Sustainable Forest Management in Costa Rica PDF

Part 6 Disappearing green canopy Extended reading Sustainable forest management measures in Costa Rica Textbook p. 86 C...

Part 6 Disappearing green canopy Extended reading Sustainable forest management measures in Costa Rica Textbook p. 86 Credit: AlbertoCarrera/Envato Elements Costa Rica in Central America is famous for its lush tropical rainforests and rich wildlife. But did you know that the country had faced serious deforestation in the past? Before the 1980s, large areas of the country’s rainforests were cleared for plantations, cattle ranches and roads. The forest cover dropped to an all-time low of 21% in the 1980s. Since then, Costa Rica has implemented various forest management measures to allow their rainforests to regenerate. This has successfully stopped and even reversed deforestation. Now, about 60% (3.1 million hectares) of the country is covered by rainforests (Figure 1). Source: Rodrigo Ruiz; ESRI Inc., Costa Rica National Statistics Office, Meuser (2011); World Bank Figure 1 Changes in the tropical rainforest cover in Costa Rica, 1940s–2020s Details of the forest management measures in Costa Rica Costa Rica aims to achieve the following rainforest conservation targets by 2030:  maintain or even increase its 60% forest cover, including securing secondary forests;  maintain a zero-deforestation rate; and  increase the application of agroforestry and silvopasture (i.e. growing trees and grazing animals on the same plot of land). silvopasture 森林牧場 Senior Secondary Exploring Geography Third Edition (RMA 2024) © Oxford University Press (China) Ltd 2024 1 Part 6 Disappearing green canopy Extended reading Table 1 on pp. 2–3 shows the details of some major forest management measures implemented in Costa Rica to achieve the goals above. Table 1 Major forest management measures in Costa Rica Set up  About 30% of the land is designated as protected areas protected  More than 30 national parks and nature reserves have been set up (Figures 2 and 3) areas Figure 2 National parks and nature reserves Credit: CookieMaestri/Envato Elements in Costa Rica Figure 3 A nature reserve in Costa Rica Develop  In 2019, tourism accounted for about 8.5% of the country’s GDP, with ecotourism ecotourism being the major activity in the tourism industry  There are restrictions to prevent tourism activities from damaging the environment  Over 200,000 people are employed in the ecotourism industry. For example, local and native peoples are trained to provide guided tours for ecotourism  Ecotourism creates jobs and brings in income. A study showed that ecotourism has improved the quality of life by 16%, for the people living in or near the rainforests Credit: Patrick Nouhailler/ Wikimedia Commons Figure 4 Tourists at a national park in Costa Rica Encourage  Community-based forest management is conducted. Local and native communities public are involved in planning, decision-making processes, implementing sustainable forest participation management practices and patrolling the rainforests. The culture and livelihoods of native peoples are well-considered  The benefits derived from forest resources are also shared among community members Senior Secondary Exploring Geography Third Edition (RMA 2024) © Oxford University Press (China) Ltd 2024 2 Part 6 Disappearing green canopy Extended reading Implement  In 1997, Costa Rica introduced the payment for ecosystem services programme payment for which provides economic incentives to landowners to conserve rainforests ecosystem  Landowners are paid to preserve trees on their land or to restore the deforested services land (about US$50–65 per hectare annually based on the ecosystem services programme associated with their conservation efforts)  Landowners can receive more money if they plant certain tree species  Landowners are allowed to selectively harvest timber from their reforested land  In recent years, the programme has expanded the funding to cover non-landowners and marginalised groups such as women, youth and indigenous peoples  More than US$520 million has been invested in the programme. It has saved over 1 million hectares of forest and planted over 7 million trees Credit: Cephas/Wikimedia Commons Figure 5 Tropical rainforest of Costa Rica Secure  The payment for ecosystem services programme and other conservation measures funding for are mainly funded by international donations, the sale of forest carbon credits conservation through carbon trading and revenues from fossil fuel taxes  Costa Rica became the first Central American country to receive funds from the Green Climate Fund in 2020 and from the Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation Programme (REDD+) in 2022. The payment accounted for more than US$70 million  Some debts are renegotiated and written off in return for the country’s rainforest conservation efforts. For example, in the 2010s, more than US$50 million of debts had been written off through the ‘debt-for-nature swap’ with the US government Set up and  In 1996, the Forest Law was passed to regulate the use of forest resources. The law enforce laws bans illegal deforestation in mature forests and imposes strict penalties for changing land uses  Since the ban on logging mature forests, many export-oriented farms have been derived from pastureland, tree plantations and secondary forests  In 1998, the Biodiversity Law was passed. The law aims to conserve biodiversity, ensure the sustainable use of resources, and to share the benefits from the utilisation of rainforest resources fairly Set up eco-  In 2023, Costa Rica jointly established a regional forest stewardship standard with product other Central American countries, which is approved by the Forest Stewardship certification Council system  Forest products