EIA and Sustainable Forest Management

Experiences from Cameroon

Verina Ingram, SNV Netherlands Development Organisation & Verina Ingram, SNV Netherlands Development Organisation & FGF, CoFGF, Co--Chair IAIA Biodiversity Group Chair IAIA Biodiversity Group

Fon Fon NsohNsoh, COMINSUD & WHINCONET, COMINSUD & WHINCONET

Cameroon: a biodiversity hotspot

• Tropical humid rain forests cover 41 % land: one of world's great remnant blocks of closed canopy habitat

• Highlands contain largest remaining areas of African Montane forest, high endemic species ratio in fragmented, degraded and isolated patches, biodiversity hotspot

• 44% land is savannah grass & woodlands, & semi-arid Sahel

• 14% land area allocated for conservation, 13% for permanent timber production

CameroonCameroon’’s Forestss Forests

•• Cameroon is resource rich but people remain poor Cameroon is resource rich but people remain poor (UNDP Developing country (UNDP Developing country lowerlower--middle income bracket)middle income bracket)

•• Cameroons biodiversity resources are top 2 foreign income Cameroons biodiversity resources are top 2 foreign income earners: oil and agriculture earners: oil and agriculture

•• Forest sector 3Forest sector 3rdrd: approx 8 billion $ foreign exchange : approx 8 billion $ foreign exchange

•• Estimated >50% plus poor people depend directly on forest Estimated >50% plus poor people depend directly on forest resources for subsistence and to generate incomeresources for subsistence and to generate income

•• Wood is major source fuel for majority of householdsWood is major source fuel for majority of households

•• Ecosystem functions critical: food source, soil fertility, waterEcosystem functions critical: food source, soil fertility, watercatchments catchments -- especially in marginal and deforested areas especially in marginal and deforested areas

•• Debate if human disturbance reduces or increases biodiversityDebate if human disturbance reduces or increases biodiversity……

•• Perception shift from forests as protected or production resourcPerception shift from forests as protected or production resource e to a sustainable, potentially productive asset for local to a sustainable, potentially productive asset for local communities, users and stakeholderscommunities, users and stakeholders

Forest resource use……

� Unprecedented deforestation and over exploitation: approx 470,000 km2 humid forest lost since C19th century

� Increasing population pressure

� Unsustainable resource use and over exploitation e.g. Prunus, Eru, Azobé

� Continued poor/mis management

� Forest clearance for farmland and plantations

� Commercial tree & bushmeat exploitation leading to extinction threatened species e.g. Cross River gorilla, Drill, Prunus africana

� Traditional lifestyle of indigenous forest peoples and transhumance graziers threatened

Forests & Environmental impacts Forests & Environmental impacts

COMMUNITY FORESTRY IN CAMEROONCOMMUNITY FORESTRY IN CAMEROON

Community forestry aims at:• Sustainable development & poverty alleviation• Biodiversity conservation and maintain the ecosystem• Good governance - capacity of community to

participate in forest management

• CF = “a forest forming part of the non-permanent forest estate,

which is covered by a management agreement between a village

community and the Forestry Administration”.

• Community (proponent) applies to Government for a CF with an Application File followed by a Simple Management Plan, conforming to Forestry law (No. 94/01 20 January 1994) and Decree of implementation (95/531PM 23 August 1995) and CF Manual of Procedures 1998.

• 367 requests for CFs in Cameroon, 167 created between 1994 and 2006, 56 & 57 created in 2005 & 2006: decreasing number since 1996-2000 peak

• 80% CFs in East, Centre & South provinces (timber)• All CFs in Cameroon achieved only with external support – high upfront

investment and long timescale of return on investment• Average timescale for approved CF is 2 years• Cost to set up CF between 4 - 16 million CFA (not including EIA)• No community forest yet been subject to EIA since 2005• Project “Forêt communautaire pour la reduction de la pauvreté” in Batouri

made EIA of adjoining CFs, not accepted by MINEP: individual EIAs• MdP not adapted to different ecological zones in Cameroon• Insufficient technical capacity community, supporting NGOs &

Government• Problems with internal organization of communities and village groups• Other problems; elites, power, bushfires, illegal harvesting….• CF Manual of Procedures under participatory(?) revision since 2005…..• WHINCONET lobbied for inclusion EIA in CF Procedure

Community Forestry:Community Forestry: Facts & FiguresFacts & Figures

Emfveh Emfveh Emfveh Emfveh MiiMiiMiiMii CFCFCFCF

• Prior to 2005 projects subject only to donor (EU, World Bank, AfD) requirements

• Law 2005/0577 February 23 2005 set procedure Environmental Impact Assessment & audits in Cameroon

• Regulation No. 0069 March 8 2005, describes activities subject to EIA. Negative list of activities – 2 classes requiring either ‘Summary’ or ‘Detailed EIA’; Community and Councils Forests require a Summary EIA

• Classic EIA process:, baseline, activity description, impact evaluation, mitigation measures, participatory process, EMP, summary

• Bureaucratic, national level decision making process; Ministerial level and Inter-Ministerial Committee

• Administrative costs: 5 million CFA Simple EIA or 7 million CFA detailed EIA plus costs of paying Inter-Ministerial Committee PLUS costs of EIA itself

EIA IN CAMEROONEIA IN CAMEROON

Community Forest Environmental Impact Assessment

1 Have legal entity representing community (FMI, NGO etc)

2 Consultation meeting

DO or SDO decides at meeting whether everyone was consulted on CF boundaries

Application dossier: names CF, manager, map, planned activities, MOM

1 Screening (is EIA necessary?)

2 Scoping (what should be studied?)

Approval of application dossier by SDO/governor/minister (no response)

3 Make management plan:CommunityLocation & priority useDescription CF: parts, contents, wildlife, use

4 Action programme: 5-year & annual plans, customary rights5 Signing

3 Select indicators & Impact study (what are the expected effects?)

4 Mitigating measures (make it better)

Management agreement, includes forest survey, maps 6 Review & Decision making

MP accepted by PD. 7 Public participation

6. Implementation 8 Implementation, Management, monitoring, evaluation, auditingAnnual plan of operations, 5-year review of MP

PARALELL STEPS

Management Plan5

OVERLAPPING OF THE PROCESSES

JUSTIFICATION FOR HARMONISATION

Both procedures have overlapping activities, technically could be combined.

