analyzed. Indeed these spectral bands convey information about vegetation type and structure which can be related to biomass values. Our study area is the island of Borneo. The data-fusion models are evaluated against a reference AGB map available for two forest concessions in Sabah. The highest accuracy was achieved by a model which combines the AGB maps according to the mean of the local correlation coefficients calculated over different kernel sizes. Combining the resulting AGB map with a new Borneo land cover map (whose overall accuracy has been estimated at 86.5%) leads to average AGB estimates of 279.8 t/ha and 233.1 t/ha for forests and degraded forests respectively. Lowland dipterocarp and mangrove forests have the highest and lowest AGB values (305.8 t/ha and 136.5 t/ha respectively). The AGB of all natural forests amounts to 10.8 Gt mainly stemming from lowland dipterocarp (66.4%), upper dipterocarp (10.9%) and peat swamp forests (10.2%). Degraded forests account for another 2.1 Gt of AGB. One main advantage of our approach is that, once the best fitting data-fusion model is selected, no further AGB reference dataset is required for implementing the data-fusion process. Furthermore, the local harmonization of AGB datasets leads to more spatially precise maps. This approach can easily be extended to other areas in Southeast Asia which are dominated by lowland dipterocarp forest, and can be repeated when newer or more accurate AGB maps become available. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Carbon Emission Reductions and Removals in Tropical Forests)
►▼ Show Figures

Graphical abstract

2203 KiB  
Article
How Can Social Safeguards of REDD+ Function Effectively Conserve Forests and Improve Local Livelihoods? A Case from Meru Betiri National Park, East Java, Indonesia
by Kazuhiro Harada, Dede Prabowo, Arif Aliadi, Jun Ichihara and Hwan-Ok Ma
Land 2015, 4(1), 119-139; https://doi.org/10.3390/land4010119 - 24 Feb 2015
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 7472
Abstract
The National REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation-Plus) Strategy in Indonesia highlights the importance of local participation and the reform of land tenure in the success of forest conservation. National parks are a main target area for REDD+. National parks in [...] Read more.
The National REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation-Plus) Strategy in Indonesia highlights the importance of local participation and the reform of land tenure in the success of forest conservation. National parks are a main target area for REDD+. National parks in Indonesia have been suffering from forest destruction and conflicts between governments and local communities. This study investigated: (1) the historical process of developing the REDD+ project in collaboration with multiple stakeholders including government authorities, local NGOs, and local people; (2) the social and economic impacts of the REDD+ project on local people; and (3) the local awareness of and motivations to participate in the REDD+ project in Meru Betiri National Park in Indonesia. Interviews of stakeholders including village leaders, NGO staff, and park staff were conducted to obtain an overview of the REDD+ project in the national park. Interviews with a questionnaire were also conducted among randomly selected heads of households who participated or did not participate in the REDD+ project and lived adjacent to the national park. Our analysis revealed that participants in the project obtained the right to use illegally harvested bared lands for intercropping while planting trees to recover forest ecosystems inside the national park. This opportunity could have contributed to a drastic increase in income, particularly for economically disadvantaged people, and to the recovery of forest ecosystems. Although local people did not fully recognize the meaning of REDD+ or carbon credits, they were enthusiastic to join in managing and patrolling forests because of their satisfaction with the income generated by the national park. However, the challenge is how both the recovery of forests and income generation from the project can be maintained in a situation of insufficient funding from donors and unsettled arguments about the benefit of sharing carbon credits with local people. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Carbon Emission Reductions and Removals in Tropical Forests)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

1181 KiB  
Article
Estimation of Aboveground Biomass Using Manual Stereo Viewing of Digital Aerial Photographs in Tropical Seasonal Forest
by Katsuto Shimizu, Tetsuji Ota, Tsuyoshi Kajisa, Nobuya Mizoue, Shigejiro Yoshida, Gen Takao, Yasumasa Hirata, Naoyuki Furuya, Takio Sano, Sokh Heng and Ma Vuthy
Land 2014, 3(4), 1270-1283; https://doi.org/10.3390/land3041270 - 14 Nov 2014
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 6274
Abstract
The objectives of this study are to: (1) evaluate accuracy of tree height measurements of manual stereo viewing on a computer display using digital aerial photographs compared with airborne LiDAR height measurements; and (2) develop an empirical model to estimate stand-level aboveground biomass [...] Read more.
The objectives of this study are to: (1) evaluate accuracy of tree height measurements of manual stereo viewing on a computer display using digital aerial photographs compared with airborne LiDAR height measurements; and (2) develop an empirical model to estimate stand-level aboveground biomass with variables derived from manual stereo viewing on the computer display in a Cambodian tropical seasonal forest. We evaluate observation error of tree height measured from the manual stereo viewing, based on field measurements. RMSEs of tree height measurement with manual stereo viewing and LiDAR were 1.96 m and 1.72 m, respectively. Then, stand-level aboveground biomass is regressed against tree height indices derived from the manual stereo viewing. We determined the best model to estimate aboveground biomass in terms of the Akaike’s information criterion. This was a model of mean tree height of the tallest five trees in each plot (R2 = 0.78; RMSE = 58.18 Mg/ha). In conclusion, manual stereo viewing on the computer display can measure tree height accurately and is useful to estimate aboveground stand biomass. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Carbon Emission Reductions and Removals in Tropical Forests)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

