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Working Paper FM/35FAO, Rome (Italy)

Forest Management Working Paper

Contribution of Criteria and Indicators for achieving Sustainable Forest Management:

A Case Study from India

Based on the work by Dr P. C. Kotwal

Indian Institute of Forest Management Bhopal, India

November 2008

Forestry Department Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

DISCLAIMER

The Forest Management Working Papers report on issues addressed in the work programme of FAO. These working papers do not reflect any official position of FAO. Please refer to the FAO website (www.fao.org/fo) for official information. The purpose of these papers is to provide early information on ongoing activities and programmes, facilitate dialogue and stimulate discussion. Comments and feedback are welcome. For further information please contact: Mr Froylán Castañeda Forestry Officer (Tropical Forest Management) Forest Resources Development Service Forest Management Division Forestry Department FAO Viale delle Terme di Caracalla I-00100 Rome (Italy) E-mail: [email protected] Or FAO Publications and Information Forestry Coordinator: [email protected] For quotation: FAO (2008). Contribution of Criteria and Indicators for Achieving Sustainable Forest Management: A Case Study from India. Based on the work by Dr P. C. Kotwal, Indian Institute of Forest Management. Forest Management Working Paper FM/35. Forest Resources Development Service, Forest Management Division. FAO, Rome (unpublished).

© FAO 2008 Forest Management Working Paper

Contribution of C&I for achieving SFM: A case study from India

Contribution of Criteria and Indicators for achieving Sustainable Forest Management:

A Case Study from India

Based on work by

Dr P. C. Kotwal Indian Institute of Forest Management

Indian Institute of Forest Management

Bhopal, India

November 2008


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PREFACE

Over the years, the significance of sustainable forest management (SFM) in ensuring continuous availability of forest goods and services, and also environmental stability and restoration of ecological balance, has been felt. During the Earth Summit (UNCED, Rio de Janeiro, 1992), the concept of sustainability was highlighted and experts adopted the first global policy on SFM. Since then many international processes related to SFM have been developed, i.e. ITTO Initiative (1992), African Timber Organization (1993), Pan European Forest Process (1993), Montreal Process (1995), Tarapoto Proposal (1995), Dry Zone Africa Proposal (1995), Near East Proposal (1996), Lepaterique Process of Central America (1997) and Dry Zone Asia Initiative (1999).

The processes focused on methods to monitor, assess and report (MAR) the direction of change towards SFM through the criteria and indicators (C&I) based approach. In India the C&I approach for SFM was launched in 1999 through the Bhopal-India Process (B-I Process) under the aegis of the Indian Institute of Forest Management (IIFM, Bhopal). The Indian initiative has developed a national set of eight criteria and 37 indicators. These C&I are being field-tested in various states of India and are periodically monitored to assess the direction of change towards or away from SFM.

The present case study focuses on the importance and need of the C&I approach for monitoring the sustainability of forests in the Indian context. The conditions for operationalizing the C&I approach are being incorporated into forest management planning and practices in India. The lessons learnt from pilot testing of C&I, as well as their implementation, are being expanded in various forest types of the country in order to reflect their practical impact on the ground over a period of time.


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SUMMARY

The increasing biotic pressure on forests to meet the day-to-day needs of the people as well as to sustain industrial demands has led to over-exploitation of forests. The over-exploitation and rapid depletion of forest resources poses a serious threat to the livelihood of forest-dependent communities. The importance of SFM for sustainable development was emphasised by UNCED. SFM serves multiple objectives of forest management and encompasses ecological, economic and socio-cultural aspects. This case study is divided into ten chapters: Chapter 1 outlines the forestry scenario of India, the prevalent forest management practices in India and the level of dependency of people on forests. Chapter 2 deals with the C&I approach for SFM and the international initiatives towards this approach. Chapter 3 reviews the national-level C&I developed (Bhopal–India Process), their unique features, similarities and dissimilarities with other international processes using the C&I approach. Chapter 4 presents the application of the C&I approach in natural forests, non-timber forest products (NTFP), protected areas, forest certification and in trees outside forests (ToF). Chapter 5 describes the contribution of C&I of the Bhopal-India Process in India. Chapter 6 presents C&I for monitoring, assessing and reporting (MAR) on progress towards SFM. Chapter 7 describes the role of the B-I Process in forest certification. Chapter 8 presents the strength and limitations of using C&I for SFM and MAR. Chapter 9 describes the lessons learnt from the use of C&I for SFM in the Indian context. Chapter 10 presents an analysis of ongoing international processes to which India is attached.


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ABBREVIATIONS B-I Process Bhopal-India Process BSI Botanical Survey of India C&I Criteria and indicators CBD Convention on Biodiversity CGWB Central Ground Water Board CITES Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora CNFA Culturable non-forest area CSO Central Statistical Organization CWLW Chief Wild Life Warden DFO Divisional Forest Officer FAO Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations FC Forest Corporation FCA Forest Conservation Act FDC Forest Development Corporation FMIS Forest Management Information System FMU Forest Management Unit FPC Forest Protection Committee FRI Forest Research Institute FSI Forest Survey of India GFRA Global Forest Resource Assessment GIS Geographical Information System GoI Government of India GDP Gross domestic product ha Hectare ICFRE Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education IIFM Indian Institute of Forest Management ITTO International Tropical Timber Organization IUCN International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources JFM Joint Forest Management JFMCs Joint Forest Management Committees kg Kilogram m³ Cubic meter MAR Monitoring, assessing and reporting MoEF Ministry of Environment and Forests NFC National Forest Commission NTFP Non-timber forest products PCCF Principal Chief Conservator of Forest PF Protected forest RF Reserved forest SFD State Forest Department SFM Sustainable forest management SFRI State Forest Research Institute SFR State of Forest Report km² Square kilometre ToF Trees outside forests UNCED United Nations Conference on Environment and Development UNEP United Nations Environment Programme WII Wildlife Institute of India WP Working plan ZSI Zoological Survey of India


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TABLE OF CONTENTS Preface ........................................................................................................................................................... v Summary........................................................................................................................................................ vii Abbreviations ................................................................................................................................................ viii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION.................................................................................................................. 1 India’s profile ......................................................................................................................................... 1 Forestry scenario in India....................................................................................................................... 2 Forest policy in India ............................................................................................................................. 4 Contribution of the forestry sector to gross domestic product ............................................................... 4 Dependency on forests ........................................................................................................................... 5 Forest management practices in India .................................................................................................... 5 CHAPTER 2: CRITERIA & INDICATORS APPROACH FOR SUSTAINABLE FOREST MANAGEMENT........................................................................................................................... 7 Background ............................................................................................................................................ 7 Criteria and indicators ............................................................................................................................ 8 Role of criteria and indicators ................................................................................................................ 8 International initiatives towards C&I ..................................................................................................... 9 National-level criteria and indicators ..................................................................................................... 12 CHAPTER 3: BHOPAL-INDIA PROCESS ................................................................................................. 13 Background ............................................................................................................................................ 13 Developing the threshold values of indicators ....................................................................................... 14 Distinctive features of Bhopal-India Process ......................................................................................... 15

Similarities and dissimilarities of B-I Process with other internationally recognized processes...................................................................................................... 16

CHAPTER 4: APPLICATION OF BHOPAL-INDIA PROCESS ................................................................ 21 Application of criteria of Bhopal-India Process in natural forests ......................................................... 21 Application of criteria of Bhopal-India Process for NTFP..................................................................... 24 Application of criteria of Bhopal-India Process for ToF........................................................................ 27 Application of criteria of Bhopal-India Process in protected areas ........................................................ 28 CHAPTER 5: CONTRIBUTION OF CRITERIA & INDICATORS OF BHOPAL-INDIA PROCESS ........................................................................................................................ 31 Contribution of C&I for SFM in India ................................................................................................... 33 Present scenario of C&I approach in India............................................................................................. 33

I. Maintenance/increase in the extent of forest and tree cover ................................................ 33 II. Maintenance, conservation and enhancement of biodiversity ............................................. 34 III. Maintenance and enhancement of forest health and vitality................................................ 34 IV. Conservation and maintenance of soil and water resources................................................. 34 V. Maintenance and enhancement of forest resource productivity.......................................... 35 VI. Optimization of forest resource utilization .......................................................................... 35 VII. Maintenance and enhancement of social, cultural and spiritual benefits ............................. 36 VIII. Adequacy of policy, legal and institutional framework....................................................... 36

CHAPTER 6: CRITERIA AND INDICATORS FOR MONITORING, ASSESSING AND REPORTING................................................................................................................................................. 38 CHAPTER 7: FOREST MANAGEMENT AND CERTIFICATION........................................................... 49 Bhopal-India Process in forest certification ........................................................................................... 49 CHAPTER 8: STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF USING CRITERIA AND INDICATORS FOR SFM AND MAR.......................................................................................................... 51 Strengths of B-I Process......................................................................................................................... 51 Limitations of B-I Process...................................................................................................................... 52


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CHAPTER 9: LESSONS LEARNT FROM THE USE OF C&I FOR SFM................................................. 53 CHAPTER 10: ANALYSIS OF ONGOING INTERNATIONAL PROCESSES TO WHICH INDIA IS ATTACHED ............................................................................................................ 55 BIBLIOGRAPHY ......................................................................................................................................... 57

Tables Table 1 Land use pattern in India ......................................................................................................... 2 Table 2 Biodiversity profile of India .................................................................................................... 3 Table 3 Major international processes on C&I for SFM ...................................................................... 10 Table 4 Criteria of Bhopal-India Process and ITTO Initiative ............................................................. 16 Table 5 Classification of criteria of internationally recognized processes

on ecological, economical, socio-cultural and institutional basis............................................ 17 Table 6 Profile of Forest Management Units (FMUs).......................................................................... 22 Table 7 Annotations on criteria of Bhopal-India Process for NTFP .................................................... 26 Table 8 Annotations on criteria of Bhopal-India Process for ToF........................................................ 28 Table 9 Annotations on criteria of Bhopal-India Process for application in protected areas................ 28 Table 10 Operational framework of C&I for SFM................................................................................. 32 Table 11 Annotation and periodicity of national set of C&I, finalized by MoEF, GoI .......................... 39 Table 12 Developing people's indicators at FMU level.......................................................................... 52 Table 13 Criteria of international processes similar to B-I Process........................................................ 56 Figures Figure 1 Reserved forest, protected forest and un-classed forest in India ............................................. 3 Figure 2 Sustainable forest management ............................................................................................... 7 Figure 3 Framework for implementation of SFM.................................................................................. 13 Figure 4 Map of India showing project sites ......................................................................................... 21 Figure 5 Means of monitoring, assessing and reporting SFM ............................................................... 38 Figure 6 Integrated approach for developing standards for forest certification in India........................ 50


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CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

India’s profile

With a geographic area of 3.28 million sq. km, India is the seventh largest country in the world in terms of area. It lies in the northern hemisphere, the mainland extends between latitudes 8°4' and 37°6' north, longitudes 68°7' and 97°25' east, and measures about 3,214 km from north to south between the extreme latitudes and about 2,933 km from east to west between the extreme longitudes. It has a land frontier of about 15,200 km. The total length of the coastline of the mainland, Lakshadweep Islands and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands is 7,516.6 km (http://india.gov.in/knowindia/profile.php)

India is the second most populous country in the world and is home to around 1.027 billion people (2001); it contains about 16 per cent of the world’s total population and 18 per cent of its livestock population. Administratively, India is divided into 28 states and seven union territories. It has a common border with Afghanistan and Pakistan to the north-west, China, Bhutan and Nepal to the north, Myanmar to the east and Bangladesh to the east of West Bengal. Sri Lanka is separated from India by a narrow channel of sea formed by the Palk Strait and the Gulf of Mannar.

The country is divided into four regions - the Himalayan mountains, the Gangetic river plains, the southern (Deccan) plateau and the islands of Lakshadweep, Andaman and Nicobar. The Himalayas comprise three almost parallel ranges interspersed with large plateaux and valleys. Some of the highest peaks in the world are found in these ranges.

The drainage system of the country includes the Indus, the Ganga and the Brahmaputra. They are one of the world's greatest stretches of flat alluvium and also one of the most densely populated areas on earth.

The desert region may be divided into two parts - the great desert and the little desert. The great desert extends from the edge of the Rann of Kuchch beyond the Luni river northward. The whole of the Rajasthan-Sind frontier runs through this. The little desert extends from the Luni between Jaisalmer and Jodhpur up to the northern wastes. Between the great and the little deserts lies a zone of absolutely sterile country, consisting of rocky land cut up by limestone ridges.

The peninsular plateau is marked off from the plains of the Ganga and the Indus by a mass of mountain and hill ranges varying from 460 to 1,220 metres in height. Prominent among these are the Aravalli, Vindhya, Satpura, Maikala and Ajanta. The peninsula is flanked on one side by the eastern Ghats where average elevation is about 610 metres and on the other by the western Ghats where it is generally from 915 to 1,220 metres, rising in places to over 2,440 metres. Between the western Ghats and the Arabian Sea lies a narrow coastal strip, while between the eastern Ghats and the Bay of Bengal there is a broader coastal area. The southern point of the plateau is formed by the Nilgiri Hills where the eastern and western Ghats meet. The Cardamom Hills lying beyond may be regarded as a continuation of the western Ghats.

The climate of India is dominated by the south-west monsoon, between June and October, and drier winds from the north between December and February. From March to May the climate is dry and hot.


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Table 1: Land use pattern in India

S. No. Category Area in million hectares (1997-98)

1 Area under forest 77.4

2 Area not available for cultivation

Area under non-agriculture use 22.53

Barren and un-culturable land 19.03

3 Other uncultivated land (exclusive fallows)

Permanent pasture or other grazing land 10.91 Land under misc. tree crops and groves not included

in net area under cultivation 3.57

Culturable waste 13.88

4 Fallow land

Other than current fallows 9.76

Current fallows 14.36

5 Net area sown (agriculture) 142.02

6 Total reporting area 304.92

7 Area for which no records exist 23.81

Source: Ministry of Environment and Forests, 2004

Forestry scenario in India

India is one of the 12 major biodiversity regions of the world with a vast diversity of flora and fauna. The panorama of Indian forests ranges from evergreen tropical rain forests in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the western Ghats and the north-eastern states, to dry alpine scrub high in the Himalayas to the north. Between the two extremes, the country has semi-evergreen rain forests, deciduous monsoon forests, thorn forests, subtropical pine forests in the lower montane zone and temperate montane forests (Lal, 1989). India has 7 per cent of biodiversity at endemic level.


