Abstract
AbstractDespite global commitments to forest restoration, evidence of the pathways through which restoration creates social and ecological benefits remains limited. The objective of this paper is to provide empirical evidence to generate insights on the relationship between forest cover change and key provisioning ecosystem services and reforestation pathways. In Southern Ethiopia, three zones along a gradient of decreasing land cover complexity and tree cover were examined. The land cover change was assessed using satellite remote sensing and complemented ground‐based tree inventory. Perceptions of land cover and ecosystem services change and farmer responses were evaluated through three Participatory Rural Appraisals and eight Focus Group Discussions. Since the 1970s, a landscape shift from a forest‐grassland to a cropland mosaic was associated with increased food production, improved food security, and higher incomes. However, this shift also coincided with reductions in livestock, construction materials, fuelwood and water availability, prompting reforestation efforts designed to recover some of these lost ecosystem services. In particular, some households established Eucalyptus woodlots and encouraged natural regeneration. Natural trees, Eucalyptus woodlots, Ensete plantations (a type of plantain), and grasslands were positively associated with homestead proximity; thus, homestead establishment resulting from population increase in this predominately agricultural landscape appeared to foster a viable forest restoration pathway—that is, 'more people, more trees'. This is a reforestation pathway not previously described in the literature. A return to a more diverse agricultural landscape mosaic provided more secure and diversified income sources along with better provisioning of construction materials, fuelwood, and higher livestock numbers.
Highlights
Despite slowing deforestation in some countries, the majority of tropical nations are still experiencing relatively high rates of forest loss (Keenan et al, 2015), a trend which is likely to continue in the foreseeable future (Gibbs et al, 2010; Sloan & Sayer, 2015)
This study provides empirical evidence of restoration pathways where farmer-led reforestation leads to the recovery of key provisioning services, with simultaneous population increase
land use and land cover (LULC) changes are affected by the changing need for ecosystem services of landscape users
Summary
Despite slowing deforestation in some countries, the majority of tropical nations are still experiencing relatively high rates of forest loss (Keenan et al, 2015), a trend which is likely to continue in the foreseeable future (Gibbs et al, 2010; Sloan & Sayer, 2015). Because tropical forests represent some of the most biodiversity-rich areas on the planet (Myers et al, 2000), their loss is a major contributor to the. In landscapes composed of agricultural-forest mosaics, forests and trees provide fuelwood, fodder for livestock, construction materials, and nutrients for crops (e.g., Baudron et al, 2017). Because on-farm trees may provide provisioning and other ecosystem services—that is, products and other benefits from the ecosystem to humans—critical for agricultural production, they are often integrated within mixed crop-livestock systems (Reed et al, 2017). Deforestation along with general loss of trees tends to have negative consequences for rural livelihoods
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