PART I
THE SITUATION AND DEVELOPMENTS
IN THE FOREST SECTOR
In 2001, FAO published the Global Forest Resources Assessment 2000 (FRA 2000), the most comprehensive such survey ever undertaken. Largely based on information provided by the countries themselves and a remote sensing survey of tropical countries, it was supplemented by special studies undertaken by FAO. Among the outputs were two new global forest cover maps, estimates of forest cover, deforestation rates and forest biomass for each country, and several specialized studies on such topics as forest management and forest fires. After the release of FRA 2000 (FAO, 2001), an international meeting of experts was convened to review results and plan future steps. The present chapter highlights some of the recommendations arising from these discussions, notes trends pointing to continued deforestation as a result of pressure to increase agricultural production, and reports on the conversion and conservation of mangroves.
GLOBAL FOREST RESOURCES ASSESSMENT
AGRICULTURAL EXPANSION AND DEFORESTATION
MANGROVE CONVERSION AND CONSERVATION
FAO's Global Forest Resources Assessment is designed to serve countries, international processes and the public by providing information that can be used in policy-making, planning and evaluation of progress in achieving sustainable forest management. Forests and trees not only provide wood and non-wood products, but also provide numerous environmental goods and services such as conservation of biological diversity and mitigation of climate change, and they have a key role in alleviating poverty and improving food security. These multiple uses, especially local and gender-specific ones, have in the past been under-represented in forest assessments, and their inclusion will help determine the usefulness of future efforts.
Key characteristics of the global assessment are:
Several initiatives along these lines have recently been taken: a global and interorganizational process to harmonize forest definitions met twice in 2002; the Collaborative Partnership on Forests (CPF) established a task force on monitoring, assessment and reporting; and steps have been taken to establish an advisory group on the Global Forest Resources Assessment.
Assessments have shown for many years that the area of the world's forests is shrinking. Estimates have become more reliable over repeated assessments, particularly with the recent agreement that FRA 2000 use one definition for forest. According to current estimates (FAO, 2001), 0.38 percent of the world's forests were converted to other land uses (i.e. deforested) every year in the 1990s. At the same time, large areas reverted to forest, leaving a net annual loss of 0.22 percent. While these findings clearly show a substantial loss, particularly in the tropics, it is equally obvious that change in forest area is not the only indicator of the state of the world's forest resources or their capacity to supply goods and services.
Another way to describe declining forest resources is the extent to which they have been degraded (FAO, 2001). For example, poor silvicultural practices may have lowered wood production, unwisely managed harvesting may have led to reduced biological diversity, or overharvesting of fuelwood – in combination with grazing – may have negatively affected soil fertility. However, it is hard to obtain an accurate overall picture of forest degradation without also taking into account improvements that result in increased benefits. In this regard, future assessments will have to delve into aspects related to function, impact and potential, providing much more information than in the past. Weighing different benefits to determine whether the total is increasing or decreasing in a given forest stand therefore becomes an important element in the forest assessment equation. Similarly, there is a need to review the complementarity of products and services from different forest stands at the landscape and national levels. While it is generally agreed that forest degradation is more common than forest improvement in many countries, the lack of systematic data prevents a balanced calculation of positive and negative trends.
Although evaluating trends in local forest stands is a fairly straightforward matter, the challenge is to make such samples representative for a country or the world. It would therefore appear that the solution to complex national or global accounting of forest resources lies in systematic local observation and assessment.
Gaps in the forest estate |
Much of the agricultural expansion on to forest lands, particularly in the tropics, is temporary, inasmuch as fields are abandoned three or four years after clearing because of a significant loss of nutrients and hence of agricultural productivity. Some of this land remains abandoned forest, while some, in the case of true shifting cultivation, becomes managed forest fallows. The official figures indicating the balance between the removal of forest and reforestation or afforestation miss these additions to the forest estate, as well as the millions of trees outside forests that are planted and tended by rural inhabitants. Many forest fallows in Africa and other tropical regions that appear to be unproductive are in fact well managed to meet a variety of basic local needs. |
In July 2002, FAO and several partners convened a global expert consultation on forest assessments in Finland (entitled Global Forest Resources Assessments – Linking National and International Efforts, referred to in short as Kotka IV) to review the results of FRA 2000 and to plan the future direction of FAO global assessments. Among its many recommendations, Kotka IV agreed on the importance of capacity building, especially in developing countries, to increase the quality, timeliness and usefulness of forest inventories and assessments. Kotka IV also concluded that national forest inventories and assessments should be driven by the needs of national policy processes.