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54%28%

17%

Reserve forestProtected forestUnclassed forest

Table 2: Biodiversity profile of India

Taxa Number Plants 49219 Angiosperms (flowering plants) 17000

Algae 4187

Fungi 27000

Others 1032

Animals 89492 Protista 2577

Arthropoda 68389

Protochordata 119

Pisces 2546

Amphibians 240

Reptiles 460

Birds 1232

Mammals 397

Others 4499

Source: WII, 2006; MoEF, 2005

The forest cover of the country at present is 67.71 million ha, which accounts for 20.60 per cent of the total geographic area of India. Of this, 5.46 million ha (1.66 per cent) is very dense forest, 33.26 million ha (10.12 per cent) is moderately dense forest and the rest, 28.99 million ha (8.82 per cent), is open including 0.44 million ha of mangroves. To protect the diverse life forms a network of 95 national parks (spread over 3.8 million ha), 500 wildlife sanctuaries (11.79 million ha) and two conservation reserves (4,228 ha) were created in the country (SFR, 2005).

Figure 1: Reserved forest, protected forest and un-classed forest in India

Source: FSI (2005)

Among the Indian states Madhya Pradesh has the maximum area under forest cover, 7.6 million ha (11.22 per cent of the country), followed by Arunachal Pradesh (10.01 per cent), Chhattisgarh (8.25 per cent), Orissa (7.15 per cent) and Maharashtra (7.01 per cent). The seven north-east states together account for 25.11 per cent of the total forests of the country. The growing stock (i.e. the volume of


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wood) of forests based on inventory in forests and ToF in the country has been estimated at 6.22 billion m3 which includes growing stock of ToF (1.61 billion m3) (SFR, 2005).

The mangrove cover in the country is 4,445 km; of this, 1.147 km (25.8 per cent) is very dense, 1,629 km (36.6 per cent) is moderately dense, and the rest, 1,669 km (37.6 per cent), is open. West Bengal has the maximum mangrove cover (47.65 per cent) of the country’s total (SFR, 2005).

Forest policy in India India is a signatory to international conventions, agreements and treaties (e.g. CITES, CBD, etc.). The international commitment to protect biodiversity is reflected in the national forest policies drafted by India from time to time. The first forest policy in India was drafted in 1894; the second in 1952 and that currently in force is the national forest policy of 1988.

The national forest policy of 1988 envisaged the involvement of the community in the protection and rehabilitation of forests. The Joint Forest Management (JFM) guidelines issued on 1 June 1990 were a continuation of the policy objectives and setting-up of JFM committees to help in protection and management of forests. Participatory forest management is based on a usufruct sharing basis by enlisting people’s involvement in the protection of forests and development of fuelwood, fodder, small timber and NTFP. Various institutional structures like village forest protection/management committees were constituted for protection and rehabilitation of degraded forests. There are 106482 committees jointly managing 2.02 million ha of forest. Generally all village households are members of the committee and the nature of duties, privileges, rights and benefits differs from state to state. For the protection of forests the committees are provided with usufructs of NTFP and given employment in various works in the forests. JFM has been adopted in 21 states in India (1998). The seventy-third amendment (1992) assigned the forestry function to the village panchayats, including conservation, management and sustainable management of forests. This has been done to help political commitment at the grassroots level. The panchayats have been providing support to forest protection committees and also helping in the resolution of disputes (National Forestry Action Programme, 1999).

Contribution of the forestry sector to gross domestic product (GDP) The forestry contribution to GDP fell from about 2.9 per cent in 1981 to 1.7 per cent in 1991 and around 1.1 per cent in 2005 and 0.9 per cent in 2006 (CSO, 2006). This figure excludes the contributions of forest-based industries (which are counted under manufacturing), as well as the vast amount of products such as fuelwood and fodder, the use of which is unrecorded. The figure also ignores the contribution of environmental services such as water and soil conservation. About 7.5 million people, mostly in rural and tribal settings, are in forest-related employment. The declining trend in national income and the absence of reliable estimates of removals and value of forest products calls for detailed study to ascertain actual estimates, identify causes of decline and revise the estimates if necessary.


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Dependency on forests Forests provide tangible and intangible benefits to the people. Tangible products include wood and non-wood products. The wood-based industries, such as sawmills, pulp and paper industries, plywood industries, sports goods, vehicle body parts, etc., are dependent on forests.

India occupies 2.5 per cent of the total geographic area of the world (MoEF, 1999). This shows the enormous pressure to which the country’s forests are subjected. The demands for fuelwood and practices like shifting cultivation have caused rapid degradation of the forests. About 40 per cent of the energy demand is met by fuelwood. The estimated fuelwood consumption in the country is approximately 380 million m3. About 70 per cent of fuelwood is consumed by households and the rest by commercial and industrial units. Around 80 per cent of rural people and some 48 per cent of urban people use fuelwood.

In India forests support the needs of 10.27 million people. Demand for timber and fuelwood is around 64 million m3 and 71 million m3, respectively; forests are the main source of fodder and NWFP. About 0.174 million people are located in the vicinity of forests (MoEF, 2002). For these people forests serve as a source of livelihood.

The demand for fodder for the vast livestock population is met (30 per cent) from the forests. The fodder requirement has increased considerably over the years. The requirement for green and dry fodder was reported to be 817 and 615 million tonnes, respectively (IIFM, 2007). Out of 445 million cattle in the country, 270 million graze in forests; these animals adversely affect the regeneration, and thus the productivity, of the forests.

Forest management practices in India The working plan has been the backbone of forest management in India. Working plans have been in practice for the last 150 years; they are prepared on the principles of SFM and in accordance with the national working plan code (2004) and contain the strategies and management prescriptions for a forest division. Normally a working plan is prepared for a duration of 10 years and contains comprehensive details of the forest stock, productivity, pressures on the forest and appropriate management strategies to be followed during the 10 year period.

The working plan is divided into two parts. Part I - Summary of the facts on which the proposals are based - consists of eight chapters and deals with the status of the topography, forest stock, biodiversity of the forests, past management plan and related demands in the forest division. Part II - Future management discussed and prescribed - deals with the working circles, their descriptions and the silvicultural systems to be applied in them. This part also deals with the details of the expected yield from the forests as well as related harvesting patterns.

The working plan gives all descriptions of block/compartment boundaries, aspects, slopes and drainage, rock, soil and humus. Over storey composition, principal species - age class, quality stocking - and under storey proportion of species, density, under growth-climbers, weeds, grasses, regeneration of principal species; allotment to working circle, and periodic block; biotic factors, and any other thing which needs a mention, special treatment required, etc. (Kotwal et al, 2006)


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CHAPTER 2

CRITERIA AND INDICATORS APPROACH FOR SUSTAINABLE FOREST MANAGEMENT

Background SFM is defined as a "process of managing permanent forest land to achieve one or more clearly specified objectives of forest management with regard to the production of a continuous flow of desirable forest products and services without undue reduction of its inherent values and future productivity and without undue undesirable effects on the physical and social environment" (ITTO). SFM is necessary for maintaining the environmental and ecological balance, as well as sustainable livelihoods, since a large proportion of the population is dependent on forest services and goods. During UNCED at Rio de Janeiro (1992), world leaders adopted the first global policy on SFM known as the "forest principles". According to this policy forest resources and lands should be managed sustainably in order to meet social, economic, ecological, cultural and spiritual functions and maintain and enhance biodiversity.

Figure 2: Sustainable forest management

Source: IIFM (2006)


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Criteria and indicators C&I is the term used to describe a systematic approach to measuring, monitoring and reporting SFM. The C&I approach for SFM provides a time-tested monitoring and evaluation framework to gauge the direction of change towards sustainability. In particular, C&I may be used to encourage a holistic thinking when planning forest management activities, and to bring about greater rigour, openness, transparency and accountability in forest management planning, monitoring and reporting. C&I indicate the direction of change as regards the forests and also suggest ways to expedite the process of SFM. Criteria

A criterion is defined as an aspect of forest management that is considered important and by which SFM may be assessed. A criterion is accompanied by a set of related indicators and describes a state or situation that should be met to comply with SFM. Criteria constitute the essential components of SFM, i.e. the management of forests as functioning ecosystems. These include the vital functions and attributes of forest ecosystems (such as extent, biological diversity and forest health), the multiple socio-economic benefits of forests (such as NTFP, timber, recreation and socio-cultural values) and a policy framework (laws, regulations and economic measures) needed to facilitate SFM.

Indicators

An indicator is defined as a quantitative, qualitative or descriptive attribute that when measured or monitored periodically indicates the direction of change. It is important to note that no single criterion or indicator alone constitutes a measure of sustainability. It is the array of C&I that together, when measured over time, provides the full picture of the state of FMU forests and trends towards SFM. Indicators are ways of measuring or describing a criterion. The indicator associated with a given criterion serves to define what the criterion is and what it means. Many indicators are quantitative, such as percentage of forest cover. Others are qualitative or descriptive, such as indicators related to forest planning, public participation, etc. Both types of indicators are important for assessing SFM.

Role of criteria and indicators C&I are tools for assessing local and national trends in forest conditions and forest management. They provide a common framework for describing, monitoring and evaluating over time, as well as progress towards SFM. The interpretation of data collected from the indicators helps broadly identify whether management interventions are, collectively, taking a country towards or away from SFM. This interpretation would assist in identifying policy adjustments and suggest corrections needed to improve forest management. Thus the indicators determine the overall health of the forest. C&I improve the quality of information about the forests and impacts of forest management practices that are available to decision–makers especially the state government personnel and people in general. Thus C&I are tools to define, assess and monitor progress towards SFM. The ultimate aim is to promote improved forest management practices over time and develop healthier and productive forests, while taking into consideration the social, economic, environmental, cultural and spiritual needs of the stakeholders. C&I for SFM, besides measuring the sustainability of forests at the national level, also envisage the measurement of the sustainability of forests at state level as well at FMU or local levels.

The C&I approach to SFM provides a time-tested monitoring and evaluation framework to gauge the direction of change towards sustainability. Incorporating C&I in forest working plans would facilitate the execution of the prescription of the plan in a more efficient manner and simultaneously provide accountability to the system. This would also reveal the quantitative and qualitative attributes for the preparation of future management plans.


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It is crucial to collect periodically data/information on each identified indicator of the forest division, and a mid-term review during the implementation of the working plan would provide an internal assessment of the result of management prescriptions. Simultaneously the review would provide a base for preparing a preliminary report for the next working plan of the forest division.

International initiatives towards C&I

UNCED in Chapter 11 of Agenda 21 called for the formulation of scientifically sound criteria and guidelines for the management and sustainable development of all types of forests. UNCED adopted the "Non-legally binding authoritative statement of principles for a global consensus on the management and sustainable development of all types of forests ("forest principles")". These two UNCED documents laid down the basis for a major international exercise, which has been carried out under nine major regional processes to develop and put into practice the C&I for SFM. Governments and many other stakeholders had recognized the pressing need to reach a common understanding of what is meant by how to evaluate progress towards, and how to achieve, SFM.

These include the Helsinki Process (for European forests, 1994), Montreal Process (for temperate and arboreal forests, 1993 to 1995), Tarapato Proposal (Amazon forests, 1995), Dry Zone Africa Proposal (1995), Near East Proposal (1996), Lepaterique Process of Central America (1997) and Dry Zone Asia Initiative (1999), etc.

The various parallel initiatives worked largely independently of each other and it was soon realized that a certain degree of harmonization as well as improved communication and coordination between them could be beneficial. The Pan European C&I for SFM, which were developed under the pan–European Forest Process, cover boreal and Mediterranean forests in 37 European countries. At the third ministerial conference in 1998, six national-level criteria identified within the process were officially adopted and a corresponding 27 indicators were endorsed. Operational-level guidelines for SFM for further development were also endorsed. The Montreal Process on C&I for the conservation of sustainable management of temperate and boreal forests covers such forests outside Europe. The participating countries (12) agreed on a set of seven non-legally binding national-level criteria and 67 indicators. The possible elements for C&I at the forest unit level are also under development and discussion. The eight signatory countries to the Tarapato Proposal (Amazon forests, 1995) identified seven national-level criteria and 47 indicators for the sustainability of Amazon forests. Four criteria and 22 indicators were also identified at the FMU level and one criterion and seven indicators for the global level. In dry zone Africa, 28 countries participated, which originated in a UNEP/FAO expert group meeting on C&I for SFM (1995), and identified seven national-level criteria and 47 indicators. The Near East Process originated in a UNEP/FAO meeting on C&I in 1996; the 30 participating countries in it identified seven national-level criteria and 65 indicators, focusing on management of dry zone forests and woodlands in the region. The Near East Forestry Commission has endorsed and is closely following the work. The Lepaterique Process of Central America (1997) was initiated on the recommendations of expert meetings by the Council of Forests and Protected Areas (CCAB-AP) in collaboration with FAO. Eight national-level criteria and 53 indicators, as well as four regional-level criteria and 40 indicators, have been identified. The expert meeting was followed by two sub-regional training workshops and national seminars, which reviewed the applicability and availability of data and made recommendations on future implementation.


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Table 3: Major international processes on C&I for SFM

Process No. of

criteria No. of

indicators Applicability Place of adoption

Date of adoption

No of countries

Participating countries/regions

ITTO Initiative on C&I

7 57 National and FMU levels in humid tropical forests of member tropical countries

Yokohama, Japan

March 1992 59 Cameroon, Central African Republic, Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, Togo, Cambodia, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Thailand, Vanuatu, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Venezuela, Australia, Canada, China, Egypt, Austria, Belgium/Luxembourg, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom, Japan, Nepal, New Zealand , Norway, Republic of Korea, Switzerland, United States of America

Dry-Zone Africa Process

7 47 National level Nairobi, Kenya

November 1995

30 CILSS (nine countries): Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Chad, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, IGADD (7); Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, Sudan, Uganda SADC(14); Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia Zimbabwe, Democratic Republic of Congo, Seychelles

Pan European Forest Process

6 27 quantitative and 101 qualitative indicators

Boreal, temperate and Mediterranean-type forests in Europe, regional and national levels d

Helsinki, Finland, Lisbon, Portugal

June 1993 June 1998

37 Albania, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, European Community, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Monaco, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russian Federation, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom

Montreal Process

7 (non-legally binding)

67 Temperate and boreal forests in countries outside Europe, national level

Santiago, Chile

February 1995

12 Argentina, Australia, Canada, Chile, China, Japan, Republic of Korea, Mexico, New Zealand, Russian Federation, Uruguay, United States of America


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Process No. of

criteria No. of

indicators Applicability Place of adoption

Date of adoption

No of countries Participating countries/regions

Tarapoto Proposal

1 global, 7 national, 4 FMU

7 global, 47 national, 22 FMU

Sponsored by the Amazon Cooperation Treaty

Tarapoto, Peru

February 1995

8 Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, Venezuela

Near East Process

7 65 Regional and national levels Cairo, Egypt October 1996 30 Afghanistan, Algeria, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Cyprus, Djibouti, Egypt, Islamic Republic of Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Kyrgyz Republic, Lebanon, Libya, Malta, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic Tajikistan, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, Yemen

Lepaterique Process of Central America

4 regional 8 national,

5 FMU

40 regional, 53 national,

50 FMU

Forest management level C&I also identified five principles and two sub-principles

Tegucigalpa, Honduras

January 1997 8 Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Cuba

African Timber Organization

28 60 ATO member countries; regional and national levels; also identified five principles and two sub principles

Libreville, Gabon

January 1993 13 Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Congo, Côte d’ lvoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, Sao Tome and Principe, United Republic of Tanzania

Regional initiatives for dry forests in Asia

8 49 Dry forests in Asia; national level

Bhopal, India December 1999

9 Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand

A. The total number of countries participating in the international process is more than 140, because many countries are members of more than one process. B. Of the 59 member countries of ITTO only the 12 listed countries participated in ITTO’s C&I process. The rest of the ITTO member countries participated in other processes. India, Myanmar and Thailand are also members of the Regional Initiative for Dry Forests in Asia. C. CILSS: Permanent Interstate Committee for Drought Control in the Sahel: SADC: Southern Africa Development Community; IGADD: Intergovernmental Authority on Drought and Development. D. Operational Level Guidelines for application at the sub-national level have also been developed. Source: Castañeda, 2000


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Dry Zone Asia Initiative C&I

The Dry Zone Asia Initiative (1999) is applicable to the dry forests in Asia/south Asia and is supported by FAO, UNEP and ITTO. The nine participating countries identified eight criteria and 49 indicators for the sustainable management of dry forests in the region. India was also a participating member of the Dry Zone Asia Initiative. ITTO Initiative C&I

ITTO undertook its pioneering work in 1992 to develop C&I for sustainable management of natural tropical forests. These were revised to take into account the numerous developments in ITTO and internationally that followed UNCED (1992). Since 1998 ITTO has embarked on an unprecedented initiative to provide training to governments and private sectors in its member countries, through national-level workshops and projects, on the use of C&I for monitoring, assessing and reporting changes and trends in forest conditions and management systems at national and FMU levels. The ITTO Initiative was revised in 2005 with seven criteria and 57 indicators.

