Land acquisitions for agri business in Cambodia in relation to conservation. Tom Evans WCS Global Conservation Program

Transcription

1 Land acquisitions for agri business in Cambodia in relation to conservation Tom Evans WCS Global Conservation Program

2 The national conservation area system About 4.5 M ha, 25% of the country, 40% of forest estate (plus some non forest areas) Ministry of Environment (c. 3 m ha) Protected Areas (Nat. Parks etc) mostly in 1993; +/ all before 2000 Ministry of Ag, Forestry and Fisheries (c. 1.5 m ha) Protected Forests mostly post 2001 National Forest Program commitment (2010) to expand to 3 m ha parallel commitment to create 2m ha of Community Forests Community Fisheries and Fishery Conservation areas add to this System protects rare biodiversity and national heritage Important for many economic sectors rural livelihoods (land and forest products, fisheries) tourism; energy (hydropower); irrigation, flood control, clean water

3 Community rights in conservation areas are comparatively good Concern over green grabs is simply not part of the debate Rights are generally strong on paper Protected Areas Law (2008; Min of Environment areas) allows for extensive Community and Sustainable Use zones including Community Protected Areas with devolved management and harvest rights Forestry Law (2002) allows continued access to farmland and customary forest use as default, even in Protected Forests; zoning through management plans formalizes these use rights; includes sale of NTFPs and, in pilot sites, even timber Retrospective claims to Communal Land Titles (mainly agricultural lands; Land Law 2001) are permitted for Indigenous Peoples (and supported by conservation agencies/ngos) A recent ad hoc land titling program in forest areas (mainly land concessions) has also resulted in a de facto amnesty on many families with disputed claims to agricultural holdings almost all now being titled

4 Large scale land acquisition has mushroomed since 2005 Logging concessions have had their day Oil, gas and mineral exploration are in their early stages Since peace in 1998, agro industrial development has accelerated dramatically

5 Case study 1: Forest in the Eastern Plains Approx 34% of the 967,000 ha study landscape (all Permanent Forest Estate) was in Economic Land Concessions by early 2012 (up from 9% in 2009). Clearance within these concessions c. 134 km 2 /year in 2010 and 2011 But clearance for rubber is not deforestation by some definitions. Landscape has high biodiversity values, multiple protected areas, numerous IP communities and high forest dependency. Active concessions

6 Rapid conversion of Snoul Wildlife Sanctuary

7 Land concessions have caused extensive conflict Community/social NGO responses include local protests, organised social activism and advocacy, demand for land titles, community forests etc; at times violent outcomes Extensive social unrest > changes in local election outcomes (2012) > immediate announcement of.. a national land titling program in forest areas national moratorium on issuance of new concessions The biodiversity impacts are likely highly significant but have yet to be formally quantified (but see Wright et al Oryx : 1 4) Conservation approaches cluster around Biodiversity and ecosystem services arguments REDD proposals Strengthening community tenure/participation in reserves

8 Case study 2 Tonle Sap seasonal grasslands Approx 2/3 of worlds Bengal Floricans (Critically Endangered) 10 other Red Data species A common pool resource used by dozens of villages for..fishing grazing small scale agriculture Continued human use is essential to maintain biodiversity values this is a cultural landscape

9 Large scale conversion for commercial irrigation schemes Quasi legal concessions issued by provincial authorities Commercial investors (Cambodian/nearby countries) 19% decline of grassland extent to only 751 km 2 remaining in just 4 years i.e. 5% per annum! rapid further losses since Tonle Sap Lake dry season extent 95% attributable to irrigation schemes Packman et al. (2013) Con. Bio. 27(2):

10 Conversion is opposed by large sections of Cambodian society and conservation agencies but still continues Customary tenure and access lost; frequent protests Few compensatory benefits accrue locally Conflicts between local and distant communities Strong opposition from Fisheries Administration dam demolition program supported by Prime Minister in , but not sustained Severe conservation impacts national florican populations down by 44% from 2005 to 2012; presumably also impacts on migratory fish stocks and customary harvests Conservation areas established with strong community involvement (2007 onwards) show some success but only protect a fraction of the habitat