Community-based forest management

plans in the Brazilian Amazon:

current barriers and necessary reforms

Isabel Garcia Drigo, USP/Agroparitech

Marie Gabrielle Piketty, CIRAD UMR MOISA

Wagner Pena, Emater, Para (Brazil)

Plinio Sist, CIRAD UR 105

Taking stock of smallholders and community forestry, Montpellier 24-26 April 2010

The Brazilian Amazon

9 States

5 217 420 km²

64% of forest

61% of Brazilian State

20 Million habitants

Potential Area of CFM

Source: Amaral and Verissimo 2007

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

800

900

1000

FLONAS RDS RESEX APA QUIL COLONS TOTAL

263

101 118161

6

253

901

79 8195 80

4

126

465

TH

OU

SA

ND

S

Area MFC

Potential areas for CFM > 46 MhaIndigenous areas = 110MhaPotential areas for concession 43 Mha

Source SFB 2007

Community Forest Management Projects

in the Brazilian Amazon

1566 initiatives of CFM and smallholdersmanagement plans

Total area of 851,000 ha

Only 5459 families

First Conclusions on CFM in the Brazilian

Amazon

Large potential area more than 45 million ha

Still very few CFM plans

High diversity of situations (traditional populations, small farmers, common or individual forest land)

Large expectations

Large support from several entities : governmental bodies (Promanejo program), civil society (ONGs), foreign support….

Increase of CFM in the Amazon (17 plans in 1990

1566 initiatives in 2006*)

* source: Serviço Florestal Brasileiro 2007

The many problems and the focus

Many regulatory frameworks impose slow and costly permit granting processes.

Internal challenges, limited technical and business skills, quality and scale production, and potential internal conflicts

Long term economic viability poorly documented whereas it is expected that forest management of legal forest reserves (80 % of each land holding) generate a significant additional income

► Detailed analysis of economic results of 4 CFM (2 in Acre State – 2 in Para State)

The four case-studiesAPRUMA CANOR PORTO DIAS VIROLA-JATOBA

States Acre Para Acre Para

Land tenure Individual Individual Concession Concession

Participants 16 6 8 24/183

Area (ha) 640 364 2.400 23.000

Annual harvested area (ha)

64 74 40 500-1000

Harvesting method

CFMmechanized

CFMmechanized

CFMmechanized

Partnershiplogging company

Benefit sharing Individual Individual Among the 8 members

All families

Timber Production Performance

Production(m3/family/year)

(m3/year)

Case Study Planned Real

Pedro Peixoto 11 6

Canor 174 174 *

Porto Dias 400 170

Virola-Jatoba 8.000 4.000

* Not all sold

Main Limiting factors:

1. Lack of skill in forest inventories

2. Bad road conditions3. Lack of time dedication from farmers

to logging

Production Costs: the case of Canor

High transport costs (58%)Cost of Management Plan almost equal to all logging costsAgregated cost value similar with others case studies in the Amazon(50-100 US$/m3)

Economic results of CBFM

FAMILY NET INCOME(US$/family/year)

N years

Comments

Expected Real

Pedro Peixoto 869 800 10 Only 3 families

Canor 1100-2000 < 0? 8 Only 500 m3 sold

Porto Dias 2500 2125 30 Large public subsidies

Virola-Jatoba 1300 550 25

Main Limiting Factors1. No market for all harvested species2. Competition with illegal logging and authorized

deforestation3. In the best case scenario income is only 70% of brazilian

minimum wage

Conclusions -Discussion

The community-based forest management faces huge challenges to secure long term economic viability yet.

The current timber prices barely manage to secure long term economic viability

Bad road infrastructures have a significant impact on costs

Administrative costs are important

Conclusions -Discussion

Even if timber becomes scarce, if control is increasing, the illegal timber market still exists. The demand for « legal timber » is not that high

Timber demand for specific valorized species often requires to be able to produce high quality round or sawn wood

Not all the forest in the settlement are really that rich….(economically speaking)

CBFM economic returns from timber are not currently sufficient to sustain alone a family

Discussion for future policies and research

Invest in new forms of local governance of forest resources

Realize a full assessment of timber potential of legal reserves in the Amazon

Improve secondary road infrastructures

Invest in R&D to support the implementation of sustainable cattle ranching and agricultural activities in the limited area allowed to be deforested

Secure public markets (minimum prices ?) for timber from CBFM

Decrease administrative costs