Forests and climate change adaptation

 

Forests facilitate adaptation: Managing standing forests better, and expanding tree cover through socially- and environmentally-responsible reforestation and restoration, helps deliver a range of livelihood and environmental benefits that assist both people and ecosystems adapt to climate change.¹ The benefits include, but are not limited to, the points listed below.
Safety nets: Forests are important safety nets for communities, helping them cope with climate shocks. Many forest products are more resilient to climate variability and extremes than crops, and so are crucial to the resilience of local livelihoods. If crops fail due to drought² or assets are lost because of floods,³ communities can sell forest and tree products – timber, fuelwood and non-timber forest products (NTFPs) – for income. They can also consume products – such as mushrooms, sago, fruits and bushmeat – as food. In addition, fodder from trees can help ensure the survival of livestock for months at a time if drought strikes.⁴
Agriculture: Trees on farms protect the soil and regulate water and microclimate, and help protect crops and livestock from climate variability. Crops grown in agroforestry systems are more resilient to drought, excess precipitation, and temperature fluctuations and extremes.⁵ Research in Africa, for example, shows that leguminous trees can make agriculture more drought resilient by improving water infiltration and increasing productivity through nitrogen fixation.⁶
Watersheds: Forests contribute to regulating river flows – base flows during dry seasons and peak flows during rainfall events – minimising risks related to water scarcity and floods.⁷ In Flores, Indonesia, for example, tropical forested watersheds have been shown to increase base flows and reduce the impacts of drought on downstream agrarian communities.⁸
Coasts: Coastal forests such as mangroves help reduce risks from disasters relating to climate extremes (storms or cyclones) and sea-level rise (coastal flooding). Research in India⁹ and Vietnam¹⁰ has shown that coastal settlements with mangroves in close proximity suffer less damage from such events than those without.
Cities: Urban forests and trees provide green infrastructure – shade, evaporative cooling, and rainwater interception, storage and infiltration – in cities. They can play a significant role in urban adaptation to climate variability and change¹¹ by reducing temperatures during heat waves.
Regional climate: Tropical forests influence precipitation and can have a cooling effect on a region through increased evaporation and cloud cover.¹² This can occur over large distances: for example, land use change in the humid tropics can influence precipitation in the middle and higher latitudes.¹³
National Adaptation Programmes of Action (NAPAs): The critical role of forests and trees is already recognised in projects on human adaptation, several of which are being proposed in NAPAs. Some examples include the conservation or rehabilitation of mangroves to protect vulnerable communities in coastal areas of Bangladesh and Cambodia, and for regulating water flows and providing fuel wood to local communities in Benin.¹⁴ Forest and tree services can also support and increase the effectiveness of technical or infrastructural adaptation measures, while providing co-benefits for livelihoods, biodiversity and climate change mitigation.

 

Forests and climate change mitigation

 