1169 KiB  
Article
Fuelwood Savings and Carbon Emission Reductions by the Use of Improved Cooking Stoves in an Afromontane Forest, Ethiopia
by Elisabeth Dresen, Ben DeVries, Martin Herold, Louis Verchot and Robert Müller
Land 2014, 3(3), 1137-1157; https://doi.org/10.3390/land3031137 - 16 Sep 2014
Cited by 66 | Viewed by 12827
Abstract
In many Sub-Saharan African countries, fuelwood collection is among the most important drivers of deforestation and particularly forest degradation. In a detailed field study in the Kafa region of southern Ethiopia, we assessed the potential of efficient cooking stoves to mitigate the negative [...] Read more.
In many Sub-Saharan African countries, fuelwood collection is among the most important drivers of deforestation and particularly forest degradation. In a detailed field study in the Kafa region of southern Ethiopia, we assessed the potential of efficient cooking stoves to mitigate the negative impacts of fuelwood harvesting on forests. Eleven thousand improved cooking stoves (ICS), specifically designed for baking Ethiopia’s staple food injera, referred to locally as “Mirt” stoves, have been distributed here. We found a high acceptance rate of the stove. One hundred forty interviews, including users and non-users of the ICS, revealed fuelwood savings of nearly 40% in injera preparation compared to the traditional three-stone fire, leading to a total annual savings of 1.28 tons of fuelwood per household. Considering the approximated share of fuelwood from unsustainable sources, these savings translate to 11,800 tons of CO2 saved for 11,156 disseminated ICS, corresponding to the amount of carbon stored in over 30 ha of local forest. We further found that stove efficiency increased with longer injera baking sessions, which shows a way of optimizing fuelwood savings by adapted usage of ICS. Our study confirms that efficient cooking stoves, if well adapted to the local cooking habits, can make a significant contribution to the conservation of forests and the avoidance of carbon emission from forest clearing and degradation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Carbon Emission Reductions and Removals in Tropical Forests)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

1227 KiB  
Article
Creating Social Safeguards for REDD+: Lessons Learned from Benefit Sharing Mechanisms in Vietnam
by Mucahid Mustafa Bayrak, Tran Nam Tu and Lawal Mohammed Marafa
Land 2014, 3(3), 1037-1058; https://doi.org/10.3390/land3031037 - 22 Aug 2014
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 7330
Abstract
Currently, many studies on benefit sharing mechanisms (BSM) and the Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation programme (REDD+) focus on poverty alleviation and livelihood development. However, relatively few studies incorporate an integrated livelihood framework. This study employs the sustainable livelihoods framework to [...] Read more.
Currently, many studies on benefit sharing mechanisms (BSM) and the Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation programme (REDD+) focus on poverty alleviation and livelihood development. However, relatively few studies incorporate an integrated livelihood framework. This study employs the sustainable livelihoods framework to assess the impact of BSM in Vietnam. The lessons learned could be used in creating social safeguards for REDD+. The communities in Central Vietnam involved in BSM were impacted by the programme on various dimensions. These dimensions, expressed in different types of capital, are interconnected and contribute to a person’s well-being. While the communities have restricted access to their natural forests, they benefited in terms of income diversification, knowledge improvement and network expansion. On the other hand, they faced food insecurity, they were more vulnerable to natural hazards, and their human, social and cultural capital faced risk of deterioration. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Carbon Emission Reductions and Removals in Tropical Forests)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

1888 KiB  
Article
Impacts of Logging Road Networks on Dung Beetles and Small Mammals in a Malaysian Production Forest: Implications for Biodiversity Safeguards
by Toshihiro Yamada, Masahiro Niino, Satoru Yoshida, Tetsuro Hosaka and Toshinori Okuda
Land 2014, 3(3), 639-657; https://doi.org/10.3390/land3030639 - 02 Jul 2014
Cited by 15 | Viewed by 7691
Abstract
Various international bodies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have proposed guidelines for safeguarding biodiversity. Nevertheless, quantitative criteria for safeguarding biodiversity should first be established to measure the attainment of biodiversity conservation if biodiversity is to be safeguarded effectively. We conducted research on the impact [...] Read more.
Various international bodies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have proposed guidelines for safeguarding biodiversity. Nevertheless, quantitative criteria for safeguarding biodiversity should first be established to measure the attainment of biodiversity conservation if biodiversity is to be safeguarded effectively. We conducted research on the impact of logging on biodiversity of dung beetles and small mammals in a production forest in Temengor Forest Reserve, Perak, Malaysia. This was done to develop such quantitative criteria for Malaysian production forests while paying special attention to the effects of road networks, such as skid trails, logging roads, and log yards, on biodiversity. Species assemblages of dung beetles as well as small mammals along and adjacent to road networks were significantly different from those in forest interiors. Therefore, minimizing the road network density will contribute to retaining biodiversity; this will allow us to use road network density as a quantitative criterion for safeguarding biodiversity in production forests. Additionally, road network density is easily measurable and verifiable by remote sensing, which enables us to check the implementation of the criteria. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Carbon Emission Reductions and Removals in Tropical Forests)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-7
Back to TopTop