Fra 2000 a Concept and Strategy for Ecological Zoning for the Global Forest Resources Assessment 2000

Forestry Department Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

FRA 2000 A CONCEPT AND STRATEGY FOR ECOLOGICAL ZONING FOR THE GLOBAL FOREST RESOURCES ASSESSMENT 2000

INTERIM REPORT

Rome, 2 July 1999

Forest Resources Assessment Programme Working Paper 20 Rome 1999 The Forest Resources Assessment Programme

Forests are crucial for the well-being of humanity. They provide foundations for life on earth through ecological functions, by regulating the climate and water resources, and by serving as habitats for plants and animals. Forests also furnish a wide range of essential goods such as wood, food, fodder and medicines, in addition to opportunities for recreation, spiritual renewal and other services. Today, forests are under pressure from expanding human populations, which frequently leads to the conversion or degradation of forests into unsustainable forms of land use. When forests are lost or severely degraded, their capacity to function as regulators of the environment is also lost, increasing flood and erosion hazards, reducing soil fertility, and contributing to the loss of plant and animal life. As a result, the sustainable provision of goods and services from forests is jeopardized. FAO, at the request of the member nations and the world community, regularly monitors the world’s forests through the Forest Resources Assessment Programme. The next report, the Global Forest Resources Assessment 2000 (FRA 2000), will review the forest situation by the end of the millennium. FRA 2000 will include country-level information based on existing forest inventory data, regional investigations of land-cover change processes, and a number of global studies focusing on the interaction between people and forests. The FRA 2000 report will be made public and distributed on the world wide web in the year 2000. The Forest Resources Assessment Programme is organized under the Forest Resources Division (FOR) at FAO headquarters in Rome. Contact persons are:

Robert Davis FRA Programme Coordinator [email protected]

Peter Holmgren FRA Project Director [email protected] or use the e-mail address: [email protected]

DISCLAIMER

The Forest Resources Assessment (FRA) Working Paper Series is designed to reflect the activities and progress of the FRA Programme of FAO. Working Papers are not authoritative information sources – they do not reflect the official position of FAO and should not be used for official purposes. Please refer to the FAO forestry website (www.fao.org/fo) for access to official information.

The FRA Working Paper Series provides an important forum for the rapid release of preliminary FRA 2000 findings needed for validation and to facilitate the final development of an official quality-controlled FRA 2000 information set. Should users find any errors in the documents or have comments for improving their quality they should contact either Robert Davis or Peter Holmgren at [email protected]. Table of Contents

1 INTRODUCTION...... 3

1.1 ABSTRACT ...... 3 1.2 BACKGROUND...... 3 2 FRA 2000 REQUIREMENTS...... 5

3 CONCEPT AND STRATEGY...... 6

3.1 APPROACH AND PRINCIPLES OF THE FAO ECOLOGICAL ZONING...... 6 3.2 KÖPPEN CLIMATIC GROUPS AND TYPES AS THE BASIS FOR A FAO GLOBAL...... 7 ECOLOGICAL ZONE SYSTEM ...... 7 3.3 REGIONAL IMPLEMENTATION OF THE FAO GLOBAL ECOLOGICAL ZONE SYSTEM ...... 11 3.3.1 Conceptual and Thematic Issues...... 11 3.3.2 Map production and Technical Issues ...... 12 3.3.3 Potential Production Problems...... 12 4 CONCLUSIONS...... 13

REFERENCES...... 14

ANNEX A: THE CANADA USA CASE STUDY – IMPLEMENTATION OF THE FAO GLOBAL ECOFLORISTIC ZONE MAPPING CONCEPT...... 15

ANNEX B. REVIEW OF EXISTING GLOBAL ECOLOGICAL ZONING SYSTEMS...... 23

Paper drafted by: Henk Simons, Karn Deo Singh, Zhiliang Zhu, Robert Davis, Susan Iremonger Editorial production: Patrizia Pugliese

1 Abbreviations

BEF Biomass Expansion Factor

BV Biomass of inventoried volume

CATIE Centro Agronómico Tropical de Investigación y Enseñanza

Cirad Centre de coopération internationale en recherche agronomique pour le développement

EDC Eros Data Centre

FAO Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations

FORIS Forest Resources Information System

FRA Forest Resources Assessment

GIS Geographic Information System

SNU Sub National Unit(s)

UN-ECE United Nations Economic Commission for Europe

VOB Volume Over Bark

WD Wood Density

WCMC World Conservation Monitoring Centre

2 1 Introduction

1.1 Abstract

A global ecological zoning (EZ) map is needed for carrying out the “Global Forest Resources Assessment 2000” (FRA 2000) presently being facilitated by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization. The underlying strategy for FRA’s ecological zoning closely reflects both the thematic and technical requirements of the map, and the many operational constraints for implementation. Characteristics and components of the FAO EZ classification include the use of the Köppen system (1931) as a basis for the delineation of zones. Details of the Köppen system, along with comparisons to other global-level ecological schemes demonstrate the rationale behind the FRA approach (Table 1). The mapping work will be carried out principally using regional or national “potential vegetation” maps to define boundaries of ecological zones at the global level. Although using a variety of map inputs inevitably provokes methodological problems such as edge matching across adjacent maps, a protocol for correcting such problems was successfully developed and implemented during a pilot study. The results of the North America Pilot Study illustrate the overall concept, methods, and utility of the map in an operational context (Annex A).

1.2 Background

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization regularly reports on the world’s forest resources through the Forest Resources Assessment Programme (FRA), which is now actively facilitating the execution of the Global Forest Resources Assessment 2000 (FRA 2000)1. Along with the core information on the state and changes in forests, FRA 2000 will report on various ecological aspects of forests. In doing so, the assessment will provide new information on forests by ecological zones and contribute to understanding the implications of forest change on biological diversity, sustainable forest management, protection and carbon-cycling processes.

