Costa Rica uses maps to manage mountains/forests
06.08.2014
On 21 March 2014, to coincide with the celebrations of the International Day of Forests, the National System of Conservation Areas (SINAC) of Costa Rica together with the National Forest Financial Fund (FONAFIFO) and the National REDD Strategy with financial and technical support offered by GIZ officially presented the “Map of Forest Types of Costa Rica”.
A Geographic Information System (GIS) is a tool used to generate a mapping product that is dynamic and open (meaning it can manage the variables needed) - "Map of Forest Types" (as it is called), and the variables may be social and environmental. The GIS can also be used in the management of the mountains to provide spatial and temporal information, determine the area and the state of vegetation cover, see the progress of growth or degradation of mangroves and see changes in land use. It also helps in decision making for watershed protection, monitoring national forest resources, conducting further research and planning sustainable forest and mountain management and locating major carbon reservoirs.
The first map shows the different types of forests in the country. Previously, forest cover maps, dated 2005 and 2010, only indicated the areas of forest and non-forest, but it was not possible to know to which category they correspond. Read more
|