C&I help in identifying the main elements of SFM. They provide a means of assessing progress towards sustainable management and the ITTO objective, i.e. SFM of tropical forests and transparent trade in tropical timber from sustainably managed resources.

National-level criteria and indicators In India the C&I of the B-I Process are the national set applicable for the country in general. The B-I Process was an initiative towards developing C&I for SFM. The Government of India (GoI) has identified IIFM as the nodal agency for technical guidance on SFM in India. The SFM approach highlights the need for optimal utilization of forestry resources, thus ensuring a sustained flow of goods and services to meet the needs of present as well as future generations.

The process of achieving sustainability necessitates the participation of all the actors concerned in developing operational mechanisms as well as creating an environment conducive to facilitating the smooth functioning of the mechanisms towards ensuring sustainability of forests. To enhance the perceived value of forests and to assist in judicious decision-making processes that elicit adequate policy and managerial attention towards forests, it is essential that mechanisms be developed to estimate the actual value of the forests and provide this information to decision-makers.


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Indian Institute of Forest Management

One day Sensitization Workshop at State Forest Departments

Two days State level workshop

Two days Forest Division level workshop

Two days JFMC level workshop

Making Working Groups

Correspondence

Correspondence

Correspondence

Correspondence

Correspondence

Rep

ortin

g

Sensitization of Senior Forest

Sensitization of CF level officers at the

Sensitization of Related staff of forest

Sensitization of JFMC

CHAPTER 3

BHOPAL-INDIA PROCESS

Background The B-I Process (1998) was the Indian initiative to synchronize India’s SFM efforts with the rest of the world. It was conceptualized so that development of C&I for SFM in India would provide an effective way to set management targets in harmony with the national forest policy of 1988 and also provide a mechanism to monitor targets by providing feedback for ensuring the direction of change towards SFM. GoI constituted a 'national task force' in November 1999 that recognized eight criteria and 43 indicators of the B-I Process and recommended a two-pronged strategy for the adoption and operationalizion of C&I for SFM. In India, considerable progress towards SFM has been made through an IIFM-ITTO research project. It has registered considerable progress by developing and operationalizing a functioning system of C&I for SFM and by institutional capacity-building through field-based research activities and bringing about attitudinal changes in the stakeholders including the community. The national set of C&I was refined in 2005 based on experience gained during the field application. The purpose of revisiting the earlier set of C&I, through dialogues between all the parties involved, was to make them more robust and easy to apply in various forest types of the country at the field level within available resources. GoI has already opened a special cell for sustainably supporting and coordinating SFM activities in the country. It is envisaged that SFM cells will be opened in State Forest Departments. The national working plan code (2004) advises incorporating C&I in the preparation of forest working plans for the successful implementation of C&I for SFM in the country.

Figure 3: Framework for implementation of SFM


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The set of C&I under the B-I Process of SFM were developed involving a large number of all types of stakeholders across the country. Thus it is widely known and also adopted, keeping eight criteria and associated indicators in the Conference of Forest Secretaries, PCCFs and CWLWs (12-13 February 2008) for monitoring the direction of change at national level. These are suitable for the various forest types and other forestry situations in the country. They are also flexible for the development of a site-specific set of indicators (keeping all the eight criteria intact for the sake of comparison and identity) at the FMU level as per local forestry conditions. Most of the information pertaining to the indicators at FMU level may be collected through communities and the remainder gathered from forest department records. The indicators have a scientific basis and are simple and robust. Developing the threshold values of indicators There are various terms used for a standard, such as reference value, threshold values, desired future conditions, trends, etc. Some authors have suggested the use of the reference value because of its broader meaning. Threshold values are maximum and minimum values of a standard. Benchmarks are points of reference against which a measurement may be made and others may judge progress. Desired future conditions are desired levels to be achieved by the indicator. Norms are standard values, which have been established following some process whereas trends are based on assessment of trends (change in data values over time and rate of change). A reference value is an established (e.g. a legislated) standard, a known scientific threshold (e.g. as reported in scientific literature) or a benchmark established through a public process, a comparison with a range of variation (e.g. historic range of variation) or assessment of a trend that may be used to evaluate a measure or data element (Van Bueren and Blom, 1997).

IIFM, Bhopal, has developed a draft set of standard values called a minimum acceptable standard under the C&I approach for measuring of sustainability of forests. The minimum acceptable standard, or norm, defines the sustainable/optimum level of that particular indicator. This is the threshold value that needs to be achieved for an indicator for monitoring progress towards SFM. The indicators and their values may be standardized for developing the Indian minimum acceptable standard and defining them in four different ways as follows:

Published standard values The published values and data available from authentic sources may be used as standard value or minimum acceptable standard. The comparison of the yearly values of the indicators may be done with the published national/world average values to reach the acceptable standard value. Average values The indicators for which it is difficult to reach the fixed norm due to lack of a defined benchmark. The data of the previous 3-5 years may be used to ascertain the average value to be chosen as norm.

Values arrived at as a result of discussion among different stakeholders In some cases it is difficult to reach a concluding norm/standard value. Therefore the values are arrived at after discussion among the stakeholders based on their experience and wisdom and hence have been accepted as norm.


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Baseline values Baseline or benchmark is the reference point from which the trend or change is projected. With respect to SFM, this baseline describes the status of the indicators at the time of data collection. The first set of data collection undertaken in the FMU will constitute the baseline for the subsequent data collection. Future direction of change and progress towards sustainability may be assessed against this reference. The standard value of the indicator may be arrived at in this way. The C&I approach aids SFM by attempting to achieve these standards and maintaining them for all the identified indicators. Standard values help in quantitative analysis of the field data. The development of FMU-level indicators at eight FMUs (Forest Division) in the states of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. The importance of FMU-level indicators is that they are specific to a smaller geographic area, involving the communities and of direct management significance to the forest. This provides a tool for monitoring the direction of change and forms building blocks for adaptive management of the FMU. These indicators are representative of the specific ecological, economic and socio-cultural environment.

To arrive at the FMU-level C&I, the national-level C&I were filtered using the filters-relevance, applicability, measurability, assessment ease and aggregation. While developing the FMU-level indicators the criteria remain the same and only the indicators are adapted (modified, deleted or added) as per the FMU specific forestry scenario. The traditional knowledge and experience of the communities provides the basis for identifying these indicators at local level. Indicators so identified are simple, based on sound scientific premises, and involve minimum assessment costs. Once the local-level indicators are finalized the relevant information is collected from various sources in the predetermined formats on a periodic basis. A working group of the local community is assigned this responsibility. For each of the identified indicators a minimum acceptable standard/norm/reference value/standard value/threshold value/benchmark/baseline value is decided based on published data, the average of the last 3-5 years and periodic field observations. The observed values of identified indicators are compared with the standard values (threshold values) of the indicators. Following this approach, FMU-level indicators were identified, relevant data collected and analyzed and attempts made to develop a sustainability index. These observed values were fed into specifically developed software for this purpose under the project at IIFM Forest Management and Control System (Sudeshna et al., 2007).

Distinctive features of Bhopal–India Process Some unique C&I have evolved from the B-I Process so as to meet the demands of SFM in the country. In the B-I Process there are two separate criteria referring to productivity and utilization while in most of the processes of SFM it is expressed in one criterion as 'flow of forest products'. The two criteria of the B-I Process are: Criterion 5: Maintenance and enhancement of forest resource productivity Criterion 6: Optimization of forest resource utilization


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Justification and importance of these criteria in Indian conditions

Productivity and utilization of forest resources have been considered in one criterion in the majority of internationally recognized processes, but looking to the Indian scenario the utilization of forest products is more prominent. Therefore, in the B-I Process the forest resource productivity and optimization of forest resource utilization are considered as separate criteria, i.e. criteria 5 and 6.

Similarities and dissimilarities of the Bhopal–India Process with other internationally recognized processes All the criteria of the ITTO Initiative and the B-I Process are similar except criterion 4 of ITTO that comprises production aspects, while in the case of the B-I Process there are two separate criteria for forest productivity and utilization. Further, the criteria of the B-I Process are preceded by specific adjectives indicating the positive direction towards gaining sustainability. The criteria of internationally recognized processes, ITTO and the B-I Process are depicted in Tables 7 and 8.

Table 4: Criteria of Bhopal-India Process and ITTO Initiative

Criteria of Bhopal-India Process (2005) Criteria of ITTO Initiative (2005) Criterion 1: Maintenance/increase in the extent of forest and tree cover

2. Extent and condition of forests

Criterion 2: Maintenance, conservation and enhancement of biodiversity

5. Biological diversity

Criterion 3: Maintenance and enhancement of forest health and vitality

3. Forest ecosystem health

Criterion 4 : Conservation and maintenance of soil and water resources

6. Soil and water protection

Criterion 5 : Maintenance and enhancement of forest resource productivity

4. Forest production

Criterion 6: Optimization of forest resource utilization -

Criterion 7: Maintenance and enhancement of social, cultural and spiritual benefits

7. Economic, social and cultural aspects

Criterion 8: Adequacy of policy, legal and institutional framework

1. Enabling conditions for SFM

Source: IIFM (2007)


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Table 5: Classification of criteria of internationally recognized processes on ecological, economical, socio-cultural and institutional basis

Principles of sustainability Initiatives/pr

ocesses Ecological Economical Socio-cultural Institutional

Criterion 2: Extent and condition of forest (Indicators 6 )

Criterion 4: Forest production (Indicators 12)

Criterion 1: Enabling conditions for SFM (Indicators 11)

--

Criterion 3: Forest ecosystem health (Indicators 2)

Criterion 7: Economic, social and cultural aspects (Indicators 14)

Criterion 5: Biological diversity (Indicators 7)

ITTO

Criterion 6: Soil and water protection (Indicators 5)

Criterion 2: Conservation and enhancement of biological diversity in forest ecosystems (Indicators 11)

Criterion 1: Maintenance and improvement of forest resources, including their contribution to global carbon cycles (Indicators 2)

Criterion 3: Maintenance of forest ecosystem health, vitality and integrity (Indicators 6)

Criterion 4: Maintenance and enhancement of production functions of forests and other wooded lands (Indicators 5)

Dry-Zone Africa Process

Criterion 5: Maintenance and improvement of protection functions in forest management (Indicators 3)

Criterion 6: Maintenance and enhancement of socio-economic benefits (Indicators 12)

Criterion 7: Adequacy of legal, institutional and policy frameworks for SFM (Indicators 8)

Criterion 1: Extent of forest resources (Indicators 4)

Criterion 2: Conservation of biological diversity in forest areas (Indicators 11)

Criterion 3: Health, vitality and integrity (Indicators 9)

Criterion 4 : Productive capacity and functions (Indicators 4)

Near East Process

Criterion 5 : Protective and environmental functions (Indicators 9)

Criterion 6: Maintenance and development of socio-economic functions and conditions (Indicators 20)

Criterion 7: Legal and institutional framework (Indicators 9)


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Criterion 1: Existence of a legal, political, institutional, technical and socio-economic framework that promotes and guarantees the sustainability of forest management and the conservation of forest resources (Indicators 9)

Criterion 2: Forest cover (Indicators 2)

Criterion 3: Forest health and vitality (Indicators 3)

Criterion 4: Contribution of forest ecosystems to environmental services (Indicators 6)

Criterion 5: Biological diversity in forest ecosystems (Indicators 6)

Criterion 6: Productive functions of forest ecosystems (Indicators 8)

Criterion 7: Scientific and technological capacities for the development of the forest resource (Indicators 6)

Lepaterique Process

Criterion 8: Maintenance and improvement of the multiple socio-economic and cultural benefits of the forest ecosystems required to attend to the needs of society in general. (Indicators 13)

Criterion 1. Conservation of biological diversity (Indicators 9)

Montreal Process

Criterion 2. Maintenance of productive capacity of forest ecosystems (Indicators 5)


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Criterion 3. Maintenance of forest ecosystem health and vitality (Indicators 2)

Criterion 6. Maintenance and enhancement of long-term multiple socio-economic benefits to meet the needs of society (Indicators 19)

Criterion 4. Conservation and maintenance of soil and water resources (Indicators 8)

Criterion 5. Maintenance of forest contribution to global carbon cycles (Indicators 3)

Included in criteria 6 and 7

Criterion 7. Legal, institutional and economic framework for forest conservation and sustainable management (Indicators 20)

Criterion 2. Maintenance of forest ecosystem health and vitality (Indicators 8)

Criterion 1. Maintenance and appropriate enhancement of forest resources and their contribution to global carbon cycles (Indicators 21)

Pan-European Forest Process

Criterion 4. Maintenance, conservation and appropriate enhancement of biological diversity in forest ecosystems (Indicators 21)

Criterion 3. Maintenance and encouragement of productive functions of forests (wood and non-wood) (Indicators 11)

Criterion 5. Maintenance and appropriate enhancement of protective functions in forest management (notably soil and water) (Indicators 14)