In addition, the meeting noted that global forest assessments should continue to be broad, including information on all aspects of forest resources. This means that the wide range of forest goods and services must be assessed and the quantitative and qualitative values of the benefits studied, so far as possible. The provision of industrial wood and conditions for biological diversity, for example, should therefore be reported.
Precedents for assessing all benefits from forests have already been set with the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, a four-year initiative designed to provide decision-makers and the public with relevant scientific information on the condition of ecosystems, expected consequences of ecosystem change and options for response; and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Global Environmental Outlook studies which, while focusing on environmental issues, also place trends in the context of forest benefits.
As many countries lack the capacity to conduct systematic assessments and generate the information required to meet policy and planning needs, FAO has a programme to support national forest assessments and build country capacity. The programme focuses on support for systematic field measurements and observations of forests and their use in order to obtain national-level statistics. A balanced use of remote sensing and field sampling is essential, as is close collaboration among national institutions and the newly established National Forest Programme Facility.
Over the years, researchers have identified agricultural expansion as a common factor in almost all studies on deforestation. Indeed, much of the increase in food production has been at the expense of hundreds of millions of hectares of forest. Although there are no solid estimates of how much farm and grazing land was originally under forest, the point remains that a large portion was cleared for agriculture, and that additional land will be cleared in the future. Efforts are therefore under way to gain a better understanding of the relationship between the two sectors.
Large population increases and growing per capita consumption will place unprecedented strains on resources and present new challenges to the sustainable management of forests, including other wooded land.
Such extreme conditions over the next 50 years are likely to result in significant incentives to expand agriculture, mostly but not entirely on new land cleared through deforestation. In many industrialized countries, however, the area under agriculture is shrinking, and land thus abandoned is being converted to forest.
To shed light on whether there is a clear relationship in the dynamics between forested and agricultural areas, FAO analysed qualitative temporal change trends on the basis of global statistics. However, this analysis excluded the identification of factors that drive agricultural expansion or contraction and the processes that facilitate such changes.
Preliminary findings indicate that agricultural land is expanding in about 70 percent of countries, declining in 25 percent and roughly static in 5 percent (Figure 1).
Other wooded lands (shrub and forest fallows) have roughly maintained their share of the land. However, given the dynamic nature of land use, some land might revert to secondary forests over time.
Because other wooded lands may be a buffer for changes in land use, it is important to understand changes in these areas. Integrated assessment and monitoring of trees outside forests is necessary to draw meaningful inferences for wider cross-sectoral policy interventions in the forest, agriculture and environment sectors (IIASA and FAO, 2002). As agricultural expansion into forests seems inevitable (FAO, 2001), a key question for future sustainable livelihoods, food security and sustainable forest management is the extent to which this buffer can absorb or cushion the expected increase in the demand for agricultural production.
FIGURE 1 Expansion and contraction of agriculture and forests: |
Forestry and agriculture are inseparable |
"It is rightly said that the solution to problems of deforestation and forest land degradation lies outside the forests. ... FAO is fully convinced, based on its many years of experience, that it is essential for forestry and agriculture to work hand in hand." Dr Jacques Diouf, FAO Director-General
|
It is equally important to recognize that many technological innovations to intensify agricultural production since the green revolution have had a positive impact on forest area. Without them, much more land would be needed to produce today's amounts of wheat, maize, rice and other major food crops.