While the FRA 2000 EZ map is unique in its global character, a similar map was developed by FAO in 1990 for the ecological zoning of the tropics. The map was used to report forest state and change statistics by ecological zone and for stratification in deforestation modelling and the remote sensing survey. The EZ work for FRA 2000 is seen as a logical continuation and expansion of the tropical ecological zoning done for the previous assessment. Because of the limited geographic coverage and increased resolution, FRA 1990 was able to delineate detailed ecofloristic zones2, as well as at the more

1 Experts in forest resources from member countries, international and national organisations, NGO’s and individuals contributed to planning FRA 2000. During 1996, the international forestry community provided important recommendations to the planning of FRA 2000 through a number of meetings, culminating with the "Expert Consultation on Global Forest Resources Assessment 2000" held in Kotka, Finland during June 1996. This meeting, referred to as Kotka III, considered the reporting of forest information by ecological zones as a high priority and advised FAO to develop the ecological zoning map required for the task. Following Kotka III, in 1997, the Fourth Session of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Forests (IPF IV) expressed strong support for FRA 2000, the Kotka III recommendations and FAO’s role as facilitator for the execution of FRA 2000. In March 1997, FAO’s Committee on Forestry (COFO 1997) and FAO’s member countries endorsed Forest Resources Assessment as one of FAO Forestry’s highest priorities. 2 The term ecofloristic zone utilised by the FRA 1990 map identifies the most detailed ecological units where floristic composition played a major role in their identification and delineation. In contrast, the term ecological zone denotes the more generalised units for the 1990 map correlating well with climatic and physiography. As the global zoning is conducted at a more generalized level, the term ecological zone has been retained to describe the mapping units contained within the FRA 2000 global ecological map.

3 general ecological zones applicable at regional and global levels. To ensure compatibility of the 1990 EZ map with the 2000 global exercise, FAO in co-operation with the Laboratoire d’Ecologie Terrestre (LET) in France, will update the tropical ecological zones, producing a fully compatible ecological zoning map for the tropics based on the 2000 criteria. At the same time, FAO and LET will revise the more detailed ecofloristic zones for the tropics using new maps and information available since 1990.

4 2 FRA 2000 requirements

Many environmental problems are no longer national or regional in character and must be addressed in a global context. Aggregating information on forest resources by ecological zones organises reporting according to the natural characteristics of the vegetation, rather than along national boundaries, which frequently cut across natural ecosystems. Through reporting by ecological zones, valuable insight is obtained regarding characteristics of forest resources, which may serve to identify and resolve issues of importance to many countries, entire regions or even the planet as a whole.

To achieve meaningful reporting, classes in a global ecological framework must identify and accurately group broad yet relatively homogenous natural formations of forest vegetation. The global classification cannot be overly detailed, which would likely confuse reporting by fragmenting major global ecosystems, and risk creating an incomprehensible number of classes. Conversely, an overly simplistic scheme could degrade the utility of the map by representing too few classes of forests, and aggregating too wide a variety of forests within the same zone.

While most countries have nationally appropriate means of compiling information according to ecologically meaningful units, the practical tools needed to aggregate and compile forest information by these units at the global level do not presently exist. This is due in part to the fact that, in the past few applications have required analysis and reporting by ecological zones at the global scale. However, global applications of ecological zoning are expected to gain prominence as a result of increases in information needs relating to climate change (Kyoto Protocol) and biodiversity conservation, as well as for FAO’s global assessments.

According to the Kotka III meeting, FRA 2000 was asked to deliver specific information to the world community by ecological zones at the global level, including:

· Area of forest and other wooded lands (year 2000) · Change in forest and other wooded lands (1990 – 2000) · Number, area and status of protected areas · Forest volume and biomass · Forest fires

In order to fulfil the information requirements for FRA 2000, a spatial ecological zoning database, which is geographically registered and sufficiently reliable at the global scale, is needed. Such a database should also be the product of an international effort carried out under FAO’s guidance, due to the need for broad acceptance of the approach by many countries.

5 3 Concept and strategy

3.1 Approach and principles of the FAO Ecological Zoning

The underlying strategy for FRA’s ecological zoning reflects both the thematic and technical needs of the map as well as the many operational constraints expected in its development. In terms of ecosystem principles, the map requirements are such that zones or classes are defined and mapped using a holistic approach. That is, both biotic and abiotic components of ecosystems are considered in the zoning scheme. Beyond the thematic content and zoning, practical aspects of digital cartographic production, such as data availability, currency, scale and associated reliability of the map inputs were taken into account.

To identify specific alternatives and constraints in the development of a global EZ map appropriate for FRA2000 purposes, FAO conducted two preliminary studies (Zhu, 1997 and Preto, 1998). Findings from these studies, experience in the development of the tropical EZ map for FRA 1990, and recommendations from other parties consulted in the process indicated that the development of an entirely new global ecological zoning map by FAO could not be completed by the year 2000, due to time constraints and the large amount of scientific, organisational and financial resources required. With this in mind, follow-up investigation focused on identifying an existing scheme that might be used or adapted to FAO’s needs.

Due to the enormity of conducting the work on a global scale, the most appropriate classification scheme had to meet FAO’s thematic requirements, be practical to construct with available resource and meet the scrutiny of a diverse group of users from all parts of the world. A survey of existing schemes revealed several possibilities. Each of the existing schemes were developed for specific purposes according to various environmental criteria, with macroclimate as an element being used by most (Preto 1998 and WCMC 1992). This is logical, as the macroclimate, that is temperature and precipitation, correlates well with the potential vegetation associated with a particular locale. In this respect, macroclimate was considered a logical basis for the FRA ecological zoning as well.

For the choice of climatic parameters to be used in the FRA 2000 map a number of global systems were surveyed including Köppen modified by Trewartha (Köppen, 1931, Trewartha, 1968), Thorntwaite (1933), and Holdridge (1947). Out of these possibilities, initial work indicated Köppen was a good candidate for the FRA 2000 work due to the number of classes that corresponded well to FRA 2000 needs. Moreover, further study showed that while Köppen is based on climate there is a demonstrated good correspondence between its subzones or climatic types and the natural climax vegetation types and soils within them (Bailey 1996) 3. These factors were seen as major advantages in favor of using the Köppen system for the backbone of the FRA 2000 zoning.

One good precedent for using Köppen in global ecological zoning was carried out by Robert Bailey, who used the Köppen system in toto for development of his ecoregion scheme for North America and the rest of the world (1989, 1995, 1998). He noted that although ecological zones can be mapped by reference to a single feature (such as climate), they must always be checked to ensure that the boundaries have ecological significance. At the same time, a climatic map showing such key features as temperature and precipitation is not necessarily an ecological map until the boundaries are shown to correspond to significant biological boundaries. Likewise maps of landform types (derived from

3 This is largely because Köppen derived his climate classes from observations on the distribution of natural vegetation types on various continents (Köppen 1931).

6 digital elevation data) are not necessary ecological maps until it has been shown that the types co- vary with other components of the ecosystem, such as vegetation (Bailey, personal communication 1998).

