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This study is the first of its kind that looks at the impact of endocrine-disrupting compounds on the waterbodies of Chitwan National Park
. It serves as a baseline on chemicals that severely impact aquatic biodiversity and clearly such monitoring needs to be done on a more regular basis
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Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) is a global initiative developed as part of the Paris Agreement under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
. REDD+ aims to contribute to mitigating climate change by compensating developing countries for the cost of reducing net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the forest sector. REDD+ National Strategies or Action Plans (NS/APs) can reduce GHG emissions by lowering the rate of deforestation and forest degradation (D&FD) and/or removing GHG from the atmosphere through ‘forest enhancement’ activities (the ‘+’ of REDD+)1, for example, by establishing plantations (reforestation and afforestation) and restoring degraded forest landscapes
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Richards, M.; Bhattarai, N.; Karky, B.; Hicks, C.; Ravilious, C.; Timalsina, N.; Phan, G.; Swan, S.; Vickers, B.; Windhorst, K.; Roy, R.
This manual has been prepared for facilitators working with planners and multiple stakeholders in the development of sub-national plans for Reduced Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+)
. It is based on idea that subnational REDD+ planning is essential for operationalising a REDD+ National Strategy. The manual is based on pilot Sub-national REDD+ Action Plan (SRAP) experiences in Vietnam and Nepal over the period 2014-2016. It is written in a prescriptive style, but the methodology is generic and can be adapted to the country context and requirements
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Murthy, M. S. R.; Gilani, H.; Karky, B. S.; Sharma, E.; Sandker, M.; Koju, U. A.; Sandker, M.; Koju, U. A.; Khanal, S.; Poudel, M.
Background The reliable monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) of carbon emissions and removals from the forest sector is an important part of the efforts on reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD+)
. Forest-dependent local communities are engaged to contribute to MRV through community-based monitoring systems. The efficiency of such monitoring systems could be improved through the rational integration of the studies at permanent plots with the geospatial technologies. This article presents a case study of integrating community-based measurements at permanent plots at the foothills of central Nepal and biomass maps that were developed using GeoEye-1 and IKONS satellite images. Results The use of very-high-resolution satellite-based tree cover parameters, including crown projected area (CPA), crown density and crown size classes improves salience, reliability and legitimacy of the community-based survey of 0.04% intensity at the lower cost than increasing intensity of the community-based survey to 0.14% level (2.5 USD/ha vs. 7.5 USD/ha). Conclusion The proposed REDD+ MRV complementary system is the first of its kind and demonstrates the enhancement of information content, accuracy of reporting and reduction in cost. It also allows assessment of the efficacy of community-based forest management and extension to national scale.
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Crop productivity is directly dependent on soil fertility
. High organic carbon content in soil is vital as it leads to improved soil quality, increased productivity, and stable soil aggregates. In addition, with the signing of the climate agreement, there is growing interest in carbon sequestration in landscapes. This paper looks at how soil organic carbon (SOC) can be increased so that it contributes not only to the reduction of atmospheric CO2, but also translates to the increased food production, thereby enhancing food security. This synergy between climate change mitigation and enhancing food security is even more relevant for mountain landscapes of the Hindu Kush Himalayan (HKH) region where there remains huge potential to increase CO2 sequestration and simultaneously address food security in the chronic food deficit villages. Soil samples were collected from seven transects each in Bajhang and Mustang and from four land use types in each transect. Samples of soils were taken from two depths in each plot: 0–15 cm and 15–30 cm below the soil surface to compare the top soil and subsoil dynamics of the soil nutrients. The lab analysis was performed to assess the soil texture, soil acidity in “power of hydrogen” (pH), and macro-nutrients reflecting soil fertility. Secondary data was used to analyze the level of food deficit in the villages. The pH value of soil from Bajhang ranged from 5.3 to 9.1. The pH value of soil ranged from 5.7 to 8.8 in Mustang. SOC contents of sampled soils from Bajhang ranged from 0.20% to 7.69% with a mean amount of 2.47% ± 0.17%. SOC contents of sampled soils from Mustang ranged from 0.51% to 8.56% with a mean amount of 2.60% ± 0.25%. By land use type, forest land had the highest carbon (C) content of 53.61 t·ha−1 in Bajhang, whereas in Mustang, agricultural land had the highest C content of 52.02 tons·ha−1. Based on these data, we can say that there is potential for increasing SOC through improved soil health and crop production holistic soil management should be practiced for higher productivity, and incorporating livestock for farmyard manure would fertilize cultivated soils, which increases soil productivity. Increasing productivity would aid in enhancing the access and availability of food in these mountain village
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We examine the role of subnational institutions in carbon sequestration and assess whether community forest user groups can meet both existing forest needs and international carbon demand
