Summary Report

Drivers of Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka UN-REDD Programme December, 2015

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Citation Summary Report on Drivers of Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Sri Lanka, 2015 Sri Lanka UN-REDD Programme Disclaimer Reproduction of this publication for educational or other non-commercial purposes is allowed without prior written permission, provided the source is fully acknowledged. The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Sri Lanka UN-REDD Programme or its collaborating partner organisations. Acknowledgements The Programme Management Unit of the Sri Lanka UN-REDD Programme acknowledges the effort and contribution made by Science & Technology Cell, Faculty of Science, University of Colombo in developing the content of this report. Contact National Programme Manager Sri Lanka UN-REDD Programme 419/1, Pannipitiya Road Pelawatte, Battaramulla Sri Lanka Tel: +94 112 787532 Web: www.redd.lk

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Background

Deforestation and degradation of forests jointly contribute to climate change, leading to Global

Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions. To address this climate challenge, the UN has initiated an

international mechanism for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation of forests

(REDD+) which focuses on five activities:

a. Reducing emissions from deforestation; (RED)

b. Reducing emissions from forest degradation; (the second ‘D’)

c. Conservation of forest carbon stocks; (included in the ‘+’)

d. Sustainable management of forests; (included in the ‘+’)

e. Enhancement of forest carbon stocks; (included in the ‘+’)

To prepare a National REDD+ strategy for Sri Lanka, one of the earliest steps is to identify the

major drivers of deforestation and forest degradation in the country. Such a study will also

identify key policies and measures to control the major drivers and to further conserve,

sustainably manage and increase forest carbon stocks.

Definitions:

Deforestation is the conversion of forest to another land use type which is mainly a result of

human activities. In contrast, forest degradation leads to deterioration of the standing

vegetation in density, structure and species composition due to human activities and natural

causes. It may involve opening of the canopy, modification of the vertical structure, habitat

parameters or change of other attributes. Forest degradation does not necessarily involve a

reduction of the forest area, instead leads to the decline of the quality of forests. Together,

deforestation and forest degradation reduce the area, quality and quantity of vegetation cover

and alter the spatial structure of landscape through the process of fragmentation.

Questions:

This study was structured around finding answers to the following key questions:

1. What are the major drivers of deforestation and forest degradation?

2. What are the underlying socioeconomic and political factors that create and catalyze the

drivers?

3. Which drivers are more destructive compared to others?

4. How the drivers are spatially distributed around the country?

5. How effective are the current laws and policies in controlling the drivers and the

underlying factors?

6. Which drivers can we control and what are the policies and measures we could

implement in the context of REDD+, to reduce emissions by (1) preserving forests to act

as carbon sinks and (2) to avoid emissions produced by deforestation?

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Conceptual model of the study:

The study views deforestation and degradation as a result of a continuous process

(deforestation/degradation process) that has driving forces (drivers and catalysts) and

restraining forces (inhibitors). Drivers include underlying drivers and major (proximate)

drivers. Catalysts are factors that accelerate impacts of drivers whereas preventive forces

(inhibitors) decelerate the impacts of drivers. Deforestation and degradation of

forests are outcomes result from interaction of these forces.

The findings are described below.

Three main historical drivers (1800 -1985)

Pre-independence era 1800 - 1945: In the early 1800s, there was 70% forest cover in the

country a two dominant drivers have been identified for this period.

1. Growth of export plantation economy: During the British colonial period the

major driver was plantation agricultural crops, coffee, tea and rubber that

cleared forests in the wet, intermediate, montane and sub-montane zone

forests. Large swathes of land were acquired by British rulers through the Crown

Lands Encroachment Ordinance (1840) denying the local populations’ traditional

customary rights. This created heavy pressure of landlessness among upcountry

peasant population.

2. Commercial timber extraction policy: Colonial rulers practiced selective felling

of valuable timber species especially in the lowland dry zone that led to

degradation of forests throughout the country.

