Conflicts over forests

KGA172 Space, Place and NaturePresented by Associate Professor Elaine StratfordSemester 2

LOOKING BACK, LOOKING FORWARD

Part 1

Revising Lecture 3.7

1. Describe various meanings of the term conflict and delineate why an understanding of conflict is important for people interested in geography and environmental studies.

2. In what ways might an understanding of the human ecosystem model assist in thinking through conflict over resources?

3. What are the commons? How does our understanding of these areas differ from that understanding related to private property? Why is this difference significant in terms of conceiving of conflict?

4. In relation to the commons, what is meant by non-excludable? How about rivalrous?

5. Describe the difference between open access and common ownership resources and refer to examples from fisheries to explain how these differences can lay foundations for conflict. Can they also lay foundations for collaboration?

6. What are some of the purposes that the commons serve?

7. Describe the main insights to be derived from Hardin’s Tragedy of the Commons. Auguste Rodin, A man thinking

Learning ObjectivesModule 3 Lecture 8• be able to

– describe the magnitude and causes of global deforestation

– understand how one might assess the role of logging in this process

– describe the ways in which logging takes place

– appreciate some of the environmental, social and cultural effects of logging

– comprehend the nature of the political debate over the future of natural forests

KGA172• Know and be able to (a) employ basic

geographical terminology and concepts, (b) find, evaluate, analyse and reference appropriate literature, (c) contribute to debates about development and sustainability

• Comprehend and be able to explain spatial patterns, generate basic maps, field sketches and graphs, and communicate in written and graphical forms

• Apply key academic skills and (a) engage in critical thinking, discussion and listening, and in self-reflection and reflection upon the viewpoints of others and (b) research, plan and conduct fieldwork to collect data

• Analyse and interpret basic spatial, numerical and qualitative information

• Synthesize and integrate knowledge of social and Earth systems

Textbook Reading

Middleton, N. (2003). The Global Casino. Arnold, London, Chapter 4

Kirkpatrick, J.B. (1999). A Continent Transformed. OUP, Melbourne, Chapter 5.

Critical reading1.What is the author’s purpose?2.What key questions or problems does the author raise?3.What information, data and evidence does the author present?4.What key concepts does the author use to organize this information, this evidence?5.What key conclusions is the author coming to? Are those conclusions justified? 6.What are the author’s primary assumptions?7.What viewpoints is the author writing from?8.What are the implications of the author’s reasoning?[from Foundation for Critical Thinking]

A man in a library

FORESTSPart 2

8,000 BC – 2,000 AD: 5 billion to 3.9 billion ha

Nick Middleton The Global Casino

Annual forest loss 1990-2000: c14 million ha

Nick Middleton The Global Casino

Projected logged areas in the Amazon basin in the year 2050 for high value (light green), medium value (yellow), and low

value timber (pink)

http://www.whrc.org/ecosystem/amazon_water.html

19th century

Images from Frawley and Semple Australia’s Ever-Changing Forests

FORESTRYPart 3

Logging technologies – the clearfell coupe

Cable logging

Logging in Tasmania

Silvicultural systems – clearfelling, the ecological basis

Remove all merchantable trees

Burn

Photos: Dick Chuter

Sow seed

Photo: Pep Turner

Kill browsers

Photo: A. Zacharek

Wait

Photo: E. Pharo

Group selection –

the ecological basis

The group selection silvicultural system

IMPACTSPart 4

Graph from Attiwill and Leeper Forest Soils and Nutrient Cycles

Water yield

Impacts of logging I

Graph from Attiwill and Leeper Forest Soils and Nutrient Cycles

Water quality

Impacts of logging II

Nutrient losses and gainsImpacts of logging III

Graph from Attiwill and Leeper Forest Soils and Nutrient Cycles

Erosion and mass movementImpacts of logging III

Impacts of snig tracks loading bays and bark dumps

Problems with fire escapes

Photos: E. Pharo

Regeneration failures

Structural change

Weed and pathogen introduction

Photos: T. Lee

Climatic effects

VALUES AND CONFLICTSPart 5

Sustained yield

Logging for what?

Graph from Attiwill and Leeper Forest Soils and Nutrient Cycles

Multiple use

Illegal logging, Kalimantan

Learning how to log Trying to stop it

Arguments for and against logging - jobs

Old growth forests and greenhouse Useful products produced sustainably

Value-based arguments against logging:existence rights, ecocentrism

Biodiversity maintenance