FO:LACFC/2002/11

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

1. On the request of member countries, FAO has been implementing since 1947, in cooperation with member countries and other partners, global assessments of forest resources. Recent assessments have been carried out at ten-year intervals. The results of the Global Forest Resources Assessment 2000 (FRA 2000) were released in the State of the World's Forests 2001 and discussed at the FAO Committee on Forestry in March 2001. The FRA 2000 Main Report was issued in English in September 2001 and in Spanish in early 2002. The documents are available on the FAO home page: http://www.fao.org/forestry/index.jsp

2. The Global Forest Resources Assessment (FRA) is based on national assessment reports provided by countries, supplemented by monitoring by satellite-based remote sensing.

INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENT

3. The results of FRA 2000 were presented to the 15^th Session of the FAO Committee on Forestry (COFO) in March 2001. COFO agreed that global forest assessments would remain a priority activity of FAO. In addition, the Committee recommended that FAO continue to expand global assessments to address biological diversity, forest health and the use of resources. It was agreed that monitoring the indicators for sustainable forest management would require qualitative assessments and an ecosystem approach, as well as more intensive social and economic evaluations.

4. The parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) have acknowledged three fundamental aspects regarding forests and climate change:

• When forests are destroyed or degraded, they become a source of carbon dioxide.
• Forests are sensitive to climatic changes.
• Sustainably managed forests supply a unique environmental service; removing the CO₂ from the atmosphere and offering an alternative to fossil fuels.

5. FRA 2000 provided information on the storage of carbon in forests, including national estimates which are useful for countries which lack their own information on carbon sequestration capacity. Information from FRA 2000 and future assessments could facilitate future negotiations on the role of forests for future commitment periods.

6. The parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) have approved an expanded work programme on forest biological diversity. FRA 2000 reported on the status of assessments of forest biological diversity, specifically using indicators such as naturalness; protection status; fragmentation; and information on forests by ecological zone. Information from FRA 2000 and future assessments will provide a good starting point for the assessment of indicators of forest biological diversity.

7. The IPF/IFF/UNFF processes also highlighted the importance of global forest resource assessments.

RECENT ACTIVITIES

8. As a follow-up to FRA 2000, FAO convened a major international consultation in Finland in July 2002, known as Kotka IV. The results of the discussion can be grouped into three components:

National forest assessments

9. Countries should consider whether they require external assistance for implementing national forest assessments and bear in mind the possibility of acquiring such help from FAO.

10. FAO should work closely with countries and institutions to build capacities to implement national forest assessments and to develop awareness of the need to establish a monitoring system. This also means including methods of assessing timber products, non-timber products and forestry services, including biological diversity. Likewise, FAO should support countries in project formulation.

11. FAO's proposal for preparing guidelines for developing forest assessments based on low intensity studies, permanent sampling and recollection of data on biophysical states, as well as the managing and use of forest resources, is relevant and feasible in countries that do not have an effective national capability for undertaking nation-wide inventories.

12. The focus of FAO must include strengthening the managing of information and its analysis, the presentation of information on the reliability of data, including the ability to report on international processes.

13. FAO should work with countries and the donor community in order to revive and/or maintain interest in committing resources for national forest assessments.

Assessing forest resources

14. The emphasis of the Global Forest Resources Assessment must be placed on consolidating progress achieved by FRA 2000, aimed at a broader assessment. The formats and methodologies used in FRA 2000 should be continuously improved. Include new parameters in relation to each country's priorities and capabilities. National information must be compiled more frequently, ideally being updated on a continuous basis. An interim report should be prepared for the year 2005 to meet the requirements of the United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF). A new comprehensive global assessment should be prepared in 2010.

15. In order to improve the data of these assessments and their comparability over time, greater stability is required with key concepts and definitions.

16. Regional initiatives related to an assessment of forest resources must continue and contribute, in a coordinated fashion, especially related to concepts and definitions.

17. Regional Forestry Commissions play a fundamental role in encouraging countries' political support to national forest assessments.

Relationships between global and national assessments

18. FAO shall notify the governments of each country on progress made and new developments in the process of the Global Forest Resources Assessment, so that countries will understand the value of a national correspondent including the allocation of resources and time.

19. Countries should consider international reporting requirements when designing national forest inventories.

20. FAO shall facilitate the transfer of data from a national to a global level, with guidelines, consultations and the efficient use of information. The goal is for national level information to be aggregated upward for international purposes without modification, so that countries are not required to collect any information for regional or global purposes that is not directly useful to the country itself.

21. The incorporation of national information into the Global Assessment must be done in a cooperative way between countries. It shall be undertaken in the most transparent and documented manner possible in order to guarantee credibility and consistency in global database.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE COMMISSION

22. Support the development of national forest assessments, including capacity building, emphasizing the importance of accurate and timely information about forest resources, economics and social aspects in order to support good decisions about forests.

23. Encourage the development of pilot studies of regional assessments that look upon forests in an integrated manner, using an ecosystem approach and including non-timber forest products and environmental services. The local population, indigenous communities and women should participate in forest assessments.

24. Prepare regional forest inventories and assessments by forest ecological regions in Latin America. Examples include the proposal put forward to the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) by Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru,; the Initiative of Tarapoto; the Pacific Corridor: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and the Mesoamerican Corridor, among others.

25. Develop sub-regional or regional protocols as appropriate aimed at assessing and validating information on changes in carbon stored in the tropical ecosystems of the Region, with which a contribution can be made to improve the quality of the information supplied. These protocols must take into account aspects related to the parameters to be assessed, improve accuracy, opportunity, reliability and comparison of data with the information related to global forest resources assessments.