Evaluating the Conservation Efforts of Multi-Projects Using Remote Sensing and Light Use Efficiency Model: A Case of Nyungwe Forest National Park, Rwanda

Abstract

This paper investigates the effectiveness of conservation efforts in the Nyungwe Forest National Park (Nyungwe). The forest is one of the six key landscapes identified for conservation in the Albertine Rift because it hosts many threatened species. As such, a number of different stakeholders have been involved in its conservation since 1987; yet, studies that emphasize and evaluate the success of these conservation efforts are limited. We combined a rapid and relatively low cost remotely-sensed data and the Light Use Efficiency model to generate forest conservation indicators such as NDVI, forest canopy Net Primary Productivity and carbon sequestered from 1986 to 2010. The influence of topographic and climatic factors on these indicators was examined. The supervised classifier was used to catalogue the area into Forest, Wetland, and Bareland. The forest was the major category (above 90%) of Nyungwe relative to wetland and bareland. Based on degradation intensity, two distinctive periods were realised; the first period spans 8 years (1986)(1987)(1988)(1989)(1990)(1991)(1992)(1993)(1994) whereas the second spans 16 years (1994)(1995)(1996)(1997)(1998)(1999)(2000)(2001)(2002)(2003)(2004)(2005)(2006)(2007)(2008)(2009)(2010). The former degradation intensity period is 10 times higher than the latter period. Although the size of forest recovered up to 90%, the daily NPP and carbon sequestration capacity decreased by 37.1% (i.e. NPP 6. (high altitude) had a higher degradation. Guided by our indicators, there is an overall success in conservation efforts, but efforts were mostly concentrated in accessible areas. Therefore, conservation efforts that aim to respond to degradation of the inaccessible areas of the forest should be stressed in the management plan of the park.

Local perceptions on poverty and conservation in a community-based natural resource program area: a case study of Beitbridge district, southern Zimbabwe

“…CAMPFIRE helps in building an understanding of the various positive conservation objectives that could have been difficult to be recognized by the majority in society in its absence (Infield and Namara, 2001;Rutebuka et al, 2012;Armitage et al, 2020). Its introduction was necessitated by the understanding that communities surrounding protected areas suffer for living with wildlife while little conservation benefits accrue to them.…”