To further the development of the work, FAO in cooperation with EDC and WCMC developed a prototype zoning scheme for FRA 2000 based on Köppen. The zoning was made hierarchical using Köppen’s climatic groups and - types as FAO Ecological zone levels 1 and 2 (Table 1). A third level was also tested during the pilot project and represents the differentiation within the first two levels according to landform. Mountains with altitudinal zonation were distinguished from lowland plains. Further expansion of the scheme is also possible for regional and local purposes. However, given the inherit heterogeneity of vegetation compositions beyond the third level, successive levels are excluded from the global classification.

In practical terms, delineation of EZ level 2 adapting Köppen’s climatic types is proposed as the working level for definition and mapping of Global classes. This will be accomplished by using both macroclimatic data 4 and existing climax or potential vegetation maps. Use of vegetation maps will assure a more precise delineation of the ecological zones5. Using generalised climate maps alone might result in a final product where the zones actually mapped could probably correspond poorly to boundaries of homogenous vegetation transitions.

FAO considers the development of a global, geographically registered, spatial database roughly following Köppen’s climatic types as sufficient, and perhaps the best practical alternative for FRA 2000 reporting by ecological zones at the global level. At the same time, we acknowledge this as a first step toward the development of a more detailed ecological zoning map that must include elevation as a parameter (and perhaps others), due to the irregular distribution of landforms within Köppen’s broad climatic zones. During the course of the development of the EZ map, FAO will consult with the world’s experts on how to incorporate elevation into the Köppen framework, along with other factors such as floristic content. Beyond FRA 2000, FAO will continue the work on the global ecological zoning to provide increased detail in future efforts.

3.2 Köppen Climatic Groups and Types as the Basis for a FAO Global Ecological Zone System

FAO’s global ecological zoning relies on a combination of climate and vegetation. The following summarizes the details and principles of the system:

4 Among the existing climate classification systems, the one by Köppen is found to be the least demanding on data, which is primarily based on precipitation and temperature ¾ an important consideration from the production standpoint and may account for its wide use. As meteorological stations around the world routinely collect values for these attributes and the information is generally available in existing maps, this was seen as an additional advantage from the perspective of producing the map and database, which would require a relatively consistent global distribution of input data. Other global climate classification systems, for example, Thornwaite (1931) and Holdridge (1966), call for evapo-transpiration data, which is not uniformly available at the global level.

5 The FAO ecological zone maps developed during Forest Resources Assessment 1990 for the tropics used a similar approach. A hierarchal system was adopted, using climatic and physiographic factors for identifying the regional classes or ecological zones. These zones were defined by aggregation of more detailed ecofloristic zones (EFZ). The classification criteria for EFZ included physiognomy, phenology, floristics and vegetation dynamics of vegetation (FAO, 1989). The dominant or characteristic species of the natural flora were used as indicators. Boundaries of ecofloristc zones were delineated with the help of existing potential, mostly national, vegetation maps, and brought to a common classification and scale. Class boundaries were delineated using standardised vegetation maps of the tropical regions.

7 · The Köppen climatic groups and climatic types will be adopted as the first two levels of a hierarchical FAO global ecological zone classification system (Table 1, Figure 1). At the broadest level, five domains are distinguished based on temperature: Tropical, Sub-tropical, Temperate, Boreal and Polar. At the second level, following Köppen’s Climatic types, 14 classes are distinguished using precipitation as additional criterion. A third level of the FAO system may include additional criteria, for instance altitude variations within climate types (i.e., lowland versus mountain regions). This level may be optional depending upon data availability and amount of effort.

· The second level, of 14 classes can be regarded as the reference or working level for the Global ecological zone mapping6. They can be easily grouped into the broader level.

· A main principle in delineating the global ecological zones involves aggregating or matching regional ecological or potential vegetation maps into the global framework. The following steps can be distinguished (the practical implementation is described in the next section):

1. Identification of Köppen climatic types occurring in a region; which will approximate the level 2 ecological zone class of the FAO scheme. 2. Establishment of correspondence between regional/national potential vegetation types and the global ecological zones. 3. Final definition and delineation of the global ecological zones, using the maps and source data consulted in steps 1 and 27. 4. Edgematching between adjacent maps 5. Validation

6 A more detailed regional classification system similar to that carried out for FRA90 may be conducted for regions. Concept and principles for more detailed schemes that use elevation and other parameters will be discussed during the Cambridge Expert meeting, July 1999.

7 For this part of the work, FAO will rely heavily on the advice of regional experts specialising in ecological zoning and mapping.

8 Table 1. Proposed FAO Global Ecological zoning (based on Köppen, adapted by Threwartha)

Level 1 Level 2 Level 2 Zonalb vegetation types

(Equivalent Köppen Climate (Equivalent Köppen Climate Types) Groups) Name Characteristics Name and symbol Characteristics Tropical All months Wet Ar 0-2 months drya Evergreen & Semi-evergreen Tropical rainforest without frost: in marine areas over Winter dry Aw Over 2 month dry Deciduous Forests, woodlands and savanna 18°C (in winter) Semiarid BSh Evaporation > Precipitation Shrub/Steppe Arid BWh All months dry Desert Sub-tropical Eight months Humid Cf No dry season Broadleaved-coniferous evergreen forest, semi- deciduous Forests or more over 10°C Summer dry Cs Summer dry Sclerophyllous forests, open woodlands

Semiarid BSh Evaporation > Precipitation Shrub/Steppe Arid BWh All months dry Desert Temperate Four to eight Oceanic Do Coldest month over 0° C Mixed forests; Coniferous evergreen, broadleaved deciduous forest months over 10°C Continental Dc Coldest month under 0° C Mixed Deciduous – coniferous Forests

Semiarid BSk Evaporation > Precipitation Steppe/Prairie Arid BWk All months dry Desert Boreal Up to 3 months Boreal E Forest-tundra’s and open woodlands; taiga over 10°C Polar all months below Polar F Shrubs/Arctic desert 10°C

Notes: a A dry month is defined as the month in which the total of precipitation P expressed in millimeters is equal to or less than twice the mean Temperature in degrees Centigrade. b Zonal vegetation: resulting from the variation in environmental, i.e. climatic, conditions in a north south direction.

9 Figure 1. Global distribution of Koppen climat types

Source: from Trewartha (1968) in Bailey (1996)

10 3.3 Regional Implementation of the FAO Global Ecological Zone System

A preparatory survey indicated that most regions have recent and dependable potential vegetation maps which are amenable to matching with Köppen climatic types. In some cases, such as the USA, vegetation classes are a sub-class of Köppen Climatic types. Here the translation is direct. In other cases, a study of mapping criteria, including physiognomy, phenology, floristics and dynamics of vegetation types, will be needed (FAO 1989).

