1

BID

FOREST VOCATION LAND POLICY

Política Tierra de Vocación Forestal y Otras Herramientas

para Facilitar Negocios Forestales Sostenibles

Buenos Aires - Argentina

21 del Octubre, 2009

Dr. José Rente Nascimento[jrenten@gmail.com]

- SIDE EVENT DEL CFM2009 -

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BID

Summary

1- FVL policy scope2- Problem - opportunities3- FVL definition4- FVL policy directive5- The vision6- Leverage and strategy7- FVLs in LAC countries8- Some concepts9- Advantages and disadvantages7- Simplicity, precision and cost effectiveness9- FVLs and climate change10- Implications from the of FVL policy implementation 11- Instruments for implementation

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BID

Forest Vocation Land Scope

2 types of forest policies:

1- Private goods and services

2- Environmental services (externalities)

Soil and water related externalities

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BID

Erosion

Loss of fertility and productivity

Runoff

Sedimentation, water body storage loss

Floods, water flow regimen, less water in dry seasons

Poor water quality

Land use allocation conflicts

Adverse effects on hydroelectricity, irrigation, potable water; water for industrial production

The problem - opportunity

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BID

Forest Vocation Land defined:

those lands that, due to their

physical site features such as

soil, topography, and the rainfall they receive,

should be kept under forest cover or

other sustainable land use

if

soil or water related negative externalities are to be avoided.

FVL classification does not depend on the type of cover the land actually has, nor does it depend on the requirements it may have for agriculture crop or forest production. Therefore, lands with no forest cover or use can still be classified as FVL if their physical features so indicate; while lands covered with forest may not be FVL.

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BID

TVF Forest policy directive:

Forest vocation lands should be

covered by forests or used with a sustainable land use

if

no soil and water related negative externalities are to reduce social welfare.

Non compliance would be penalized by the state through fines sufficient to stimulate

the desirable change.

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BID

Reforested FVL

The vision

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BID FVL with natural

regeneration

The vision

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BIDFVL & nFVL

with sustainable

covers

The Vision

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BID

Leverage point

Shotgun

approach

Sniper

approach

Traditional

Strategy

FVL

Strategy

FVL policy is simple, more precise, intuitive,

and cost effective because it identifies critical

areas at high risk of erosion and acts upon

them

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BID

Slope

Proxy for

FVL

17 countries

with 50% or

more of steep

slopes (at

least)

¿Which LAC countries have most FVLs?

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BID

Some concepts

Land cover: the observed (bio) physical cover on the earth's surface, regardless of its use by people.

Land use: Refers to arrangements, activities and inputs people undertake in a certain land cover type to produce, change or maintain it.

Uso Forestal: Any land use that involves a forest cover. It includes, for example, exotic or native species plantation forests, natural primary or secondary forests under management; agroforestry uses, arbustive fruit plantations, forest roads, firebreaks, recently harvested forests temporarily without forest cover and that will return to forest use, etc.

Sustainable land use: Land use of any type that does not generate soil or water related negative externalities. It can be a sustainable agriculture use, a road, a building, forest cover, forest use.

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BID

• Simple and intuitive

• Cost effective for the state to implement

• Flexible and most cost effective land covers available to land owners

• Simplifies the legal framework, reduces illegality, and reduces corruption

• Concentrates the action by the State on critical areas under high risk of erosion and runoff

• Creates incentives for degraded FVL restauration

• Identifies areas (nFVL) that can have a more flexible land use without major risk of erosion and runoff

• Reduces conflicts over land use

Advantages

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BID

• Policy specialized on solving soil and water externalities

• Can contribute but is not an effective means to address other externalities such as biodiversity or aesthetic

• Identifies nFVL covered with trees and whose conversion might be socially desirable

Disadvantages

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Simplicity and low cost: FVLs and nFVLs. Panama example

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Forest cover

Forest

cover

No forest

cover

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FVLs without forest cover: risk areas for erosion and runoff

Simplicity and low cost

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Acceptable uses and covers

Classification

FVL nFVL

Cover or use

Forest Acceptable Indifferent

NOT-Forest

Sustainable Acceptable Indifferent

NOT-sustainable

NOT-acceptable

Indifferent

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BID

Priority sites for inspection (sniper).FVLs without forest cover

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BID

Systems dynamics modeling. Causal relationships

If variable A increases (decreases), variable B increases (decreases) more than without A´s change.

The variables move in the same direction.

If variable A decreases (increases), variable B increases (decreases) more than without A´s change.

The variables move in the opposite directions.

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BID

FVLs and environmental services of forests

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TVFs y Servicios de cuerpos de agua,

inundaciones, y producción de la tierra

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FVLs and adaptation to

greater flood risks

Climate change

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BID

FVLs and the adaptation of

agriculture to rainfall changes

Climate change

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BID

Implications from the adoption of the FVL policy

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BID

FVL IDENTIFICATION &

COVER BASELINE

FVL COVER CHANGE

MONITORING

LEGAL FRAMEWORK

ADJUSMENT

ENVIRONMENTAL,

ECONOMIC, FISCAL,

FINANCIAL ANALYSES

(CURRENT POLICY x FVL

POLÍCY)

INSTITUTIONAL

ADJUSTMENT

DISEMINATION, SUPPORT

TO FLV OWNERS, AND

RESULTS PROMOTION

INSTRUMENTS

PRINCIPALS

FVL POLICY FOR FLOOD

RISK MANAGEMENT

PLANTATION FOREST

APTITUD ZONING

COMPLEMENTARY

Fuente: BID (2008)

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BID

TAKE HOME POINT

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BID

FVL Policy Directive

Forest Vocation Lands, due to their

physical site features such as

soil, topography, and the rainfall they receive,

should be kept under forest cover or

other sustainable land use

if

soil or water related negative externalities are to be avoided.