Processes Underlying 50 Years of Local Forest-Cover Change in Yunnan, China

Abstract

Recognition of the importance of forests for local livelihoods, biodiversity and the climate system has spurred a growing interest in understanding the factors that drive forest-cover change. Forest transitions, the change from net deforestation to net reforestation, may follow different pathways depending on a complex interplay of driving forces. However, most studies on forest transitions focus on the national level rather than the local level. Here, case studies from 10 villages in Yunnan, China, are used to clarify the complex interactions among various pathways of forest transitions, derive insights on the underlying drivers that shaped the forest transitions, and determine the importance of changes in drivers over time. The results demonstrate that China's recent forest transition was caused by a range of interrelated pathways that were mediated by local circumstances. The degradation of forest ecosystem services caused by rampant deforestation and forest degradation created a scarcity of forest products and triggered state-initiated afforestation efforts, particularly in the 1990s, which continue to be important. More recently, economic OPEN ACCESSForests 2014, 5 3258 development concomitant with smallholder intensification spurred reforestation, while the importance of state forest policy declined. The complexity of local land-use changes demonstrates the difficulty of identifying distinct transition pathways and calls for a more diverse approach that recognizes the interdependence of local processes.

Forest Landscape Change and Preliminary Study on Its Driving Forces in Ślęża Landscape Park (Southwestern Poland) in 1883–2013

“…In the context of forest areas, analyses of driving forces have usually also included entire countries or regions [45][46][47]. Smaller areas have rarely been analyzed [48]. Although, in previous years, interest in research on the driving forces of landscape changes has increased significantly, there is still a lack of examples of this type of research in some European Union countries, including Poland [49].…”

Forest transitions in Chinese villages: Explaining community-level variation under the returning forest to farmland program

“…This phenomenon might be called a "policy plantation" pathway of tree cover transition. Frayer et al (2014aFrayer et al ( , 2014b) identify a similar pattern in a nearby region with the smallholder intensification pathway. We argue that the association with off-farm work, contrasting spatial distribution, and hybrid state-market character constitute a distinct configuration.…”

“…Case studies identify mixed patterns of change, some finding successful forest establishment (He and Sikor, 2015) and others documenting failures due to poor species selection or inadequate participation of rural residents (Bennett, 2008;Trac et al, 2007Trac et al, , 2013. The predominance of commercial plantations, which have been labeled "ecological forests" under a designation of dual environmental and commercial functions, raises further questions about the environmental benefits of RFFP forests (Frayer et al, 2014a;Zhai et al, 2013;Zinda et al, 2017).…”

“…But the case literature cited above shows that at least some locales have diverged sharply from these outcomes. Evidence that non-participating households also retired substantial amounts of cropland (Frayer et al, 2014a;He and Sikor, 2015) raises questions about whether RFFP payments are primarily responsible for land cover change and to what extent other policies and shifts in agricultural and labor markets drive these changes.…”

The Fate of an Old Water System in the New Era of Climate Change and Market Imperatives in Southwest China

“…In the context of the extensive research that now exists on southwest China's upland ethnic minorities and the state of their surrounding natural environments, our study contributes to the ongoing documentation of the significance of forest and vegetation cover to the overall viability of upland communities (e.g., Ediger and Chen ; Frayer et al. ; Trac et al. ).…”