There are other benefits of using the existing country/regional maps. They could form the basis or provide supporting information for further sub-division of global types. This may be done either now for the current FRA2000 or later. One such sub-division is lowland and hill/mountain forests, which can be implemented with the help of existing digital terrain data validated by vegetation maps. It may be noted that climate determines the zonal or climax vegetation types. The physiography acts as a modifier of the zonal vegetation and gives rise to azonal forms, for instance wetlands or heath.

The country/regional vegetation maps will also help in harmonisation of type boundaries across countries or regions which will be a problem in the global mapping. The ecological zones are expected to associate in adjoining regions/maps. This fact will provide an important basis for edge matching of EZ polygons in two maps. It is expected that experts attending the FAO/ WCMC/ EDC Consultation will contribute in a major way to define ecological zones of their respective regions as well as in edge matching of the same in adjoining geographic region.

The following is an outline of general steps for defining and mapping the Global FAO ecological zones region by region. They are divided in conceptual, thematic steps and technical production steps.

3.3.1 Conceptual and Thematic Issues

Collection and study of relevant maps and information : Locate and study suitable regional/national existing maps of climate, potential vegetation or ecoregions. Include all available maps for the concerned region. For example, in the North America case study, maps of Canada and USA were studied together. Those that are suitable should have detailed vegetation information and topographic effects on vegetation distribution. Depending on regions, the scale of such maps should be smaller than 1 million. Be sure to have access to both paper and digital versions of the maps. First, identify Köppen climate types occurring in the country or region (see Table 1), which are the approximate boundaries of FAO EZ Level 2. Then, make an in-depth study of the ecological – and /or vegetation maps, focusing on classification principles and - criteria used. Consult with regional experts, i.e. authors of maps and publications, to fully comprehend the information. Make a reference list of all source data used.

11 Matching or aggregating national/regional classes into the Global Ecological zones. Based on the in- depth study, establish the relation between national/regional vegetation types or ecoregions and the Global Level 2 Ecological zones. (Aggregation to FAO Level 1 is then straightforward). This usually involves aggregation of a number of regional classes into one Ecological zone. Then produce an “equivalence “ table for the region, showing the correspondence between the regional classes and the Global Ecological zones Level 1 and 2. A documentation and explanation of the matching has to be made for review and evaluation purposes. This should include the description and definition of the regional vegetation types or – ecosystems.

3.3.2 Map production and Technical Issues

Both the existing FRA90 EZ and several existing regional maps have been produced using ESRI Arc/Info GIS software system. Thus, it is convenient for the rest of the work to be conducted on Arc/Info, or at least Arc/Info importable. Study the digital map in the Arc/Info coverage environment and make sure the digital version has appropriate attributes for the polygons. Edit the coverage and add attributes for each FAO EZ levels (at least 1 and 2). Produce graphics of FAO EZ at each level for the entire region.

For polygon edge-matching problems along country/regional boundaries, there could be two related causes. One is due to mismatch of polygon definition translations between polygons of both sides, as stated earlier. This problem is easy to solve -- simply go back to the original maps and make sure the translation is correct. The other cause is due to offset of lines of the polygons on both sides, even though they may have the same labels. For this problem, we would have to manually edit the coverage and change locations of the lines. It would help this step by underlying any of the following with the digital EZ map: composite of NOAA AVHRR spectral bands, classified continental-scale land cover (such as the USGS global land cover database), and digital elevation model (DEM) data. For North America (Canada and USA), the edge-matching problem was fortunately minimal.

To summarize, the resulting output from a regional EZ production should include the following: Arc/Info coverage of EZ map with attributes of each EZ levels, graphics (e.g., GIF images) of the two (or three) levels of EZ, a table containing the levels of EZ and corresponding labels or codes of the input regional maps. For these output materials, see the North America study (Annex A) as an example.

3.3.3 Potential Production Problems

From the perspective of EZ production, there are still some issues that potentially can affect the progress of producing regional and ultimately global EZ.

· Availability of suitable regional/national maps. For some regions or countries, maps may not exist that have suitable scale, information content, or quality. It is also possible that some regions have paper maps but not their digital version. One solution is to use as an alternative the few available global-scale maps (e.g., the WWF world ecoregions map in combination with a climate map based on Köppen).

· Edge matching of cross-boundary polygons. Two sticking points here: 1) it can become complicated when different classification principles have been used for the two bordering maps, and 2) manual editing is not elegant.

12 4 Conclusions

Although using a variety of map inputs inevitably provokes methodological problems such as edge matching across adjacent maps, a protocol for correcting such problems was successfully developed and implemented during a pilot study. The results of the North America Pilot Study illustrate the overall concept, methods, and utility of the map in an operational context (see annex A).

At the WCMC/FAO/EDC Cambridge meeting (July 1999), regional experts will review the proposed FAO Ecological zone classification. The system’s characteristics, principles and assumptions will be assessed in view of FAO’s requirements, and options for more detailed Regional EZ classification will be discussed. Another objective is to define a strategy and work plan to produce the Global map with involvement of Regional experts and institutions.

13 References

Bailey R. G. 1989: Explanatory supplement to Ecoregions of the Continents, Environmental Conservation, Volume 16 No 4, Switzerland.

Bailey R. G. 1995: Description of Ecoregions of United States, USDA FS Publication No 1391, Washington DC USA.

Bailey, R.G. 1996: Ecosystem Geography. New York: Springer Verlag. 216p.

Bailey R. G. 1998: Ecoregion Map of North America, USDA FS Publication No 1548, Washington DC USA.

Bailey R. G. Personal communication by email message to Mr. K.D. Singh, November 6, 1998. (paraphrasing p.160 in Ecosystem Geography, Bailey 1996)

Canada 1997: Ecological Regions of North America, Commission for Environmental Cooperation, Montreal, Canada.

FAO 1989: Classification and Mapping of Vegetation Types in Tropical Asia, Rome.

Holdridge, L.R. 1947. Determination of world plant formations from simple climatic data. Science, 105:367-368.

Köppen 1931: Grundrisse der Klimakunde, Walter de Gruyter Co. Berlin.

Kuchler A. W. 1967: Vegetation Mapping, Ronald Press Company, and New York.

Preto Giovanni 1998: A Proposal for the Preparation of the Global Eco-floristic Map for FRA2000, FAO, Rome (unpublished).

Thornthwaite C. W. 1931: The Climates of North America according to a New Classification, John Wiley & Sons, New York.

Thornthwaite C. W. 1933: The Climates of Earth, Geographic Review 23.

