The Balance between Biodiversity Conservation and Sustainable Use of Tropical Rain Forests INTRODUCTION Erik M. Lammerts van Bueren The seminar ‘The balance between biodiversity conservation and sustainable use of tropical rain forests’ is organised to take stock and present the result of more than 10 years research and activities within the MOFEC-Tropenbos-Kalimantan Programme. Over the years the programme has expanded and slightly changed its focus. In the late eighties after the devastating forest fires the primary focus of the programme was on forest rehabilitation. Regeneration of species of the Dypterocarpaceae family was a major problem to be solved. With success techniques and methods were developed to use more effectively natural regeneration and to produce vegetative seedlings. To contribute to the well-being of the local population and to offer them alternatives for encroachment in the forest, agroforestry systems were developed. Gradually the programme embarked on the development of sustainable forest management systems for timber exploitation in primary and disturbed natural forests. Almost simultaneously the programme became more involved in aspects of nature conservation as a result of the orang utan reintroduction programme and studies of biodiversity. Together with our Indonesian partners we are proud to know that the programme has not only produced valuable scientific and technical results, but also has managed to train numerous scientists, forest managers, forest technicians and rangers through PhD, MSc education and practical careers at the Wanariset. We hope the organisation of the seminar has stimulated researchers to complete or complement their publications with documents and presentations. We expect the seminar itself to be instrumental in integrating the results into additional meaningful information and guidelines for sustainable forest management. Finally we expect the seminar will provide some directions as to the future development of the MOFEC-Tropenbos-Kalimantan Programme. 3 The Tropenbos Foundation, Wageningen, the Netherlands 4 The Balance between Biodiversity Conservation and Sustainable Use of Tropical Rain Forests INTRODUCTION TO THE NWO PRIORITY PROGRAMME BIODIVERSITY IN DISTURBED ECOSYSTEMS The general goal of the priority programme ‘Biodiversity in disturbed ecosystems’ is to stimulate research that: · makes us understand the changes in species and genetic diversity as a function of ecosystem disturbance and · promote the knowledge how (disturbed) ecosystems function. The programme has the aim to formulate specific recommendations for natural conservancy and the restoration and sustainable use of particular disturbed ecosystems. The program has three themes: 1. comparative research on species distribution at different trophic levels in pioneer communities and disturbed habitats 2. organisation, distribution and significance of genetic variation and demographic structure in relation to chances of survival of (key) species 3. identification of key species and mutual interactions, and the relationship between the level of biodiversity and the functioning and stability of ecosystems The emphasis will be laid on the integrative aspect and the translation to policy and management advice. The programme runs since 1994 and will continue till 2004, with a total budget of 8.7 million guilders. The program is multidisciplinary and includes field and laboratory work as well as theoretical and empirical research. The results of the projects should contain general conclusions. Most of the research in the field is done in tropical lowland forests. The final location depends on the availability of specific detailed knowledge and expertise. There is a strong preference to participate in integrated programmes. Projects are located near or at sites hosted by Tropenbos in Kalimantan, Indonesia (S.E. Asia), Cameroon (Africa) and Guyana (Latin America). A number of projects (Arphola butterflies, Myccorhizae fungi, terrestrial flatworms and Mallotus genera) studies the biodiversity of the specific groups in both undisturbed and disturbed ecosystems (such as the post-fire forests in Kalimantan, 1998). The effects of disturbance can only be understood if knowledge on the biodiversity on all trophic levels of an ecosystem is available, from primary producers up till top predators. Other research projects are focussed in the biodiversity, genetic population structure and population dynamics of pioneer species, who dominate the early succession stages of a forest. Pipturus (Urticaceae) was selected as a model taxon. An example of the policy oriented research is the project in which it is studies till what level forest biodiversity can be maintained in combination with Hevea (rubber) production. In this research the intensity of plantation management (from primary forests to mono-culture) are compares with production and biodiversity levels. A number of projects focuses on population genetics and evolutionary biological processes as part re-colonisation and regeneration and the consequences of population fragmentation. These research projects take place in Indonesia (Krakatau), Africa and Latin America with (fig)trees, fig wasps, the African buffalo and Myccorhizal fungi as main research topic Finally there are some integrative studies that focus on the integration of the output of the different research projects into models of the effects of disturbance on the biodiversity in an 5 The Tropenbos Foundation, Wageningen, the Netherlands ecosystem. The models integrate not only the results obtained by the research projects of the programme but also results from affiliated research projects by ICRAF and Tropenbos. The models will be tested in the field in other projects on Kalimantan from research partners (Tropenbos, ICRAF). The final results might also feasible for the Dutch environment. A theoretical research project will focus on the explanation and definition of the different concepts (like ecosystem, biodiversity, key species) as used in the programme. At the same time it will pay attention to the relation between the results of the research projects (output) and the practical implementation (uptake). Through a newsletter and annual seminars both the researchers within the programme as outside the programme are updated on the most recent progress in the programme. For an overview of the projects and additional information please refer to the Internet site at: http://www.nwo.nl/english/alw/programmes/disturbedbiodiversity 6 The Balance between Biodiversity Conservation and Sustainable Use of Tropical Rain Forests THE MOFEC-TROPENBOS PROJECT AND INTERNATIONAL PRIORITIES IN BIODIVERSITY RESEARCH Pieter Baas SUMMARY The ongoing biodiversity research of the MOFEC-Tropenbos-Kalimantan project is discussed in the framework of international programmes and initiatives such as Diversitas/Systematics Agenda 2000-International, the Global Taxonomy Initiative and the Global Biodiversity Information Facility. It is argued that specimen-based biodiversity information systems should now be established according to the CONABIO model to build on the successful botanical exploration of the past 10 years, and to strengthen the supra-regional role of the Wanariset Herbarium in biodiversity and forestry research programmes and in environmental impact assessments throughout Kalimantan. INTRODUCTION Sustainable use and conservation of the biodiverse resources of tropical forests are among the core targets of the MOFEC-Tropenbos project in East Kalimantan. The biodiversity subprogramme has been active from the late eighties and has resulted in a number of major publications (Keßler and Sidiyasa, 1994; 1999, Keßler et al., 1992; Sidiyasa, 1998; Sidiyasa et al., 1999; Bodegom et al., 1999; van Valkenburg, 1997; 1999). The most valuable, and hopefully most durable result of the plant diversity exploration and research is without doubt the Wanariset Herbarium, a well-curated reference collection of now well over 12,000 specimens containing a wealth of information on the occurrence, distribution and ecology of plant species of the lowland Dipterocarp rainforest and its secondary forest derivatives (Sidyasa et al., 1999). In this paper I will briefly explore how the MOFEC-Tropenbos biodiversity programme and the Tropenbos Biodiversity Research Priorities in general (Lammerts van Bueren and Duivenvoorden, 1996) relates to international initiatives and priorities, and how it helps to underpin the aims of the Convention of Biological Diversity (CBD), and the Indonesian Biodiversity Action Plan derived from it. GLOBAL INITIATIVES AND PRIORITIES The CBD aims at conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity, and calls for equitable sharing of the benefits of biological resources. It calls for research on, i.a.: · identification and monitoring of components of biological diversity that are important for conservation and sustainable use; · programmes for scientific and technical education and training on identification for the benefit of conservation and sustainable use; 7 The Tropenbos Foundation, Wageningen, the Netherlands · appropriate environmental impact assessments of all human interference that is likely to have significant adverse effects on biological diversity. From the early days, the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the CBD recognised the so-called taxonomic impediment: insufficient knowledge of species diversity, caused by locally high species numbers and a shortage of taxonomic expertise, that hampers biodiversity analyses