Criterion 6. Maintenance of other socio-economic functions and conditions (Indicators 31)

Tarapoto Proposal

Criterion 1 Socio-economic benefits (Indicators 3)

Criterion 2: Policies and legal-institutional framework for sustainable development of the forests (Indicators 4)

Criterion 6: Science and technology for the sustainable development of the forests (Indicators 6 )


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Criterion 4: Conservation of forest cover and of biological diversity (Indicators 8)

Criterion 3: Sustainable forest production (Indicators 5)

Criterion 7: Institutional capacity to promote sustainable development in Amazonia (Indicators 4)

Criterion 5: Conservation and integrated management of water & soil resources (Indicators 4)

Criterion 1: Increase in the extent of forest and tree cover (Indicators 7)

Criterion 2: Maintenance, conservation and enhancement of biodiversity (Indicators 6)

Criterion 3: Conservation and maintenance of soil and water resources (Indicators 10)

Criterion 4: Maintenance and enhancement of ecosystem function and vitality (Indicators 5)

Criterion 5: Maintenance and enhancement of forest productivity (Indicators 7)

Criterion 7: Maintenance and enhancement of social, cultural and spiritual benefits (Indicators 4)

Dry Zone Asia Initiative

Criterion 6: Optimization of forest resource utilization (Indicators 5)

Criterion 8: Adequacy of policy, legal and institutional framework (Indicators 7)

Source: IIFM (2007)


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CHAPTER 4

APPLICATION OF BHOPAL-INDIA PROCESS Application of criteria of B-I Process in natural forests The C&I developed under the B-I Process have been applied in pilot sites. For the application of C&I, methodology was evolved involving communities and field foresters for development of site-specific sets of C&I (FMU level) that suit the forest types/conditions concerned. This is termed 'Local Unit C&I Development (LUCID)' (Kotwal and Chandurkar, 2001). The development of a procedure for evolving site-specific indicators is important due to varied forest types and climatic and geographic factors. While evolving indicators it is important to keep in mind their attributes. The indicators should have attributes like site-specificity and be representative, simple, robust, flexible and easily measurable. The evolved set of indicators has been field-tested with community participation in 12 FMUs in the four states, viz., Madhya Pradesh (six), Chhattisgarh (two), Gujarat (two) and Orissa (two), covering main forest types, i.e., teak, sal and miscellaneous forests. The relevant data on identified indicators of all the sites have been collected and reports generated. The application of this concept needs to be institutionalized by incorporating it in the forest working plan at the time of revision.

Figure 4: Map of India showing project sites


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Table 6: Profile of Forest Management Units (FMUs)

Name and location of FMU area (sq km)

Forest types

Management plan year

No. of JFMCs and area

protected by them (sq. km.)

C&I application

Jhabua Forest Division, Madhya Pradesh

21o55’30” to 23o14’15” N latitude and 74o2’30” to 75o2’30” E longitude Area - 1586.74

Southern dry deciduous type with sub-types of southern tropical dry teak (5A/C1b), southern tropical mixed dry deciduous (5A/C3) and southern tropical thorn forest (6A/C1).

1998-1999 to 2007-2008

JFMCs - 458

Forest area protected -1462.91

31 indicators

East Mandla Forest Division, Madhya Pradesh

22 015’ to 230 04’ N latitude and 800 22’ to 81011’ E longitude Area - 1201.49

3C/C2e Moist peninsular sal forests

3B South Indian sub-tropical moist deciduous forests

3C/C-3 Southern dry mixed deciduous forests

5A Southern tropical dry deciduous forests

1999-2000 to 2008-2009

JFMCs - 242

Forest area protected - 128.36

31 indicators

South Seoni Forest Division, Madhya Pradesh

21o35’37” to 22o 32’54” N latitude and 79o 15’56” to 80o 08’49” E longitude Area - 1193.27

3B/C1c Southern Indian tropical moist deciduous teak forest

5A/C1b Southern tropical dry deciduous teak forest

5A/C3 Southern dry mixed deciduous forest

5E2 Boswellia forest

2003-2004 to 2017-2018

JFMCs - 524


30 indicators

Harda forest division, Madhya Pradesh

21o54’17” to 22o34’45” N latitude and 76o46’52” to 77o30’39” E longitude Area - 1097.49

3B/C-1-c: South Indian moist deciduous slightly moist teak forest (about 5% of total forests)

5A/C1-b: Southern tropical dry deciduous teak forest (about 85% of total forests)

5A/C-3: Southern tropical dry deciduous mixed forest (about 10% of total forests)

2000-2001 to 2009-2010

JFMCs - 150


29 indicators

Sheopur Kalan Forest Division, Madhya Pradesh

250 20’ to 260 15’ N latitude, 760 30’ to 770 30’ E longitude Area - 2680.68

5A C1a Southern tropical dry deciduous teak forests

5B/C2 Northern tropical dry deciduous mixed forests

(i) 5/BDS1 Dry deciduous scrub type

(ii) 5B/E1 Anogeisus pendula forest.

(iii) 5B/E2 Salai forest

1998-1999 to 2007-2008

JFMCs - 145


29 indicators


23


Forest types




C&I application

(iv) 5B/E5 Butea forest

6B Northern tropical thorn forest

6B/C2 Ravine thorn forest.

Ratapani Wildlife Sanctuary, Madhya Pradesh

23Ο 6’17’’ to 22Ο 49’ 47’’ N latitude and 77Ο 31’32’’ to 78Ο 4’ 3’’ E longitude Area - 907.712

The forest of the sanctuary is classified as tropical dry deciduous forests (Champion and Seth, 1968) with teak and associated species.

1984-1985 to 1998-1999

JFMCs - 45


25 indicators

Dhamtari Forest Division, Chhattisgarh

31o75’ and 32o15’ E longitude and 20o 0’ and 20o 40’ N latitude Area - 2125.54

3c/C2e (ii) Moist peninsular low level sal forest

3c/C2e (iii) Moist peninsular valley sal forest

5B/C1e Dry peninsular sal forest

C3/a North Indian west Gangetic dry deciduous forest

3B/C1 Slightly moist teak forest

5A/C3 Southern dry mixed deciduous forest

2003-2004 to 2012-2013

JFMCs - 278


32 indicators

Marwahi (North Bilaspur) Forest Division, Chhattisgarh

810 48’ to 820 24’ E longitude and 220 8’ to 230 7’ N latitude Area - 1670.31

5B/C1c Dry peninsular sal forest

5B/C2 Northern dry mixed deciduous forest

5B/C2/E2 Boswellia forest

3C/C2e Northern tropical moist deciduous forest (peninsular sal)

3C/C3a Northern tropical moist deciduous forest (mixed)

1998-1999 to 2007-2008

JFMCs - 187

Forest area protected - 839.6

26 indicators

Godhra Forest Division, Gujarat

73o 8’ E to 74o 29’ E longitude and 22o14’ N to 23o28’ N latitude Area – 1105.91

C1 Dry teak forests of type 4A southern tropical dry mixed deciduous forests

5/DS1 Dry deciduous scrub

1998 JFMC – 146

Forest area protected – 247.75

35 indicators

Baria Forest Division, Gujarat

C1 Dry teak forests of type 4A southern tropical dry mixed

1998 JFMC – 202 34 indicators


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Forest types




C&I application

73o 8’ E to 74o 29’ E longitude and 22o14’ N to 23o28’ N latitude Area – 883.62

deciduous forests

5/DS1 Dry deciduous scrub


Ghumsur North Forest Division, Orissa

84o 21’ and 84o50’ E longitude and 19o 43’ and 20o18’ North latitude Area - 920.48

3C Northern Indian tropical moist deciduous forests

3C/2e (ii) Moist peninsular low level sal forest (20.021 ha)

5B Northern tropical dry deciduous forests

5B/C1C Dry peninsular sal forest (27269.522 ha)

5B/C2 Northern mixed dry deciduous forests (58336.801 ha)

5/DS1 Dry deciduous scrub (2309.146 ha)

5/E9 Dry bamboo brakes (57.230 ha)

Plantation area: 4,055.733 ha

1995-96 to 2014-15

JFMC – 166


27 indicators

Keonjhar Forest Division, Orissa

Area – 2328.78

3C/C 2e (iii) Moist peninsular valley sal

5B/C1e Dry peninsular sal forests

5B/C2 Northern dry mixed deciduous forests

1995-96 to 2014-15

JFMC – 232


22 indicators

Source: IIFM (2006)

Application of criteria of B-I Process for NTFP India has a rich resource base of NTFP that includes 3,000 species of plants, 1800 medicinal plants, 250 essential oil-yielding plants, 100 tans and dye-yielding plants and 120 gum- and resin-yielding plants. The quantity, price and thus value of both imports and exports of NTFP have increased, more in exports than imports, and is a good sign for the country. The benefits of such increase will be still more if these benefits trickle down to local people. This is very important especially when a large section of people living near to forests derive economic support from these products. Nearly 60 per cent of all the recorded forest revenue in India comes from NTFP. Most of India’s 50 million tribal people receive a substantial proportion of their cash and in-kind income from NTFP (it is estimated that NTFP generate 70 per cent of all employment in the Indian forestry sector), while about 200 to 300 million village people depend to varying degrees on products from forests (Shiva, 1995). The forestry sector, with 23 per cent of the country’s geographic area, provides 2.3 million person-years of employment. Of this total, 1.6 million person-years are related to NTFP. Most NTFP often provide employment during only part of the year because the processing of NTFP is still poorly developed (Gupta, 1994).


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Therefore, production and trade in NTFP receive attention in successive forest policy statements because NTFP are so important in the forest-dependent rural and tribal economy. The Constitutional Amendments of 1993 provided for transfer of ownership of NTFP from the state governments to Gram Sabhas/Panchayats (village assemblies) in states with sizeable tribal populations. Many states have specific regulations about NTFP production and trade. The prime objective of the State Minor Forest Produce (Trade and Development) Co-operative Federation is to save the tribal people, who are engaged in collection of minor forest products (NTFP), from inequitable trading with urban-based middlemen, in order to ensure fair wages and benefits, rationalize marketing of products, empower the community in managing its own affairs through appropriate institutional arrangements and sustainably manage the resources. Plant-based medicines for which knowledge is traditional and inherited in tribal communities ought to confer intellectual property rights on producer communities. It is unclear if India has the appropriate legislation to permit the registration of such knowledge, which may be used to advantage by communities if the private sector (or government) attempts to domesticate or patent the plant genomes or their products. The situation is complicated by the long period for which the phytochemical survey of India has been running - well over a century - so traditional knowledge may have been placed in the public domain before intellectual property rights were deemed to be commercial for indigenous and traditional people. Sustainable management of NTFP needs to address all such aspects. For most of the NTFP there is no management plan or silvicultural prescription, in the absence of which most of the species are adversely affected due to premature harvesting, over-harvesting and harvesting by destructive practices that damage the source/mother plants.


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Table 7: Annotations on criteria of B-I Process for NTFP

Criteria of B-I Process Annotations for application on NTFP

Criterion 1 Maintenance/increase in the extent of forest and tree cover

The extent of occurrence of different species of NTFP depends on the nature and type of the forest. The extent and quantity of NTFP would be good in a well-managed natural forest.

Criterion 2 Maintenance, conservation and enhancement of biodiversity

Occurrence of NTFP in different habitats and the large number of species with intra specific and location specific variations form the very basis of biodiversity at ecosystem, species and genetic levels. Therefore, appropriate management of NTFP inherently supports the conservation of biodiversity as well as the production of desired forest products

Criterion 3 Maintenance and enhancement of forest health and vitality

There exists dynamism between biotic and abiotic factors (natural, man-made, qualifiers) in the natural forest ecosystem. The ecosystem with a wide range of species is more stable, is resilient to undesirable factors and returns to normalcy (homeostasis).

Criterion 4 Conservation and maintenance of soil and water resources

The plants are directly affected by the soil and water conditions in a habitat and, as a consequence, affect such conditions. The occurrence of a range of species in an ecosystem creates good conditions for the cycling of nutrients from soil to plants and back, thus maintaining the soil fertility and moisture regime.

Criterion 5 Maintenance and enhancement of forest resource productivity

The ecosystem with rich species diversity is generally more stable and productive. The appropriate management of NTFP species is in consonance with this.

Criterion 6 Optimization of forest resource utilization

The utilization practices of NTFP need to be standardized for which management plans should be prepared with appropriate silvicultural prescriptions as per the plant part used as well as the species.

Criterion 7 Maintenance and enhancement of social, cultural and spiritual benefits

NTFP have been traditionally used by the people for various purposes, but over time, due to increase in demand, many of them are over-harvested and become rare. Thus the stakeholders, particularly the communities, need to be oriented towards sustainable use to ensure their continuous availability.

Criterion 8 Adequacy of policy, legal and institutional framework

There is a good policy, legal and institutional framework in the forestry sector that needs to be appropriately implemented.

Source: IIFM (2007)

It has been observed that most NTFP are over-harvested. There are a number of examples where the particular NTFP from a locality is severely reduced or almost finished. Some examples are: Rauwolfia serpentina from Bastar, Chhattisgarh, Chlorophytum spp. from Chitrakoot, Taxus buccata from some parts of the Himalayas, etc. One of the apparent reasons is that for most of the NTFP there are no silvicultural prescriptions or management plans giving the precise guidelines to control over-harvesting, enhance productivity and sustainably utilize NTFP. Some research has been done in this direction (Ram Prasad et al., 1999). Therefore, it is necessary that guidelines for sustainable utilization of each of the commercially exploited NTFP be prepared and implemented. In this respect the development of location-specific and appropriate indicators is necessary. Besides, there is a need for an effective legal instrument to stop illegal and over-harvesting of the forest products to maintain the in situ ecological status quo of the forest resources.

Trees outside forests (ToF)

The national forest policy of 1998 envisages "a minimum of one-third of the total land area of the country under forest or tree cover. In the hills and in mountainous regions, the aim should be to maintain two-thirds of the area under such cover in order to prevent erosion and land degradation and


27

to ensure the stability of the fragile ecosystem". To reach the minimum standard level set by the policy it is important to plant trees in areas other than conventional forests.

ToF are an important source of wood, other non-wood products and environmental services. Such trees include roadside plantations, woodlots, scattered trees in the landscape and trees in fields, home gardens and orchards. They not only play an important role in meeting rural people’s needs but are also increasingly significant in supplying the wood-based industries in India where about 80 per cent of demands of wood-based industries are met from ToF.

ToF also help in carbon sequestration, biodiversity conservation and erosion control. An estimated 70 per cent of the world’s dry lands are affected by desertification. To confront this situation, planting of ToF can immensely help in improving green cover, ease human and animal pressure on natural forests and provide services and goods that natural forests are unable to meet, including fuelwood, fodder and NTFP.