Indeed, the more agriculture is intensified on a sustainable basis, the less pressure there will be to deforest in order to provide new areas for agriculture. This point has significant implications in terms of forging links among environmental interests, agricultural research and intensification efforts. The following are particularly needed:
Forestry and agriculture face similar challenges |
Today, agriculture and the forest sector are more inextricably linked than ever before as they face similar challenges in coping with poverty and food insecurity. While these problems contribute to forest destruction and degradation, the solution for alleviating them and for minimizing the negative impacts of agriculture on the environment involves a complex set of factors, using the best of old and new technologies, innovative ideas and modern institutional arrangements. The sustainable management of forests and trees, including the use of agroforestry and watershed management, is an integral part of the effort to reduce food insecurity, alleviate poverty and improve environmental quality for the rural poor. Technological innovations and new management methods that increase agricultural and forest yields per hectare can also have a significant positive impact on the world's forests. |
Red mangroves FAO FORESTRY DEPARTMENT |
Mangroves are found along sheltered coastlines in the tropics and subtropics, where they fulfil important functions in conserving biological diversity and providing wood and non-wood forest products (NWFPs); coastal protection; and habitat, spawning grounds and nutrients for a variety of fish and shellfish, including many commercial species. High population pressure in coastal areas has led to the conversion of many mangrove areas to other uses, including infrastructure, aquaculture, rice growing and salt production. Numerous case studies have described mangrove losses over time. However, information on global-level status and trends is scarce. The first attempt to estimate the total mangrove area in the world was undertaken as part of the FAO/UNEP Tropical Forest Resources Assessment in 1980, when the world total was estimated as 15.6 million hectares. More recent estimates range from 12 to 20 million hectares (Table 1). In many of these studies, countries with small areas of mangroves were excluded because of a lack of information and because their combined area of mangroves would not significantly affect the world total.
A recent initiative by FAO aims at facilitating access to comprehensive information on the past and present extent of mangroves in all the countries and areas in which they exist. This builds on the earlier FAO/UNEP assessment and on the recent FRA 2000, for which all countries were asked to provide information on current forest area according to forest type, using their own classification systems. Because mangroves are a distinct and relatively easily defined forest type, most countries that have mangroves were able to provide information about them.
TABLE 1 Previous estimates of global mangrove area |
|||||||
Reference |
Reference |
Number of countries included |
Estimated world total (ha) |
||||
FAO & UNEP, 1981a, b, c |
1980 |
51 |
15 642 673 |
||||
Saenger, Hegerl & Davie, 1983 |
1983 |
65 |
16 221 000 |
||||
FAO, 1994 |
1980-1985 |
56 |
16 500 000 |
||||
Groombridge, 1992 |
1992 |
87 |
19 847 861 |
||||
ITTO/ISME, 1993 b |
1993 |
54 |
12 429 115 |
||||
Fisher & Spalding, 1993 |
1993 |
91 |
19 881 800 |
||||
Spalding, Blasco & Field, 1997 |
1997 |
112 |
18 100 077 |
||||
Aizpuru, Achard & Blasco, 2000 |
2000 |
112 c |
17 075 600 |
||||
a For FAO & UNEP, 1981a, b, c and Aizpuru,
Achard & Blasco, 2000, the reference year is the average for all the
estimates included, weighted by the area of each estimate. For all other
sources, the reference year is the date of the publication(s). |
An extensive literature search yielded additional information. More than 2 800 national and subnational data sets have been collected so far, covering 121 countries and areas where mangroves are known to exist, with the earliest estimates dating back to 1918.The information has been analysed with the assistance of mangrove experts throughout the world.One of the results is an updated list of the most reliable, recent estimates for each country, based mainly on inventories or the analysis of remote sensing imagery. Regression analyses based on earlier data provided estimates for 1990 and 1980 and an extrapolated estimate for 2000 to each country. The regional and world totals are shown in Table 2, while Table 3 shows results for individual countries. Three examples of the trend analysis generated from the data are given in Figure 2.
As can be seen from the results, mangrove deforestation is continuing, albeit at a slightly lower rate than in the 1980s. The relatively high mangrove deforestation rates in Asia, the Caribbean and Latin America in the 1980s reflect the large-scale conversion of mangroves for aquaculture and tourism infrastructures. Most countries have now banned the conversion of mangroves for aquaculture purposes and require environmental impact assessments prior to any large-scale conversion of mangroves to other uses. The study did not provide information on the rate of mangrove degradation.
