Participatory forest carbon assessment in Angai village land forest reserve in Liwale district, Lindi region, Tanzania

Abstract

Reduced Emission from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD) policy is becoming an increasingly important option for mitigating climate change, and one which could reward local communities participating in forest management under Participatory Forest Management (PFM). However, accessing carbon finances requires among other things, accurate measurements of carbon stock changes through convetional forest inventories, something which is rarely done in PFM forests due to its high cost and limited resources. Therefore the main objective of this study was to test Participatory Forest Carbon Assessment (PFCA) in Angai Village Land Forest Reserve (AVLFR). Data collection was done through Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) techniques, participant observation and PFCA. A total of 261 permanent sample plots (PSPs) were systematically established in Mihumo, Ngongowele and Ngunja Village Land Forest Reserve (VLFR). Qualitative data from PRA techniques were analyzed with the help of the local communities. Quantitative data from PFCA were analyzed using the Tropical Forest Inventory Data Analysis (TROFIDA) package. The study revealed that communities were willing to participate in PFCA following REDD policy awareness in their villages and were motivated by expected incentives. It was further found that villagers who participated in PFCA were able to perform most steps for carbon assessment in the field. However, on average 61% of participants had difficulty using the GPS and Hypsometer for collecting data in the field. PFCA was found to be cost effective since its cost per hectare ranged from Tshs720 to 1 090 which is equivalent to US$ 0.56 and 0.84 respectively. Results of the measurements showed the carbon stock in all strata ranged from 16.8 to 19.4 tC/ha except for dense forests and encroached river basin strata. Carbon stock in closed forest ranged from 84.9 to 41.7 tC/ha while encroached river basin stratum had 7.2 tC/ha. The study concluded that villagers need more time practicing PFCA to have competence to assess the carbon in their forests themselves.