Application of criteria of B-I Process for ToF Considering the relevance of the B-I Process, its criteria may also be applied in ToF. However, the adjectives prefixed in the criteria may be given up because these are essentially for application in natural forests and meant to indicate the direction for management to achieve forest policy objectives. It is worthwhile mentioning that important parameters like the forest area, standing stock and productivity are less than the policy imperatives - hence the need for adjectives prefixed in the criteria (Table 7). The national-level set of indicators for ToF can be developed by a group of experts. These can be field-tested at pilot sites and necessary improvements included. For each of the identified indicators, threshold values also need to be developed that can be compared with the observed values to assess the sustainability of the particular planted forest. Based on the national set of indicators, site-specific sets of indicators may be developed by involving the stakeholders.


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Table 8: Annotations on criteria of the B-I Process for ToF

Criteria of B-I Process (2005) Annotations for application in ToF Criterion 1 Maintenance/increase in the extent of forest and tree cover

The forest cover in India is 20.64% and ToF are estimated to be 3.04% (FSI, 2003). The forest cover is less than the forest policy target, hence there is a need for increase in the extent of forest and tree cover.


ToF primarily are not a target for biodiversity conservation but, in order to maintain the ecosystem balance, other associated species (herbs, shrubs, birds, etc.) in situ with ToF would serve the purpose.


The health and vitality of ToF need to be maintained to achieve anticipated growth and productivity.


The growing trees require amicable soil and water conditions for normal growth and in turn also play a similar role in maintaining the soil and water regime.


ToF add to the production of desired forest goods, particularly timber and some NTFP, for which there is increasing demand.


ToF reduce pressure on natural forests by providing additional forest products.


Raising and management of ToF require the involvement of communities.


The forest policy supports the maintenance and raising of ToF to meet the requirements of such policy.

Source: IIFM (2007)

Table 9: Annotations on criteria of B-I Process for application in protected areas

Criteria of B-I Process Annotations for application in protected areas Criterion 1 Maintenance/increase in the extent of forest and tree cover

Natural forests are the habitat of wild animals and wild plants. The extent and quality of forests indicate the wilderness.


Protected areas are essentially meant for in situ conservation of biodiversity at ecosystem as well as species level.


The health and vitality of the forest ecosystem is indicated by the dynamic interactions between abiotic and biotic components and within biotic species (natality, mortality, predation, etc.)


Soil and water are important support systems affecting animals and plants and in turn are affected by them. Amicable soil and water conditions would support good forests and wildlife.


The forest cover, standing stock and wild animal population are important parameters.


The utilization of protected areas is for the enjoyment of people through ecotourism. There are a number of environmental benefits besides opportunities for biodiversity conservation and research.


In India wild animals and plants have been spiritually and culturally associated since time immemorial.


There exists a separate policy, legal and institutional framework for the management of protected areas within the forestry sector.

Source: IIFM (2007)

Application of criteria of B-I Process in protected areas Protected areas are essentially meant for the conservation of biodiversity at ecosystem, species and genetic levels, and wild animals in particular, for the benefit and enjoyment of people through ecotourism. The provisions of the Wildlife Protection Act apply on the notified areas and species of


29

animals as well as plants. As per the policy mandate 5 per cent of the land area should be in protected areas. There are nearly 597 protected areas as sanctuaries and national parks covering about 16 million ha. The National Wildlife Action Plan gives guidelines for the management of protected areas. The criteria of the B-I Process may be applied in protected areas as well, for which annotations are given in Table 9.


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CHAPTER 5

CONTRIBUTION OF CRITERIA AND INDICATORS OF BHOPAL-INDIA PROCESS

Contribution of C&I for SFM in India The C&I approach is being widely accepted as a monitoring tool for SFM in India. In order to operationalize the system, it is imperative that institutional arrangements be created for collecting, collating and providing reliable and valid information to ascertain the actual value of forest resources. The C&I framework, which is being executed by IIFM (B-I Process), has developed an institutional structure to elicit the required data from the field, with active participation of communities. This information system could be further adapted and adopted by forest departments into their existing system to provide a comprehensive picture of the status of forests in the country and other aspects related to them. The work in this direction undertaken under the aegis of the ITTO-IIFM research project to operationalize the concept of C&I for SFM is listed below:

a. Community participation: Ingrained in the socio-cultural systems and developed over many years, communities have a rich stock of indigenous knowledge, which is being incorporated into the system. Besides, communities are also primary stakeholders in the forests and hence their participation in the process of attaining the sustainability of forests is essential. The pilot testing of C&I is being carried out in 14 FMUs covering 76 JFMCs.

b. Development of simplified but scientific formats for collecting data: As there is a requirement for the creation of an aggregated database at all levels, it is imperative to understand the existing capacities (personal and academic) of staff of forest departments, particularly field-level functionaries as well as communities. Hence, simplified but scientific formats (reporting and data formats) are being developed that facilitate field staff and communities to provide relevant, reliable and valid information.

c. Capacity up-gradations: This is a nascent approach to realizing the actual data on the status of forests and has the constraint of a limited understanding and operational systems. Thus, it is imperative that the existing capacities of field staff and communities be reviewed and inputs provided to enhance their capacities, prior to which it is essential that they be sensitized about the concepts, need and importance of the systems. For the sensitization of stakeholders workshops/training have been organized at national (15 workshops/training with 506 participants), regional (20 workshops/training with 764 participants) and FMU (27 workshops/training with 1205 participants) levels.

d. Establishing an information system: This is essential to facilitate the periodic flow of the desired information from the field to the decision-makers. This involves establishing responsibilities and identifying responsibility centres. It also necessitates the creation of systems to comprehend the information required from different sources, i.e. parallel systems and organizations. Since the inception of the B-I Process newsletters (23), technical documents (23), working papers (16), workshop proceedings (24) and reports (29) have been published and disseminated to a large number of stakeholders within and outside the country.

e. Aggregation of data: There is an urgent need to establish a nodal point for the aggregation of data from all sources in order to have a comprehensive view of the status of forests and related resources. For this a framework can be adopted as represented in table 10. This framework would adopt a 'bottom to top approach', where all the information would be collected at community level and would further be processed and aggregated at higher levels on the state and national positions. A national database in the Ministry of Environment and Forests has to be developed.


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Table 10: Operational framework of C&I for SFM

Levels Organization Function Development Strategic National SFM cell

at MoEF, GoI

+

IIFM, Bhopal

National forest policy/national forestry action programme

National set of C&I (B-I Process)

National working plan code

Technical and financial support and liaison with state SFM cells

Monitoring, assessing and reporting on SFM at national level

National set of eight criteria and 37 indicators finalized as the B-I Process in accordance with the national forest policy

Incorporation of C&I in national working plan code in process

Tactical State-level SFM cell

State Forest Policy

State working plan code

Coordination with forest divisions

Monitoring, assessing and reporting on SFM at state level

State-level cells on SFM initiated to work as per national C&I with appropriate modifications.

Incorporation of C&I in state working plan guidelines.

Operational

FMU-Forest Division

Working plan of division

Development and application of C&I at FMU level

Monitoring, information and documentation

Refining people’s indicators to suit FMU

Incorporation of C&I in working plans.

Enhancing capacity

Grassroots JFM Committees (JFMC)

Micro-plan

Working groups at JFMC level

Observation, data/information

Sensitization of communities on sustainable development of forests

Evolving peoples’ indicators

Developing capacity for monitoring through indicators

Source: IIFM, 2007

Incorporation in the national working plan code: The working plan code provides a scientific basis for the preparation of FMU-level working plans. To operationalize C&I at FMU level, it is imperative to incorporate them into the working plan code. The B-I Process has been referred to in the national working plan code of 2004. After field application in 14 FMUs in six states and various forest types, wide and open deliberations across the country, the B-I Process has been adopted at national level in the Conference of Forest Secretaries, PCCFs & CWLWs, in 2008. Considering the importance of C&I, MoEF has constituted a national-level committee for incorporating C&I into the working plan code.

f. SFM cell: An SFM cell in MoEF was created in 2006 to coordinate SFM activities and act as

a nodal agency for the implementation of SFM in India; similarly an SFM cell has already been opened in seven states and similar cells are being opened in the remaining states and Union Territories.

g. Incorporation of C&I in academic curriculum: To train future forest managers in the

C&I-based approach, it is imperative to inculcate it in the course curriculum of environment


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and forestry-related education. In India the C&I-based approach for SFM is being gradually incorporated in the course curriculum of forestry-based academic institutions/universities.

Present scenario of C&I approach in India The present scenario of the eight criteria and their intended situation along with the present scenario is as follows:

I. Maintenance/increase in the extent of forest and tree cover

The increase in the extent of forest area could be both quantitative and qualitative. The shift of forests from its status, e.g. open to dense forest, would be a qualitative increase, whereas any increase in area of forest or tree cover would be a quantitative increase. Hence, this criterion would include changes in the status of forests as well as in the area under forest and tree cover. Intended situation: One-third of the total geographic area should be under forest and tree cover (National Forest Policy, 1988). Present scenario: The forest cover is 20.60 per cent (677088 sq. km.) and ToF account for 2.79 per cent (91663 sq. km.) of the total geographic area of the country. Analysis: ToF should be encouraged as an alternative tree source particularly in areas (districts) where forest cover is less than 33 per cent of the geographic area of the district. Very dense forest (with canopy cover of 70 per cent and above) is only 1.66 per cent of the total geographic area of the country, which is much less. The moderately dense forest (canopy cover 40-70 per cent) is 10.12 per cent, which should be converted to the very dense forest category. The open forest (canopy cover less the 40 per cent) occupies 8.82 per cent and the scrub area (canopy cover less than 10 per cent) occupies 1.17 per cent of the total geographic area of the country, which is substantial. The management and silvicultural practices must be directed towards converting the scrub to open forest, open forest to dense forest and dense forest to very dense forest. In fact, all the forest area should have dense to very dense canopy cover. It is necessary to increase the percentage ha of standing stock as well as productivity.

II. Maintenance, conservation and enhancement of biodiversity

This criterion caters for the maintenance, enhancement and conservation of biological diversity. Biodiversity would encompass species as well as genetic diversity in the forests. The total number of different species existing in a forest ecosystem along with the different genetic variation would describe the biodiversity of a forest. The well-being of any ecosystem is defined by its species richness and genetic diversity. Biodiversity is defined at ecosystem, species and gene level. Usually it is considered at species level and may be referred to as the number of various species of animals, plants, microbes, etc. in the ecosystem. Etymologically, maintenance is a means of providing a conducive environment through adaptive mechanisms and interventions to ensure that an activity or resource remain until perpetuity. Maintenance of biodiversity would hence be explained as the use of practices and interventions that would preserve the species richness and ecosystem constituents in harmony. Biodiversity conservation would emphasize the identification and checking of possible threats to the existing individuals or species of plants and animals in an ecosystem. Enhancement deals with improvement of the present status. Thus, enhancement of biodiversity would explain the betterment of biodiversity, i.e. increase in the number of species of plants and animals. Intended situation: At least 5 per cent of the total geographic area should be under protected areas (Rodgers and Panwar, 1988). Present scenario: There are 597 protected areas covering 155980.15 sq km, or 4.74 per cent, of India’s geographic area; 2.35 per cent of animal species are endemic to the country, 342 animal


33

species are identified as being threatened, out of which 89 species belong to mammals and 247 plant species identified as threatened. These species are vulnerable and exposed to various threats. Analysis: The number of protected areas representing various geographic zones and areas covered under them is quite near to the planned target at national level. However, there are a number of problems in most of the protected areas, such as poor habitats, low animal population, man-animal conflicts, anthropogenic pressures and the like, that need to be appropriately addressed as per the national wildlife action plan. Priorities for special protection and management of the endemic and endangered species need to be defined.

III. Maintenance and enhancement of forest health and vitality

Ecosystem can be understood as a community of biotic factors or the living organisms interacting with each other and also with the physical environment. Ecosystem vitality could be understood as the ability to withstand and survive extraneous disturbances and unfavourable conditions. The vitality/health of an ecosystem is defined by the continuous interactions between constituent biotic and abiotic factors. The ecosystem maintains this dynamic balance through naturally reproducing and introducing species and factors. Hence, to ensure existence of these intricate inter-linkages and inter-dependencies, they should be provided with favourable conditions and interventions made to check damages from external factors. This criterion deals with the health and resilience of the forest, i.e. its capability to resist damages or effects through any external factor. The health of the forest could be explained by its capability to reproduce and increase its biomass. The better these functions are, the better is the health of the forest. Forest health is affected by both natural factors, such as pest, disease, flood, drought, and human factors like lopping, grazing, illicit felling, destructive harvesting of forest products and accidental forest fires. Thus, this criterion envisages monitoring of both biotic and abiotic disturbances affecting the forest ecosystem. Intended situation: There should be 1500-4500 established tree seedlings per ha in the forest area. There should be no accidental forest fires. The forest areas that were recently worked, young plantations, regeneration (as per working plan prescriptions); protected areas, etc. should be closed to livestock grazing. The number of livestock grazing in forest areas (open for grazing) should not exceed the carrying capacity. Present scenario: The area under natural regeneration in forest areas has diminished in the country. The forest area affected by fires in the recent past was 283721.34 ha, or 2837.213 sq. km, i.e. 0.37 per cent of the total forest area. Out of the total estimated cattle population of 467 million (Sahay, 2000) a sizable percentage, i.e. 270 million, graze in forests that have a carrying capacity of only 30 million cattle. Analysis: To enhance regeneration, a strict demarcation of forest land should be made to protect the forests and facilitate regeneration. Forest fires must be correctly monitored, reported and needful actions taken to prevent accidental fires. Further, measures are needed to reduce biotic pressures, particularly excessive and uncontrolled livestock grazing, through providing effective alternatives, hence facilitating increase in regeneration.

IV. Conservation and maintenance of soil and water resources

The efficiency and effectiveness of a forest ecosystem are directly linked to the type of soil and available water resources and vice versa. Soil is considered to be the mother of all resources because on this valuable resource the forests survive. Besides, water is one of the most important life-supporting factors. Therefore it is necessary that soil and water conservation functions be assessed and shortcomings identified and appropriately addressed. This criterion helps in assessing the regulatory functions of the forests related to the soil and moisture regime.