TABLE 2 Status and trends in mangrove area by region |
Region |
Most reliable recent estimate |
1980 ('000 ha) |
1990 ('000 ha) |
Annual change 1980-1990 (%) |
2000 ('000 ha) |
Annual change 1990-2000 (%) |
('000 ha) |
Ref. year a |
||||||
Africa |
3 390 |
1993 |
3 659 |
3 470 |
-0.5 |
3 351 |
-0.3 |
Asia |
6 662 |
1991 |
7 857 |
6 689 |
-1.5 |
5 833 |
-1.2 |
North and Central America |
2 103 |
1994 |
2 641 |
2 296 |
-1.3 |
1 968 |
-1.4 |
Oceania |
1 578 |
1995 |
1 850 |
1 704 |
-0.8 |
1 527 |
-1.0 |
South America |
2 030 |
1992 |
3 802 |
2 202 |
-4.2 |
1 974 |
-1.0 |
World |
15 763 |
1992 |
19 809 |
16 361 |
-1.7 |
14 653 |
-1.0 |
a Weighted average of all the countries in the region. |
TABLE 3 Status and trends in mangrove area |
Country/area |
Most reliable recent estimate |
1980 (ha) |
1990 (ha) |
Annual change 1980-1990 (%) |
2000 (ha) |
Annual change |
(ha) |
Ref. year |
||||||
Africa |
3 390 107 |
1993 |
3 659 322 |
3 469 844 |
-0.5 |
3 350 813 |
-0.3 |
Angola |
60 700 |
1992 |
125 000 |
71 400 |
-4.3 |
59 700 |
-1.6 |
Benin |
1 700 |
1989 |
4 400 |
1 400 |
-6.8 |
1 080 |
-2.3 |
Cameroon |
227 500 |
2000 |
267 000 |
248 000 |
-0.7 |
229 000 |
-0.8 |
Comoros |
2 600 |
1976 |
2 600 |
2 600 |
n.s. |
2 600 |
n.s. |
Congo |
12 000 |
1995 |
30 000 |
20 000 |
-3.3 |
11 900 |
-4.1 |
Côte d'Ivoire |
15 000 |
1995 |
89 000 |
40 000 |
-5.5 |
12 700 |
-6.8 |
Dem. Rep. of the Congo |
22 600 |
1995 |
60 600 |
35 300 |
-4.2 |
22 100 |
-3.7 |
Djibouti |
1 000 |
1985 |
1 000 |
1 000 |
n.s. |
1 000 |
n.s. |
Egypt |
482 |
1998 |
500 |
500 |
n.a. |
480 |
n.a |
Equatorial Guinea |
25 700 |
1995 |
26 700 |
26 000 |
-0.3 |
25 300 |
-0.3 |
Eritrea |
6 400 |
1997 |
6 700 |
6 500 |
-0.3 |
6 300 |
-0.3 |
Gabon |
115 000 |
2000 |
140 000 |
127 500 |
-0.9 |
115 000 |
-1.0 |
Gambia |
59 600 |
1993 |
64 300 |
61 700 |
-0.4 |
59 100 |
-0.4 |
Ghana |
10 000 |
1995 |
12 000 |
11 000 |
-0.8 |
9 000 |
-1.8 |
Guinea |
296 300 |
1995 |
285 000 |
292 500 |
0.3 |
290 000 |
n.s. |
Guinea-Bissau |
248 400 |
1990 |
245 000 |
245 000 |
n.s. |
245 000 |
n.s. |
Kenya |
52 980 |
1995 |
54 400 |
53 100 |
-0.2 |
51 600 |
-0.3 |
Liberia |
19 000 |
1995 |
19 000 |
19 000 |
n.s. |
19 000 |
n.s. |
Madagascar |
325 560 |
1987 |
327 000 |
320 000 |
-0.2 |
314 000 |
-0.2 |
Mauritania |
104 |
1993 |
140 |
112 |
-2.0 |
84 |
-2.5 |
Mauritius |
7 |
1991 |
7 |
7 |
n.s. |
7 |
n.s. |
Mayotte |
668 |
1989 |
670 |
670 |
n.s. |
670 |
n.s. |
Mozambique |
392 749 |
1997 |
402 800 |