Benefits:

• Increases number of applicants for CFs better chance of obtaining CF and sustainably managing unique biodiversity in Cameroon

• Better conservation of resources and community development

• Avoids duplication of work and costs at ministerial level by combining two review and approval procedures

• Increases quality as both aspects of community development and protection of natural resources are combined

• Decreases administration and costs for the communities (no expensive (5.000.000 F CFA procedure, fees)

• Saves time, as two independent procedures inevitably result in delays in both procedures.

Case 1: Highlands Community Forests, Case 1: Highlands Community Forests,

North West ProvinceNorth West Province

CF meeting Baba IICF meeting Baba IICF meeting Baba IICF meeting Baba II

• 17 CFs in 120km2 montane forest apparently combine conservation & sustainable livelihood activities

• Prior to EIA law – no EIA done for SMPs• Increased community awareness & inventoried high levels of

biodiversity• Creation important plant and bird Sanctuary• Increase non timber forest products exploitation e.g. honey,

cola, medicinal plants, ecotourism• Large scale illegal exploitation e.g. Prunus africana 500t pa

value € 6000• Revenues cant be traced back to community level• Institutional capacity of managing institutions enhanced - but

now declining• Balance between activities now more clearly understood with

Impact Assessment checklist

.

Prunus AfricanaPrunus AfricanaPrunus AfricanaPrunus Africana

Forest level Process level Species level

Growth & stability

montane Forest

(boundary respected,

forest intact)

Important Natural processes:

pollination,

seed dispersal, food web, nutrient

cycling.

(fruiting trees, sunbirds, bees, honey,

predators)

Birds

(Bannerman

Turaco,

Banded Wattle

eye, other

Endemics)

Wetlands stable

(lakes, rivers,

marshes stable)

No Isolation of animal/plant groups

(ecological corridors)

Large Animals

(Guenon,

Chimpanzee,

duiker,

bushbuck)

Decrease

Exotic Plants &

Animals (cattle,

Eucalyptus)

Changes in forest plants & wildlife

(plants: bracken fern, birds: savannah

species)

Plants & Trees

(endemics)

Effect on People

(water,

culture,

livelihoods)

Impact Assessment Checklist

• Kongo village started CF process in 1998 for 3 000 ha forest, assisted by SNV

• Community then managed exploitation of its forest unaided

• Contractors extracted 1 096 m3 of sawn wood in 5 years.

• Over 100 species in forest – 7 logged with 2 = 75 % of total timber

• For lesser species – often cheaper illegal supplies.

• Learning process to select contractors with less negative extraction techniques

• Total revenue for the village & inhabitants over 5 years €72,000

• Huge difference between market and local buying price

• 27% spent on Social/community projects, 73 % direct revenue to the community

• Despite management difficulties and cases of embezzlement, exploitation of Kongo CF contributed significant socioeconomic development and generated increased income for 52 families.

Case 2: Case 2: KongoKongo Community Forest, East Community Forest, East

Province lowland humid forestProvince lowland humid forest

Timber Timber Timber Timber KongoKongoKongoKongo CFCFCFCF

SUMMARY

Recommendations:

- Revise the EIA law

- And/or elaborate Decision for EIA that exempts CFs

- And/or Include EIA in current revision of CF Manual of Procedures

- And/or incorporate and simplify the 2 parallel processes.

- Finalize revision and simplification of CF Manual of Procedure

- Implement audits of current CFs – assess impacts & help to develop guidelines

for harmonization EIA & CFs

- Changes at ministerial and/or parliamentary level.

•EIA obligatory for Community Forests, but application

of both CF and EIA laws are major constraints and

therefore hinder the process – resulting in more

negative impacts.

•Exploitation of natural resources without EIA and

follow-up of MP doesn’t guarantee sustainable

management of resources – as communities look mostly

at short term monetary benefits

•IA (Checklist) helps communities understand &

monitor changes

ConclusionsConclusions

• Using biodiversity resources and functions wisely can alleviate local level poverty

• Management is as important as technical know-how

• Value of resources often unknown at community level

• Controls and checks – such as using EIA- essential to avoid over-exploitation

• Impact assessment can benefit planning, management and benefit sharing mechanisms

Sabga Pass

Mt Kupe Forest ReserveMt Kupe Forest ReserveMt Kupe Forest ReserveMt Kupe Forest Reserve

KongoKongoKongoKongo CFCFCFCF

SNV, Netherlands Development Organisation

Highlands Team, BP 5069, Bamenda

Tel (00237)9800768/ 336 3842

E cameroon-bamenda@snvworld.org

Senior Adviser, Verina Ingram Tel 9417397

vingram@snvworld.org

Thank you!

Western Highlands Nature Conservation Network

PO Box 570 Bamenda, Cameroon

E whinconet@yahoo.com

COMINSUD Coordinator Fon Nsoh, Tel 77666486

Emial cominsud_ngo@yahoo.com