Forest Management Plan in Butmas, Vanuatu 1 Vanuatu Department of Forests / SPC / GTZ Pacific German Regional Forestry Project Management Plan for the Model Area for Community-based Sustainable Forest Management in Butmas, Vanuatu Final version [10 August 2004] Luganville / Wageningen, 10 August 2004 Jaap de Vletter William Bani Arudovo Rexon Vira ii Community-based Sustainable Forest Management TABLE OF CONTENTS Table of contents........................................................................................................................... ii List of acronyms used .................................................................................................................. iv 1. Context..................................................................................................................................... 1 2. Introduction and purpose.......................................................................................................... 2 GENERAL PART .......................................................................................................................... 4 3. Area to be managed and legal frame ....................................................................................... 5 3.1. General area description ................................................................................................... 5 3.2. International setting, national policy and legislation ........................................................... 7 3.3. Hierarchy of planning......................................................................................................... 9 3.4. Administration.................................................................................................................... 9 4. Description of the village ........................................................................................................ 10 4.1. General............................................................................................................................ 10 4.2. History ............................................................................................................................. 10 4.3. Leadership and organizations.......................................................................................... 11 4.4. Means of existence.......................................................................................................... 11 5. Review of forest inventory data .............................................................................................. 13 5.1. Pre-Harvest Inventory (PHI) ............................................................................................ 13 6. General description of the management system..................................................................... 20 6.1. Background and method of development ........................................................................ 21 6.2. Logging intensity options and felling cycles ..................................................................... 22 6.3. The Diameter Limit Table (DLT) ...................................................................................... 22 SPECIFIC PART ......................................................................................................................... 24 7. Objectives of the forest management ..................................................................................... 25 8. Implementation of the management system ........................................................................... 26 8.1. General............................................................................................................................ 27 8.2. Decision on treatments.................................................................................................... 27 8.3. Results of the tree selection operation............................................................................. 28 9. Planning of the harvesting ...................................................................................................... 33 9.1. General............................................................................................................................ 34 9.2. Annual harvesting planning ............................................................................................. 35 9.3. Planning of roads and trails ............................................................................................. 36 9.4. Planning of extraction and transport ................................................................................ 36 9.5. Options for achieving sustainability.................................................................................. 37 9.6. Wet weather provisions ................................................................................................... 38 9.7. Environmental provisions................................................................................................. 38 10. Implementation of harvesting................................................................................................ 39 10.1 Construction of roads and trails ...................................................................................... 39 10.2. Reduced impact felling .................................................................................................. 39 10.3. Reduced impact extraction ............................................................................................ 40 10.4. Sawmill operation .......................................................................................................... 40 10.5. Safety requirements ...................................................................................................... 40 11. Costs and benefits................................................................................................................ 41 11.1 Costs .............................................................................................................................. 41 11.2. Benefits ......................................................................................................................... 42 11.3. Need for manpower ....................................................................................................... 43 12. The Annual Working Plan (AWP) ......................................................................................... 43 13. Monitoring and research....................................................................................................... 44 13.1. Background ................................................................................................................... 45 13.2. Recommendations for PSP-establishment .................................................................... 46 14. Training and capacity building .............................................................................................. 49 15. Management options other than selective logging................................................................ 51 16. Forest protection, coupe closure .......................................................................................... 52 17. Networking with institutions and other stakeholders ............................................................. 52 18. Evaluation and revision ........................................................................................................ 53 18.1 Evaluation....................................................................................................................... 53 18.2 Revision.......................................................................................................................... 53 19. List of references consulted.................................................................................................. 54 Forest management Plan in Butmas, Vanuatu iii APPENDIX ..................................................................................................................................56 1. Maps ....................................................................................................................................56 2. List of tree species for Butmas .............................................................................................56 3. Summary of results of the botanical survey (1997)...............................................................56 4. Summary of results of the Permanent Sample Plots (1999).................................................56 5. Results of tree selection in 1999 ..........................................................................................56 6. List of land bird species of Vanuatu – status in Butmas .......................................................56 7. Test against National Forest Management Standards (PNG)...............................................56 8. Training and capacity building program................................................................................56 iv Community-based Sustainable Forest Management LIST OF ACRONYMS USED AAC Annual Allowable Cut AWA Annual Working Area AWP Annual Working Plan BNFPC Butmas Natural Forest Products Co-operative Ltd DFS German Forest Service Ltd. DLT Diameter Limit Table DoF (Vanuatu) Department of Forests EDP Enterprise Development Plan FAO (UN) Food and Agriculture Organization FMP Forest Management Plan FMU Forest Management Unit GOPA Gesellschaft für Organisation, Planung und Ausbildung Ltd. GSV Gross Standing