396 600 |
-0.2 |
390 500 |
-0.2 |
Nigeria |
997 700 |
1995 |
999 000 |
998 000 |
n.s. |
997 000 |
n.s. |
Sao Tome and Principe |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
Senegal |
182 400 |
1985 |
175 000 |
175 800 |
n.s. |
176 700 |
0.1 |
Seychelles |
2 000 |
1995 |
2 400 |
2 100 |
-1.3 |
1 900 |
-1.0 |
Sierra Leone |
156 500 |
1986 |
165 600 |
150 500 |
-0.9 |
135 300 |
-1.0 |
Somalia |
10 000 |
1975 |
9 500 |
8 500 |
-1.1 |
7 500 |
-1.2 |
South Africa |
673 |
1991 |
1 200 |
720 |
-4.0 |
667 |
-0.7 |
Sudan |
500 |
1995 |
605 |
535 |
-1.2 |
465 |
-1.3 |
United Rep. of Tanzania |
143 284 |
1987 |
140 700 |
152 500 |
0.8 |
164 200 |
0.8 |
Togo |
1 000 |
1999 |
1 500 |
1 300 |
-1.3 |
960 |
-2.6 |
Asia |
6 661 717 |
1991 |
7 856 500 |
6 689 280 |
-1.5 |
5 832 737 |
-1.3 |
Bahrain |
100 |
1992 |
100 |
100 |
n.s. |
100 |
n.s. |
Bangladesh |
622 482 |
1992 |
596 300 |
609 500 |
0.2 |
622 600 |
0.2 |
Brunei Darussalam |
17 100 |
1992 |
18 300 |
17 300 |
-0.5 |
16 300 |
-0.6 |
Cambodia |
72 835 |
1997 |
83 000 |
74 600 |
-1.0 |
63 700 |
-1.5 |
China |
36 882 |
1994 |
65 900 |
44 800 |
-3.2 |
23 700 |
-4.7 |
India |
487 100 |
1997 |
506 000 |
492 600 |
-0.3 |
479 000 |
-0.3 |
Indonesia |
3 493 110 |
1988 |
4 254 000 |
3 530 700 |
-1.7 |
2 930 000 |
-1.7 |
Islam. Rep. of Iran |
20 700 |
1994 |
25 000 |
21 000 |
-1.6 |
20 000 |
-0.5 |
Japan |
400 |
1980 |
400 |
400 |
n.s. |
400 |
n.s |
Kuwait |
2 |
2000 |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
2 |
n.a. |
Malaysia |
587 269 |
1995 |
669 000 |
620 500 |
-0.7 |
572 100 |
-0.8 |
Maldives |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
Myanmar |
452 492 |
1996 |
531 000 |
480 000 |
-1.0 |
432 300 |
-1.0 |
Oman |
2 000 |
1992 |
2 000 |
2 000 |
n.s. |
2 000 |
n.s. |
Pakistan |
207 000 |
1990 |
345 000 |
207 000 |
-4.0 |
176 000 |
-1.5 |
Philippines |
127 610 |
1990 |
206 500 |
123 400 |
-4.0 |
109 700 |
-1.1 |
Qatar |
500 |
1992 |
500 |
500 |
n.s. |
500 |
n.s |
Saudi Arabia |
20 400 |
1985 |
20 400 |
20 400 |
n.s. |
20 400 |
n.s |
Singapore |
500 |
1990 |
2 700 |
500 |
-8.1 |
500 |
n.s. |
Sri Lanka |
8 688 |
1992 |
9 400 |
8 800 |
-0.6 |
7 600 |
-1.4 |
Thailand |
244 085 |
2000 |
285 500 |
262 000 |
-0.8 |
244 000 |
-0.7 |
Timor-Leste |
3 035 |
2000 |
4 100 |
3 600 |
-1.2 |
3 035 |
-1.6 |
United Arab Emirates |
4 000 |
1999 |
3 300 |
3 600 |
0.9 |
4 000 |
1.1 |
Viet Nam |
252 500 |
1983 |
227 000 |
165 000 |
-2.7 |
104 000 |
-3.7 |
Yemen |
927 |
1993 |
