an introduction to the panel

cite as: Lund, H. Gyde. 1996. Global resource assessments beyond 2001: an introduction to the panel. ln: Pdivinen, Risto; Vanclay, Jerry; Miina, Saija, Eds. New Thrusts in Forest Inventory - Proceedings of the Subject Group S 4.0200'Forest Resource Inventory and Monitoring'and Subject Group S 4.12-00 'Remote sensing Technology' Volume 1. luFRo XX world congress. Tampere, Finland. 6-12 August 1995. EFI Proceedings No. 7. Joensuu, Finland: European Forest lnstitute; 231 -238.

GLOBAL RESOURCE ASSESSMENTS BEYOND AN INTRODUCTION TO THE PANEL

2OO1:

H. Gyde Lund USDA Forest S eru ice F/ERR P.O. Box 96090 Washingt on, D C

20 090

-6090

USA Fax: L-202-205-1-087

Abstract This paper lists the inventorying and monitoring needs resulting from

various international agreements reached at the United Nations Conference on Environment arrd Development (UNCED) held 3-14 June 1992 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazll and since then. Tl're documents reviewed include: tl-re Rio Declaration on Environmeut and Development (Rio Declaration or RD for short); A Programme of Action for Sustainable Development for Now Into the Twentv-first Centurv (Agenda 2I or A2L); Non-Locaily Binding Authoritative Statement of Principles For a Clobal Consensus on the Manasement, Conservatic'rn and Sustarnable Development of all Types of Forests (Forestrv Principles or I'P); Uniteci Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD); the United Naiions Framework Convention on the Climate Cirange (Conventiort on Climate Change or FCCC); the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in Those Countrie.s l:xperiencing Serious Dror-rght ancl/or Desertification, Particr-rlarrly irr Africa (Conr.ention on Desertification or COD) and the Statement on

Criteria trncl Indicators for the Conservation and Sustainable Management of Tempertrte and Boreal Forests (Santiago Statement or SS). In addition, there are clata requirernents needed to complete Clobal Assessments that the Unitecl Nations currently conducts. These nerv requirements should influencc horv we conduci inventories in the next

century. Our panelists wiil present their views on horr' futrrre assessments should be conducted.

Keywords:

G

loba I il ssessmertts, resource inventorv,

New Il)ru:;ts in Ftrrest IItr.'t'trtort,

monitorh g

-J1

Introduction

on fc devel ProgI

Nearly all national natural resource issues. rvhether they be environmental, social, economical, ecological or political, are also global issues. For these reasons, there is an hcreashg need for the inventorving and monitoring of our lands and

of su: fores

waters and the sharing of the resulting information with the international community especially through the United Nations (LIN). Past Globai Assessments were sectorial oriented, but recently some new global needs have emerged that may change the way we aPProach giobal assessments in the next nenri,rrr

Unit, Cou: (Sant

Simi

Nezu requirements GIoi In June, 1,992, the Urrited Nations Conference on Environment ancl Deveiopment (UNCED) met in Rio de |aniero, Brazil. Included at UNCED were a number ol "Agreements" (principles and statements) and "Conventions" (e.g., international agreements) negotiated related to the environment that add to the information

Reg

Nat 1.

required from national inventory programs. These include the: UNCED Agreements - Rio Deciaration on Environment and Development (Rio Declaration or RD for short);

- A Programme of Action for Sustainabie

Development for Now Into the Twenty-first Centurv (Agenda 2I or A2l\; - Non-Lt,t'.illv Birr.ling ,\trthorit,itivc St.rtemcnt rrf Principlcs Ft'r ,r (,lobal Consensus on the Management, Conservation and Sustainable Development of all Tvpes of Forests (Forestrv Principles or FP); Conventions

- United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (Convention on -

Biodiversity or CDB); United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change - (Convention on Climate Change or FCCC);

-

Since UNCED, a United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in Those

Ea

int th Bi,

Countries Experiencing Serious Drought and,/or Desertification, Particr-rlarlv in Africa (Convention on Desertification or COD) has been agrced upon. iili

,'i!

r{l t!

TI

Tlrc S ttrtiago

S

tstemt'nt

D

!i! ,il!

jill

a

In addition to the abovt conventions, a Conl'ention on Forests lvas more prroblemirtic - hencr', tht'linal atleemetrt reachccl at UNCED r,r'.ts the "Frtrest Prir-rciples" on vn'hat aticnrling nations could affirm regarding tire global concerns

I :

s 232

Clolral Resource Assessments bevond 2t)11: An Introcluctiorr

{

on forests and guidelines for how nations would approach sustainable development. Since Rio, nations htrve been working toward assessing their progress with Agenda 21 and much attention has been given to the measurement of sustainable forestrv (e.g., the criteria and indicators for measuring). Sustarnable forestry meetings have been held in Montreai and Helsinki.