Trewartha G. T. 1968: An Introduction to weather and climate, Mc Graw-Hill, New York, USA.

UNESCO, 1973. International classification and mapping of vegetation, series 6. Ecology and Conservation, Paris, France: 93 p.

Walter H. 1973: Vegetation of the Earth in relation to Climate and Eco-physical Conditions, Springer-Verlag, New York.

WCMC 1992: Global Biodiversity: Status of the Earth’s living resources. Chapman & Hall, London. xx + 594pp.

Zhu Z. 1997: Develop a new Global Ecological Zone Map for GFRA2000, FAO, Rome.

14 Annex A: The Canada USA Case Study – Implementation of the FAO Global Ecofloristic Zone Mapping Concept

Regional Ecological Zone (EZ) map and related forest area statistics have been prepared for the North America region, covering Canada and USA (including Alaska, but not Hawaii). Results of this case study illustrate the overall concept, methods, and utility of the proposed classification system, and provide guidelines to develop regional maps for other parts of the world. Source data for Canada were derived from a Canada ecoregion map produced by Environment Canada and incorporated into the Commission for Environmental Cooperation Ecological Regions of North America Map (1997). For the USA, Bailey’s ecoregions map (1998) was used.

In this Annex, the methodology and procedures are presented, followed by results, tables and map, of the case study, including: 1) an ‘equivalence’ table listing the three levels of global EZ and corresponding regional Ecoregions or vegetation types (indicated by labels or codes of input source maps, Table B-1); 2) graphics of the regional EZ at the three levels, and 3) breakdown tables, presenting forest cover by ecological zone and by sub-national unit.

The two breakdown tables illustrate an important use of the FAO EZ maps in the production of forest statistics by ecological zone and by sub-national unit (see below Table B-2 for USA, Table B-3 for Canada). To produce the two breakdown tables for each country, four data items are needed: 1) the regional FAO EZ map, 2) national and sub-national administrative boundary file, 3) an actual forest distribution map, and 4) the most current country-survey data including forest areas by sub-national unit.

The purpose of the two breakdown tables is to provide forest cover estimates by ecological zone, through establishing a spatially explicit relationship between the forest cover areas derived from remote-sensing based forest cover maps and the most current country-survey data presented by FAO. The first table provides a breakdown of forest area according to sub-national unit and ecological zone, derived from overlaying the forest cover map with the country’s administrative boundary map. Total area and percentage (probability) of forest cover are calculated and presented for each ecological zone by sub-national unit (Table 1). Multiplying the percentages in table 1 by the most current forest cover statistics (in column “Total” of table 2) gives the estimated distribution of forest by ecological zone and sub-national unit (Table 2).

The general process for producing the two breakdown tables is as follows.

§ Prepare the input data. The EZ map, the country administrative boundary file, and the actual forest distribution map can be either vector or raster format. For the North America example, both Arc/Info and ERDAS Imagine software systems were used to prepare these files and compute the results.

§ For the preparation of the EZ map, an equivalence table needs to be developed, similar to that given in Table B-1 for the USA and Canada. The original classes given in the source data (e.g. ecoregions, ecofloristic zones, (potential) vegetation types) are reclassified or recoded to correspond with the FAO EZ Categories as outlined in Table B-1. For Example, the CEC’s ecoregion code ‘5.1: Softwood Shield’ is recoded to FAO EZ class ‘E1-Boreal Plain’, based on the descriptions (CEC 1997) that the ecoregion has a mean annual temperature of –2 to -6C, a mean annual precipitation of 550-1500mm, a vegetation of primarily conifers, lichens and shrubs and that landform is hilly with some plains.

15 § The country administrative boundary file can be extracted from the Arc/Info Arc-World vector database. So far, there is no better or more updated boundary map than Arc-World. For the actual forest cover map, we should use, in so far as possible, nationally developed actual land cover or forest cover maps from remotely sensed data. For example, the forest cover map for Canada is from the Canada Center for Remote Sensing 1995 1-km land cover map. For the USA, it is the 1993 U.S. Forest Service 1-km forest type map. In the case when an actual forest cover map is not available, or is not suitable, then a substitution should be found. For Europe, we propose to use Joint Research Center FIRS forest cover map. For other regions, the USGS global land cover database may be used.

§ FAO will provide the most current country forest area statistics

§ The actual land cover/forest cover classification should be re-mapped such that forest land equals to 1 and all other land cover equals to 0.

§ Once all input data files are prepared, the computation is done by overlaying the three thematic layers: EZ, country/sub-national boundaries, and the actual forest cover. Calculate the area of forest cover in each unique EZ and political unit combination. Most GIS and image processing software systems have utilities to achieve this.

§ Results of the above GIS overlay are then entered into a spreadsheet file, such as Microsoft Excel. Follow examples of the two breakdown tables for each country in this Annex.

References:

Bailey, Robert G. 1998. Ecoregion Map of North America, USDA FS Publication No. 1548, Washington DC USA.

Commission on Environmental Cooperation. 1997. Ecological Regions of North America: Toward a Common Perspective.

16 17 Table B-1. Working table for linking the Canada and US ecoregions maps to FAO EZ FAO level FAO L2 FAO level 3 L3 CEC Ecological Regions of North USA Bailey’s Ecoregions of the 1 level 2 code code America (1997) United States (1998) 1. Polar Polar F Plain F1 2.1: Northern Arctic 120: Tundra Division 2.2: Alaska Tundra 2.4: Southern Arctic F Mountain F2 1.1: Arctic Cordillera M120: Tundra Division – mountain 2.3: Brooks Range provinces 2. Boreal Boreal E Plain E1 3.1: Alaska Boreal Interior 130: Subarctic Dvision, 3.3: Taiga Plains 3.4: Taiga Shield 4.1: Hudson Plains 5.1: Softwood Shield 9.1: Boreal Plains E Mountain E2 3.2: Taiga Cordillera M130: Subarctic Divison – mountain 6.1: Boreal Cordillera provinces 3. Temperate Humid Do Plain Do1 240: Marine Division oceanic Do Mountain Do2 7.1: Marine West Coast Forests M240: Marine Division – mountain provinces Humid Dc Plain Dc1 5.2: Mixedwood Shield 210: Warm Continental Division continental 8.1: Mixedwood Plains 220: Hot Continental Division Dc Mountain Dc2 5.3: Atlantic Highlands M210: Warm Continental Divison – mountain provinces M220: Hot Contientatl Divison – mountain provinces Semi-arid B1 Steppe/prairie B1b 9.2: Temperate Prairies 251: Parkland Prairie (Temperate) 9.3: West-Central Semi-Arid Plains province plain 8.2: Cemtral USA Plains 330: Temperate Steppe Division B1 Mountain B1a 6.2: Westerm Cordillera M330: Temperate Steppe Divison – forest/steppe mountain provinces Arid B2 Desert plain B2a 10.1:Western Interior Basin and Ranges 340: Temperate Desert Division B2 Desert B2b M340: Temperate Desert Division – mountain mountain provinces 4. Subtropical Humid Cf Plain Cf1 230: Subtropical Division Cf Mountain Cf2 M230: Subtropical Division – mountain provinces Summer Cs Forest/shrub Cs1 260: Mediterranean Division dry plain Cs Mountain Cs2 M260: Mediterranea Division – mountain provinces Semi-arid BS Prairie/steppe BS1 310: Tropica/Subtropical Steppe plain Division BS Prairie/steppe BS2 M310: Tropical Subtropical Steppe Division – Mountain mountain Provinces Arid B Desert plain BW1 320: Tropcial/Subtropical Desert W Division B Desert BW2 M320: Tropcial/Subtropical Desert Division – mountain W mountain provinces 5. Tropical Wet Ar Ar1 411: Everglades province Winter dry Aw Semi-arid Arid 6. Water W W 99 0

