A public forest and land cover policy that address erosion and runoff in a cost effective and simple manner. Presentation given at the World Forest Congress in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 2009.

1. FOREST VOCATION LAND POLICY
Dr. José Rente Nascimento
[jrenten@gmail.com]
- SIDE EVENT DEL CFM2009 -
BID
Política Tierra de Vocación Forestal y Otras Herramientas
para Facilitar Negocios Forestales Sostenibles
Buenos Aires - Argentina
21 del Octubre, 2009
1

2. Summary
1- FVL policy scope
2- Problem - opportunities
3- FVL definition
4- FVL policy directive
5- The vision
6- Leverage and strategy
7- FVLs in LAC countries
8- Some concepts
9- Advantages and disadvantages
7- Simplicity, precision and cost effectiveness
9- FVLs and climate change
10- Implications from the of FVL policy
implementation
BID 11- Instruments for implementation
2

3. Forest Vocation Land Scope
2 types of forest policies:
1- Private goods and services
2- Environmental services (externalities)
BID Soil and water related externalities
3

4. The problem - opportunity
 Erosion
 Loss of fertility and productivity
 Runoff
 Sedimentation, water body storage
loss
 Floods, water flow regimen, less
water in dry seasons
 Poor water quality
 Land use allocation conflicts
 Adverse effects on hydroelectricity,
BID irrigation, potable water; water for
industrial production
4

5. Forest Vocation Land defined:
those lands that, due to their
physical site features such as
soil, topography, and the rainfall they receive,
should be kept under forest cover or
other sustainable land use
if
soil or water related negative externalities are
to be avoided.
FVL classification does not depend on the type
of cover the land actually has, nor does it
depend on the requirements it may have for
BID agriculture crop or forest production.
Therefore, lands with no forest cover or use
can still be classified as FVL if their physical
features so indicate; while lands covered with
forest may not be FVL.
5

6. TVF Forest policy directive:
Forest vocation lands should be
covered by forests or used with a sustainable
land use
if
no soil and water related negative
externalities are to reduce social welfare.
Non compliance would be penalized by the
state through fines sufficient to stimulate
the desirable change.
BID
6

7. The vision
Reforested FVL
BID
7

8. The vision
BID FVL with
natural
regeneration
8

9. The
Vision
FVL & nFVL
BID with
sustainable
covers
9

10. Leverage point FVL policy is simple, more precise, intuitive,
and cost effective because it identifies critical
areas at high risk of erosion and acts upon
them
Traditional
Shotgun
Strategy
approach
FVL Sniper
BID
Strategy approach
10

11. ¿Which LAC countries have most FVLs?
17 countries
with 50% or
more of steep
slopes (at
least)
BID
Slope
Proxy for
FVL
11

12. Some concepts
Land cover: the observed (bio) physical cover on
the earth's surface, regardless of its use by
people.
Land use: Refers to arrangements, activities and inputs
people undertake in a certain land cover type to produce,
change or maintain it.
Uso Forestal: Any land use that Sustainable land use: Land use of
involves a forest cover. It any type that does not generate
includes, for example, exotic or soil or water related negative
native species plantation forests, externalities. It can be a
natural primary or secondary sustainable agriculture use, a
forests under management; road, a building, forest cover,
agroforestry uses, arbustive fruit forest use.
plantations, forest roads,
BID firebreaks, recently harvested
forests temporarily without
forest cover and that will return
to forest use, etc.
12

13. Advantages
• Simple and intuitive
• Cost effective for the state to implement
• Flexible and most cost effective land
covers available to land owners
• Simplifies the legal framework, reduces
illegality, and reduces corruption
• Concentrates the action by the State on
critical areas under high risk of erosion
and runoff
• Creates incentives for degraded FVL
restauration
• Identifies areas (nFVL) that can have a
BID
more flexible land use without major risk
of erosion and runoff
• Reduces conflicts over land use
13

14. Disadvantages
• Policy specialized on solving soil and water
externalities
• Can contribute but is not an effective
means to address other externalities such
as biodiversity or aesthetic
• Identifies nFVL covered with trees and
whose conversion might be socially
desirable
BID
14

15. Simplicity and low cost: FVLs and nFVLs.
Panama example
BID
15

16. Forest cover
Forest
cover
No forest
cover
BID
16

17. Simplicity and low cost
FVLs without forest cover:
risk areas for erosion and runoff
BID
17

18. Acceptable uses and covers
Classification
FVL nFVL
Forest Acceptable Indifferent
Cover or Sustainable Acceptable Indifferent
use
NOT-
Forest
BID
NOT- NOT-
sustainable Indifferent
acceptable
18

19. Priority sites for inspection (sniper).
FVLs without forest cover
BID
19

20. Systems dynamics modeling.
Causal relationships
If variable A increases (decreases), variable B
increases (decreases) more than without A´s change.
The variables move in the same direction.
If variable A decreases (increases), variable B
increases (decreases) more than without A´s change.
The variables move in the opposite directions.
BID
20

21. FVLs and environmental
services of forests
BID
21

22. TVFs y
Servicios de cuerpos de agua,
inundaciones, y
producción de la tierra
BID
22

23. Climate change
FVLs and adaptation to
greater flood risks
BID
23

24. Climate change
FVLs and the adaptation of
agriculture to rainfall changes
BID
24

25. Implications from the adoption of the
FVL policy
BID
25

26. INSTRUMENTS
PRINCIPALS
FVL IDENTIFICATION & FVL COVER CHANGE LEGAL FRAMEWORK
COVER BASELINE MONITORING ADJUSMENT
INSTITUTIONAL DISEMINATION, SUPPORT
TO FLV OWNERS, AND
ADJUSTMENT
RESULTS PROMOTION
COMPLEMENTARY
ENVIRONMENTAL,
ECONOMIC, FISCAL,
PLANTATION FOREST FVL POLICY FOR FLOOD
BID FINANCIAL ANALYSES
APTITUD ZONING RISK MANAGEMENT
(CURRENT POLICY x FVL
POLÍCY)
Fuente: BID (2008)
26

27. TAKE HOME POINT
BID
27

28. FVL Policy Directive
Forest Vocation Lands, due to their
physical site features such as
soil, topography, and the rainfall they receive,
should be kept under forest cover or
other sustainable land use
if
soil or water related negative externalities are to be
avoided.
BID
28