Predicting wasteful spending in tree planting programs in Indian Himalaya

Rana, Pushpendra; Fleischman, Forrest; Ramprasad, Vijay; Lee, Kangjae

doi:10.1016/j.worlddev.2022.105864

Cited by 19 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 65 publications

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“…However, these targets were never realistic (Rana & Varshney 2022). Large‐scale investments in afforestation programs were announced in the 1970s and 1980s (Saigal 2011), inappropriately targeting grassland sites for tree planting (Rana et al 2022). The forest department's relatively high status at national and local administrative levels as well as its staff presence in remote rural areas bestowed it a high influence over land‐use decision‐making (Fleischman 2014).…”

Section: Postcolonial To Present‐day Continuity Of Grassland Misperce...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Balooni and Singh (2003) argue for bringing wastelands under afforestation in order to achieve forest cover targets, highlighting the need to “develop tree species to suit different edaphic conditions … like ravines and deserts,” thereby disregarding the ecological significance of deserts and ravines. While tree planting projects that are socially and ecologically relevant are definitely required in sites that have a documented forest loss, enthusiasm for planting in sites noted as deserts and ravines may be a reason for widespread planting failures (Rana et al 2022). A key point here is that even when these global targets do not focus on forests, as is the case with restoration and land degradation agreements which are neutral to ecosystem type, in the Indian context they are interpreted to be about forests and trees, often at the expense of grasslands.…”

Section: Are India's Future Commitments Detrimental To Grassland Cons...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Such a classification system would move Indian natural resource management into line with modern understandings of non‐equilibrium dynamics in disturbance ecology. Apart from providing a more specific language to speak about different kinds of Indian ecosystems, this would also encourage a more careful analysis of processes of degradation, currently obscured by the catch‐all terminology “wastelands,” which is needed for successful ecological restoration—avoiding some of the failures documented recently (Coleman et al 2021; Rana et al 2022).…”

Section: Improving Policies For Grassland Conservation and Restoratio...mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Grassland conservation and restoration in India: a governance crisis

Lahiri

Roy

Fleischman

2023

Restoration Ecology

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Grasslands are contested ecosystems due to our scant understanding of their ecological and socioeconomic roles, and also due to the ambiguity in understanding what exactly constitutes them. This problem escalates in the absence of proper governance. In this paper, we explore the historical accounts of Indian grasslands to trace how they have shaped contemporary grassland conservation and restoration policies. The paper draws from the concept of Biome Awareness Disparity (BAD) and links it to grassland degradation through misleading nomenclature and flawed interventions rooted in misplaced governance. We found that Indian grasslands are negatively affected by India's commitment to global goals (with quantified targets of increasing tree cover) and the involvement of multiple government bodies in grassland management. This conundrum is fueled by the strong forest bias within government bodies and NGOs. Based on the findings, we propose that India needs a more cohesive national policy framework and a robust ecosystem classification system to successfully conserve and restore grasslands.

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Section: Postcolonial To Present‐day Continuity Of Grassland Misperce...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Are India's Future Commitments Detrimental To Grassland Cons...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Improving Policies For Grassland Conservation and Restoratio...mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Grassland conservation and restoration in India: a governance crisis

Lahiri

Roy

Fleischman

2023

Restoration Ecology

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“…With increasingly ambitious targets from both the global community and individual organizations, the risk rises that project establishment will outpace the ability to identify and secure growing sites where trees will persist. Project failures result in financial waste that could have been spent on other conservation goals and may lead to reduced confidence in tree growing (Höhl et al., 2020; Lobe Ekamby & Mudu, 2022; Rana et al., 2022). We advocate the importance of addressing common pitfalls that have led to previous reforestation failures and the need to follow best practices guidelines to achieve desired goals, particularly as many inexperienced organizations continue to join the reforestation movement.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Advances and shortfalls in applying best practices to global tree‐growing efforts

Schubert,

Battaglia,

Blebea

et al. 2024

Conservation Letters.

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As global tree‐growing efforts have escalated in the past decade, copious failures and unintended consequences have prompted many reforestation best practices guidelines. The extent to which organizations have integrated these ecological and socioeconomic recommendations, however, remains uncertain. We reviewed websites of 99 intermediary organizations that promote and fund tree‐growing projects to determine how well they report following best practices. Nearly half the organizations stated tree or area planting targets, but only 25% had measurable, time‐bound objectives. Most organizations discussed the benefits local communities would receive from trees, but only 38% reported measures of these outcomes. Nonprofit organizations with greater prior experience converged more closely on best practices, and their level of scientific expertise was positively associated with clearer project selection standards. Although many tree‐growing organizations acknowledge the importance of clear goals, local community involvement, and monitoring, our results raise questions regarding whether long‐term benefits are being achieved and emphasize the need for stronger public accountability standards.

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“…Good infrastructure increases the accessibility of smallholder plots to potential business partners, reduces the negative impact of physical distance and associated transaction costs, and improves prices paid to smallholders (Midgley et al 2017) (Belcher and Schreckenberg 2007;Pannell et al 2006;Byron 2001). The importance of site suitability for tree planting has been emphasized repetitively (see Brancalion and Holl (2020), Rana et al (2022)), but institutional and regulatory factors will also influence the choice of planting areas and even tree species. Overly restrictive forest and conservation policies, for example, could prohibit harvesting of indigenous tree species in communal or state managed lands.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Conditions that Enable Successful Participation of Smallholder Tree Growers in Timber Value Chains

Vega

Page

2023

Small-scale Forestry

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Recent research identified twenty conditions that enable the participation of smallholder tree growers in timber value chains. This paper builds on that work. It delves deeper into how and when during the plantation investment cycle these conditions facilitate sustained trade between small-scale timber producers, processors, buyers, and other service providers. It also identifies the stakeholders who are in the best position to influence these conditions. Conditions that affect access to smallholder timber such as biophysical characteristics of the land, characteristics of the plots where trees are planted, and infrastructure have important implications for trading partners. A buyer’s willingness to purchase smallholder timber also depends on timber quality and quantity, and reliability of supply. These are affected by conditions such as the availability of good genetic material, biophysical characteristics of land, and application of the right silvicultural practices. Building a viable value chain involving smallholder tree growers depends on matching the capabilities and aspirations of smallholders with the requirements of processors and buyers. Opportunities for smallholder tree growers to benefit from growing timber demand are on the rise, but successful engagement of small-scale timber producers with these markets will depend on how well all value chain agents connect and understand each other’s needs.

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Predicting wasteful spending in tree planting programs in Indian Himalaya

Cited by 19 publications

References 65 publications

Grassland conservation and restoration in India: a governance crisis

Grassland conservation and restoration in India: a governance crisis

Advances and shortfalls in applying best practices to global tree‐growing efforts

Conditions that Enable Successful Participation of Smallholder Tree Growers in Timber Value Chains

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