The Future of the World's Forests (eBook)

Acknowledgements 7
Contents 9
Chapter 1: Disappearing Rainforests: New Solutions 15
1.1 Introduction 15
1.2 But Why Another Book on Forests? 17
1.2.1 There Is Certainly no Shortage of Material 17
1.2.2 There Are Still Some Things Left to Say 20
1.3 The Dynamics of Forest Loss 21
1.3.1 Natural Forests Are in Decline 21
1.3.2 So, Is the World Running Out of Wood? 22
1.3.3 Can Developing International Trade and Natural Forests Survival Be Compatible? 23
1.3.4 What Else Is Happening to Natural Forests? 24
1.4 Setting the Scene for Sustainability: Valuation and Financing of the Forests
1.5 What Has Happened to Forests Sustainability So Far? 27
1.5.1 Valuing Forests: The Full Ecosystem and the Carbon Values
1.5.2 Financing Change in the Forests 28
References 29
Chapter 2: Global Forests: Debate and Dysfunction 30
2.1 Defining the Problem #1: A Dysfunctional Dialogue 31
2.1.1 The Problem You See Depends on Where You Stand 33
2.1.2 The Search for Perspective: “You Talk We Chop”
2.1.3 Re-evaluation, or Late Onset Apostasy? 36
2.1.4 Re-focusing the Discussion 37
2.2 Defining the Problem #2: Sustainability and Forests Value – The Basic Issues 38
2.2.1 What Have Forests To Do with Global Economics? 39
2.2.2 A Question of Value 40
2.2.3 Sustainability: The Elusive Objective 40
2.2.4 Why Has Sustainable Forest Management Not Worked? 41
2.2.5 Never Mind the Differences on Sustainability: Can’t We All Just Get Along? 44
2.2.6 Asking the Wrong Questions 44
2.2.7 The Right Question 46
2.2.8 Implications for Some Popular Current Approaches to Sustainability 46
2.3 The Global Dialogue on Forests: Moribunds, Mercantilists, and Manicheans 47
References 50
Chapter 3: The State of Global Forest Resources 51
3.1 The State of the World’s Forests 53
3.1.1 The Historical Picture 53
3.1.2 Global Forest Cover and Cover Change 54
3.2 Tropical Rainforests: A Key Concern 58
3.2.1 Forest Ecosystem Services 59
3.2.2 Irreversibility of Rainforest Loss: A Key Concern 61
3.3 The Implications of Reducing Deforestation 61
References 62
Chapter 4: Are Trade and Forests Survival Compatible? 64
4.1 Where Trade Is Going: Emerging Trends 65
4.2 How Future Demand Can Be Met: Rapidly Changing Supply Patterns 67
4.2.1 The Raw Material Base 67
4.2.2 Forest Industry 68
4.3 Are Impacts of Trade Liberalization on Forests Positive? 69
4.3.1 Winners and Losers Under Trade Liberalization 70
4.4 Can Trade Rules Differentiate Sustainably Produced Forest Products? 71
4.4.1 Protection of Forest-Related Intellectual Property Rights 72
4.4.2 Trade in Intergovernmental Forest Agreements 73
4.4.3 Pressures from Non-governmental Organizations 74
4.4.4 Taking Stock 75
4.5 Has Certification of Forest Management Created Value for Forest Resources? 76
4.5.1 Lagging Developing Countries and Uncertain Market Benefits 76
4.5.2 A Tug-of-War Between International Schemes 77
4.5.3 Improving Effectiveness of Certification 79
Box 4.1 Main characteristics of internationally operating forest certification systems 78
4.6 A Distorted Playing Field: Addressing Illegal Logging 80
4.6.1 Causes of Illegal Logging and trade 81
4.6.2 Emerging Market Requirements 82
4.6.3 Trade Measures in Combating Illegal Logging and Trade 83
4.6.4 Can Certification Impact upon Illegal Logging? 84
4.6.5 Taking Stock 85
4.7 New Opportunities and Challenges for Trade in the Valuation of Forests 85
4.8 Conclusions 87
References 88
Chapter 5: Deforestation: Causes and Symptoms 89
5.1 Rainforests: A Tragedy of the Commons? 90
