Forests beneath the grass

RAP PUBLICATION 2010/11

Forests beneath the grass

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific
Bangkok 2010

ABSTRACT

Despite increasing recognition of the wide range of environmental and social benefits of forests to our planet’s well being, unsustainable forest and land-use practices continue to destroy and degrade millions of hectares of forests in Asia and the Pacific each year. In various locations across the region, renewed efforts are being made to restore forests to previously degraded sites. Approaches range from large-scale forest plantation development, to agroforestry, to passive natural regeneration. Assisted natural regeneration (ANR) is a forest restoration approach based on concepts of enhancing ecological succession processes, including regeneration and growth of indigenous species. Experiences with ANR demonstrate that this approach is particularly successful in engaging local communities, reducing the risk of forest fires and creating new income-generating opportunities. ANR also significantly reduces the costs of forest restoration, making it a particularly attractive alternative to costly plantation establishment. This publication presents the proceedings of the regional workshop, convened in Bohol, Philippines from 19 to 22 May 2009, on advancing the application of assisted natural regeneration for effective, low-cost forest restoration. It includes selected papers presenting ANR experiences in the Philippines – where ANR has been practiced for over three decades – and related forest restoration initiatives throughout the Asia-Pacific region.

Table of Contents

Preface
Foreword
Acknowledgements
Introduction
Learning from experience: advancing assisted
    natural regeneration in the Philippines
        Cost comparison analysis: ANR compared to
            conventional reforestation
        Assisted natural regeneration and biodiversity in
            the Philippines
        Plant diversity, soil chemical changes and
            carbon stock assessment of a marginal ANR site in
            the Philippines
        Overcoming bracken climax to assist forest regeneration
            in Mindanao
        Charting new partnerships and possibilities for
            upscaling assisted natural regeneration
Looking forward and looking further – regional and
    global perspectives for ANR application
        Assisted natural regeneration: global opportunities and
            challenges
        Capturing the value of forest carbon: Carbon sequestration
            through ANR practices
        Restoration of degraded forest ecosystems in Southeast Asia
        The rehabilitation of degraded tropical forest based on
            secondary sucession
        FORRU: bringing back the forest in northern Thailand
        Strategy and challenges for natural forest restoration in
            Lao PDR
        The national movement on forest and land rehabilitation in
            Indonesia
        Recent forest restoration initiatives in Sabah, Malaysia
        Forest resources and regeneration in
            the People’s Republic of China
        Forest restoration in Viet Nam
Appendix 1: List of participants

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The views expressed in this information product are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of FAO.

ISBN 978-92-5-106639-3

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For copies write to:	Patrick B. Durst
	Senior Forestry Officer
	FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific
	Maliwan Mansion, 39 Phra Atit Road
	Bangkok 10200, Thailand
	Tel: (+66) 2 697 4000
	Fax: (+66) 2 697 4445
	E-mail: [email protected]