. By conducting a qualitative evaluation of a pilot program in Nepal that made carbon payments to forest user groups, we examine if community forestry institutions can be effective, efficient, and equitable in implementing Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD)+. Our evaluation relies on focus group discussions, meetings, and community and program documents of forestry user groups that participated in the REDD+ pilot and matched groups that did not. Compared to control groups, REDD+ user groups appear to be more effective in carbon sequestration, perhaps because of increased prevention of forest fires and grazing, nursery establishment, and other forest management. REDD+ user groups report a larger number of forest conservation, forest utilization, and community development activities relative to control groups. Participating communities bear transaction costs of US$4.5/hectare and implementation costs of US$2.5/hectare on average (or NPR 50,000 (US$600) per year). The mean REDD+ rent per ton of additional carbon sequestered was US$1.3. Targeting of benefits improves partly because some marginalized groups, particularly women, participate more in the planning and management. In terms of equity, microcredit and capacity development activities were skewed to the poorest households, whereas alternate fuel and carbon monitoring were more advantageous to middle or high income households. Overall, our analyses suggest that REDD+ activities can be successfully executed, if communities receive technical and capacity building support for institutional strengthening, in addition to carbon payments
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This study illustrates how a private sector- Plantec Coffee Estate (P) Ltd was able to successfully bring a positive change in restoring degraded landscape through private investment
. Before establishment of agroforestry (1994), the land use was dominated by cultivated (73.2%), barren land (17.1%) and shrub/bushes (6.3%). Now 81.2% of area is covered by forest, out of which 52% has closed canopy. The total carbon stock of an area was found to be 6795 tons (equivalent to 24,939 tCO2), which cost would be USD 124,693 at the rate of 5 USD per tCO2. This finding also highlighted the fact that agroforestry in the Hindu Kush Himalayan (HKH) region is a suitable biological mitigation intervention that contributes to NDC targets and REDD+ objectives
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Banikoi, H.; Thapa, S.; Bhattarai, N.; Kandel, R. C.; Chaudhary, S.; Chaudhary, S.; Timalsina, N.; Windhorst, K.; Karky, B. S.; Adhikari, M. D.; Pokheral, C. P.
Finding solutions to human-wildlife conflict (HWC) is one of the complex challenges conservationists and local communities have to contend with for an enduring period
. Biodiversity is crucial for enriching the forests including the existing flora and fauna species residing in the forest, which is a key element of the GIZ/ICIMOD REDD+ Himalaya Initiative. The Terai Arc Landscape (TAL) has been selected by the Government of Nepal for developing the REDD+ programme. This area harbours numerous wildlife corridors, and with the enhancement of habitats through REDD+ conservation activities, the wildlife population will increase. This will further exacerbate existing human-wildlife conflict. Therefore, to ensure and address such challenges, REDD+ mechanisms need to incorporate human-wildlife mitigation measures. The study employed various methods including mapping of the fences, observation, focus group discussions, and key informant and official interviews with conservationists in the CNP and NTNC-BCC to collect data. A total of 57 fences were visited and mapped in 54 community forests which are made up of buffer zone community forests and community forests under the district forest office
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Karki, S.; Pforte, B.; Karky, B. S.; Statz, J.; Dangi, R. B.; Khanal, D. R.; Chand, N. B.; Poudel, M.; Maraseni, T.; Cadman, T.; Lopez, F.; Delma, S.; Wangchuk, S.; Norbu, L.; Oo, T. N.; Rawat, V. R. S.; Singh, T. P.; Sharma, J. V.; Windhorst, K.
REDD+ Initiative has prepared a UNFCCC submission report “The Development of REDD+ Safeguards in the Hindu Kush Himalaya: Recent Experiences and Processes” to demonstrate that the participating HKH countries are committed to developing REDD+ safeguards
. This document illustrates the ongoing progress made on integrating safeguard in REDD+ programme in the HKH countries that are in their REDD readiness phase. This report synthesizes the overall progress of National Safeguard System, by analyzing gaps and common challenges to implement REDD+ safeguards in Bhutan, India, Myanmar and Nepal and recommends the way forward. This report, prepared through series of regional level South-South learning workshops in 2015 and 2016, is a testament of how the HKH countries are trying to comply with the UNFCCC guidelines by engaging in the development of National Safeguard System
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In 2010, forests accounted for 40 percent (5
.96 million ha) and other types of woodland made up 4 percent (0.65 million ha ) of the land area of Nepal (DFRS 2015c). Of the total forest area, 38 percent was in the mid-hills, 32 percent in the high mountains, 23 percent in the Siwaliks, and 7 percent in the Terai. The Terai comprises the plains of Nepal and the Siwaliks are a low range of hills between the Terai and the mid-hills. The Terai and the Siwaliks have witnessed steady deforestation with the gradual conversion of forest to agricultural land and the growth of infrastructure development. In the mid-hills and high mountains, however, forest cover has been increasing since 1995 (DFRS, 2014a, 2014b, 2015a, 2015b). The annual deforestation rate is 0.44 percent (1,648 ha/yr.) in the Terai and 0.18 percent (2,537 ha/yr.) in the Siwaliks. The average carbon stock in Nepal’s forests is 177 tC/ha, with the lowest amount (117 tC/ha) in the Siwaliks and the highest amount (272 tC/ha) in the mountains (DFRS, 2014a, 2015a, 2015c)
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