5.2 Agricultural Technology and Deforestation 92
5.3 The Impact of Burgeoning Plantation and Grazing Commodities 93
5.3.1 Cattle Ranching (Brazil) 94
5.3.2 Soy 95
5.3.3 Biofuels 96
5.3.4 Palm Oil 98
5.3.5 Forest Industry Plantations and the Pulp and Paper Sector 99
5.4 Some Other Factors in Deforestation 102
5.4.1 Mining 102
5.4.2 Wood Fuel 103
5.4.3 Pioneer Shifting Cultivation 103
5.4.4 Infrastructure 104
5.5 Illegal Logging 104
5.6 Commentary on Some Corrective Options 106
5.6.1 International Demand Management 106
5.6.2 Eliminating Perverse Production Incentives 108
5.7 Separating Causes and Symptoms 109
References 111
Chapter 6: Sustainability Versus Ideology in the Forests 114
6.1 Global Environmental Sustainability: The Shifting Paradigm 115
6.1.1 Malthus: The Original Prophet of Economic Doom 115
6.1.2 The Inheritors of Malthus 116
6.1.3 Growth Protagonists Push Back 117
6.1.4 The Environmental Kuznets Curve 118
6.1.5 Taking Stock 119
6.2 Forests and the Broader Economy 121
6.2.1 Applying the Environmental Kuznets Curve to Forests 121
6.2.2 Forests in the Broader Economy 122
6.2.3 Financing Sustainability in Forests Has Been Inadequate 124
6.3 Multilateral Agreements on Global Environmental Sustainability 125
6.3.1 The Stockholm Agreement 126
6.3.2 The Brundtland Report 126
6.3.3 The Rio Earth Summit 127
6.3.4 The Kyoto Protocol 128
6.3.5 The World Summit on Sustainable Development 128
6.4 A Brief Look at Multilateral Involvement in Forests 129
6.4.1 Sustainable Forest Management 130
6.4.2 The Tropical Forestry Action Plan 131
6.4.3 The International Tropical Timber Organization 134
6.4.4 The Intergovernmental Dialogue on Forests 134
6.4.5 The Forest Law Enforcement and Governance Initiatives 137
6.5 Forest Policy in the World Bank: Ideas vs Ideologies 137
6.5.1 The “Chilling Effect” of Bank Forests Sector Policy 138
6.5.2 The New World Bank Forests Sector Strategy and Policy 140
6.5.3 The Chill Is (Not) Gone 143
6.5.4 Problems with Ideology: The Conservation International case 145
6.6 Developing Perspectives on Sustaining Forests 149
References 151
Chapter 7: Financing Forests Sustainability from Ecosystem Values 153
7.1 The Failure of Forests Sustainability: A Question of Perceived Value 154
7.1.1 Valuing the Natural Forests: Qualitative Assessments 155
7.1.2 Quantifying Ecosystem Values 156
7.1.3 Forests and Climate Change 157
7.2 Stored Forest Carbon: Leading the New Sustainability Paradigm 162
7.2.1 Will Reducing Tropical Rainforest Deforestation Be a Cost Effective GHG Strategy? 162
7.2.2 A Case Study: Oil Palm in Indonesia 165
7.3 Would Rainforest Governments Finance Sustainability in Forests for Carbon? 171
7.3.1 Forest Loss and Broad Economic Change10 172
7.4 Financing Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation 177
7.4.1 REDD Has Been a Long Time Coming 178
7.4.2 The Basics of REDD 181
7.4.3 Issues and Differences for Consideration Under REDD 182
7.4.4 Some Controversies and the “Agenda Loading” Issue 188
Box 7.2 Outlining REDD 181
7.5 Investing in Reduced Deforestation Ahead of REDD 192
7.5.1 An Emergency Package for Tropical Forests 193
References 197
Chapter 8: Final Thoughts 200
8.1 The Search for a New Paradigm 201
8.2 What Does All This Mean for the Forests? 202
8.2.1 Formulating the Link Between Forests and Capital 204
8.2.2 Balancing Equity and Effectiveness 205
8.2.3 Keeping Watch Over the Market Instrument 206
8.2.4 International Debates on Forests: Impotency and Intransigence 209
8.3 Some Final Words 211
References 212
Index 213