The agreement for what the international criteria and indicators for the United States is given in the Statement on Criteria and Indicators for the Conservation and Sustainabie lvlanagemerrt of Temperate and Boreal Forests (Santiago Statement or SS) - signed recentlv in Chile bv North American countries. Similar statements are being developed in other parts of the world.

Global Assessmcnts Regardless ot UNCED, the Conventions, anci the Santiago Statement, the Unitecl Nations currentiy conducts at least three CIobal Assessments: 1. Those directecl towarcls Agriculture - the main one would be the Food and

Agriculture Organizartion's (FAO) Agriculture: Towards 2010. FAO also peri.odicallv produces: Commodity Revien', State of Food and Agriculture, Animal Health Review, and the FAO statisticai yearbooks, viz; Production, Trade and Fertilizer Yearbooks. In addition, there are " Foocl Balance Sheets " publishecl around everv 2 or 3 \,ears. All this statistical information are found h/on "FAOSTA|" diskeites rr,'hich are available from FAO (Gillin 1995).

2. The Cilobal Forest l(csotrrcc,,\ssessment 3.

(FRA), prodtrced e.r,crv 10,,,ears by

FAO anci the Economic Cornmunrtv of lir-rrope (ECE). The United Niltions Environment Programn're (UNEP) Clobal Assessment of the Status zrnd iiate of Desertificatron producecl ir-i 7977, 1984, and 1991.

Ilach of the.se assessments clr€ orr gorng and all require periodic anci sprecific input from participatins Covcrnme'r.rts. r\s the Conventions are irnpiemented there probablv will be (llobal;\ssessments for Climate Change and for Biodiversiiv.

Cornnronalities Basic to the majoritv of these clocuments is the rratior-rai ne.ec1 for:

;r. iVleetilg thc socral, cconomic, ecological,

b.

cr-ritural and spiritual ne'ecls of present

and ftrture gcnerations. Provicling reliable data and information ;rnd to collaborate rvhere necL.ssarv rvith rclevant internationai organizations, undertake tct impror,'e tiata ;rnd

\t'rv'fhrusts

rrt [:orcst Invcntttrv

233

,.i

information continuously and to ensure its exchange. Strengthening information, systematic observation, and assessment systems for environmental, economic, and social data reiated to the various resources at the global, regional, r'rational and local levels. Collecting, consoiiclating and exchanging existing information and establishing baseline information on aspects relevant to the program area including: Meteorological, hydrological anci physical clata - A21 /13.7(a) Data on natural resoLrrces reiating to food and agriculturai production and plannin g - A2I / U.I(b) Terrestrial, aquatic, and coastal and marine environments tlata - A21, / 15.6(c)

Assessment and manaqement of coastal areas and ali seas and their resources - A2I / 17.8(.a)

e.

Gathering multi-sectoral hformation (forest, rvildlife, soils, lvater, etc.) and integrating the data from these sectors with adjacent areas. Developing

integrated information svstems for environmental monitoring, accountinp; and impact assessment. f. Harmonizrng the methodoloeies for programs involving data ancl information activities to ensure accuracv and consistencv and using compatible standarcls and svstems. g. Involvhg the Iocal popuiation in the data collection process. h. Enhancing research slrpport and improving public access to information.

Data t In addit Stateme

Indicatc Bion

Ciin Ilcos

Emi:

Aress to be monitored The areas to be monitored inclucle: I-ow-lving coastal areas - FCCC4.8(b)

Aricl irncl semi-arid areas - FCCC4.8(c)) .\reas suitable for reforestation - FP6(d) Areas suitable for afforestation - A27/77.4(a); FP6(d) Areas prone to natural disasters - A21/13.7(c); FCCCa.S(d); SS3.3a Areas liable to drought and clesertification - FCCCa.S(e) Areas of high trrban atmospheric pollution - A2I/13.7(d); FCCC4.8(f); SS3.3b Arears rvith fragile ecosvstems, inclr-rcling mountainous ecosystems -FCCCa.8(g)

or ultr;r violt't il 134

Fod Foo Fue Lerr

Lar

Lar

Avail.lble for tinrber Irrorluction - SS3.la jecterl to lcvcls ot spccif ic air pt'rlltrtants (e.g. sulfatcs, nitratc, oz()r1e