1 100 |
980 |
-1.1 |
800 |
-1.8 |
North and Central America |
2 102 886 |
1994 |
2 641 289 |
2 296 400 |
-1.3 |
1 968 397 |
-1.4 |
Anguilla |
90 |
1991 |
90 |
90 |
n.s. |
90 |
n.s. |
Antigua and Barbuda |
1 175 |
1991 |
1 570 |
1 200 |
-2.4 |
900 |
-2.5 |
Aruba |
420 |
1986 |
420 |
420 |
n.s. |
420 |
n.s. |
Bahamas |
141 957 |
1991 |
170 000 |
145 000 |
-1.5 |
140 000 |
-0.3 |
Barbados |
14 |
1991 |
30 |
16 |
-4.7 |
10 |
-3.8 |
Belize |
65 767 |
1995 |
75 000 |
68 800 |
-0.8 |
62 700 |
-0.9 |
Bermuda |
16 |
1992 |
17 |
16 |
-0.6 |
15 |
-0.6 |
British Virgin Islands |
587 |
2001 |
660 |
630 |
-0.5 |
590 |
-0.6 |
Cayman Islands |
7 268 |
1991 |
7 300 |
7 300 |
n.s. |
7 200 |
n.s. |
Costa Rica |
41 330 |
1992 |
41 000 |
41 000 |
n.s. |
41 000 |
n.s. |
Cuba |
529 700 |
1992 |
530 500 |
529 800 |
n.s. |
529 000 |
n.s. |
Dominica |
10 |
1991 |
40 |
13 |
-6.8 |
9 |
-3.1 |
Dominican Republic |
21 215 |
1998 |
33 800 |
26 300 |
-2.2 |
18 700 |
-2.9 |
El Salvador |
26 800 |
1994 |
47 200 |
35 600 |
-2.5 |
24 000 |
-3.3 |
Grenada |
255 |
1992 |
295 |
262 |
-1.1 |
230 |
-1.2 |
Guadeloupe |
2 325 |
1997 |
3 900 |
2 500 |
-3.5 |
2 300 |
-0.8 |
Guatemala |
17 727 |
1998 |
19 800 |
17 800 |
-1.0 |
15 800 |
-1.1 |
Haiti |
15 000 |
1990 |
17 800 |
15 000 |
-1.6 |
10 000 |
-3.3 |
Honduras |
54 300 |
1995 |
156 400 |
103 300 |
-3.4 |
50 000 |
-5.2 |
Jamaica |
9 731 |
1997 |
23 000 |
10 800 |
-5.3 |
9 300 |
-1.4 |
Martinique |
1 840 |
1998 |
1 900 |
1 900 |
n.s. |
1 800 |
n.s. |
Mexico |
488 000 |
1994 |
640 000 |
543 000 |
-1.5 |
440 000 |
-1.9 |
Montserrat |
5 |
1991 |
5 |
5 |
n.s. |
5 |
n.s. |
Netherlands Antilles |
1 138 |
1980 |
1 140 |
1 138 |
n.s. |
1 130 |
n.s. |
Nicaragua |
282 000 |
1992 |
336 000 |
280 000 |
-1.7 |
214 300 |
-2.3 |
Panama |
158 100 |
2000 |
230 000 |
166 000 |
-2.8 |
158 000 |
-0.5 |
Puerto Rico |
6 410 |
2001 |
6 500 |
6 400 |
-0.2 |
6 400 |
n.s. |
Saint Kitts and Nevis |
79 |
1991 |
84 |
80 |
-0.5 |
75 |
-0.6 |
Saint Lucia |
200 |
2002 |
200 |
200 |
n.s. |
200 |
n.s. |
Saint Vincent and Grenadines |
51 |
1991 |
60 |
52 |
-1.3 |
45 |
-1.3 |
Trinidad and Tobago |
7 150 |
1991 |
9 000 |
7 200 |
-2.0 |
6 600 |
-0.8 |
Turks and Caicos Islands |
23 600 |
1991 |
23 600 |
23 600 |
n.s. |
23 600 |
n.s. |
United States |
197 648 |
2001 |
263 000 |
260 000 |
-0.1 |
203 000 |
-2.2 |
United States Virgin Islands |
978 |
1991 |
978 |
978 |
n.s. |
978 |
n.s. |
Oceania |
1 577 967 |
1995 |
1 850 068 |
1 703 949 |
-0.8 |
