A SOURCEBOOK BIODIVERSITY MONITORING for REDD+ Lead Author: Julia E
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A SOURCEBOOK BIODIVERSITY MONITORING FOR REDD+ Lead Author: Julia E. Latham Editors: Acknowledgements: Julia E. Latham, Mandar Trivedi, Rajan Amin, and Laura D’Arcy The editors would like to thank the following for helpful discussions and comments on this book: Cécile Girardin and Toby Marthews of the University of Oxford, Lera Contributors: Miles and Rebecca Mant of the United Nations Environment Programme World The editors would like to thank the following for contributions to this sourcebook: Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), Christine B. Schmitt of The Barbara Lang, GIZ Sourcebook Corinna Brunschön, development University of Freiburg, Till Pistorius senior scientific consultant of UNIQUE Forestry Klemens Riha and Land Use GmbH and colleagues and reviewers of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH: Gesa Dodt, Isabel Renner, Ragna Maximilian Roth & GIZ Viet Nam country John, Reinhard Wolf, Sebastian Koch, Stefen Lackmann, Georg Buchholz, Florian Jens Kallabinski project information Werner and Mirjam de Koning. Karl P. Kirsch-Jung, GIZ Fiji country Wulf Killman & project information Cover image: Christine Fung © ZSL/PHKA/Jim O’Neill: Camera trapping in Berbak, Indonesia Bojan Auhagen & GIZ Philippines country Images courtesy of: Bernd-Markus Liss project information Jim O’Neill Uwe Rau Fabian Schmidt-Pramov Jan Kleine Büning, GIZ Brazil country Christiane Ehringhaus Florian Kopp Stefen Lackmann Ingrid Prem & project information Laura D’Arcy Julia E. Latham Jan Kleine Büning Marcio Uehara Prado Nashieli Garcia Alaniz ZSL GIZ Michael Schmidt & CONABIO Mexico country PHKA Nashieli Garcia Alaniz project information Fiji National REDD+ Programme Tom Evans & WCS Madagascar project Wildlife conservation Society (WCS) Christian Burren information National Trust for Nature Conservation (NTNC) Laura D’Arcy & ZSL Indonesia country project Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation (ICMBio) Mandar Trivedi information Andrew R. Marshall from the Udzungwa Forest Project; Collaboration for Joel Scriven FAO National Forest Integrated Research, Conservation and Learning (CIRCLE; University of York Monitoring Systems and Flamingo Land, UK) Ed Mitchard & University of Remote Sensing methods Layout Murray Collins Edinburgh Jim O’Neill Monika Böhm, ZSL Red List Index and Living Published by ZSL Louise McRae & Planet Index information In collaboration with GIZ. Robin Freeman London, September 2014 Suggested citation: Latham, J.E., Trivedi, M., Amin, R., D’Arcy, L. (2014) A Sourcebook of Biodiversity Monitoring for REDD+. Zoological Society of London, United Kingdom. This book was published by ZSL in collaboration with the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. Financial contributions were made with grants from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) by the programmes “International Forest Policy” and “Implementation of the CBD”, the “Forest Governance Programme” and the Vietnamese-German “Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park Region Project Quang Binh”. 1 A SOURCEBOOK BIODIVERSITY MONITORING FOR REDD+ 2014 3 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Biodiversity is complex. REDD+ is complex. Monitoring Indicators biodiversity as part of REDD+ could therefore add a complexity Decades of biodiversity monitoring experience have shown and cost to REDD+ that stymies rather than promotes progress. that it is vital to choose indicators that are based on an adaptive A large range of approaches is available to both project- and management approach to achieving efective biodiversity national-level REDD+ stakeholders in designing purposeful, conservation. Therefore, the ideal monitoring system would efective and realistic monitoring systems. To bring clarity to the include indicators of the Pressures impacting biodiversity, the options, this sourcebook adopts a simple four-stage monitoring State of biodiversity, the Benefits humans derive from biodiversity, framework: and the management Responses being adopted. Reflecting the ĐƋ !ò*%*# objectives: Why monitor biodiversity for REDD+? need to provide readers with practical and focused information, this sourcebook focuses on indicators of the state of biodiversity. ĐƋ !