Fral

[-ar

lrCCC4.ti(c); FRA * Sr.rb

Ene

Lerr

Irnrestetl areas and areas liable to forest decay - A27/10.11(d);13.7(b); *

Fmr

Mc )

N,li,

-

(,lobal Ilesource Assessments bevond 2011: An lntrot'luctit'n

).Jelv l

r

*

With diminished biologicai components - SS3.3c With significant soil erosion - SS3.4a * Managed primarilv for protective functions. e.g. watersheds, fiood protection, avalanche protection, riparian zones - SS3.4b * With significantly diminished soil organic matter and,/or changes rn other soil chemical properties - SS3.4d * With significant compaction or change in soil physicai properties SS3.4e * Experiencins an accumulation of persistent toxic substances -SS3.4h * Managed for general recreation and tourism - SS3.6c * Of plantations of native and exotic species - SS3.2c * By forest tvpe - SS3.1a * Bv agc' class or successional staqe - SS3.1b *

* By protc.cted arca categories - SS3.1c

Data to be collected In addition to listing the arcas to be surveyed, the Agreements, Conventions, Statement, and the Assessments eacir require governments to collect specific data. Indicators to be inventoried and monitored include: Biomass - A21l11.a(a) Ttrtal forest ec()svstem biomzrss and carbon pool (SS3.5n), and if apprttpriate by forest tvpre-, age class, irnd sur:ccssionai stages.

Climatc - A2Ti 10.i1(cl) Ilcosvstems ;rnr1 habitats - CDBT(a)1 Emissions bv sources and rernovals bv FCCC4.

1

(b) ; 7(c) ; 7.2(c1)

silks clf greenhouse

gases

-

FP2(;i);

; i2. 1(a)

Contributiorr of forest ecosvstems kr the total glob.rl carbon budget, including .rbsorption and releasc of carbon (standing btomass, coarse rvtrodv debris, peat ;rnd soil carbon) - SS3 5b Employment - FP2(a)

linergv - A21/12.29(b) Fragmentation of forest typc's - SS3.1eFodder - FP2(a) Food - A27/1.2.29(b); FP2(a) Fuel - FP2(a) [-and cover - r\21r'11.-1(a); FR.l\

Land degradation - A21./14.47(b); COD10 Ltind (?) productivitv - r\21/ 11..1(a) l,and r.rse - A?1 /l L-l(a); I'RA Landscape cliversitv - FP2(a) N'leLlicile - lrP2(a) Minerals - A2l /12.29(b)

\rrv

I

Itrttstr

[:1

'11

'1r'st It]', r'tll(rrv

235

Non-wood goods and services - FRA Annual removal of non-timber forest products (e.g. fur bearers, berries,

a L.

\,

\

mushrooms, game) - SS3.2.e Value and quantities of production of non-wood forest products - SS3.6b

i l

Plants and animals - A27/72.29(b); i3.7(b) Threatened, cultivated or otherwise useful species and communities 13.7 (b) ; CDBT(a)

1

; SS3.

-

A21/

11.;1(a);

A\

1

Recreation - FP2(a) Shelter - FP2(a) Soils - A27 / 70.77(d); 12.29 (b) ; 13.7 (b) Water - A2I / 72.29 (b) ; 13.7 (a); FP2(a) Water use - A27 /13.7(b) Stream kilometers in forestecl catchments - SS3.4c Percent of lvater bodies (e.g. stream kikrmeters, lakc hectares) with chanqes ip rvater quality in forested areas - SS3..lf&g

Wildlife - u\21 /

1

oP, dl

r

0. 11 (r1)

Wildlife habitats - |P2(a) Wood stocks, growth, production, and removals - FP2(a); FRA Value anci volume of wood and wood products - SS3.6a Total growing skrck of both merchantable and non-merchantable tree species ss3.2b

Annual removal of rvood products - SS3.2d

The above list does not inclucle the data required for the current FAO Cllobal Agriculture Assessment and UNEP's Clobal Assessment of the Status and Rate of Desertification. These will undoubtedlv expancl the list of r.'ariables one needs to track at thc national levei.