18 19 20 Table 2: continued

21 22 Annex B. Review of Existing Global Ecological Zoning Systems

The main purpose of this Annex is to list and give some relevant particulars about the currently available climate, ecological zone or potential vegetation maps that cover the whole globe. An account of the relationship between climate and vegetation, and the theory behind defining ecological zones, or ecoregions, is given by Giovanni Preto in A proposal for classifying and mapping the world’s ecofloristic zones for FRA 2000 (1998). The main text of the current document outlines the needs of the FRA and discusses some of the maps that may be suitable for use in defining zones for this.

The global maps described below primarily define climatic ecological zones. Two of them particularly emphasise differences in biogeography or species origins: the Udvardy (IUCN-UNESCO MAB) map and the WWF-US maps. Some regional maps also emphasise the biogeographical/phylogenetic aspect. Regional maps that show vegetation types but do not emphasise ecological zones are not included in these descriptions but are listed at the end of the annex.

Map of Köppen and Trewartha's climate classification

Köppen, W. (1931). Grundriss der klimakunde. Walter de Gruyter, Berlin. Trewartha, G.T. (1968). An introduction to climate. 4th Ed. McGraw-Hill, New York.

There is a digital map usable at a scale of 1:30,000,000 available though FAO. No details are available on the origin of the map. This map shows five major Köppen climatic types based: Polar, Cold, Temperate (humid), Tropical (humid), Dry. A number of subclasses are distinguished, which brings the total number of categories mapped to 14.

Because many of the ecological zone maps described below use some major climatic criteria to distinguish their classes, it is deemed worth the effort to list the climatic classes of Köppen that are mapped here for the globe. These are: E (polar climates with extremely cold winters and summers) subdivided into ET: tundra, EF: frozen; D (moist mid-latitude climates with cold winters) subdivided into DF: wet all seasons, DW: dry winters; C (moist mid-latitude climates with mild winters) subdivided into CF: continually moist subtropical, CW: winter dry sub-tropical, CS: summer dry subtropical (mediterranean); B (dry climates with deficient precipitation during most of the year) subdivided into BS: semi arid, BW: desert; A (tropical moist climates) subdivided into AF: continually wet tropical, AM: tropical monsoon, AW: seasonally dry tropical. These classes are quite coarse and do not always correspond directly with other Köppen classes used in the literature.

Map of Holdridge’s life zone system

Holdridge, L.R. (1967). Life Zone Ecology. Tropical Science Center, San Jose, Costa Rica. 206 pp.

Holdridge’s work was aimed to correlate world plant formations with simple climatic data. The system embraces all major environmental factors in three hierarchical tiers.

Level I – The Life Zone. This is determined by specific quantitative ranges of long-term average annual precipitation, mean annual biotemperature and potential evapotranspiration ratio. These are modified for montane systems.

23 Level II - The “Association”. This is an area of land which, under undisturbed conditions, supports a distinctive natural community adapted through evolution to a specific narrow range of atmospheric and edaphic conditions. No Association can occur in more than one Life Zone.

Level III – The successional stage or cover type, which takes into account that the community may not be in its climax state, either through natural causes or through human intervention.

A map of the Level I Life Zones of the globe is available in digital form, usable at a scale of 1:30,000,000. It is however raster-based and quite coarse. It was prepared by Rik Leemans, who was then working in the Biosphere Project in IIASA, Laxenburg. The mapped classification does not differentiate montane communities as such but uses the major cooler climatic types to denote the montane progressions. This map was used for the non-tropical areas of the world in an exercise by the World Conservation Monitoring Centre (WCMC) and the Center for International Forest Research (CIFOR) to investigate global forest protection by forest type and ecological zone (Iremonger, S., C. Ravilious and T. Quinton (1997.). A statistical analysis of global forest conservation. In: Iremonger, S., C. Ravilious and T. Quinton (Eds.) A global overview of forest conservation. Including: GIS files of forests and protected areas, version 2. CD-ROM. CIFOR and WCMC, Cambridge, U.K. http://www.wcmc.org.uk/forest/data/cdrom2/).

There are many national maps available for Life Zones, particularly in the Americas.

Map of Walter’s Zonobiomes

Walter, H. and E. Box (1976). Global classification of natural terrestrial ecosystems. Vegetatio 32: 75-81, with map. Walter ,H. (1979). Vegetation of the Earth. 3rd Ed. Springer-Verlag, Berlin.

This is a map of an ecological classification of the world’s climates. It is based on the climate- diagram pattern of Walter, in which temperature and rainfall are correlated to show periods of aridity and humidity, in relation to plant growth. Also taken into account are number of frost days and other extremes that influence vegetation pattern. There are nine different major zonobiomes, which have modifiers added if they are particularly dry, cold or wet. The map is only available in paper copy, at a scale of 1:30,000,000. The continents are shown as distinct entities on the map, not joined into one complete global picture.

Walter's work on the Zonobiomes goes beyond what is mapped, describing the different major variants within the zonobiomes, named pedobiomes and orobiomes (edaphic or altitudinal factors). Ecotones between the major zonobiomes are also described.

Bailey's Ecoregions map of the world

Bailey, R.G. (1989). Explanatory supplement to Ecoregions map of the continents. Environmental Conservation 16: 307-309 with separate map at 1:30,000,000 scale.