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Intended situation: The dry forest areas with low or no forest cover and undulating terrain should be treated for watershed management and indicated by 'no or minimum silt load in flood waters'. Present scenario: According to an estimate nearly 12 million tonnes of top fertile layer of soil is washed into the sea every year (Schumacher et al., 2004), while (ICFRE, 2000) nearly a 305131.67 sq. km area is prone to erosion, of which 9549904 sq km are underutilized/degraded notified forest land. Analysis: This necessitates that the erosion-prone areas be brought under watershed treatment irrespective of forest, agriculture, revenue or any other type of land. Nearly 14369.17 sq km have been brought under watershed treatment thereby reducing soil erosion and ensuring soil recharging and availability of soil moisture for a considerably longer duration

V. Maintenance and enhancement of forest resource productivity

This criterion is concerned with management of forests for the production of timber and NTFP. Such production can only be maintained in the long term if it is economically and functionally viable, ecologically sound and socially acceptable. Intended situation: The national growing stock of wood should be equal to the average growing stock of wood per ha of the Asian average. Present scenario: The estimated growing stock of the country's forest is 4602 million m³ and that of ToF is 1616 million m³. The total growing stock of forest and tree cover is 6218 million m³ (FSI, 2005). The number of stems in the forest is 12252 million and the number in ToF is 5160, totalling 17412. Analysis: There is need to enhance productivity of forests to meet the growing demand. Initiatives have to be taken towards improving the stock through various research and development measures. Attempts should be made to maintain and enhance average production of timber and NTFP.

VI. Optimization of forest resource utilization

Pareto1 defined optimality as an economic concept. The Pareto optimality concept says that in an economy both players become better off without anyone becoming worse off, as against the concept of efficiency which says that individuals become better off at the expense of others becoming worse off. The same concept of equilibrium can be used in the case of forests and communities, i.e. resource and the users. Hence, optimality would mean establishing a balance between the use and production of forest resources such that neither of the players, i.e. the community or the forests, becomes worse off. Scientifically, it could be explained as harvesting the increment and keeping the forest capital intact.

This criterion deals with optimizing utilization, i.e. meeting the requirements of the people and their condition improving without affecting the condition of the forest. It explains judicious, equitable and sustainable use of forests and forest products. Forest products include wood, non-timber products and other ecological services. Thus, to achieve SFM it is necessary that the forest products be utilized sustainably in consonance with the carrying capacity of the forests.

With increasing human and development activities, forests have been severely fragmented and at many places degraded, causing the threat of local extinction to many wild species of plants and animals. By and large, people in India are not aware that our national stakes in biodiversity wealth are of the order of more than 89,000 known species of animals and 49,000 species of plants, of which 15,000 are known to be of medicinal value. Almost 3,200 wild relatives of agricultural crops and 131 wild relatives of domesticated animals are found in India. Our stakes also cover the endemic species of animals and plants that are found only in small areas and not elsewhere. These endemic species

1 Vilfredo Pareto was an Economist of the Lausanne School, Switzerland. The Pareto principle (also known as the 80-20 rule, the law of the vital few and the principle of factor sparsity) states that, for many events, roughly 80 per cent of the effects come from 20 per cent of the causes.


35

include 5,150 species of the plant kingdom and 1,837 species of the animal kingdom. It is estimated that 33 per cent of all these species are facing the threat of extinction (NFC, 2005). Intended situation: Annual collection should not exceed average annual increment put by the growing stock.

Present scenario: Consumption of fuelwood in India has increased from 78 million tonnes in 1996 to 87 million tonnes in 2001 and to as much as 96 million tonnes by 2006. There is a demand of 78 million m3 of timber out of which the major quantity (nearly 31 million m3) comes from farm forestry and other woodlands and only 12 million m3 from forests. The balance (70 per cent) is removed from plantations largely as small timber to meet domestic needs. The great paradox is that trees produce 70 per cent timber and 30 per cent fuelwood and therefore the accentuated demand for fuelwood considerably exacerbates the situation, leading to depletion of forests. The requirements of green and dry fodder are 593 and 482 million tonnes, respectively (FSI, 1996). In 2001 it increased to 699 and 552 million tonnes and in 2006 to 817 and 615 million tonnes, respectively. It is generally agreed that nearly 30 per cent of the fodder requirements of the country come from forest areas. Therefore, there is removal to the extent of 145 million tonnes of dry fodder and 178 million tonnes of green fodder annually from the forest areas of the country. This pressure is expected to rise further owing to the increasing trends of fodder consumption. Analysis: There is need for increasing the availability of fuelwood on the one hand and, on the other, provision for alternate sources of cooking energy to reduce the pressure on forests. Fodder availability needs to be increased and the number of poor quality cattle reduced to make the situation sustainable in respect of fodder availability and utilization.

VII. Maintenance and enhancement of social, cultural and spiritual benefits

Besides the economic values there are social, religious and cultural values attached to the forests. These are of critical significance when considering conditions in India. These values are reflected in the form of protected patches of forests and tree species in the forests. The value systems have been protecting the forests and trees and thus have to be maintained. Intended situation: The entire forest area should be under a participatory management regime. All the members of the JFMC should participate in JFMC meetings. There should be adequate representation of women as per JFM guidelines. Present scenario: Gradual progress has been made in creating community-based institutions, i.e. JFMCs (from 36,130 in 1999 to 106,482 in 2007), managing nearly 22 million ha of forests. Analysis: After having formed a large number of committees, it is important that they function in accordance with JFM guidelines. Necessary interventions must be provided in committees that for various reasons are not functioning properly.

VIII. Adequacy of policy, legal and institutional framework

An enabling environment and strengthened institutional structure are prerequisites for SFM. The policies and legal framework should promote and support SFM through various institutional frameworks, which could be elucidated as the available human resource guided by norms and regulations and other related resources, such as financial, etc. This criterion deals with the institutional set-up, human resource and other related resources, capacity and community participation. Intended situation: All the provisions of the policy and legal framework should be effectively implemented.

Present scenario: There are adequate policy instruments such as: National Forest Policy of 1988 (JFM resolution 1990, 2002), National Forestry Action Plan 1999, National Wildlife Action Plan, 2001-15, Legal Instruments, Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, amended 2002, 2006, Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980, 1988, Biological Diversity Act 2002, Biological Diversity Rules, 2004,


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Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981, 1987, Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, 1977, 1988, 1992, 2003, Scheduled Tribes and other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006. Analysis: There are very good policy and legal instruments, involving communities, for managing forest and wildlife resources sustainably, which need to be effectively implemented.


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CHAPTER 6

CRITERIA AND INDICATORS FOR MONITORING, ASSESSING AND REPORTING

The contemporary forest management practice requires inclusion of a comprehensive system to monitor, assess and report on progress towards SFM. The C&I approach for SFM has been recognized worldwide as a monitoring tool. In India eight criteria and 37 indicators have been identified to report SFM activity at national level. The criteria have been kept sacrosanct in order to maintain uniformity for data compilation and to represent the country’s scenario at national and international fora. The identified 37 indicators provide a basis to report the forestry situation within the given criteria. However, the additional indicators may be incorporated by the managers of respective FMU as deemed fit. Table 8 provides a detailed list of the eight criteria, indicators under each criterion and the description (annotation) of each indicator, the periodicity of measurement of each indicator, data source and the units in which data for each indicator have to be obtained. Data formats have been prepared for the periodic assessment of indicators in order to monitor the direction of change towards SFM. The data collected from the FMU have to flow to state level and be aggregated to generate a national-level report.

Figure 5: Means of monitoring, assessing and reporting SFM


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Table 11: Annotation and periodicity of national set of C&I, finalized by MoEF, GoI

Criteria/indicators Annotation Norm Data source Unit of

measure Periodicity Applicability

Criterion 1: Maintenance/increase in the extent of forest and tree cover 1.1 Area of forest under different forest acts/management plans

The national forest policy of 1988 stipulates that one-third of the geographic area be under forest against which the country has only 23.68% forest and tree cover. The forests are classified as RF, PF, revenue forest and un-classed forests. Efforts are underway to gradually convert all PF to RF.

One-third of geographic area should be under forest and tree cover.

SFR/SFD/WP Sq. km or ha

10 years (Preferably two years)

National/FMU

1.2 Percentage of forest with secured boundaries

Well demarcated forest boundaries are indicative of permanent forest estate (PFE). This would help to ensure protection against encroachment and other anthropogenic pressure.

All the forest areas are surveyed and mapped and well demarcated on the ground.

SFD/FMU Percentage of forest with secured boundaries

Annual/five years

FMU

1.3 Change in area of forest cover - dense, open and scrub forests, pastures and deserts, etc.

SFR classifies and records forest into very dense, moderately dense, open, scrub, etc. It is desirable to ensure gradual upward movement from lower to higher class (scrub to very dense). Reverse movement would indicate the process of degradation and unsustainable forest management.

There should be no reduction in the area of dense forest; rather, attempts should be made to convert open and scrub forest to dense forest.

SFR/ FMU/SFD Sq. km/ per-centage ha

Five years or as per SFR

National & FMU

1.4 Change in tree cover outside forest area

Tree resources outside forests should be encouraged as an additional resource particularly in areas (districts) where forest cover is less than the stipulated one-third of geographic area or where the natural forest area is declining (when it is more than one-third) so as to maintain the green cover at the existing level. This indicator will measure those trees that are perennial and will not include plantations of short rotations.

Tree planting needs to be encouraged on vacant land, community land and along road/rail/canal, etc.

FSI, Revenue Department, Lok Vaniki/social forestry/SFDs

Numbers or converted into ha land

Five years National & FMU

Criterion 2 : Maintenance, conservation and enhancement of biodiversity 2.1 Protected area network

Protected area habitats (ecosystem) vary from place to place. One habitat may be different from another and within a recognized habitat/ecosystem there could be more than one micro habitat favouring a particular type of flora and fauna and dominant species. Habitats could be desert ecosystem, forest ecosystem, wetland ecosystem, etc. Each habitat and ecosystem and within them the micro-habitats and ecosystems need to be recorded for their faunal and floral biodiversity.

According to Panwar and Rodgers bio-geographic regions (2000) it is desirable that a minimum of 5% of the geographic area and 15% of the total forest areas be under protected areas to reflect the existing habitat, species and genetic biodiversity of the country.

MoEF/WII/ SFDs Number of prominent habitat and their area

10 years National

2.2 Species diversity Forests provide a habitat for many plant and animal species. The contribution The existing species MoEF/WII/ SFDs Number of 10 years National & FMU


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measure Periodicity Applicability of individual species to the overall diversity within a community or ecosystem varies to a great extent. The coexistence of organisms that differ widely from each other contributes more to overall diversity than the co-existence of very similar species. This is because species that vary from each other are likely to have a different role, increasing functional diversity of the ecosystem. Functional diversity is thought to be one of the main factors determining the long-term stability of an ecosystem and its ability to recover from major disturbances. Enumeration of the plant and animal species and their periodic assessment can be helpful in formulating strategies for conservation, maintenance and enhancement of overall biodiversity.

of animals and plants of a unit area (PA/FMU) should be maintained.

plant and animal species

2.3 Genetic diversity Areas with unique genotypes of prominent plant and animal species are to be documented for their conservation and sustainable use. Instances of these types are found in different ecosystems/forest types (e.g. white sloth bear in Achanakmar sanctuary (C.G.), peculiar sized Emblica officinalis fruits of Panna (M.P.), citrus of Meghalaya, red sanders of Tirupathi range (A.P.), swamp deer of Kanha (M.P.), etc.

The uniqueness of the plant and animal species should be documented and areas protected for their continued existence

BSI/ZSI/ SFDs, etc.

Number of occur-rences (species) denoting the areas and their details

10 years National & FMU

2.4 Status of biodiversity conservation in forests

Management practices meeting the requirements of wildlife/biodiversity conservation (browse, water holes, shelter, cover, habitat improvement works, etc)

Appropriate silvicultural operations to assist wildlife management and ensure viable population of plant species intensively exploited

SFDs/WII/ BSI/ZSI

Working plan area and percentage of total forest area

Five years (preferably 10 years)

FMU

2.5 Status of species prone to over-exploitation

Timber species are harvested as per working plan prescriptions whereas NTFP are often over-exploited/destructively harvested. Prominent species prone to over-exploitation should be documented. Such species should be regularly monitored and efforts made to improve their status.

Harvesting level of such species should be notified and implemented

SFDs/WII/BSI Number of species.


2.6 (a) Status of non-destructive harvest of wood

In many areas natural regeneration is either absent or deficient. Felling in such areas should be aimed at improving the natural regeneration status. Unrecorded removals should also be estimated and accounted for in assessing the annual harvest. Harvesting wastage due to use of improper implements (e.g. use of axe for felling) and faulty felling causing damage to standing trees and regeneration to be minimized.

Areas where such problems prevail need to be assessed in terms of area and percentage

SFDs Ha/ percentage


2.6 (b) Status of non-destructive harvest of NTFP

Species that are over-exploited and destructively harvested need to be documented and the limit on extraction (period and quantity) should be notified for important species (aonla, safed musli, chirongi, tamarind, etc.). Indigenous knowledge with appropriate tools and techniques ensures non-destructive harvesting of NTFP. This should be regularly monitored to optimize the yield by adopting harvesting period, techniques, etc.

Maturity period and regenerative capacity of identified species should be recorded. Based on this information, and in consultation with stakeholders,

SFDs Number of species

10 years (preferably 2-5 years)


40


measure Periodicity Applicability harvesting time and extent of harvest should be fixed.

Criterion 3: Maintenance and enhancement of forest health and vitality 3.1 Status of regeneration Natural regeneration is a key indicator reflecting SFM. Adequate natural

regeneration ensures sustained productivity and continuity of the forest ecosystem and helps it develop into normal forest (growing stock). For this purpose it is desirable to place emphasis on seedling (seed origin), rather than coppice, regeneration.

Number of seed origin seedlings should be recorded to determine the state of natural regeneration (national forest working plan code). The numbers/range may vary as per FMU-level working plan prescriptions.

MoEF/SFDs Percentage forest area with adequate natural regenerat-ion.


3.2 (a) Area affected by forest fire

Forest fires cause considerable damage to the health, vitality and biodiversity of the forest. It may take a very long time to recover from the undesired effects. The reporting, documenting and periodic monitoring of fire incidence is important for assessing the state of SFM.

Forest fire management should be an integral part of the forest working (management) plan and efforts made to minimize and manage forest fires. It is desirable to have a forest fire reporting and mitigation measure in place.

MoEF/FSI, SFDs Area affected in ha or percentage of forest area burnt in each state/FMU

Two years (preferably annual)

National & FMU

3.2 (b) Area damaged by natural calamities

Incidence of landslide, earthquake, cyclones, floods, droughts and other similar calamities cause considerable damage to the forest ecosystem. Such incidences are rare but wherever they occur they need to be documented. Area prone to such calamities needs to be identified and mapped.

Frequency and extent of area affected should be documented for planning management interventions to minimize the impact.

SFDs and other organizations maintaining this information

ha Two years National & FMU

3.3 Area protected from grazing

Uncontrolled livestock grazing in the forest area may be detrimental to forest health and ecosystem vitality. It is known to be one of the most important factors in the degradation of the forest ecosystem. The national forest policy of 1988 and other documents recognize that uncontrolled grazing in forests is incompatible with SFM. Unregulated grazing affects crop (vegetation) composition and adversely impacts natural regeneration, causing soil compaction and consequently diminishing the infiltration capacity of the soil.