Post-independence era 1948 -1985:

3. Land settlement and irrigation development in the dry zone: Increased landlessness

among peasant population in the wet zone and negligence of food crops production by

colonial rulers led to policies for providing lands to the growing peasant population and

for achieving the goal of self-sufficiency in food production. This resulted in large-scale

conversion of forested state lands in the dry zone under several land settlement and

irrigation development schemes. The wave of deforestation associated with this

process lasted the second half of the twentieth century.

During the five decades period of 1935-1985, the process started with the restoration of

ancient tank system by the Irrigation Department. Large-scale river diversion schemes

such as Gal Oya, Uda Walawe and Mahaweli which had dual goals of irrigation and

hydro-power generation were implemented later on. From 1970s onwards the

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government directed its attention primarily to the Mahaweli Development Master

Plan—a mega project, subsequent accelerated Mahaweli development project (AMDP)

where the original 30 year plan was collapsed into a six years. The plan envisaged

providing irrigation facilities to 364,230 ha (including new lands) and installation of 507

MW of hydropower.

Four major current drivers (1992 to date)

This period coincided with the third and final stage of the deforestation associated with land

settlement and irrigation development. The current drivers of deforestation and forest

degradation differ from those of the past, in that it is a result of four major ongoing parallel

processes.

These are deforestation due to:

1. Encroachments

2. Infrastructure development projects

3. Private agriculture ventures

Forest degradation due to:

4. Several localized drivers.

Further analysis of these four current drivers is listed in Box 2.

Underlying drivers

The drivers are put in motion by several underlying forces. For instance:

Encroachments are due to demand for residential lands, global demand for

export crops (e.g. tea) and local demand for field crops.

Land for infrastructure development is fuelled by the demand for modern

services in the form of urban centers, energy, roads, highways etc.

Box 1 Current extent of forest lands and non-forest tree cover: The study established the following:

29.7% forest cover 1.95 million ha

21.88% dense forest 1.44 million ha

6.54% open and sparse forest 0.43 million ha

1.03% Savannah 0.068 million ha

0.24% Mangroves 0.015 million ha

13% tree crop home gardens 0.85 million ha

8% coconut and rubber 0.52 million ha

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Private agriculture ventures are the result of export and local demand for

products such as cashew, banana and sugar cane. The last is a government policy

to reduce import costs of sugar.

A host of localized demands and reasons are responsible for forest degradation,

among which the demand for timber and wood products for household,

industrial and infrastructure needs has the biggest impact.

Box 2: Current drivers of deforestation in Sri Lanka Encroachments due to:

o Agriculture Commercial rainfed highland agriculture Small-holder plantations in the low country wet zone

­ Maize cultivation has become the dominant activity in Chena in Anuradhapura ­ Overall, traditional agricultural patterns are changing and high market prices were

observed for maize, legumes and vegetables ­ Encroachment of forest lands in wet zone districts of Kalutara and Ratnapura areas are

connected mainly to tea cultivation and to rubber, cinnamon and cardamom to a limited degree. The encroachments have continued in response to high international market prices for tea, rubber, cinnamon and cardamom

o Settlement o Gem mining

Infrastructure development projects: Demand for land for the government initiated major overhauling of the country’s infrastructure under the National Physical Planning Policy & Plan

o Irrigation development projects o Re-settlement o Roads and highways o Harbors, airports o Tourism o Power generation

Transmission lines Major hydro power generation projects Mini hydro power projects

Commercial agriculture ventures o Large private agriculture ventures are responsible for significant deforestation. Among the

major crops involved in such agriculture ventures are sugar cane, cashew and banana. Deforestation associated with a large-scale banana plantation has attracted strong protests from conservationists, few years

Localized drivers of forest degradation: o Felling – illicit or otherwise o Cardamom cultivation o Firewood collection o Non-timber forest product gathering o Cattle grazing o Forest fires o Gem mining and Quarrying

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Seven catalysts

Certain social and economic factors have accelerated the effect of ongoing drivers.