Bailey, R.G. (1998). Ecoregions map of North America: Explanatory note. Misc. Publ. 1548. Washington DC: USDA Forest Service. With separate map at 1:15,000,000.

The purpose of the work, which began in 1976, was to show how the national forests of the United States fit within the global ecoregional scheme. In this system an ecoregion is defined as any large portion of the Earth's surface over which the ecosystems have characteristics in common. There are three levels in this classification system, the Domains, the Divisions and the Provinces.

24 Ecoregions of the continents are based on macroclimate (i.e., the climate that lies just beyond the local modifying irregularities of landform and vegetation). The theory behind the approach is that macroclimates are among the most significant factors affecting the distribution of life on Earth. As the macroclimate changes, the other components of the ecosystem change in response. Macroclimates influence soil formation and help shape surface topography, as well as affecting the suitability for human habitation.

Four Domains were defined: Polar, Humid temperate, Humid tropical and Dry. The combination of temperature and rainfall to indicate major climatic zones was based on Köppen and Trewartha's work, where dry climates were treated as a separate entity from Tropical humid and Temperate humid. However, the Köppen system defines an addtional “Subtropical” division at this level.

The next level in the Bailey system is the Divisions, and these are also climate - based, for example in the Humid temperate Domain there is Hot continental, Warm continental, Subtropical, Marine, Prairie and Mediterranean, all with Mountain variants (i.e., a total of 12 Divisions in this Domain). There are a total of 30 of these.

The third and last level are the Provinces, which are based on physiognomy of vegetation, modified by climate. For example, the Forest-Meadow of Eastern Oceanic (Monsoon climate). There are a total of 98 of these subdivisions.

The global map has been digitised and converted to a geographic (lat/long) projection by the WCMC, Cambridge, UK. It is also available on CD from NOAAs National Geophysical Data Center in Boulder, Colorado as part of their Global Ecosystem Database Project. http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/Store/.

Bailey has also drawn a more detailed map of the Ecoregions of North America. This uses the same system as the global map and defines 63 Provinces.

All maps are available in map form from the author: Robert G. Bailey, USDA Forest Service, 3825 E. Mulberry St., Fort Collins, CO 80524 USA (email:rbailey/[email protected]). The can be downloaded in digital form from the U.S. Forest Service Inventory & Monitoring Institute's web site, which is: http://www.fs.fed.us@institute.

Milanova and Kushlin's map of Present Day Landscapes

Milanova, E.V. and Kushlin, A.V. (eds) (1993). World Map of Present-Day Landscapes. An Explanatory Note. Prepared by Moscow State University and the United Nations Environment Programme. 1:15,000,000 scale.

This was prepared using existing maps also authored by Moscow State University "Geographical belts and zonal types of landscapes of the world" and "Land use types of the world", as well as remote sensing imagery and sample field observations. The world is first broken into temperature-defined zonal belts and one intrazonal belt, thus: Polar, Subpolar, Temperate, Subtropical, Tropical, Subequatorial, Equatorial and Intrazonal (8 divisions). Within these are the Landscapes, which are primarily based on the natural land cover and its associated soil type. There are 39 of these, which are the most useful units on this map for the FRA ecological zoning exercise. Each polygon that represents one of these types is then given a letter indicating degree of alteration - whether it is virtually undisturbed (“Modal Landscape”), with moderate interference (e.g., secondary vegetation), with strong intereference (crop cultivation) or with extremely strong change (e.g., towns).

25 The map is available digitally and in paper copy from Moscow State University. Copies are also held in the WCMC, Cambridge.

Olson and Watts' map of Major Ecosystem Complexes (1982)

Olson, J.S. and J.A. Watts (1982). Major ecosystem complexes. Ranked by carbon in live vegtetation. Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Tennessee, USA. Olson, J.S., J.A. Watts and L.J. Alliaon (1982). Carbon in live vegetation of major worlds ecosystems. ORNL-5862. Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee, 37830, USA.

The purpose of this map was to attempt to quantify carbon in live vegetation. The primary division in the mapped classes includes a mixture of criteria: plant formations, edaphic factors (a Wetland class is distinguished) and areas altered by human activity. This map is not considered to be one of the principal sources of information contributing to the ecological zoning system of the FRA, because it maps actual land cover rather than potential.

It was originally printed at a scale of 1:30,000,000, and is available digitally from the WCMC, Cambridge.

Udvardy's map of the Biogeographical Provinces of the World

Udvardy, M.D.F. (1975). A classification of the biogeographical provinces of the world. Occasional Paper No. 18. IUCN, Morges, Switzerland.

This map was prepared by IUCN as a contribution tot he UNESCO MAB Programme. The main purpose of the work was to devise a satisfactory classification of the world's biotic areas for purposes of conservation. It is the fourth attempt in a series of revisions, updating the previous three works written by Dasmann.

The logic behind the system was that the plant and animal world occurs within the biosphere of the Earth in the form of an intertwined network of individuals, populations and interacting systems. To be able to view them in a systematic way, the biologist may use the following approaches:

1 Taxonomic order 2 Ecological order 3 Phylogenetic order (origins and history) 4 Biogeographic order - grouping the above entities on a geographic basis.

To define geographic units for conservation purposes the following were considered: (a) the distribution of species and (b) the distribution of ecosystem units. The result was a system serving both aims, a hierarchical system of geographical areas which would give a framework for conserving species as well as ecologic areas. These hierarchical Biogeographical entities were named Realms, Biomes and Provinces.

The first subdivision, the Realm, used the phylogenetic subdivisions of the world, unifying those for flora and fauna. It is a continent or sub-continent-sized area with unifying features of geography and flora/fauna/vegetation. Eight Realms were distinguished. The second division is the Biome. These were not the same as the major vegetation formations of the world (see UNESCO, 1973), but combine the features of a major vegetation type with climate. There are 14 of these. These were largely based on the work of Dasmann. The third, most detailed, subdivision was the Province, delimited on a faunal, floral and ecological basis. There are 186 of these.

26 The map is available digitally from WCMC, Cambridge. It is usable at a scale of 1:30,000,000.

FAO/LET maps of Ecofloristic Zones for the tropics

Lavenu, F., M.F. Bellan and C. Meste (1988). Carte ecofloristique de l’Amerique du Sud. FAO, Rome. Sharma, M.K. (1986). Ecofloristic zone and vegetation maps of tropical continental Asia. FAO, Rome. FAO (1989). Classification and mapping of vegetation types in tropical Asia. FAO, Rome. Sharma, M.K. (1988). Eco-floristic zone map of Africa. FAO, Rome.

