This report covers the contractual requirement of ASB to the Global Environment Facility (GEF) to meet Goal 2 â??Assessment of the impact on biodiversiry of d4fferenr land usesâ? as outlined in the aims and objectives of Phase 112. It also meets the broader goals of the ASB consortium to explore the dynamic linkages among biodiversity, carbon sequestration and productivity for human needs. The approach has been to establish a series of ecoregional biophysicai baselines to first identify and then to evaluate, via intensive field studies, some of the key predictive relationships among plant and animal species and functional types and the physical environment. The size of this task required that it be tackled at two levels: first, to identify broad distributional patterns of key plant groups along gradients of land use at the ecoregiona) scale, as these are usually closely associated with both plant and animal performance overall; and second, to explore finer scale patterns of both plant and animal performance along an intensive land-use gradient within a specified ecoregion. The assumption has been that the information derived from the intensive study could reveal indicators of biodiversity response to land use that could be extrapolated and subsequently tested within the broader spatial ecoregional framework. Once identified, such indicators would be examined to assess their potential use by managers and planners in ongoing assessment and monitoring of biodiversity and as an aid to decision support for adaptive management. While this report deals mainly with above-ground biodiversity according to the TOR of the GEF contract, close attention has been given as well to below-ground elements in the intensive study in order to better understand the dynamic between biodiversity and land use. Funding for additional survey work in Cameroon and Indonesia was supplied by DANIDA and more recent, ongoing work exploring linkages between biodiversity and profitability in Thailand and Indonesia has been funded by ACIAR | A.N Gillison, 'Alternatives to slash-and burn: above ground biodiversity assessment working group summary report 1996-1999 - impact of different land uses on biodiversity, annex i-v', p.160, 2000

The study on land policies, land management and land degradation in the north western Himalayan region of India is part of an overall effort by ICIMOD to assess the impact of land policies on land management and land degradation in the Hindu Kush-Himalayan region. The study geographically covers states of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, and hilly regions of Uttar Pradesh. The study has touched upon a variety of research issues related to land policy, management, and state of degradation. These include land and land-related policies evolved and implemented by the state governments and the Federal government. The policy area scope of the study included all land policies pertaining to environment, forests, agricultural land use, land reforms, common property land management, biodiversity, wildlife, and agricultural policies. Gaps between policies and ground realities have been analysed and highlighted in appropriate areas. The study also looked at processes and evolution of various land policies in this region and interesting facts have come to light in different states. The study has indicated that stakeholders perceptions about sustainable land use may differ widely much from the land-use plans of governments. Similarly, the study also highlights the differences in land-use approaches among various agencies and governments. Consequently, policies and land-use planning for water, energy, demography, industrial development, and tourism prepared by different departments/ agencies show marked differences. The diversity of policies and land-use approaches has led to the evolution of a mosaic of land degradation problems and contributing factors.

Damar agroforest or repong damar in Krui, West Coast of Lampung Province, Sumatra, Indonesia, is a forest-like land use system that was developed by small holders to meet multidimensional objectives. From conservation point of view, damar agroforest system affords environmental benefit. The forest-like structure of agroforest allows the conservation of large part of natural forest biodiversity. From economic perspective, this land use system provides a wide range of source of income to farmers, their neighborhood and the actors along damar trading chain. One of the interesting parts of the damar story, on which this study is emphasized, lies on the way of farmers to initiate and develop this land use that need 20 - 25 years. Two research questions can be addressed in this assessment therefore : is repong damar establishment economically and financially profitable and what is the return to land and labor?

Indicators of land quality (LQIs) are being developed as a means to better coordinate actions on land related issues, such as land degradation. Economic and social indicators are already in regular use to support decision making at global, national and sub-national levels and in some cases for air and water quality, but few such indicators are available to assess, monitor and evaluate changes in the quality of land resources. Land refers not just to soil but to the combined resources of terrain, water, soil and biotic resources that provide the basis for land use. Land quality refers to the condition of land relative to the requirements of land use, including agricultural production, forestry, conservation, and environmental management. The LQI program addresses the dual objectives of environmental monitoring as well as sector performance monitoring for managed ecosystems (agriculture, forestry conservation and environmental management). The primary research issue in the LQI program is the development of indicators that identify and characterize the impact(s) of human interventions on the landscape for the major agroecological zones of tropical, sub-tropical and temperate environments. Core LQIs identified for immediate development are: nutrient balance, yield gap, land use intensity and diversity, and land cover; LQIs requiring longer term research include: soil quality, land degradation, and agro-biodiversity; LQIs being developed by other authoritative groups include: water quality, forestland quality, rangeland quality and land contamination/pollution.

This is also part of the biannual newsletter by the Research Programme on Sustainable Use of Dryland Biodiversity (RPSUD). It discusses plant resources of Wajir district, Kenya. It gives local and botanical names, and uses of the plants. It also gives results of a study of medicinal plants of Makueni, Kenya, as well as a study into transforming degraded land into land with a reasonable productivity where people can find a decent livelihood.