Panel assisnments The information re.rluirccl as a result of UNCED, the recent Conventions, thr. Sar-rtiago Statement, and for the various Clobal Assessments should infiuer-rce ollr resollrce inventorving anr-i monitoring .rctivitics. lf $'e .tre tcl take ttr-rr international commitments seriously, r've must build the ability to provide thc required clata into our national programs. (liven this very short introduction, I wili now turn the floor over to our tlistinguishecl panelists representing the United Nations, the remote sensing communitl', irrrlividual nations, and aqriculture,/forestrv interfaces. Tl're objecti','es are to determine w,hat information lvill be needed in beyond the year 2001, how it rvill be gathL'red and how it will be used. Specific questions panelists have beerr asked to at-ldress include: l. What shoulcl the scope of ir-rture global assessments be? lVhat are the gtobal threats or concerns - Politicallv environmentall_v, ecologicallv economicallv, ancl socialiv? Shouir-1 future ;rssessments cover forest lands or all iands ;'rnd nrhrr?

:. )()

Eat

r,lLrbal Ilesource Assessrncnts bevontl 2011: An lntroLluatlrll

Pr'

R

2. What information

3. 4.

is needed to make better policies and decisions and whv? What are the variables needed for different decision-making purposes? What is the spatial resoiution required for them (countrv-countv-commune-10 sq. km, 10 ha, 1 ha or iess)? What are the possibilities to actually collect and organize this information? What are your visions for how the global assessment should be collected? How should data be collected, w'ho should do it, and how should the data be made available? What should the roies of the foliowing be: Research ancl the remote sensing community, nations, NGOs and others, United Nations?

Each paneiist will have 15 minutes to present his or her views. We will then open the session to questions from the floor. Our rapporteur will trv tcl capture and summarize the resuitrng recornmendations. These will be pubiisheci in the proceedings of this session. Aud now our first panelist.

Re.ferences Docrunents of the Earth Swnmit.1993. (Diskette). Rectors of the Costa Rican I'ublic

Universities.

Esrth Sumrnit Agenda 2'L The Llnited Natiotrs Programme oi Actiotr from Rio. 1992. New York, NY: United Nations. 294 p. ECE|FAO.1993: Report of tire FAO/ECE N{eeting of Experts on the Clobal Forest Resourcc r\ssessrncut 2000. TiM/hFC/\\'P.2/R.131/'\t'Id.1. Iiome, Ital',': [:ood ancl Agriculture C)rganization. 8-9. ECE|FAO.1995; Structure of the TBFRA-2000. Draft annex. A Report to thc ToS

Meeting. Gcne'u'a, Slvitzerlancl: Economic Communitv/FAO. 1 p. FrlO. 1995: Irorest resollrces ;rssessmcnt 1990 - ('lobal Svnthesis. IAO forestry Paper 124. Rome, Italv: FAO Forestrv Dept. 46 p. + Appenclix

GiIIin, T. 1995: Personal communication. FAO, Rome. Gupta, A. 1-994: Combating deforestation: the role of existing agreements. Chart/ Poster. New \brk, NY: United Nations Development Program. I p. Lund, H.G.1990: From tcrrns inco{trifas to illumiNATIONS. In: Lund, H.C. & Preto, G. (tech. coords). Clobai natural rcsollrce monitoring .rnci assessmcnts: preparing for the 21st Centur"'. Proceedings of the International (lonference and Workshop. 24-30 Sc.ptember 1989; \zenice, Italv. Bethesr-ia, MD: American Societlr for llernotc Sensing and Photosrammetrt': 32-'10. Piiiaincrr, R., Lturd, II.G., Postt, S. tt ZstLtilt-Niadztuiecki,'T. (cds) 1994: TUFRO international guiclelincs for forest monitorir-rg. IUFRO Worlci Series iit'port 5. Vienn;i, Austria. internation;rl Union of Forestrv Research Organizations. 102 p.

Neu, l-hrusts tn Forest lttve uttlrt

237

Rodenburg, E. L992: Eyeless in Caia - the state of global environmental monitorinc. Washington, DC: World Resources Institute. 19 p. + appendices.

GLOB

{r rs

req

dis res

be

Po

tht n( ot ^t

dl

g'

N

ll a

i I

238

Clobai Resource Assesslnents bet'ond 2011: An Intrctductrrrrr

Ner

The IIIFRO subject groups -4.02'Forest Resource Inventory and

Monitoring' and 4.12'Remote Sensing Technology'held ten separate

or joint meetings during the IUFRO XX World Congress in Tampere, Finland,

in August

1,996.

A total of 42 papers were presented at these meetings.

The papers are publishecl in two volumes of proceedings,

the one at hand and the other one published bv the University of Joensuu.

ISBN 952-9844-15-8 ISSN 1237-8801