These maps were prepared for the dual purpose of providing ecological categories for the FRA 1990 and also to map vegetation types of the world. These maps only cover the tropical regions and were produced separately, although they use the same systems. Their primary division , take non the whole, therefore, is geographical. There are three different regions mapped: Africa, Latin America, S and SE Asia.

Within each different map, 13 different "Ecological zones" were distinguished using climatic conditions, with an altitudinal element featuring prominently. Five of the classes are montane. Within these classes the Ecofloristic Zones are defined. These have a more detailed physiognomic descriptor and include the vegetation formation as well as a geographic criterion. These maps were used to distinguish ecological zone characteristics for the tropical area in the study by WCMC and CIFOR mentioned above (see the Holdridge section) and by WCMC in a previous exercise investigating protection of land by ecological zone (Green, M.J.B., M.G. Murray, G.C. Bunting and J.R. Paine (1997). Priorities for biodiversity conservation in the tropics. WCMC Biodiversity Bulletin 1. WCMC, Cambridge, UK).

The maps are available form the Laboratoire d’Ecologie Terrestre (LET), Toulouse, or in digital form from FAO. They operate at a scale of about 1:5,000,000.

The WWF-US Terrestrial Ecoregions of the World

Dinerstein, E., Olson, D.M., Graham, D.J., Webster, A.L., Primm, S.A., Bookbinder, M.P. and Ledec, G. (1995). A Conservation Assessment of the Terrestrial Ecoregions of Latin America and the Caribbean. Published in association with The World Wildlife Fund. The World Bank, Washington, DC. Olson, D.M., E. Dinerstein, E. Wikramanayake, J. Morrison, T. Ricketts, E. Underwood, L. Itoua, Y. Kura, H.E. Strand, C. Loucks, T. Allnutt, W.Wettengel and P. Hurley. (in prep.). Terrestrial ecoregions of the world for conservation planning. WWF-US.

The purpose of this study was primarily to make a tool for the identification of geographic priorities for biodiversity conservation. The result is a system of regional-scale biogeographic units called ecoregions. These are described as relatively large units of land or water containing a geographically distinct assemblage of natural communities sharing a large majority of their species, dynamics and environmental conditions.

The global coverage was drawn up on a continental basis, and not all parts of the world are currently available. The rationale behind this was so that the major split in the global map would be by biogeographic realm. However, the splits were made on political bases, not phylogenetic. Despite this the authors found the division practical for the conservation analyses for which the maps were intended. The methodology for making the maps included collaboration with regional experts as well as the use of a great number of previously published national and regional maps, including some

27 from of Holdridge and McKinnon's Indomalayan Realm study. Udvardy's map was apparently not used. The examples below are taken from the Latin America study.

The primary subdivision, within each geographical region (continent) was into six mainly formation- based categories called Major Ecosystem Types, which were then subdivided into 14 Major Habitat Types, which are comparable to the concept of Biome, as used by Udvardy. These were further classified according to a "Bioregion", of which, for example, there were nine in Latin America. In total there were 91 of the final class, Ecoregion, in Latin America.

For copies of these maps, in paper or in digital form, please contact WWF-US Conservation Science Program,World Wildlife Fund, 1250 24th Street, NW, Washington DC, 20037-1175, USA.

McKinnon's Original Habitat Types of the Indomalayan Realm

MacKinnon, J. (1996). Protected Areas Systems Review of the Indomalayan Realm. Asia Bureau for Conservation, UK.

The purpose of this map was to aid an evaluation of the coverage and conservation importance of the existing protected areas system of the Realm, and to identify sites of global priority for conservation. The map of Original Habitat Types shows both habitat types and biogeographical units. Udvardy identified 27 units in the Indomalayan Realm in 1975. These were further subdivided, and this map shows a total of 90 subunits.

The habitat types were derived from a number of vegetation map sources, often more than one per country, which are listed in the report. There are 62 of these. They are not gathered into a hierarchical system. The map is digital, and may be used at a scale of 1:5,000,000. The report is available from the Asian Bureau for Conservation, 88 Wincheap, Canterbury CT1 3RS, UK, and the digital map is available from WCMC, Cambridge.

Maps of the natural vegetation of different regions/continents of the globe

Bohn, U. and Katenina, G.D. (1994). Map of Natural Vegetation. Komarov Botanical Institute, St Petersburg. Scale 1:2,500,000. Note: this has recently been used a as a base map for the delimitations of European Ecoregions in the WWF-US system of Ecoregion classifcation.

Carnahan, J.A. (1989). Australia - Natural Vegetation. Australian Surveying and Land Information Group, Department of Administrative Services. 1:5,000,000 scale.

Hueck, K. (1972). Mapa de la vegetación de America del Sur. Gustav Fischler Verlag, Stuttgart. 1:8,000,000 scale.

UNESCO (1980). Vegetation map of South America. UNESCO, Paris.

White, F. (1983). The vegetation of Africa. UNESCO, Paris.

28 FRA Working Papers

1998 1. FRA 2000 Terms and Definitions (18 pp. - E/F/S/P)

2. FRA 2000 Guidelines for assessments in tropical and sub-tropical countries (43 pp. - E/F/S/P)

1999 3. The status of the forest resources assessment in the South-Asian sub-region and the country capacity building needs. Proceedings of the GCP/RAS/162/JPN regional workshop held in Dehradun, India, 8-12 June 1998. (186 pp. - E)

4. Volume/Biomass Special Study: georeferenced forest volume data for Latin America (93 pp. - E)

5. Volume/Biomass Special Study: georeferenced forest volume data for Asia and Tropical Oceania (102 pp. - E)

6. Country Maps for the Forestry Department website (21 pp. - E)

7. Forest Resources Information System (FORIS) – Concepts and Status Report (20 pp. E)

8. Remote Sensing and Forest Monitoring in FRA 2000 and beyond. (22 pp. - E)

9. Volume/Biomass special Study: Georeferenced Forest Volume Data for Tropical Africa (97 pp. – E)

10. Memorias del Taller sobre el Programa de Evaluación de los Recursos Forestales en once Países Latinoamericanos (S)

11. Non-wood forest Products study for Mexico, Cuba and South America (draft for comments) (82 pp. – E)

12. Annotated bibliography on Forest cover change – Nepal (59 pp. – E)

13. Annotated bibliography on Forest cover change – Guatemala (66 pp. – E)

14-17 (In preparation)

18. Forest plantation resource in developing countries (75 pp. – E)

19. Global forest cover map (14 pp. – E)

Please send a message to [email protected] for electronic copies.