Our planet is losing forests
at the annual rate of 10 million hectares - the area of Iceland, gone with the trees are the original species in the forest ecosystems. To address this issue,
Goal 15 , one of the United Nation’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), stipulates that the protection and restoration of forest ecosystems is a critical global challenge. A series of international initiatives have been implemented such as the Bonn Challenge and the New York Forest Declaration.
However, when reviewing the works of the initiatives,
Prof. FU Bojie, corresponding author of the study from
Beijing Normal Univeristy , noted that in the
Bonn Challenge, over 45% countries chose to restore their forests with monoculture plantations. These countries are not alone. In China, over 85% of planted forests are monoculture plantations. However, studies have shown that compared with natural forests which provide habitats for a variety of animals, monoculture plantations can inhabit few species of plants and animals and are consequentially highly vulnerable to pests and diseases. They also have poorer soil stability and
less carbon stocks.
Some countries and regions chose to plant fast-growing economic forests. For management and economic purposes, most of these forests are clear-razed regularly, drastically reduces forest area and even causes serious ecological degradation.
Addressing the deficiencies of current initiatives, FU and his team propose a four-step remedy.
Firstly, the biodiversity monitoring and assessment mechanisms of forest restoration projects should be modified and specified to better reflect the diversity of species in the forests.
Secondly, in implementing the mechanisms, policymakers should roll out incentive policies to encourage the local government and community to grow diverse plants in the local area.
Thirdly, the need of economic forests with monoculture plantations in some regions should be recognized and addressed. Such countries should develop agroforestry and or understory forest economy, which will encourage and award the development of forests with a diverse range of animal species and plants such as trees and shrubs.
Lastly, the research calls for enhanced cooperation among government agencies, research institutes and the private sector in conducting evidence-based research that guides the restoration of biodiversity in monoculture plantations.
The research offers insights for regions that overly rely on monoculture forest restoration, and also serves as a warning for other countries.
Next time when taking a walk in the forest parks, maybe we will feel more endeared by the sight of shrubs and squirrels - even the bugs that many fear.
Editor’s note:
The study is supported by STEP , a TPE related science project.
