Asian Forest, Biodiversity and Sustainable Development

1. Asian Forest, Biodiversity and Sustainable Development by Percy E. Sajise Regional Director IPGRI-APO Serdang, Malaysia Email: P.Sajise@cgiar.org

2. Outline • Asian Forest: Status and Concerns • Policy Platforms for Forest Conservation and Management • Sustainable Development • Forest Biodiversity and Sustainable Development • Does Biodiversity Always Directly Relate to Sustainable Development • Patterns of Biodiversity Utilization • Conclusion

3. Several Countries in Asia are Mega Centers of Biodiversity: Example- India- 2-4% global area; 7-8% of recorded species of the world Indonesia: 1.3% of global area; 17% unique species

4. Total Forest Area in Asia Almost the Same 15 Years Ago; Concern: Rapid Decrease in Area of Primary Forest

5. Deforestation Continue to Increase: In Asia Net Loss Offset by Increased Afforestation in China

6. Increase in Areas Designated for Conservation of Biological Diversity and for Protective Purpose

7. Table 2. Trends in Carbon Stocks in forest biomass, 1990-2005* * Source: FAO, Global Forest Resources Assessment, 2005

8. Forests in Asia Largely Remain in Public Hands

9. Wood Removal in Asian Forests has Decreased Over the last 15 Years but NWFPs have Increased

10. Productive Function: Significant decrease in forest areas Designated as production forest. Slowly being replaced by plantation Forest Concern: Stability of production of Plantation Forest as generally monocultures

11. Protective Function • Increased forest areas designated as protection forests- increased awareness of forest role in soil and water conservation • Forest plantations designated as protection forests increasing in India, China, Thailand and Vietnam

12. Socio-Economic Functions • Value of total wood removals decreased for Asia due to lower values reported from Japan, Indonesia and Malaysia. • Significant increase in the value of NWFPs in the form of food, exudates, ornamental plants bushmeat and other products.

13. Policy Platforms in Forest Conservation and Management • Agenda 21 and Forest Principles Provided the platforms in directing countries to increase efforts to maintain and increase forest cover and productivity Non binding but enhanced formulation of national forestry programs

14. Convention on Biological Diversity • Biodiversity is sovereign rights of countries • Places obligations to countries or Contracting Parties for formulating programs for biodiversity conservation and sustainable use. • Article 8a and 8f specifically required Contracting Parties to promote protection and rehabilitation of ecosystems • COP6 adopted a forest biodiversity action-based work program which Contracting Parties have to report compliance and progress in their Annual Reports • Legally binding

15. Framework Convention on Climate Change and Forests (FCCC) • Clearly elaborated as the Kyoto Protocol in 1997 • Objective is to stabilize concentration of greenhouse gases where forests are seen as a major element • Afforestation, reforestation and improved forest conservation and management seen to offset emission targets and has to be promoted

16. Convention to Combat Desertification and Forests • Legally binding • Objective is to combat desertification and to mitigate effects of drought in an integrated manner • Adoption of national action programmes to address underlying causes of desertification, drought and deforestation

17. Trade Related Agreements • International Tropical Timber Agreement (ITTA)- foster cooperation in trade and utilization of tropical timber with emphasis on sustainability. ITTO broke new grounds by formulating and publishing the first set of Criteria and Indicators for Sustainable Forest Management. • Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES)- Provides a forum and generate a list of species requiring various controls in trade to balance trade and conservation concerns.

18. International Processes • Intergovernmental Panel on Forests (IPF) and the Intergovernmental Forum on Forests (IFF)- forum to discuss varying issues on forest and forest management. • United Nations Forum on Forests- to develop a legal framework on all forests • A significant output is on Criteria and Indicators for Sustainable Forest Management.

19. Sustainable Development • A complex, multi-dimensional, time-determined and highly contextual state or condition adhering to the basic principle “that the natural resource base must be utilized in a manner that its ability to provide current and future goods and services useful to human society is not impaired.” • “It is a type of development which is economically viable, environmentally appropriate and socially acceptable.”