These are:

1 Permissive government policies in land sector: e.g. regularization of

encroachments

2 Weak enforcement and monitoring capability

3 Poor coordination among agencies

4 Political interference

5 Population growth

6 Technological modernization

7 Commercialization of rural economies

Combinations of catalysts influence each driver. For instance all 7 have an effect on

encroachments, while all drivers are affected by population growth and political

interference. The major drivers the corresponding underlying forces and catalysts are

summarized in Figure 1 and Table 2.

Encroachments

Infrastructure development projects

Many Local drivers

Population growth

Agricultural mechanization

Commercialization of rural

economies

Agriculture ventures

Poor coordination

Land policy

Political interference

Fig. 1. The four current drivers of deforestation and forest degradation in Sri Lanka and the six- socio economic forces that catalyze the drivers

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Spatial distribution of drivers

The pattern of deforestation is spatially scattered around the country (Fig. 2). The main

characteristics are as follows:

The rate of deforestation (7,147 ha/year) has dropped significantly during the

1992-2010 period compared with the earlier rate reported in the period 1956-

1984 (42,200 ha/year).

Deforestation takes place at a relatively higher rate in dry zone than wet zone

even though the rate has dropped significantly in all districts.

Taken as a single district, in Anuradhapura where the forest cover change and

the rate of deforestation is highest, deforestation is uniformly spread out over

the district

In other districts, there are some concentrated patches or ‘hotspots’ of

deforestation e.g. Moneragala district has the second highest deforestation rate

and hot spots are located around joint borders with Badulla and Ampara

districts and around the border with Hambantota district.

Puttlam district on border of Matale and Anuradhapura districts

Kalutara and Ratnapura district border is only hotspot in the wet zone and is

relatively minor in scale.

Fig. 2. The difference in forest cover between 1992 and 2010 and the spatial distribution of deforestation showing that it is scattered throughout the country

Seven preventive forces (Inhibitors)

While the factors that drive deforestation and forest degradation in Sri Lanka were

described above, there are also factors that helped to reduce the rate of

deforestation/degradation to some degree by acting as inhibitors. Among the factors

that act as key inhibitors are:

1. Forest policy and protected area management

Forest related regulations and the network of protected areas under the purview

of the Forest Department and the Department of Wildlife Conservation are the

most potent inhibitors of deforestation/degradation of forests. The Sri Lanka’s

protected areas system is around 11.6% of the land area and is one of the most

extensive in tropical Asian countries. Table 1 shows a summary of the key

policies and laws.

2. Environmental laws and regulations

The National Environment Act of 1980 is the core legislation exists for

environmental protection in the country. It provides for the enactment of

various regulations against development activities that are deemed to pose

threats to the environment The EIA process deserves a special mention in its role

as an inhibitor of deforestation and degradation

3. Home gardens

Home gardens are multiple use systems and fulfill a variety of household needs

including timber and wood requirements. According to FSMP, around 70 % of

total supply of construction and industrial wood come from non-forest sources

and home gardens play the major role here Due to their forest like structure they

have been valued for their ecosystem services. As far as deforestation and

degradation of forests are concerned they seem to act as a buffer zone located

around the household—a substitute forest—that reduce the dependency on

natural forests.

4. Community dependence and customary rights

In Sri Lanka historical and recent evidence suggests that communities play a

significant role as inhibitors when they depend on forest resources for their

livelihoods.

5. Public pressure and awareness about environment and forests

Rising public awareness about environment and forests has definite inhibitory

effect on deforestation and degradation of forests. Environmental activism and

advocacy is on the rise and this aided by more accessible modern

communication.

6. Migration for employment Migration for employment, especially for foreign

employment, has become a major driving force of the economy during the last 2-

3 decades

7. Off-farm employment Expansion of commercial activities in rural areas increases

off-farm employment opportunities for rural youth. Both these factors (5&6)

reduce pressures on encroachments and localized drivers of degradation.