Carbon sinks: Forests play a critical role in regulating the Earth’s climate through the carbon cycle; removing carbon from the atmosphere as they grow, and storing carbon in leaves, woody tissue, roots and organic matter in soil. The world’s forests absorb 2.4 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide each year, or about one-third of the carbon dioxide released through the burning of fossil fuels.¹ Forests also represent the world’s most significant terrestrial carbon store, containing an estimated 77 percent of all carbon stored in vegetation and 39 percent of all carbon stored in soils; twice as much carbon as is present in the atmosphere.²
Greenhouse gas emissions: Deforestation and forest degradation accounts for between 10 and 15 percent of global human-induced greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and the burning of peatland associated with forest clearing accounts for an additional 3 percent of emissions. These emissions are greater than the entire global transportation sector. Eighty percent of these emissions stem from only 10 countries, mainly in the developing world.⁵ In some countries, such as Indonesia, deforestation and forest degradation are the principal source of emissions. The loss of global forest cover also means a loss of the forests’ natural capture and storage capacity, amplifying emissions from other sources.
Peatlands and mangroves: Peatland forests cover about 3 percent of the Earth’s land area but store as much as one-third of all soil carbon. Similarly, carbon density in mangrove forests is more than four times higher than in upland tropical forests.⁶ The loss of peatland and mangrove forests contributes disproportionately to carbon dioxide emissions, biodiversity loss and to the vulnerability of coastal communities, making the conservation of these ecosystems key in the fight against climate change.
REDD+: Since the 13th Conference of the Parties (COP13) to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Bali in 2007, the UNFCCC has progressively recognised the package of measures now known as REDD+, which stands for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation, as well as the conservation and sustainable management of forests, and the enhancement of forest carbon stocks in developing country forests. At the COP16 in Cancun in 2010, REDD+ was officially incorporated into the UNFCCC’s agreement on climate change. At COP17 in Durban in 2011, negotiators agreed on monitoring guidelines as safeguards for REDD+ implementation and on the means for developing estimates of emissions that would have occurred in the absence of REDD+ (i.e., reference emission levels).
Reference levels (RLs) and reference emission levels (RELs) are most commonly used as a business as usual baseline to assess a country’s performance in implementing REDD+ (UNFCCC 2011). RLs are needed to establish a reference point or benchmark against which actual emissions (and removals) are compared. In fact, emissions reductions cannot be defined without having first agreed on the RL, which is therefore critical for gauging the effectiveness or forest carbon impact of REDD+ policies and activities. New research⁷ at CIFOR on a stepwise approach provides guidance on how countries with little data can begin to develop RL, and can improve their estimates as better data becomes available.
The + in REDD+: Managing standing forests better, and expanding tree cover through socially- and environmentally-responsible reforestation and restoration, are cost- and time-effective strategies to conserve and enhance carbon stocks and mitigate climate change⁸, as well as to facilitate adaptation. Integrating the + in REDD+ with carbon conservation in agricultural systems capitalises on the potential of whole-of-landscape responses to climate change⁹.
Doing REDD+ well: CIFOR’s Global Comparative Study of REDD+ is providing negotiators, policymakers and implementing agencies with the information they need to design REDD+ architecture and implementation strategies. A CIFOR study published in June 2012 called Analysing REDD+ says that REDD+ is moving ahead, but at a slower pace and in a different form than expected five years ago. The study takes stock of REDD+ and asks: How has REDD+ changed and why? How is REDD+ unfolding in national policy arenas? What does REDD+ look like on the ground? What are the main challenges in designing and implementing REDD+? And, what are the choices for making REDD+ more effective, efficient, and equitable?
Learning to measure GHG emissions: Recent research by CIFOR has revealed major capacity gaps in the ability of most tropical forest-rich nations to measure and monitor the amount of greenhouse gas emissions they save by safeguarding their forests. Eighty-nine out of ninety-nine tropical countries had ‘very large to medium’ gaps between what is required for REDD+ monitoring under national circumstances and their current capacities.¹⁰ The study is intended to help direct international efforts to increase capacity in developing countries to monitor, report and verify (MRV) changes in their greenhouse gas emissions.

Forests and water

 

Giant sponges: Forests act as giant sponges, soaking up rainfall during wet seasons and slowly releasing it during times of drought. Forests provide natural filtration and storage systems that supply an estimated 75 percent of usable water globally. Tree roots and leaf litter create conditions that promote the infiltration of rainwater into the soil and then into the groundwater, providing supplies during dry periods.¹
In dollars: There are a range of estimates for the value of water regulation and supply. One study puts the figure at USD 2.3 trillion² globally. Another study, focused at the national level in China, estimates that the value of the water storage function of that country's forests is estimated as 7.5 trillion yuan (approximately USD 1 trillion); three times the value of the wood in its forests.³ Another study calculated that the presence of forest on Mount Kenya saved the country's economy more than USD 20 million by protecting the catchment for two of Kenya's main river systems: the Tana and the Ewaso Ngiro.3 Today, at least one third of the world's biggest cities, such as New York, Singapore, Jakarta, Rio de Janeiro, Bogotá, Madrid and Cape Town, draw a significant portion of their drinking water from forested areas.⁴
Removing pollutants: Trees and forests improve stream quality and watershed health by decreasing the amount of storm water runoff and pollutants that reach local waters. They take up nutrients and pollutants from soils and water through their roots, and transform them into less harmful substances.⁵ Forests also maintain high water quality by minimising soil erosion and reducing sediment. Deforestation generally increases erosion, resulting in higher sediment concentrations in the runoff and siltation of watercourses.⁶
Flood protection: The capacity of forests to reduce the incidence and severity of downstream flooding associated with major rainfall events may be more limited than is commonly thought. Nevertheless, maintaining natural vegetation in catchments and riparian zones can reduce flash flooding and flood peaks through the sponge effect of standing forests, and diminish the damaging impacts of local floods by blocking the path of the water with tree trunks, branches and other forest litter.⁷
Global significance: Recent research⁸ highlights the global significance of forests in recycling rainfall and groundwater to support continental-scale and intercontinental-scale hydrological cycles. At these scales, forest loss and degradation appear to have deleterious effects on rainfall.⁹ These results suggest that forest–water relations at the continental and intercontinental scales are different from those at a catchment scale, where deforestation can increase water yield in the catchment.
Examples of continental-scale impacts: Deforestation and forest degradation in one area can impact rainfall patterns in other parts of the world. Moisture evaporating from the Eurasian continent is responsible for 80 percent of China's water resources. In South America, the Río de la Plata Basin depends on evaporation from the Amazon forest for 70 percent of its water resources. The Congo Basin is a major source of moisture for rainfall in the Sahel.1