1 526 924 |
-1.0 |
American Samoa |
52 |
1976 |
51 |
50 |
-0.2 |
50 |
n.s. |
Australia |
955 277 |
1997 |
1 150 000 |
1 050 000 |
-0.9 |
955 000 |
-0.9 |
Fiji |
42 464 |
1991 |
47 000 |
43 000 |
-0.9 |
37 000 |
-1.4 |
Guam |
70 |
1993 |
88 |
74 |
-1.6 |
60 |
-1.9 |
Kiribati |
258 |
1995 |
260 |
260 |
n.s. |
250 |
n.s. |
Marshall Islands |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
Micronesia |
8 564 |
1983 |
8 500 |
8 500 |
n.s. |
8 500 |
n.s. |
Nauru |
1 |
1993 |
2 |
1 |
-5.0 |
1 |
n.s. |
New Caledonia |
20 250 |
1987 |
20 500 |
20 100 |
-0.2 |
20 000 |
n.s. |
New Zealand |
22 200 |
1996 |
24 000 |
22 000 |
-0.8 |
19 900 |
-1.0 |
Niue |
3 000 |
1981 |
3 000 |
3 000 |
n.s. |
3 000 |
n.s. |
Northern Mariana Islands |
7 |
1984 |
7 |
5 |
n.s. |
5 |
n.s. |
Palau |
4 708 |
1985 |
4 700 |
4 700 |
n.s. |
4 700 |
n.s. |
Papua New Guinea |
464 000 |
1993 |
525 000 |
492 000 |
-0.6 |
425 000 |
-1.4 |
Samoa |
752 |
1993 |
1 000 |
809 |
-1.9 |
618 |
-2.4 |
Solomon Islands |
52 500 |
1995 |
61 200 |
55 400 |
-0.9 |
49 500 |
-1.1 |
Tokelau |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
Tonga |
1 305 |
1990 |
1 300 |
1 300 |
n.s. |
1 300 |
n.s. |
Tuvalu |
40 |
1993 |
60 |
50 |
-1.7 |
40 |
-2.0 |
Vanuatu |
2 519 |
1993 |
3 400 |
2 700 |
-2.1 |
2 000 |
-2.6 |
Wallis and Futuna Islands |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
n.a. |
South America |
2 030 330 |
1992 |
3 801 600 |
2 202 000 |
-4.2 |
1 974 300 |
-1.0 |
Brazil |
1 012 376 |
1991 |
2 640 000 |
1 150 000 |
-5.6 |
1 010 000 |
-1.2 |
Colombia |
379 954 |
1996 |
440 000 |
396 600 |
-1.0 |
354 500 |
-1.1 |
Ecuador |
149 688 |
1999 |
193 000 |
166 400 |
-1.4 |
147 800 |
-1.1 |
French Guiana |
55 000 |
1980 |
55 000 |
55 000 |
n.s. |
55 000 |
n.s. |
Guyana |
80 400 |
1994 |
91 000 |
83 400 |
-0.8 |
76 000 |
-0.9 |
Peru |
4 791 |
1992 |
7 600 |
5 000 |
-3.4 |
4 700 |
-0.6 |
Suriname |
98 121 |
1998 |
115 000 |
105 600 |
-0.8 |
96 300 |
-0.9 |
Venezuela |
250 000 |
1986 |
260 000 |
240 000 |
-0.8 |
230 000 |
-0.4 |
n.a. = not available. |
Another valuable source of information on mangroves is the Global Mangrove Database and Information System created by the International Society for Mangrove Ecosystems with support from the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO). It contains information on institutions, projects and people working with mangroves, as well as an extensive database on mangrove-related documents. See www.glomis.com for details.