Table 1: Key policies and laws related to forestry and wildlife

Year Policy/Law Major provisions

1848 Timber ordinance No.24 Reservation of forests largely for

timber production

1873 Adoption of climate Reserves

Protection of forests above 5000 feet as

climate reserves

1885 Forest ordinance No.10 Protection of forests and their products

including wildlife

1907 Forest Ordinance No. 16

(Amended by Act No.13 of 1966)

Protection of forests primarily for

controlled timber production

1929 The first forest policy statement reservation of indigenous

fauna and flora

1938 Addendum

Clearing of forests above 5000 feet

prohibited

1937 Fauna and flora protection

ordinance No.2

Amended act No. 44 of 1964

Amended act No. 1 of 1970

protection of wild life in natural

reserves and sanctuaries

Nature reserves and jungle

corridors incorporated into national

reserves

Removal of controlled hunting

provision from the ordinance

1953 National forest policy

Re-stated in 1972 and 1980 and

updated in 1995

Emphasis on conserving forests to

preserve and ameliorate environment

and to protect flora and fauna for

aesthetic, scientific, historical and

socio-economic reasons

1969 UNESCO Biological Programme and

1975UNESCO Man and Biosphere

(MAB) Programme

Arboreta representative of the main

bio-climatic zones established in forests

1988 National heritage wilderness areas

act No.3

Protection of state lands having unique

ecosystems, genetic resources or

outstanding natural features

1990 National policy for wild life

conservation

Objectives include the maintenance of

ecological processes and preservation

of genetic diversity, ex-situ

conservation

Public pressure & awareness

Environmental policy & laws

Community dependence

Forest- policy and protected area management

Home gardens

Migration for employment

Off-farm employment

Fig.3. Forces that oppose deforestation and forest degradation in Sri Lanka and encourage conservation, sustainable management, increasing carbon stocks.

Special case of forests in the north and east affected by the civil war

The forests of the former conflict affected areas in northern and eastern provinces are a

special case and the deforestation/degradation in that region cannot be fully accounted

for by the drivers that have operated in the rest of the country from 1980s onwards.

Clearing areas for security reasons during the conflict.

Post conflict period since 2009 government sponsored efforts to normalize the

area has caused deforestation

Resettlement schemes of displaced people

Accelerated infrastructure development activities

Rehabilitation of roads, towns and the railway network have been launched at

an accelerated pace.

Forest degradation due to demands of infrastructure activities -extraction of

sand, gravel and stones.

Illegal felling of trees also has increased due to accessibility to forest areas.

Large-scale forest clearing is taking place in some areas due to unplanned

development activities (e.g. resettlement in Wilpattu forest)

Some areas under dense forest in Kulamurippu, Chamalkulam and Nagacholai

forest reserves have recently been cleared for development activities

Encroachers have already settled in dense natural forests in either sides of

Paranthan to Mankulam and Mankulam to Mullaithivu roads.

Table 2: Summary of current drivers of deforestation and inhibitors Type of

damage Major drivers Underlying forces Catalysts Preventive

forces D e

forestati

on

Encroachments Demand for residential

lands

Global demand for

export crops (e.g. tea)

Global demand for

aquaculture products

(e.g. shrimp)

Local demand for other

field crops (e.g. maize,

vegetable

Other purposes (e.g.

gem mining)

Permissive land laws

and policies

Political interference

Limitations of

monitoring capacity

Poor coordination

among agencies

Population growth

Commercialization of

rural economies

Mechanization of

agricultural

technologies

Forest policies and

protected area

management

Internal and external

migration of rural

labour force

Home gardens

Off-farm employment

Community

dependence and

customary rights

Development

projects

Demand for land in

projects on following

areas/sectors

Irrigation development

Urban development

Energy (hydropower)

Resettlement

Tourism

Livelihood development

Roads and highways

Airports, harbours

High voltage

transmission lines

Population growth

Poor coordination

among agencies

Political interference

Environmental laws

and regulation

Forest policies and

protected area

management

Public pressure and

awareness

Private agriculture

ventures

Export and local demand

for horticultural

products (e.g. cashew,

banana)

Policy objective of

reducing import costs by

substituting sugar

imports

Political interference

Poor coordination

among agencies

Population growth

Mechanization of

agricultural

technologies

Environmental laws

and regulation

Forest policies and

protected area

management

Public pressure and

awareness

Degrada

tion of

forests

Illicit felling Local demand for timber

and wood products in

Household

Industrial

Infrastructure

Limitations of

monitoring capacity

Political interference

Population growth

Forest policies and

protected area

management

Home gardens

Migration

Community

dependence and

customary rights

Predicting future scenarios

To predict future scenarios for both deforestation and forest degradation and for

controlling and possibly reversing them, the following government policies, plans and

strategies were examined.

