Assessing Forest Cover Dynamics and Forest Perception in the Atlantic Forest of Paraguay, Combining Remote Sensing and Household Level Data

Abstract

Abstract:The Upper Parana Atlantic Forest (BAAPA) in Paraguay is one of the most threatened tropical forests in the world. The rapid growth of deforestation has resulted in the loss of 91% of its original cover. Numerous efforts have been made to halt deforestation activities, however farmers' perception towards the forest and its benefits has not been considered either in studies conducted so far or by policy makers. This research provides the first multi-temporal analysis of the dynamics of the forest within the BAAPA region on the one hand, and assesses the way farmers perceive the forest and how this influences forest conservation at the farm level on the other. Remote sensing data acquired from Landsat images from 1999 to 2016 were used to measure the extent of the forest cover and deforestation rates over 17 years. Farmers' influence on the dynamics of the forest was evaluated by combining earth observation data and household survey results conducted in the BAAPA region in 2016. Outcomes obtained in this study demonstrate a total loss in forest cover of 7500 km 2 . Deforestation rates in protected areas were determined by management regimes. The combination of household level and remote sensing data demonstrated that forest dynamics at the farm level is influenced by farm type, the level of dependency/use of forest benefits and the level of education of forest owners. An understanding of the social value awarded to the forest is a relevant contribution towards preserving natural resources.

Assessment of Sentinel-2 Satellite Images and Random Forest Classifier for Rainforest Mapping in Gabon

“…For example, Duveiller et al [17] obtained a slightly lower accuracy (93%) for classification of the forest cover in Central Africa based on Landsat TM and ETM+ images for the period 1990-2000 using the unsupervised object classification. Studies by Da Ponta et al [8] and Silveira et al [31] focused on the tropical forest classification using the RF approach and a time series of Landsat images (1999-2016) in Paraguay and (2003)(2004)(2005)(2006)(2007)(2008)(2009)(2010)(2011)(2012)(2013)(2014)(2015)(2016) in Brazil, respectively, and presented less accurate results then those achieved in our study based on Sentinel-2 data. In the study in Paraguay, the overall accuracy ranged from 85% to 93% (classification was carried out for individual years), whereas in Brazil, it ranged from 63% to 96%, depending on different geostatistical features used in RF classification.…”

Valoración Económica De Bienes De Uso Directo E Indirecto De Un Bosque De La Ecorregión Alto Paraná, Paraguay

“…Considerando, por un lado, que el BA-APA es uno de los bosques tropicales más amenazados en el mundo, quedando en el Paraguay solo el 9% de su cobertura forestal original, en su mayoría, en un estado altamente fragmentado y degradado (Da Ponte et al 2017, WWF 2016, y por el otro, la importante suma estimada del VET obtenido en esta investigación; se puede afirmar que el bosque aún en condiciones de degradación o en estado secundario sigue siendo una importante fuente de provisión de servicios ecosistémicos, de allí la importancia de conservarlo y manejarlo de forma sostenible y aunar esfuerzos para estudiar su condición funcional.…”

Living in the shadows: Diversity of amphibians, reptiles and birds in shade‐grown yerba mate (Ilex paraguariensis) plantations

“…Deforestation continued during the following years, and overall, by 2016, more than 27% of the remaining Atlantic Forest cover was lost, at an annual deforestation rate of 1.5% (442 km 2 ; Myers et al 2000). The departments of San Pedro and Canindey u, which supported over 48% of the total forest cover, evidenced the highest losses (Da Ponte et al 2017). Considering this scenario, to the date, protected areas in eastern Paraguay play a key role in preserving Atlantic Forest biodiversity, where only seven of them have an extension bigger than 120 km 2 (Cartes 2008).…”

“…The departments of San Pedro and Canindeyú, which supported over 48% of the total forest cover, evidenced the highest losses (Da Ponte et al . 2017). Considering this scenario, to the date, protected areas in eastern Paraguay play a key role in preserving Atlantic Forest biodiversity, where only seven of them have an extension bigger than 120 km 2 (Cartes 2008).…”