TITLE:
Reducing Carbon Emissions through Improved Forest Management in Cambodia
AUTHORS:
Nophea Sasaki, Issei Abe, Vathana Khun, Somanta Chan, Hiroshi Ninomiya, Kimsun Chheng
KEYWORDS:
Carbon Credits; Forest Inventory; Liberation Treatment; Reduced Impact Logging; Timber Concession; Wood Supply
JOURNAL NAME:
Low Carbon Economy,
Vol.4 No.4A,
December
3,
2013
ABSTRACT:
Carbon
emissions from selectively logged forests in the tropics are strongly affected
by logging practices. Although tropical forests are mainly managed under the
concession system, only a handful of studies were done to assess the impact of
logging practices on emission reductions and future timber supply. In this
report, carbon stocks, timber supply, and carbon emission reductions under
conventional logging (CVL), reduced-impact logging (RIL), and RIL with special
silvicultural treatments (RIL+) were assessed in 3.4 million ha of concession
forests for a 55-year
project time span. Carbon emissions under a 25-year CVL practiced in Cambodia
were estimated at 12.4 TgCO2 year-1 for 55 years. We then
tested four cutting cycles of selective logging and our results suggest that a
45-year selective cutting cycle was appropriate for managing concession forests
in Cambodia in terms of maintaining commercial timber supply and reducing
carbon emissions. By considering RIL or RIL+ as a new logging practice for
improving forest management in the tropics, carbon credits from selective
logging in Cambodia were estimated at 6.2 - 7.9 TgCO2 or about $31.0 - 39.5 million annually if carbon is
priced at $5. It is concluded that RIL or RIL+ should be adopted for “sustainable
management of forests” element of the REDD+ scheme.