"Wood Security": the importance of incentives and economic valorisation in conserving and expanding forests

Abstract

Tropical forest degradation is a major source of greenhouse-gas emissions, but international forest and climate policies are yet to respond decisively to this. In some regions, as a result of population growth, climate change and forest degradation, the increased need for wood, whether for timber or fuelwood, will exceed the sustainable supply capacity of natural forests and plantations, potentially accelerating deforestation processes. As with the issue of food security, a problem of "wood supply security" is emerging in several developing countries. This issue is poorly understood by most international initiatives focused on climate or biodiversity, which want to conserve forests but neglect the importance of the productive role of forests to support this conservation through their sustainable use. Solutions exist, but a number of barriers, starting with unclear tenure rights and short-sighted policy choices, prevent the large-scale deployment of these ones. Putting investment back at the forefront of the international agenda and setting the right incentives for producers is necessary to overcome these barriers and create the conditions for achieving future results sought by the "results-based payments" schemes such as REDD+, currently favoured by donors. Beyond the production side, the role of the global demand and the consumers is critical, and trade policies should evolve significantly to favour sustainable and deforestation-free productions.