PATTERNS OF FOREST LOSS PER TERRITORIAL CATEGORY IN THE AMAZON RAINFOREST: PERU (2001–2016)

Ethel Rubin De Celis,Nelson Carlos Rosot,Hideo Araki,María De Los Ángeles La Torre-Cuadros,Ana Paula Dalla Corte,Zoila A Cruz-Burga

doi:10.5380/rf.v49i4.60160

Abstract

The objective of the present study was to analyze the patterns of forest loss in the Peruvian Amazon between 2001 and 2016 according to 16 territorial categories and two types of land tenure (public and private) and administration (public and private). Through descriptive analysis and multivariate analysis using official forest loss data provided by the Peruvian government, a progressive increase in forest loss was detected over time, with the highest peaks in 2009, 2014, and 2016. The departments of San Martin, Loreto, and Ucayali presented the greatest loss. The three territorial categories with the greatest forest loss were the noncategorized areas (NCs), indigenous communities with land titles (ICTs), and rural lands (RLs). The NC category did not affect the general tendency of deforestation in Peru given that the forest loss dynamics in this category were similar to those of other territorial categories with assigned land rights.

Highlights

The Amazon rainforest covers an area of 7.5 million km2, extending across eight countries (OTCA, 2014)
After dividing the country into three regional sectors, similarity was only observed in the departments in the central sector, such as Cerro de Pasco and Junín, which may be related to their similar socioeconomic characteristics and land uses
The similarity found between the departments in different sectors, such as Cusco and Amazonas, Ucayali and Huánuco, Puno and Cajamarca, and La Libertad and Huancavelica, highlights that despite not being adjacent, with the exception of Ucayali and Huánuco, these departments may share similar agricultural or land uses

Summary

Introduction

The Amazon rainforest covers an area of 7.5 million km, extending across eight countries (OTCA, 2014). The countries with the highest percentages of forest loss in the 2000–2013 period were Brazil, Ecuador, Colombia, and Peru, with losses from 9.1% to 17.6% (RAISG, 2015). These losses are significant given that the Amazon rainforest plays an important role in global biodiversity conservation. The Amazon River and its tributaries constitute one-fifth of the available freshwater resources in the world (UNESCO, 2006) Within this vast territory, Peru has lost an estimated 12% of its tropical forests, or approximately 10 million hectares (ha) since 1900 (HOTZ et al, 2015). In 2012, with the implementation of the Monitoring of Deforestation, Forest Use, and Land-Use Changes in the Pan-Amazon Forest project by the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization (Organización del Tratado de Cooperación Amazónica [OTCA]) and the establishment of the Peruvian Observation Unit (Sala de Observación Perú [SdO]), the National Forest Conservation Program for Climate Change Mitigation (Programa Nacional de Conservación de Bosques para la Mitigación del Cambio Climático) of the Ministry of the Environment (Ministerio del Ambiente [MINAM]) and the National Forest and Wildlife

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Results

Conclusion