20. Figure 1. Conceptual model of the relationship between biodiversity and sustainable development Technological Natural Resources Sustainable Development • Ecosystem(s) • Community • Species • Genetic Socio-economic & cultural Biodiversity

23. Conservation Strategy for In Situ Conservation of Forest Diversity • Strategy in the form of a Guideline Represents the Technology • Natural Resource Base- represents the requirements of the site, the reproductive patterns of the species, the diversity factors to maintain and others • Socio-cultural- policy, incentives and capacity

24. Biodiversity as a Critical Element of Sustainable Development • Biodiversity was transformed from an esoteric ecological term to a global concern because of: • Greater recognition for what human society can derive from it in the face of rapidly increasing population; and • Dwindling natural resources as well as ecosystem destruction • Globally enshrined in the CBD

25. Cardamon in Midmontane Forest in Sri Lanka

26. Global biodiversity has greatly shrunk • 90% of world food supply come from: • 20 species of plants • 14 species of domesticated animals • However, it does not mean that the so-called “lesser species” are not important

27. Beneficial biological agents such as pollinators – US$ 40B per year • Biological nitrogen fixation agents – US$ 50B per year • All in all, agents of biodiversity services account for US$ 100-200B per year in the U.S. alone!

29. Relationship • Durian flowers pollinated by bats at 1-2 am • What is the pollinator at this time? Bats • Where do bats live? In limestone caves • What is the material used for making cement? Lime from limestone • What happens if construction demands more cement? More bat caves will be destroyed • What will happen next? No more bat pollinators, NO MORE DURIAN FRUITS

30. Biodiversityalso plays an important role in ensuring that the targets of the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) for Sustainable Development set by the UN are successfully achieved

31. Biodiversity and Health • provides raw material for new and • traditional medicines • functioning ecosystems are • Essential for people’s health • Biodiversity and Energy • promotes sustainable sources of • woodfuel, biomass. • climate changes, need for bio- • Diversity-rich, resilient ecosystems • grows. • Biodiversity and Sustainable • Ecosystem Management • genes, species and ecosystems growing under pressure • Biodiversity and Water • Provides clean and abundant water • supplies • Provides abundant goods for • aquatic ecosystems (food, fibre and • so on) • Biodiversity and Agriculture • provides genetic input for new • crop and livestock varieties • maintains soils structure and • quality • ensures pollination of crops Figure 2. Examples of the Critical Role of Biodiversity and sustainable Ecosystem Management under WEHAB Priority Areas

32. Does Biodiversity Always Relate to Sustainable Development? • Types of biodiversity: • Natural – honed by the process of natural selection and co-adaptation • Human-managed – true mainly for agrobiodiversity; can be “good” or “non-sustainable” biodiversity

33. Biodiversity is not just about the number of species or adding more species. It is“good biodiversity” if: • It is a functional diversity governed by homeostatic and well-ordered relationships among component species at all levels – genetic, species, communities, ecosystems, etc • It is managed by traditional knowledge or knowledge systems based on these positive relationships • It is biodiversity of a natural resource base which is positively interacting with technology and the socio-cultural elements of the ecosystem

35. Biodiversity interpreted as simply increasing the numbers and kinds of species of living organisms does not always lead to Sustainable Development • The case of Eucalyptus in Thailandand other Southeast Asian countries

36. Patterns of Biodiversity Utilization • Crop and Animal Improvement through conventional breeding and others such as use of root stocks • Biotechnology or genetic engineering- needs a strong risk assessment; biosafety regulation

37. Conclusion • Asian forests over the last 15 years have experienced positive and negative changes • Forest management has shifted from purely production to multiple use management • It has also shifted to more sustainable management objectives

38. Conclusion • Sustainable orientation anchored on the multifunctional role of forests at all levels; local, national, regional and global • It is recognized as a major ecosystem which hosts biodiversity or the “web of life” • Basic relationships between different elements of sustainable development where biodiversity is a major component needs to be better understood to attain the goal of sustainable development

39. “Biodiversity is the Life Insurance of Life Itself” …Mc Neil and Shei (2002)

40. Thank you.. Terima Kasih