Forests, food and livelihoods

 

Food security:Forests are natural supermarkets for 1 billion of the world's poorest people. They provide nuts, berries, roots, meat and cooking fuel, complementing agricultural crops and providing essential nutrients that would otherwise be unavailable.¹ In rural areas of the Congo Basin, five to six million tonnes of bush meat are harvested each year and account for up to 80 percent of the fats and proteins consumed by local communities.² In areas where fish are an important source of protein, forests—especially mangroves—support the healthy aquatic ecosystems necessary to maintain fish stocks.
Livelihoods: New global research by CIFOR has shown that environment-related income makes up about one-quarter of total household income for people living in or near forests, a value comparable to what these households derive from agricultural crops.³ This and other research⁴ demonstrates how the contributions of forests and agriculture to food and livelihood security are complementary.
Vital for agriculture: Forests provide goods and services that support the agricultural sector. Livestock production benefits from the fodder and shade provided by forests and trees. Forests provide homes for bees, bats, and other pollinators of agricultural crops. Coffee cultivated in the fields furthest away from forested areas has been shown to have lower yields due to reduced pollination services.⁵ Forests provide hydrological services to agriculture, moderating the quantity and quality of surface water available for irrigation, and controlling the sedimentation of irrigation infrastructure.⁶
Safeguarding biodiversity: Natural forests provide habitat for the wild relatives of many important tree crops, a source of genetic diversity that will become increasingly important for these species to adapt as climate change advances, and for humans to adapt to climate change as well. Our diet once included more than 7000 species of plants and animals, but today it contains fewer and fewer species.⁷ This limited biodiversity in our food sources makes us more vulnerable to the onset of new pests and diseases brought on by climate change.
Empowering women: In many cultures, non-hunting gathering and harvesting of food is the responsibility of women. Easy access to forest-derived foods decreases the time and effort women have to spend to ensure their families have adequate nutrition. There are many flow-on benefits for women and their households.⁸

 

Forests, fuel wood and charcoal

Cooking with forests: More than two billion people depend on wood energy for cooking and heating, particularly in households in developing countries. In parts of Africa, wood fuels—often the only domestically available and affordable sources of energy—account for almost 90 percent of primary energy consumption. Estimates suggest that biomass energy in sub-Saharan Africa will account for about three-quarters of total residential energy by 2030.
Fuel for industry. In some regions, such as parts of South America, industrial and commercial use of charcoal is a major driver of demand, as well as an important source of income along production chains. At the continental scale, South America is second only to Africa in total and per capita charcoal use.
Hungry for energy: Global energy demand is projected to increase rapidly in coming years, owing to many factors, including population growth, more people having access to energy supply grids, and lifestyles becoming more energy demanding. In the longer term, forest biomass has the potential to significantly lessen the strain on global energy supply when oil resources decline. Wood energy is the most important source of bioenergy in the world, providing nine percent of the global primary energy supply.  Well-managed forests can play a vital role in responding to future bioenergy demands and can help to create a more stable energy future, improve environmental quality and increase economic opportunities.
Substituting wood energy for fossil fuels: Wood energy use in Europe accounts for 50 percent of energy from renewable sources, with private households being the largest users. Some European countries are expanding the use of solid biomass, in the form of pellets, briquettes and wood chips, to meet their fossil fuel substitution goals. The expansion of forest biomass-based energy to meet global demand, while enlarging the contribution of forests to global energy supply, can also lead to higher competition with more conventional markets for timber.
Although local use of wood fuel helps limit carbon emissions from transport, the global trade in wood pellets, briquettes and chips is expected to expand. Pellets and chips can be transported economically over long distances, opening up opportunities for trade in biomass between countries and creating significant opportunities for forestry to contribute. However, this may lead to more exports from timber-producing countries and can increase pressures on forests and local populations if governance, tenure security, and sustainable production schemes are not developed.
New opportunities for the efficient use of wood for multiple purposes may also arise from innovations in biotechnologies for the production of renewable and cost efficient bioproducts such as bioplastics, biofuels, biochemicals and others.