Forest areas under regeneration operations should be notified as closed area for grazing. In other areas that are open to grazing the

SFDs Percentage of forest area



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measure Periodicity Applicability number of livestock should be restricted to the carrying capacity of the area. For this purpose, the carrying capacity of such areas needs to be assessed.

3.4 Area infested by invasive weeds in forests

Invasive weeds are affecting natural regeneration and thus the productivity of the forest ecosystem. Apart from silvicultural operations it may be desirable to employ different mechanical measures (e.g. uprooting) to eradicate such weeds.

Proper control mechanism should be in place to check weed infestation.

SFDs Percentage area affected


3.5 Incidences of pest and diseases

Diseases and pest infestation adversely affect the growth of tree species and result in damaged and malformed tree crops. Defoliators and skeletonizers in teak and borer in sal forests, for example, have been causing serious damage to forests in many parts of India. Appropriate management practices to minimize their impact are available in forestry literature and are also often prescribed in working plans.

Forest areas prone to such damages should be documented and mapped in order to apply necessary control measures.

SFDs, FRI/SFRIs Percentage forest area and affected species

10 years FMU

Criterion 4 : Conservation and maintenance of soil and water resources 4.1 Area treated under soil and water conservation measures

It is desirable to have forest management practices dovetailed with the principles of a watershed-based development approach. Therefore, apart from silvicultural operations, it is also necessary to make an appropriate plan of action for improvement in soil and moisture/water in the forest area. Areas susceptible to soil erosion, such as steep slopes and areas in the vicinity of perennial streams etc. should focus on soil and water conservation. Such areas should have restrictions on tree felling but there should be operations to improve the water regimes and natural regeneration. Such forest areas are often put under a protection/soil and water conservation working circle.

Forest areas that are degraded/prone to soil erosion are generally identified in working plans. They should be treated strictly as per working plan prescriptions and their impact periodically monitored and reported.

SFDs, FSI Percentage forest area

10 years National/ FMU

4.2 (a) Duration of water flow in selected seasonal streams

SFM would result into better soil and water conservation regime which is reflected into flow of water in streams, which are coming out of forests for longer duration of the year. Apart from being useful to young regeneration it also provides water to wild animals during pinch period2. Regular monitoring of such rivers/ streams and their flow pattern would indicate the strengthened

Flow periodicity of major streams needs to be recorded at periodic intervals and should be mapped for

SFDs Number of perennial streams and duration of water flow

10 years FMU

2 Pinch period is the period when resources are scarce particularly the water and fodder for wild animals during the summer season in India.


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measure Periodicity Applicability path of SFM. national reporting.

4.2 (b) Water bodies and wetlands in the forest areas

Water bodies in the forest are natural wetlands that are habitats for aquatic plants and animals. Apart from providing water to wild animals they also provide other ecological services and offer ecotourism attraction.

Major water bodies (number and area) in forests should be recorded and pro-perly maintained

SFDs, FSI (imageries).

Number and area of wetlands in forest areas


4.2 (c) Water level in wells in the vicinity (up to 5 km) of forest area

Precipitation occurs in the forest area; it infiltrates and percolates in the aquifers and forms a base flow in low-lying areas. The availability of water in wells in the vicinity of forest areas measured in the summer months (e.g. May in central India) indicates the status of SFM. The seasonal/annual data collected from the wells within a five km range should be compared with the respective annual rainfall to understand the effect of forest management in the catchment.

The average ground water level in wells during the past 3-5 years should be recorded to indicate the state of forest management and rainfall pattern of the region.

SFDs, CGWB Percentage area indicating the ground water level at the existing or increasing level

10 years FMU

Criterion 5 : Maintenance and enhancement of forest resource productivity 5.1 Growing stock of wood This indicator is to record the wood stock of forest capital. It is assessed

during preparation of the working plan, in which also major forest types are assessed and reported. Enhancement of the growing stock of forest crop is one of the main objectives of forest management. Growing stock is the total standing volume of the wood per unit area (ha/sq km). Increase in the growing stock reflects the health of forests and consequently is indicative of SFM.

Benchmark/stan-dard (minimum acceptable standard) for growing stock of major forest types needs to be identified and the state of growing stock should be compared with these standards.

MoEF/FSI, SFDs Cubic meters/ha


5.2 Increment in volume of identified species of wood

Increment is an indicator of the state of tree growth, which depends upon different site factors such as climatic, edaphic and management practices, etc. The increment of important timber species is available in the form of volume tables from which the increment (MAI and CAI) can be calculated and compared for different time intervals and between species, also separately for natural forest of the same species and of plantations, looking to the techniques used in the case of pulpwood plantations, etc.

Increment of principal timber species in different forest types is available for comparison; such data can act as a benchmark for comparison.

MoEF/FSI, SFDs m3/ha 10 years National & FMU

5.3 (a) Efforts towards enhancement of forest productivity area brought under high-tech plantations.

This indicator records the efforts undertaken to enhance productivity of forests through the use of quality seeds, planting material, ‘best’ management practices and other inputs in afforestation and reforestation activities. Therefore, the extent of the area under high-tech plantations indicates investment in SFM. This approach ensures a better return in a

Area under high-tech plantations in each forest division and state and consequent enhancement in

MoEF/FSI, SFDs Area in ha and productivity in m3



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measure Periodicity Applicability comparatively shorter period so as to make forestry an attractive alternative

land use practice. This will bring more and more public private-partnership3 in high-tech plantation for better productivity.

productivity should be recorded.

5.3 (b) Extent of seed production area and seed orchards

Quality seed production is essential for raising high-tech plantations and also for normal reforestation and afforestation activities. Such plantations increase forest productivity.

Extent of seed production areas, seedling seed orchards, number of plus trees, etc. should continually be developed to meet requirements.

SFDs Area (ha), seed in quintal. and number of plus trees


Criterion 6 : Optimization of forest resource utilization 6.1 (a) Recorded removal of timber

This indicator records the removal of wood from the forests. Wood includes timber used for commercial purposes and also small timber for household purposes. Proper record of all wood collected from the forest either by the departments or in other ways by the community.

Annual collection should not exceed average annual increment put by the growing stock.

New survey/obser-vation, SFDs.

CMT or CFT


6.1 (b) Recorded removal of fuelwood

Fuelwood is the energy source of the rural poor, especially interior parts of FMU. Fuelwood collected by the department, community and others. For some communities it is a source of livelihood also. The fuelwood produced due to felling/harvesting should be shared within FMU.

Proper recording should be made of fuelwood collected from the FMU by the community. Only fallen and dead branches and twigs to be collected by forest-dwelling communities.

New survey/observation, SFDs

Number of head loads collected from the FMU and quintal or ton harvested


6.1 (c) Recorded removal of bamboo

Bamboo is collected by the local community for domestic purposes as well as for livelihood generation. The availability of bamboo is dependant on the efforts made by forest departments. Regular plantation of bamboo should be made in the JFMC-managed area based on the requirements of the community. The removed bamboo of an FMU should be able to meet local requirements.

Efforts made to meet the local bamboo requirement.

SFDs Number culms extracted/ distributed

10 years FMU

6.2 Recorded removal of locally important NTFP

NTFP are not only consumed by forest-dependant people but also provide them with alternative sources of income. Site-specific interventions are to be made to maintain the productivity of NTFP in the FMU. The practices for extraction of NTFP greatly affect the condition of the forests. The destructive

Annual collection of non-timber biomass should not exceed average annual

SFDs, local traders

Kg, metric tonnes


3 Public-Private Partnership describes a government service or private business venture which is funded and operated through a partnership of government and one or more private sector companies.


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measure Periodicity Applicability harvesting of forest resources needs to be checked. Usually the collection involves over-harvesting, premature collection and destructive practices damaging the resource base. The extent of collection can be assessed against the availability of forest resources, thus providing a direction for interventions to reach equilibrium between available forest resources and collection practices. Generally there is heavy dependence by local communities on NTFP for subsistence and livelihood (apart from commercial use) that result in unsustainable practices. The extent and variety of NTFP, such as grass and fodder, medicinal plants, food plants, oil-yielding seeds and others collected from the forests should be recorded.

production, and average production of the division should be maintained.

6.3 Direct employment in forestry activities

Apart from regular employees of the department, local people are also engaged in forestry activities. This provides an opportunity for local people to work in areas such as NTFP collection, fire control, protection, etc. Besides that, several schemes also generate employment, which needs to be shared with the local communities. There are some forest-based industries engaging local people, which need to be recorded.

Local communities should be engaged in forestry activities.

SFDs, CII Employ-ment generated (man days)


6.4 Demand and supply of timber and important NTFP

The demand and supply of various timber and NTFP largely depends on the requirements of people and market conditions. This indicator records the extent of demand and supply of timber, firewood, fodder and other NTFP, etc.

Efforts should be made to reduce the gap between demand and supply of timber and NTFP.

SFDs Production unit of various forest products and demand from local commun-ity

10 years FMU

6.5 (a) Import and export of wood and wood products

Under this indicator information on volumes of wood and wood products exported needs to be collected from various sources. The assessment is by simple compilation of national data on forest resource trade obtained from the relevant trade ministry. The converted or finished products can also be accounted for with volume and monetary value.

Export and import ratio of wood and products should be maintained.

Ministry of Commerce, MoEF, others

Production unit of various forest wood and products

Two years National


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measure Periodicity Applicability 6.5 (b) Import and export of NTFP

India exports a sizeable quantity of NTFP in comparison to wood products. NTFP are an important livelihood of the local community and need to be properly marketed to get premier prices for them. The market information system needs to be developed for that purpose.

Enhance the value addition and export of NTFP

Khadi Gramodyog, Directorate of Handicrafts, NTFP federation, MoEF

Value Two years National

6.6 Value and percentage contribution of forestry sector to GDP

The actual contribution of forests to GDP needs to be revisited with proper assessment techniques. Forest resource accounting is the one way of doing this. The current contribution of forests to national GDP does not give the correct picture. Both tangible and intangible benefits of the forest should be recorded and reported to provide the actual contribution of the forestry sector to GDP.

Efforts should be made to collect and report the actual contribution of forests to national GDP.

CSO Percentage Five years National

Criterion 7: Maintenance and enhancement of social, cultural and spiritual benefits 7.1 (a) Number of JFM committees and area(s) protected by them

JFM provides an opportunity for local people to participate in the management of forest resources. The level of satisfaction with benefit-sharing mechanisms is an important component and indicates whether the arrangements in place require adaptations or not. The frequent interactions with JFMCs will provide information about the desired improvement by the beneficiaries.

The forest area, to the extent possible, should be under a participatory management regime.

Forest department records, JFMC records.

ha Five years National & FMU

7.2 Use of indigenous knowledge

Indigenous knowledge is applied by many communities in the management of community forests (JFM areas) through micro-plans and the use of forest produce. Some of the local knowledge is often used in conservation and protection of biodiversity.

Different communities living in and around the forest have different types of indigenous knowledge. The extent of their applications in maintaining biodiversity and forest management should be recorded and incorporated in micro-plans.

SFDs/ comm-unity institutions

Illustration of use of indigenous knowledge in pre-paration of micro-plans and conserva-tion of bio-diversity and forest manage-ment. Extent of document-ation of indigenous technical knowledge


7.3 Extent of cultural/sacred groves

The extent of sacred groves, sacred species of plants (e.g. peepal, mahua, Khejari by Bishnois) and animals (e.g. blackbuck by Bishnois) indicates communities’ belief in maintaining such tree and forest areas.

Information on area/species and the communities

SFDs and community groups.

Area (ha), species and name of



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measure Periodicity Applicability involved in

conservation and maintenance should be documented and communities encouraged and supported in their efforts.

communi-ties.

Criterion 8: Adequacy of policy, legal and institutional framework 8.1 (a) Existence of policy and legal framework

This indicator deals with adequacy of national/state/local policies, laws, rules and regulations related to SFM and their compliance. Some of the most important legislative measures such as the Indian Forest Act, 1927, the National Forest Policy, 1988, the Forest Conservation Act, 1980, Wildlife (Protection) Act, Biological Diversity Act, 2002, FRRA, 2006 and other associated rules, regulations, etc. provide a broad framework for conservation and sustainable forest and biodiversity management.

The provisions of a policy and legal framework should be largely complied with.

National/state/ local level available.

Affirma-tive action


8.1 (b) Status of approved working plan

Working plan/management plan is essential for SFM. Its preparation, periodic updating and implementation have to be ensured.

All the forest divisions (FMU) should have approved working plan/management plan in operation.

SFDs and forest divisions

Affirma-tive action

10 years, as per guidelines in force from time to time

National & FMU

8.2 Number of forest-related offences

Forest offences are indicative of the state of SFM and therefore a declining number of offences reflects the communities’ participation in SFM-related activities. It also shows the effectiveness of offence detection and investigation. Forest-related offences are often a reflection of greater social/economic (demand and supply) dependence of local communities on forests. It is necessary to manage these requirements in such a way that communities are motivated through participatory management and not required to commit forest offences; the frontline field staff should also be adequately oriented and equipped to effectively manage the situation. Periodic field-level meetings/workshops involving communities and staff may help in managing the conflicts.

Number of forest offences should show declining trend.

Forest range records

Number and category of forest-related offences.


8.3 Status of research and development

Adequate attention and provision for investment in research and development should be reflected in the budget of the forest department (national/state). Appropriate manpower is important for ensuring scientific forest management leading to SFM (appropriate manpower is important for ensuring quality-based research and development meant for SFM).

Increasing investment in R&D by way of financial allocation, researchers and number of research projects.

MoEF/ SFDs

Amount, projects, technology transferred


8.4 Human resource capacity It is imperative to have a competent human resource for SFM. Identification Adequate and MoEF/SFDs Number of F years (better National & FMU


47


measure Periodicity Applicability building efforts of appropriate institutions for development of curriculum and imparting

training to different levels of forest officials and other stakeholders is needed.

appropriate training modules for each level of officials and communities and other stakeholders are to be planned.

training pro-grammes, partici-pants and expendi-ture.

to be monitored annually)

8.5 (a) Forest resource accounting

FRA is a new concept being tried to reflect the true values of forest goods and services. To the extent possible the indicator would briefly describe the estimated contribution/value of recorded as well as unrecorded tangible/intangible benefits from forests. A detailed field manual should be prepared for this purpose.

Detailed data on different products and services and their values should be maintained as per the valuation methods in accordance with the guidelines of MoEF.

MoEF/ SFDs Volume/ number/ monitory values.


8.5 (b) Budgetary allocations to the forestry sector

Adequate budgetary provision would indicate the state of forest management. Apart from allocation from MoEF and other central ministries, state governments should commit funds as per the requirement reflected in the working plan and other specific projects developed for particular areas/problems.

Budget allocation should be as per the requirement given in the working plan.