(!0%*# indicators: What to monitor for REDD+? ĐƋ Implementation of monitoring: How to monitor for REDD+? Implementation Monitoring methods can be broadly split into field-based and ĐƋ Informing relevant audiences: Sharing and using the remote sensing methods. Each method has its strengths and information generated weaknesses, but the primary selection criterion is how realistic Across this framework, the key considerations for REDD+ can they are given limited resources. A phased approach is likely to be summarised under three criteria for meaningful monitoring: be needed in many situations, starting with existing monitoring ĐƋ Purposeful: having clearly stated goals and objectives; systems and available databases and gradually introducing more detailed methods when possible. Also, a streamlined ĐƋ Efective: being able to attribute changes in biodiversity to approach linking existing REDD+ carbon monitoring to scalable its causes; biodiversity monitoring tools such as remote sensing and camera ĐƋ Realistic: being able to achieve this given real-world resource trapping is likely to be cost-efective and realistic. constraints. Informing Objectives Procedures for informing will vary depending on the monitoring Defining the monitoring objective is the first critical step in objective. However standardised processes for information developing a purposeful monitoring system. REDD+ presents collection and sharing are emphasised to enable information both opportunities and risks for biodiversity, with the former to be scaled up, and used to infer wider trends in biodiversity at recognised by the CBD and the latter by the UNFCCC, in national to international levels. its Cancún Safeguards. Biodiversity information generated through monitoring has the potential to address not only Framework scenarios Cancún Safeguards and CBD Targets, but also funding To conclude, five real-world examples of both national, sub- agencies’ safeguards and requirements, and project standards. national and project scale biodiversity monitoring initiatives Thus, monitoring biodiversity for REDD+ can provide a link across the globe are used to illustrate the sourcebook between Conventions, helping to achieve international climate framework. These scenarios emphasise the range of approaches and biodiversity targets more cost- efectively. In addition, and methods used when monitoring biodiversity for natural biodiversity monitoring can be important for compliance with resource management and REDD+. Despite these varied the safeguards and standards required by donor agencies and approaches, each project consistently identifies the advantages investors in REDD+. of stakeholder-engagement and incorporation of existing knowledge in their design, highlighting their importance for meaningful monitoring for REDD+. 4 A Sourcebook Biodiversity Monitoring for REDD+ © GIZ 5 THE IMPORTANCE OF FORESTS: BIODIVERSITY, CARBON AND REDD+ Forests are among the most biodiverse terrestrial ecosystems to Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest on Earth, home to complex communities of plants, animals Degradation (REDD+) in developing countries; and the and microorganisms. Tropical forests, in particular, harbour role of conservation, sustainable management of forests and over half of global terrestrial biodiversity[1,2] and also contain enhancement of forest carbon stocks in developing countries. the majority of the world’s biodiversity hotspots[3]. This REDD+ provides developing countries with an economic biodiversity underpins the important ecosystem services that incentive to change current land use practices by recognising forests provide, such as carbon sequestration and watershed the value of forest carbon – making tropical forests ‘worth more protection[4,5]. Compared with monoculture plantations or alive than dead’[11]. heavily modified natural forests, biodiverse forests have a REDD+ covers five main activities: greater capacity to withstand external pressures and recover (1) reducing emissions from deforestation, from disturbances, thereby maintaining ecosystem services (2) reducing emissions from forest degradation, [5] such as carbon storage . (3) conservation of forest carbon stocks, Since many forest ecosystem services are ‘public goods’, (4) sustainable management of forests and they tend to be unrecognised and undervalued and the (5) enhancement of forest carbon stocks[12]. private profits obtained from their conversion to alternative These REDD+ activities will be comprised of a set of policy land uses, such as agriculture, have encouraged large-scale and management responses aimed at conserving/restoring/ [6] deforestation . Deforestation is one of the greatest threats managing forests in developing countries. Although REDD+ [4,7] to global biodiversity and despite a decline in recent years, is focused on carbon, the fact that forests, in particular tropical [8] globally the rate of deforestation remains alarmingly high . forests, are highly biodiverse means that REDD+ may present Land use change, mostly deforestation, contributes a significant opportunity for synergies in tackling two of the approximately 10% of anthropogenic greenhouse gas greatest challenges facing humanity: climate change and emissions (GHGs)[9]. Given this, and the costs of losing biodiversity loss[13–16]. forests[6,10], the Parties