Establishment of Protected Areas

The demarcation of areas of forest as various sorts of protected area can be very successful in preventing deforestation. Protected areas directly intended as limiting deforestation comprise:

- National parks, where most forms of settlement and economic activity are prohibited
- Forest reserves, which generally have less stringent regulations
- Extractive reserves, where defined groups of people are given exclusive rights on condition they follow sustainable forestry practices, generally centring around the exploitation of non-timber forest products.

In addition, two other forms of land management can have the desirable side-effect of reducing deforestation:

- Reserves for indigenous peoples, who generally do not keep large domestic livestock and are less likely to clear forest for pasture
- Zones where livestock production is prohibited for reasons of preventive animal health, as on Panama’s border with Colombia.

To succeed, protected areas need enforcement that is effective and transparent, but which does not weaken support for conservation policies (either on the boundaries of the protected area or in the country at large) – as might happen through use of the military. Extractive reserves and reserves for indigenous peoples have an advantage here in giving an incentive to the protected area dwellers themselves, but the legal status of the area will have to be carefully defined, and if necessary protected by government from external encroachment. It cannot always be assumed either that indigenous peoples will exploit forest resources in a more sustainable way: much will depend on institutions within the protected area and markets outside.

The discussion of building appropriate institutions for biodiversity conservation is relevant to indigenous and extractive reserves.

Key references

Kaimowitz, D. 1995. Livestock and Deforestation in Central America in the 1980s and 1990s: A Policy Perspective. EPTD Discussion Paper, IFPRI, Washington DC, 1995. Click to view as Word document . (further information including copies of the report can be obtained from IFPRI at http://www.iimi.org/ifpri)

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