Accounting for Forest Degradation in the Global Biosphere Management Model (GLOBIOM)

Rautiainen, A. (2011). Accounting for Forest Degradation in the Global Biosphere Management Model (GLOBIOM). IIASA Interim Report. IIASA, Laxenburg, Austria: IR-11-036

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Abstract

Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries (REDD) is a hot political and scientific topic. Deforestation is largely driven by the competition for land. Forest degradation is often attributable to the way forest resources are managed and utilized. The Global Biosphere Management Model (GLOBIOM), developed at IIASA, is a tool for assessing the carbon impacts of the land use competition of major land-based production sectors and different policy options influencing it. Currently the model can identify deforestation risks, but cannot account for degradation processes within forests. Here, I propose a solution to how forest degradation could be integrated into the GLOBIOM, especially in the context of the Congo Basin region where the economic activities of the informal sector are an important driver of forest degradation. The solution is based on two interacting modules that simulate the processes of forest degradation. The Informal Sector Module (ISM) simulates the procurement of fuel wood and timber by the informal sector, and the allocation of its harvests into forests based on a cost-minimization principle. The Forest Structure Module (FSM) simulates the development of forest structure over time in unsustainably managed forests and accounts for the impacts of the Informal Sectors harvests and rotating subsistence agriculture.

Item Type:	Monograph (IIASA Interim Report)
Research Programs:	Ecosystems Services and Management (ESM) Young Scientists Summer Program (YSSP)
Depositing User:	IIASA Import
Date Deposited:	15 Jan 2016 08:46
Last Modified:	27 Aug 2021 17:22
URI:	https://pure.iiasa.ac.at/9801

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