Proposed strategy to increase the forest cover in the country

The government envisions increasing forest cover to 35% by 2020. The Forest

department based on the Forestry Sector Master Plan (1995-2020) has formulated a

proposal to increase the forest cover to reach this target. Two main strategies

proposed to achieve this task are:

Protection and conservation of the remaining forest cover

Expansion of forest cover in to new areas

Protection and conservation of the remaining forest cover

Actions proposed to achieve this objective include:

Surveying and demarcation of boundaries of around 700,000 ha of forests under

the jurisdiction of the department (only about 100,000 remains to be

demarcated at this point)

Prevention of encroachments: The following actions have been proposed to

control encroachments ( forest and wild life protection laws are listed in Table 1)

­ Strict enforcement of law

­ Introduction of alternative livelihood development strategies for poor

and low income farmers

­ Strengthening the continuous monitoring of forest boundaries

­ Reforestation of degraded lands.

Implementation of an integrated plan for prevention of forests fires with the

participation of all stake holders

Introduction of improved cattle grazing practices in order to prevent free range

cattle in forests with the collaboration of the Department of Animal Production

and Health

Integrated planning to avoid deforestation and degradation of forests due to

future development projects

Making arrangements to protect non-state forests vested with the Land Reforms

Commission (LRC) and private individuals. Following measures have been

proposed:

­ LRC lands with forests to be vested with the Forest Department

­ Incentives to private individuals to preserve forest in their lands

Expansion of forests into new areas

Reforestation of 80,000 ha by the FD through the facilitation of natural

regeneration, direct seeding, scattered planting, and block planting with local

species

Providing degraded forest lands by the FD to facilitate the initiative by the

Department of Rubber Development to plant 40,000 ha of rubber plantations by

2019.

Convert 20,000 ha of underutilized private lands to forests by providing free

technical advice and free seedlings

Encourage Estate Sector to raise 25,000 ha of forest plantations utilizing a part of

60,000 ha of marginal tea lands

Establish urban forests of 10,000 ha in collaboration with the Urban

Development Authority on road sides, stream banks, school premises, religious

places and other government lands

Proposed major policies and strategies which will increase deforestation

Negative impacts are to be expected especially from policies for infrastructure

development that will increase deforestation and will lead to conflicts with the existing

protected area network. Some of the major plans are:

National Physical Planning Policy and Policy (2011-2030)

Long-term (Power) Generation Expansion Plan (2013-2032)

Tourism Development Strategy (2011-2016)

National Road Master Plan (2007-2017)

Proposed major development projects in the irrigation sector and agriculture

ventures. Over twenty projects and development activities that involve large-

scale appropriations of land over 36, 000 ha of which 47 percent (17, 273 ha)

come under agriculture ventures. In summary, large scale private agriculture

ventures can be identified as a potent driver of deforestation that leads to large

pockets of deforestation in the future.

Preliminary Policies and Measures (PAMs) that can reduce deforestation

and degradation of forests

Deforestation and degradation of forests are complex problems that call for complex

solutions. Given the scattered nature of current drivers of deforestation and

degradation of forests, it is not possible to develop a uniform set of PAMs which can

address all drivers and catalysts with the same level of efficiency. Therefore a strategy

with multiple interventions is required.

The policy rationale used in the study to identify specific interventions includes the

following logical steps.