A dynamic model of forest land use in Ghana is developed and used to derive demand equations for optimal timber harvesting, cocoa land and maize land that are a function of the model’s price parameters. An equation is also developed to estimate the biodiversity level in Ghana. The hypothesis that maize land expansion is a proximate cause of forest loss in either the pre or post-adjustment period is not supported by empirical results. Cocoa land expansion and timber expansion are significant factors, but their impacts on forest loss are reduced in the post-adjustment period. This infers that the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) has significantly reduced the impacts of cocoa land expansion and, less significantly, timber extraction on forest loss. In terms of price impacts on forest loss, relative timber input-output prices have the greatest impact on forest loss in both the pre and post-adjustment periods; adjustment policies have had little impact on the influence of timber prices on forest loss. The SAP, however, has affected the influence of cocoa and insecticide prices. Rising cocoa prices could induce farmers to convert forest land. Increasing the price of insecticides beyond a certain limit could also lead to increased rates of forest loss as farmers expand production by converting forest. The species-index estimates indicate that the rate of biodiversity loss has reduced in the post-adjustment period. It can be inferred that policies relating to prices and other incentives have reduced the rate of cocoa and maize land expansion and improved upon timber extraction.

In Germany and other countries of Central Europe, biodiversity in the rural countryside is best conserved by applying traditional land-use methods, such as low input sheep and cattle grazing. These are very uneconomical according to conventional accounting and can only be carried out at present by benefitting heavily from the subsidy schemes of the CAP. Trade liberalisation demands the abolition of these schemes in the long run. This would mean that land-use systems amenable to nature conservation, together with more modern cropping and cattle raising in large areas of the country, would have no chance of surviving. This could be avoided in the future if land users were to be remunerated directly for their ecological services which would appear to be fully compatible with fair trade. So trade liberalisation may even catalyse the shift from an unwise policy relying on subsidies to a scheme implying explicitly that only services rendered to society are remunerated.

R.A Zomer, 'Land cover change along tropical riparian corridors within the Makalu-Barun conservation area', Nepal Mountain Research and Development, vol. 21(2), pp.175-183, 2000 | Low elevation riparian forests found within the Middle Hills of Nepal are both essential biological habitats and important resources for local subsistence farmers. Forming networks of habitat patches within the primarily agricultural matrix of the Middle Hills, these forests are repositories of a rich biological diversity. Dynamics of forest change along riparian corridors were investigated within the newly established Makalu Barun National Park and Conservation Area (MBCA) of eastern Nepal, based on a comparison of remote sensing data over a 20-year interval. Multispectral analysis and a supervised classification of Landsat TM (1992) and Landsat MSS (1972) data estimate approximately 7000 ha of low elevation riparian forests within the study area. Change detection analysis estimates based on the respective supervised classifications reveal little significant change in extent of the tropical and subtropical zone riparian forests. More impact was evident toward the upper elevational limits of the study area. A 4% (approximately 300 ha) loss of cover within areas previously designated as forest is estimated. For all areas in the study area, a net loss of forest of 11% is estimated. Land use is shown to be highly dynamic, with significant internal trading between land use classes. The important role of riparian corridors in biodiversity conservation within the Middle Hills of east Nepal is discussed. Further research on biodiversity within these patches and a specific recognition of the value of remnant riparian forests within the landscape and rural economy are required if conservation goals for the eastern Nepal Himalaya are to be met

Vineyards are expanding rapidly in California's coastal counties due to a booming wine market. This change in land use has led to public debate over natural habitat removal, overproduction of wine grapes, loss of agricultural diversity, and changing scenery. Using a geographic information system (GIS) to map and analyze vineyard expansion in Sonoma County, approximately 11,600 acres of new vineyards were identified from 1990 through 1997. The total acreage was calculated to be at least 48,000 acres in 1997, 20% more than reported by county agricultural officials. Compared to vineyards established before 1990, a higher percentage of vineyards planted between 1990 and 1997 were located on hillsides that supported oak woodlands. Oak woodlands support a majority of the region's biodiversity, provide ecosystem goods and services, and have aesthetic value. This research was designed to document the effects of recent vineyard expansion on Sonoma County's hardwood rangelands and to provide tools for informed discussion and decision-making by land-use planners, farmers, residents and environmentalists.

Vineyards are expanding rapidly in California's coastal counties due to a booming wine market. This change in land use has led to public debate over natural habitat removal, overproduction of wine grapes, loss of agricultural diversity, and changing scenery. Using a geographic information system (GIS) to map and analyze vineyard expansion in Sonoma County, approximately 11,600 acres of new vineyards were identified from 1990 through 1997. The total acreage was calculated to be at least 48,000 acres in 1997, 20% more than reported by county agricultural officials. Compared to vineyards established before 1990, a higher percentage of vineyards planted between 1990 and 1997 were located on hillsides that supported oak woodlands. Oak woodlands support a majority of the region's biodiversity, provide ecosystem goods and services, and have aesthetic value. This research was designed to document the effects of recent vineyard expansion on Sonoma County's hardwood rangelands and to provide tools for informed discussion and decision-making by land-use planners, farmers, residents and environmentalists.