MoEF, SFD Amount Five years (desirable every year)

National & FMU

8.6 Monitoring and evaluation mechanisms of forestry development activities

Monitoring and evaluation would indicate the direction of change in respect of different C&I recorded at prescribed time intervals.

Evaluation of changes as per the prescribed norms.

MoEF and SFD records

As per indicators


8.7 Status of data collection, information dissemination and utilization

There is a need to have a system of data collection, collation and analysis for forest management governance. The existing mechanism has to be strengthened to ensure development of a reliable data bank. A wide range of mechanisms is needed to disseminate the information pertaining to SFM among different stakeholders.

MoEF/SFDs should have an effective institutional mechanism for the purpose.

MoEF/SFDs As per the require-ment

Five years

8.8 Adequate manpower in FMU

a) In addition to forestry staff there is a need to have subject matter specialists to assist in forest management.

b) Regular recruitment of field personnel is required to replenish the cadre and inject young manpower.

c) Women foresters are required at each level in FMU to match the changing socio-economic scenario.

Proper balance of age and gender in the existing hierarchy.

MoEF/SFDs/ FMUs

Number of personnel and ratio

Five years


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CHAPTER 7

FOREST MANAGEMENT AND CERTIFICATION

B-I Process in forest certification Forest certification is a means of protecting forests through the promotion of better and responsible forest management. It provides a third party assurance that forestry operations meet the standards set by the certifying authority. Forests are hence evaluated based on the defined set of standards and certified by an independent, qualified auditor. Further certification is a market-based tool that provides the capacity to customers to select commodities based on their social and environmental concerns. This market opportunity has been a driving force in promoting SFM. The criteria of the B-I Process provide a sound basis for potential forest certification in India. The provisions under this process have some semblance to most of the international certification schemes, particularly the programme for endorsement of forest certification. Integrated approach for developing and operationalizing forest certification

• The criteria of the B-I Process for sustainable management of natural forests, ToF and NTFP. • Development by groups of experts of a separate national set of indicators for each of these. • Development of site-specific sets of indicators involving communities and other stakeholders. • Development of the threshold values of the identified indicators. • Field-testing of the indicators at pilot sites. • Improvements in the indicators/threshold values based on field experiences. • Periodic observations and collection of relevant data on the identified indicators. • Comparison of the observed data with the threshold values and development of the

sustainability index. Considering the importance of forest certification in India, MoEF constituted three committees, viz. certification criteria, certification processes, accreditation criteria and processes.


49

Figure 6: Integrated approach for developing standards for forest certification in India

Principles (3)

Criteria (8)

Indicators and verifiers National level

Indicators and verifiers

FMU level

Source: IIFM (2007)

Ecological security

The extent of forest and tree cover Biodiversity Forest ecosystem function and vitality Soil and water resources

Economic viability Social acceptability

Forest resource productivity, Forest resource utilization Social, cultural and spiritual benefits

Policy, legal and institutional framework

Natural forests 37 indicators developed

Trees outside forest (ToF) Indicators to be developed

NTFP Indicators to be developed

Protected areas Indicators to be developed

Natural forests Methodology developed and applied

Trees outside forests (ToF)

t b d l d

NTFP to be developed

Protected areas to be developed

MoEF & IIFM Expert group Expert group Expert group + + +


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CHAPTER 8

STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF USING C&I FOR SFM AND MAR

Strengths of B-I Process • Developed by involvement of a large number and all types of stakeholders across the country

and thus has wide acceptability. • In consonance with Indian forest policy. • Recognized by GoI in 1999 by constituting a national task force on SFM. • Is similar to the recognized international initiatives of SFM. • Suitable to Indian forestry situations. • Encompasses all three aspects of sustainability, i.e. ecological, economic and socio-cultural. • Developed operational strategy and field application model. • Flexible for development of site-specific set of indicators according to specific forestry

situation at FMU level. • Bottom-up approach involving communities. • The indicators are simple, scientifically robust and the relevant data/information may be

collected by involving communities at FMU level. • Does not require technology, high expenditure. • Incorporated in the national working plan code 2004 in which most of the indicators are

already covered and for which the data/information are already collected during preparation of the working plans.

• Standardized the methodology for development of site-specific indicators involving the communities.

• Developed the threshold values for the identified indicators by which comparisons may be made of the observed data to assess sustainability.

• Applied at FMU level at 12 sites in three major tropical forest types in the country viz. teak, sal and miscellaneous.

• Developed and disseminated relevant documents to the stakeholders such as illustrated manual (bilingual Hindi and English), training manual (English and Hindi versions), first report on the application of C&I at eight FMUs, sustainable forestry development, country report on C&I, etc.

• A large number and variety of stakeholders across the country have been sensitized on C&I for SFM of B-I Process since 1999 and thus the people in the forestry sector of India are well informed on the subject.

Peoples’ indicators Communities were sensitized during field-based workshops that were well attended by them. The concept of good forest, bad forest, forest goods and services, conservation and social aspects attached to the forest, etc. were discussed with community members during the sensitization workshops. Different pedagogy, such as games, exercises, field visit, etc. were used to convey the various aspects of forest management and needs for a practically feasible system for monitoring the sustainability of forests. Participating community members were facilitated for focused group discussion in order to arrive at the draft set of indicators based on the national set of eight criteria and associated indicators. These are subjected to field validation by visits of the groups to the nearby forests. Thus the people’s indicators are evolved. These have a scientific basis and are simple such that community members are able to observe and record the data/information. These are discussed with forest officials for refinements. Working groups comprising communities and front line foresters are formed at FMU level for periodic recording of the data/information of the identified indicators. These are communicated to forest officials for further analysis to work out the sustainability of forests at FMU level as well as necessary corrective measures.


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Table 12: Developing people’s indicators at FMU level

Process Objective Tools Outcome

Sensitization of C&I of B-I Process

Orientation towards need for assessing direction of change, understanding concept of SFM and C&I

Facilitated discussions, context specific and local analogies, games highlighting the ever-growing existence of forests and sustainable availability of forest goods and services

Understanding working definition of SFM, need and importance of C&I as monitoring tools for SFM

Participatory development of FMU-level indicators

Evolve FMU-level site indicators based on local knowledge and experience, involving all actors

Focused group discussions, brain storming sessions, presentation and discussion

Draft set of FMU-level indicators

Field validation of draft set of indicators

Field verification of draft indicators

Field visits, transects, presentation and discussion

Draft indicators are verified, locally relevant indicators based on local knowledge and experience

Communication of evolved C&I to authorities

Refinement of evolved C&I as per objectives of management

Discussion, presentation with higher authorities on evolved C&I

Finalization of FMU-level indicators by the authorities

Limitations of B-I Process An attempt has been made to collect relevant data/information available from various sources; these have been arranged according to different indicators of the B-I Process. It is worthwhile mentioning that these data were not originally collected in the context of indicators of the B-I Process and therefore it is difficult to process them for the development of a sustainability index of forests in the country. Most of the data are considered to be reliable and data sources have been invariably quoted. Even though there has been an effort to collect data and information as comprehensively as possible, there are still some limitations that exist and need to be overcome. There are several gaps where the data are not available at national level. Some data are also not updated from time to time. Therefore, the data are not sequential. 1) Not all the data are available on a temporal basis, which acts as a limitation in presenting a

comparative picture of the information available. These data are available for small periods or may be available for a particular year and not for the other.

2) Some of the criteria require a subjective description, which may not be accurate or similar if analyzed from different perspectives. Some of the descriptions may not be relevant from the point of view of representing a picture at the national level, as what may be relevant at the state or local level may not be similarly important at the national level.

3) There will always be a question mark on the reliability and authenticity of data; data of one issue if collected from different secondary sources may tend to differ. This difference becomes a source of distortion in data availability and the relative authenticity becomes a questionable issue.

4) There is a lack of research in some of the aspects related to some of the forest products like NTFP and production-related issues like wastages. These issues have not been given adequate space in the accounting as well as the recording process. There is need of research to account for the production and waste-related issues.

In order to avoid and fill these gaps, there has to be a system in place that would institutionalize the process of collection, analysis and aggregation of information at national level in the framework of the B-I Process for SFM. This would further strengthen the cause of SFM in the country.


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CHAPTER 9

LESSONS LEARNT FROM THE USE OF C&I FOR SFM

Project documentation

All the project activities have been documented through technical and illustrated documents. Various documents have been published, such as workshop proceedings, training manuals and guidelines prepared for the FMU level in English and Hindi. The other local languages, like Gujarati and Oriya, are under preparation to make them more useful in respective states. The lesson learnt from this implementation is that more material needs to be developed for the capacity-building of the community as well as teaching in educational institutes.

Monitoring and evaluation; quality of project planning

The project has successfully introduced a community-based monitoring system of forestry resources, thereby enabling communities to monitor the forests and take management-related decisions for ensuring sustainability. Regular monitoring being done at the community level, and the resulting information, is generated and published in the form of reports. Standards and guidelines for monitoring and evaluation through sub-contract (consultancy assignment) were done by a national consultant. A consultancy report has been prepared and submitted, which contains the guidelines for implementation of the C&I approach to forest management and forest resource accounting. The FRA report highlights the conventional system of FRA and the possible distortions therein. Based on field experience and compilation of FMU-level data the report proposed that a site-specific FRA system be established that would take account of all the forest benefits to society. The participatory monitoring and evaluation of the project were subcontracted to a non-governmental organization, which has submitted a report.

Actions to be taken to avoid variations between planned and actual implementation (schedule, costs, etc.)

There has not been much variation between planned and actual implementation of activities, except that some were extended due to their nature and are required to be continued in the extended project document to achieve the objectives of the project. The schedule of different activities undertaken, costs, etc. have been prepared in the extended project document. There may be variation in the cost depending on the situation, 'price index' and strategy/approach for undertaking the activity concerned. The executing agency has been very meticulous in expending the money to carry out the scheduled activities without compromising the quality and therefore the actual expenditure has been considerably low as against that planned. The extended project document contains activities that are to be continued/undertaken for eighteen months using the unspent amount.

External factors that influenced project implementation and that could have been foreseen

There was full support from SFDs and GoI. The involvement of forest frontline staff and forest officials in the implementation of the project is one of the external factors that have favourably affected its implementation. There was adequate support and enthusiasm at the execution level among the forest department personnel. There was direct involvement of the communities in the implementation of other activities in the 12 project sites spread over four states. Moreover, the other states are also coming forward to initiate C&I in their respective states. This is another dimension and work-load to technically support such states. External factors that influenced project implementation and that could not have been foreseen

Some of the activities were sub-contracted to outside agencies. The project considered a set of conditions before sub-contracting that led to these assignments being sub-contracted to reputed organizations and eminent resource persons. There have been frequent interactions between project personnel and the sub-contracting resource persons to ensure the desired activities. The IIFM project team is encouraging SFDs to initiate the activity and necessary supportive documents are being shared and sent to policy-makers for sensitizing


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55

CHAPTER 10

ANALYSIS OF ONGOING INTERNATIONAL PROCESSES TO WHICH INDIA IS ATTACHED

The B–I Process for SFM is similar to internationally recognised ITTO and the Dry Zone Asia Initiatives on C&I for SFM. ITTO initiated the C&I approach and guidelines for SFM, which has prompted the development of other such international/regional processes to monitor, assess and report on a nation’s forest situation. ITTO is an intergovernmental organization promoting conservation and sustainable management as well as the use and trade of tropical forest resources. Its 60 members represent about 80 per cent of the world's tropical forests and 90 per cent of the global tropical timber trade. The ITTO Initiative provides the necessary tools for assessing problems and suggesting appropriate solutions for the sustainable management of tropical forests

In 1987 ITTO commissioned IIED (International Institute for Environment and Development) to undertake a study, 'Natural forest management for sustainable timber production'. It was recognized that, if the management of a nation's forest estate were to be environmentally and socially acceptable, many issues had to be addressed apart from the sustained yield of timber. Some of these issues were national: the allocation of land for various uses, policies governing timber concessions and the reinvestment of parts of timber revenue in forest management, FMU inventory, methods of harvesting, silviculture, measures for soil conservation, conservation of biological diversity and consultation with and involvement of indigenous people and local communities.

ITTO recently revised its criteria for SFM of tropical moist forests, originally published and endorsed by its member countries in 1992. The ITTO document 'Criteria and indicators for the measurement of sustainable management of natural tropical forests', endorsed in 1999, identified seven criteria and 66 indicators applicable at both national and FMU levels. At its twenty-eighth session (May 2000, Lima, Peru), ITTO’s International Tropical Timber Council recognized the need to continue field-testing of C&I in order better to promote and assist countries and initiatives to implement these forest management tools. The Dry Zone Asia Initiative originated in a workshop on national-level C&I for the sustainable management of dry forests in Asia/south Asia, held in Bhopal, India, in December 1999 and supported by FAO, UNEP and ITTO. Nine countries participated and identified eight national-level criteria and 49 indicators for the sustainable management of dry forests in the region. The action plan commits participating countries to seek political and technical support from national forestry authorities for its implementation.


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Table 13: Criteria of international processes similar to B-I Process

ITTO Initiative Dry Zone Asia Process Bhopal-India Process

1. Enabling conditions for SFM Criterion 8: Adequacy of policy, legal and institutional framework

Criterion 8: Adequacy of policy, legal and institutional framework

2. Extent and condition of forests Criterion 1: Increase in the extent of forest and tree cover

Criterion 1: Maintenance/increase in the extent of forest and tree cover

3. Forest ecosystem and health Criterion 4: Maintenance and enhancement of ecosystem and vitality

Criterion 3: Maintenance and enhancement of forest health and vitality

4. Forest production Criterion 5 : Maintenance and enhancement of forest productivity

Criterion 5 : Maintenance and enhancement of forest resource productivity

5. Biological diversity Criterion 2: Maintenance, conservation and enhancement of biodiversity

Criterion 2: Maintenance, conservation and enhancement of biodiversity

6. Soil and water protection Criterion 3 : Conservation and maintenance of soil and water resources

Criterion 4 : Conservation and maintenance of soil and water resources

7. Economic, social and cultural aspects



UNIQUE CRITERIA

- Criterion 6: Optimization of forest resource utilization

Criterion 6: Optimization of forest resource utilization

Source: IIFM (2005)


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BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. ACT 1995: Proposal of C&I for sustainability of the Amazon Forest ProTempopre Secretariat, Lima, Peru.

2. Anon. 2000. State of Forest Report 1999, Forest Survey of India, Dehradun. 3. Anon.1998. African Timber Organization (ATO) initiative on principles, C&I for sustainable

forest management of African forests. General presentation. Libreville, République Gabonaise.

4. Anon.1995. Annex 1 of the resolution L2 Pan-European C&I for sustainable forest management. Adopted by the expert-level follow–up meetings of the Helsinki Conference in Geneva, 24 June 1994, and in Antalya, 23 January 1995.

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