
Do forest-management plans and FSC certification help avoid deforestation in the Congo Basin ?
Tritsch, Isabelle; Le Velly, Gwenolé; Mertens, Benoit; Meyfroidt, Patrick; Sannier, Christophe; Makak, Jean-Sylvestre; Houngbedji, Kenneth (2020), Do forest-management plans and FSC certification help avoid deforestation in the Congo Basin ?, Ecological Economics, 175, p. 106660. 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2020.106660
Type
Article accepté pour publication ou publiéDate
2020-09Journal name
Ecological EconomicsVolume
175Publisher
Elsevier
Pages
106660
Publication identifier
Metadata
Show full item recordAuthor(s)
Tritsch, IsabelleCentre IRD de Montpellier [IRD]
Le Velly, Gwenolé

Mertens, Benoit
Centre IRD de Montpellier [IRD]
Meyfroidt, Patrick
Fonds de la Recherche Scientifique [FNRS]
Sannier, Christophe
Systèmes d'Information à Référence Spatiale [SIRS]
Makak, Jean-Sylvestre
Houngbedji, Kenneth

Laboratoire d'Economie de Dauphine [LEDa]
Développement, institutions et analyses de long terme [DIAL]
Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)
Abstract (EN)
To allow for the production of timber while preserving conservation values, forestry regulations in the Congo Basin have made Forest Management Plans (FMP) mandatory in logging concessions. This paper uses original high-resolution maps of forest-cover changes and official records on the activities of logging concessions to analyze the impact of FMP on deforestation in this region. We apply quasi-experimental and difference-in-difference approaches to evaluate the change in deforestation in concessions managed under an approved FMP. We find that between 2000 and 2010, deforestation was 74% lower in concessions with an FMP compared to others. Building on a theory of change, further analyses revealed that this decrease in deforestation takes time to occur and is highest around communities located in and nearby logging concessions, and in areas close to previous deforestation. These findings suggest that FMP help avoid deforestation by allowing logging companies to rotate cycles of timber extraction, thereby avoiding the overexploitation of areas that were previously logged, and by the better regulation of access to concessions by closing former logging roads to limit illegal activities such as shifting agriculture, hunting and the illegal harvest of timber or fuel-wood.Subjects / Keywords
Forest Management Plan; FSC Certification; Deforestation; Matching; Congo BasinRelated items
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