that meet the standard can receive a seal of approval from the Forest Stewardship Council Senior Secondary Exploring Geography Third Edition (RMA 2024) © Oxford University Press (China) Ltd 2024 3 Part 6 Disappearing green canopy Extended reading Pros and cons of the forest management measures The key to Costa Rica’s success in reversing deforestation is the government’s recognition and monetisation of the values of the ecosystem services provided by the rainforests, as well as the effective policy of using the payment for ecosystem services to reduce poverty in rural areas, which is often the underlying cause of deforestation. To sum up, the forest management measures in Costa Rica can strike a balance between economic development, social progress and environmental conservation. They are in line with the principles of sustainable development. However, they still face some problems and limitations (Table 2 on pp. 4–5). Table 2 Benefits and problems/limitations of the forest management measures in Costa Rica Benefit Problem/Limitation Set up  Preserve the rainforests  Lower economic returns than other protected  Promote economic development in a commercial activities, e.g. plantation areas and non-destructive way agriculture and logging develop  High management and monitoring costs  Compared to traditional farming, ecotourism ecotourism creates jobs and brings  High costs and difficulty in enforcing laws higher and more stable income for due to the vastness and remoteness of the local and native peoples, thus protected areas improving their livelihood and  Tourists and the building of infrastructure reducing poverty and tourist facilities may pollute or  Increase government revenues by damage the environment charging entrance fees  Too many tourists may disturb the  Have more money for conservation peaceful life of native peoples projects  Preserve the culture, ways of life and living space of native peoples  Can serve as an educational tool Encourage  Secure the income for local and  Some people prefer to establish individual public native peoples, thus improving their ownership rights to the land, rather than participation livelihood and reducing poverty sharing the land with their communities,  Respect the culture and rights of in order to receive the benefits of the local and native communities, as payment for ecosystem services well as maintain their living space programme Implement  Offer economic incentives to  High monitoring and management costs payment for preserve or restore the rainforests  The effectiveness of reforestation/ ecosystem  Maintain or increase income for afforestation may be limited in restoring services local and native peoples, thus the rainforests because trees take a very programme improving their livelihood and long time to regenerate reducing poverty  Undervaluation may occur when assigning  Maintain the living space for local monetary values to the ecosystem services and native communities provided by the rainforests  If the payments cannot outweigh the revenues from exploiting forest resources, landowners may not be willing to preserve the rainforests Senior Secondary Exploring Geography Third Edition (RMA 2024) © Oxford University Press (China) Ltd 2024 4 Part 6 Disappearing green canopy Extended reading Benefit Problem/Limitation Secure  All the benefits mentioned in the  High monitoring and management costs funding for above row as it funds and ensures  Very time-consuming to settle on an conservation the success of the payment for agreement with other countries ecosystem services programme  As Costa Rica aims to achieve carbon  Programmes such as carbon trading neutrality by 2050, there will be no more and REDD+ help conserve the carbon tax revenue from fossil fuel taxes. This will sink of rainforests and ease global reduce the funding to finance the warming conservation measures  The funding from international donations and ‘debt-for-nature swap’ may not be sustainable to support long-term conservation because they depend heavily on the global economic environment  Corrupt officials may make use of the funding illegally Set up and  Preserve the rainforests  High monitoring costs enforce laws  Minimize illegal deforestation  High costs and difficulty in enforcing laws  Maintain the living space for local due to the vastness and remoteness of the and native communities rainforests  Local and native communities patrolling the rainforests may face violence and crimes when enforcing the laws  Corruption may hinder effective law enforcement  As the ban on deforestation only covers mature forests, secondary forests may still face the problem of deforestation. There is also a loophole in the policy because human-induced forest fires and other illegal land-clearing practices may degrade mature forests into secondary forests Set up eco-  Meet the market demand for green  The economic benefits produced by the product consumption certification system may not outweigh the certification  Sustain jobs and income for local costs of implementing the sustainable system loggers and farmers practices  Encourage companies to produce  High monitoring and production costs to products in sustainable ways employ sustainable practices  Maintain the living space for local  Consumers may need to pay higher prices and native communities due to higher production costs  Increase consumers’ awareness of  Corrupt officials may allow companies to rainforest conservation obtain certification for their products illegally  The effectiveness of the system depends on consumers’ awareness Contributed by: Ip Kim Wai, Lam Chi Chung, Ho Sau Hung, Tsui Sau Ngan, Chan Ting Yu, Lam Choi Ying, Ng Wing Chun and Yu Wai Ching Senior Secondary Exploring Geography Third Edition (RMA 2024) © Oxford University Press (China) Ltd 2024 5