Other developments include:
FIGURE 2 Mangrove area changes over time – three examples |
Aizpuru, M., Achard, F. & Blasco, F. 2000. Global assessment of cover change of the mangrove forests using satellite imagery at medium to high resolution. EEC Research Project No. 15017-1999-05 FIED ISP FR. Ispra, Italy, Joint Research Centre.
Clough, B.F. 1993. The economic and environmental values of mangrove forests and their present state of conservation in the South-East Asia/Pacific Region. Mangrove Ecosystems Technical Reports, Vol. 1. ITTO/ISME/JIAM Project PD71/89 Rev.1 (F). Okinawa, Japan, International Society for Mangrove Ecosystems (ISME).
Diop, E.S. 1993 Conservation and sustainable utilization of mangrove forests in Latin America and Africa regions, Part II – Africa. Mangrove Ecosystems Technical Reports, Vol. 3. ITTO/ISME Project PD114/90 (F). Okinawa, Japan, International Society for Mangrove Ecosystems (ISME).
FAO. 1994. Mangrove forest management guidelines. FAO Forestry Paper No. 117. Rome.
FAO. 2001. Global Forest Resources Assessment 2000: main report. FAO Forestry Paper No. 140. Rome (also available at www.fao.org/forestry/fo/fra/main/index.jsp).
FAO. 2002a. FAO's database on mangrove area estimates, by M.L. Wilkie, S. Fortuna & O. Souksavat. Forest Resources Assessment Working Paper No. 62. Rome.
FAO. 2002b. Status and trends in mangrove area extent worldwide, by M.L. Wilkie & S. Fortuna. Forest Resources Assessment Working Paper No. 63. Rome, FAO.
FAO, IFAD & WFP. 2002. Reducing poverty and hunger: the critical role of financing for food, agriculture and rural development. Paper for the International Conference on Financing for Development, Monterrey, Mexico, 18 March (also available at www.ifad.org/media/press/2002/20-20.htm).
FAO & UNEP. 1981a. Los recursos forestales de la America tropical: proyecto de evaluación de los recursos forestales tropicales. Rome, FAO.
FAO & UNEP. 1981b. Tropical forest resources assessment project: forest resources of tropical Africa. Part II: country briefs. Rome, FAO.
FAO & UNEP. 1981c. Tropical forest resources assessment project: forest resources of tropical Asia. Rome, FAO.
Fisher, P. & Spalding, M.D. 1993. Protected areas with mangrove habitat. Draft report. Cambridge, UK, World Conservation Monitoring Centre.
Groombridge, B., ed. 1992. Global biodiversity: status of the earth's living resources. London, Chapman & Hall.
IIASA & FAO. 2002. Global agro-ecological assessment for agriculture in the 21st century, by G. Fischer, M. Shah, H. van Velthuizen & F.O. Nachtergaele. Laxenburg, Austria & Rome.
Lacerda, L.D. 1993. Conservation and sustainable utilization of mangrove forests in Latin America and Africa regions, Part I – Latin America. Mangrove Ecosystems Technical Reports, Vol. 2. ITTO/ISME Project PD114/90. Okinawa, Japan, International Society for Mangrove Ecosystems (ISME).
Saenger, P., Hegerl, E.J. & Davie, J.D.S., eds. 1983. Global status of mangrove ecosystems. Commission on Ecology Paper No. 3. Gland, Switzerland, World Conservation Union (IUCN).
Spalding, M.D., Blasco, F. & Field, C.D., eds. 1997. World mangrove atlas. Okinawa, Japan, International Society for Mangrove Ecosystems (ISME).