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Plan to conserve forests may be detrimental to other ecosystems
June 13, 2008Scientists support plan but urge initiatives to protect biodiversity
Conserving biodiversity must be considered when developing plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation, researchers warn in today's edition of Science.
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is currently discussing ways of Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD) in developing countries. REDD has great potential to deliver benefits for biodiversity and people, as well as for the climate.
However, it is likely that these benefits will be concentrated in forests with high carbon stocks and that land use change may shift to low-carbon forests and other ecosystems important for biodiversity.
Dr Lera Miles, lead author and Acting Head of the Climate Change and Biodiversity Programme at the United Nations Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (WCMC), said: "Land use change, mostly deforestation, accounts for 18-25% of global annual greenhouse gas emissions. We support the initiative to conserve forests, which will help to address this growing problem as well as maintain valuable habitats; however, we are concerned about potential unintended negative impacts on some ecosystems.
"If forests are protected through REDD without addressing the underlying causes of forest clearance, such as increasing demand for food, then some clearance of natural ecosystems will simply shift to other areas and different habitats will be destroyed. "
Dr Miles and her colleague and co-author of the paper Dr Valerie Kapos, Visiting Fellow at the University of Cambridge and Senior Advisor at UNEP-WCMC, suggest that a shift in the focus of conservation investment may be needed to counteract these potential side effects of REDD. Increased conservation focus may be needed on forests with lower carbon density, which would be less valuable in carbon terms, but still rich in biodiversity, and on non-forest ecosystems such as savannahs, grasslands and wetlands, which would also be under increased pressure.
Dr Kapos said: "Currently, much conservation investment is focused on species-rich tropical forests. A successful REDD mechanism would direct far more funds to tropical forests than are currently available for biodiversity conservation. We suggest that in such a scenario, strategies for conservation investment will need urgent re-thinking.
"The climate change convention has agreed to a trial period for testing approaches to REDD, which presents an important opportunity to assess the magnitude of potential unintended impacts. Conservation scientists and practitioners need to assess the potential consequences of REDD for biodiversity, and to communicate clearly their findings. Decision-makers will need to take these findings into account as REDD evolves towards a global agreement."
University of Cambridge
However, it is likely that these benefits will be concentrated in forests with high carbon stocks and that land use change may shift to low-carbon forests and other ecosystems important for biodiversity.
Dr Lera Miles, lead author and Acting Head of the Climate Change and Biodiversity Programme at the United Nations Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (WCMC), said: "Land use change, mostly deforestation, accounts for 18-25% of global annual greenhouse gas emissions. We support the initiative to conserve forests, which will help to address this growing problem as well as maintain valuable habitats; however, we are concerned about potential unintended negative impacts on some ecosystems.
"If forests are protected through REDD without addressing the underlying causes of forest clearance, such as increasing demand for food, then some clearance of natural ecosystems will simply shift to other areas and different habitats will be destroyed. "
Dr Miles and her colleague and co-author of the paper Dr Valerie Kapos, Visiting Fellow at the University of Cambridge and Senior Advisor at UNEP-WCMC, suggest that a shift in the focus of conservation investment may be needed to counteract these potential side effects of REDD. Increased conservation focus may be needed on forests with lower carbon density, which would be less valuable in carbon terms, but still rich in biodiversity, and on non-forest ecosystems such as savannahs, grasslands and wetlands, which would also be under increased pressure.
Dr Kapos said: "Currently, much conservation investment is focused on species-rich tropical forests. A successful REDD mechanism would direct far more funds to tropical forests than are currently available for biodiversity conservation. We suggest that in such a scenario, strategies for conservation investment will need urgent re-thinking.
"The climate change convention has agreed to a trial period for testing approaches to REDD, which presents an important opportunity to assess the magnitude of potential unintended impacts. Conservation scientists and practitioners need to assess the potential consequences of REDD for biodiversity, and to communicate clearly their findings. Decision-makers will need to take these findings into account as REDD evolves towards a global agreement."
University of Cambridge
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For endangered coral reefs, not all plant-eating fish are created equal. A report scheduled to be published this week in the early edition of the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences suggests that maintaining the proper balance of herbivorous fishes may be critical to restoring coral reefs, which are declining dramatically worldwide.
Ecological restoration as a tool for reversing ecosystem fragmentation
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Field Museum provides gold standard for mammal survey
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Oklahoma researchers support biodiversity in biofuels production
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Researchers document world's mammals in crisis
From majestic African elephants to tiny and often unappreciated rodents, mammals on Earth are in a state of crisis. One in four mammal species on Earth is being pushed to extinction, according to the Global Mammal Assessment, the most comprehensive assessment of the world's mammals.
Thinking it through: Scientists call for policy to guide biofuels industry toward sustainability
As the United States and other nations commit to the path of biofuels production, a group of scientists is calling for sustainable practices in an industry that will, as MBL scientist Jerry Mellilo says, "reshape the Earth's landscape in a significant way."
Mandate for biofuels production requires science-based policy and global perspective
In his State of the Union Address on January 23, 2007, President Bush stated that, in order to substantially lower foreign oil imports, "We must increase the supply of alternative fuels, by setting a mandatory fuels standard to require 35 billion gallons of renewable and alternative fuels in 2017."
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