Coupled forest zoning and agricultural intervention yields conflicting outcomes for tropical forest conservation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)

Abstract

Agricultural intensification and forest conservation are often seen as incompatible. Agricultural interventions can help boost food security for poor rural communities but in certain cases can exacerbate deforestation, known as the rebound effect. We tested whether coupling agricultural interventions with participatory forest zoning could improve food security and promote forest conservation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Simple agricultural interventions led to a >60% increase in cassava yields and a spill-over effect of improved cassava variety uptake in non-intervention zones. Household surveys conducted at the end of the 8-year project implementation period revealed that households that received agricultural interventions had more favorable attitudes toward forest zoning and conservation. The surveys also showed that farmers in the intervention domain practiced less land-intensive field and fallow management strategies compared to those practiced in the non-intervention domain. However, an 18-year time series analysis of Landsat satellite data revealed that agricultural expansion persisted in areas both with and without intervention assistance, and there is risk of a rebound effect. Approximately 70% of the tree cover loss that occurred outside of the agricultural areas was located within a 3-km buffer zone surrounding the outermost edges of the agricultural areas, which suggested that the majority of tree cover loss was caused by agricultural expansion. Within that 3-km buffer, average annual tree cover loss during the post-intervention time period was higher in the intervention domain compared to the non-intervention domain (0.17% y-1 compared to 0.11% y-1 respectively, p < 0.001), suggesting risk of a rebound effect. The disconnection between household perceptions of zoning adherence and actual behavior indicates the importance of strengthening governance structures for community-based monitoring and enforcement.

Anthropogenic Pressures on Gorillas: A Case of Grauer’s Gorillas in Maiko National Park, the Democratic Republic of Congo

“…These deforestation pressures are projected to increase over the next 20 to 30 years as a result of human demographic pressure, virtually nonexistent social development, unemployment, low incomes, and a lack of affordable alternative energy sources [67]. With more than 90% of the households in the DRC engaged in agriculture and the present population growing by 2-3% per year, the demand for cultivable land is increasing; the same goes for forestry processing and their products [68]. In addition, cutting down trees and clearing forests releases large amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, exacerbating global warming and climate change events [69].…”

Exploring Farmers’ Decisions on Agricultural Intensification and Cropland Expansion in Ethiopia, Ghana, and Zambia through Serious Gaming

“…Increasing agricultural productivity through intensification is a key strategy of African governments and donors supporting them to increase food production [9,10,36,37]. For instance, in Zambia, this is the first objective of the country's Second National Agricultural Policy [38].…”