Will concern for biodiversity spell doom to tropical forest management?

Abstract

Arguments against active tropical forest management are analyzed in light of available data and new research that shows tropical forests to be more resilient after disturbances than previously thought. Tropical forest management involves a diverse array of human activity embedded in a complex social and natural environment. Within this milieu, forest structure and composition adjust to change and reflect the human and natural economy of regions. Critics of active forest management overestimate problems and underestimate human capacity to solve them. They isolate parts of a complex issue, i.e. the biodiversity component of tropical forest management, to generalize about the negatives of logging. This view of the tropics is consistent with past treatment of tropical issues by those that evaluate the situation from a non-tropical perspective. The literature reveals that conservation of biodiversity can be compatible with measured use of tropical forests. However, the conservation of biodiversity could be hurt should society not approach the tropical forestry issue holistically and act on misinformation. Active forest management is the means towards the goal of conservation and the best available way to simultaneously address human needs and conservation of biodiversity.