Removing or controlling drivers of deforestation

Removing or de-linking catalysts from drivers

Strengthening forces that oppose deforestation (inhibitors)

Adding new inhibitors or transforming the existing ones to be more effective

The underlying drivers of the deforestation process are broad socio-economic factors

such as demand for food products, demand for export products etc. which are not

possible to remove or manipulate through PAMs. The PAMs therefore focus on

removing and controlling the major drivers only.

Yet other underlying drivers, catalysts and inhibitors such as political interference,

commercialization of rural economies, agricultural mechanization, population growth

(catalysts) and migration for employment (inhibitor) are out of the practical range of

applicability of PAMS considered here. Strengthening inhibitors which are already in

operation is the most cost effective approach. The final PAMS recommended are based

on the four major drivers, three catalysts and four inhibitors.

Table 3: Identification of preliminary PAMs

Desired direction of change Policies and measures (PAMs)

Harmonize the objectives of

development projects with

their environmental impacts,

vis-à-vis deforestation and

degradation of forests

Enhance the land use planning process by:

­ improving the current system through necessary capacity

building measures

­ integrating land use planning into all levels of development

planning by means of policy

­ strengthening the coordination between existing LUP agencies

Identify and implement appropriate market-based instruments to

mitigate harmful effects of development projects on forest resources

­ Forest certification

­ Payment for ecosystem services

Strengthen the existing procedures of EIA by;

­ Developing the monitoring capacity

Introduce SEA as a mandatory process for large development projects

Control and reduce

deforestation and

degradation takes place

through

Develop a consistence policy towards encroachments by;

­ discontinuing the current practice of regularization of

encroachments

­ introducing measures for discouraging the practice

Introduce procedures and laws (if necessary) for speedy enforcement

against encroachments

Demarcate all existing forest lands and make necessary measures to

survey and lay the boundary demarcations

Control the effect of

localized drivers of

deforestation

Strengthen the monitoring and enforcement capacity of relevant

agencies, i.e. FD and DWC

Increase the public awareness

Orchestrate the community support through participatory

programmes

Improving the coordination

among agencies

Identification of all key agencies that have stakes in the deforestation

and degradation of in the country at the levels of national, provincial,

district and divisional levels

Establish a coordinating body on deforestation and degradation of

forests at the national level with participation of key national agencies

(e.g. FD, DWC, LUPPD)

Appoint district level cells of the coordinating body with the

participation of local level officers of national agencies and (e.g. DFOs

and RFOS, LUPOs) and relevant provincial and local government officers

Develop an efficient communication channels between the national

body and district level cells for speedy resolution of

deforestation/degradation issues

Strengthen the forest policy

and protected area

management

Review the existing forest policies and protected area management

tools with respect to the handling of:

­ infrastructure development projects

­ encroachments

­ localized drivers of forest degradation

Identify the areas that needs improvements and weaknesses/loopholes

that need to covered

Introduce essential amendments improve the situation

Update existing institutional arrangements to handle the proposed

improvements

Improve the effectiveness of

home gardens as inhibitor of

deforestation/degradation

Develop home garden models suitable for deforestation hotspots and

take necessary measures to promote them through:

­ community participation programmes

­ coordination with existing livelihood development

programmes (e.g. Divi Neguma)

Managing deforestation ‘hot

spots’

A mixed bundle of strategies :

­ Declaration for special area management

­ Surveying and demarcating boundaries of critical and sensitive areas

(SEA):

• E.g. critical watershed areas (tank catchments)

­ Participatory resource governance : co-management

• Participatory land use planning and zoning

• Strengthening the capacity of local communities

• Alternative livelihoods

­ Models of conservation oriented land uses

• Home (forest) garden models

• Conservation farming models

The study also undertook few carbon stocks assessments on lands outside the forestry

sector. These land use classes have been considered as positive towards reducing the

impacts on the standing forests and also absorb carbon. The three categories that have

been identified and studied were listed below:

(a) Formers wood lots

(b) Forest Plantations

(c) Home gardens

The Box 3 provides the data of the findings of the assessment carried out.

Box 3. Estimation of Carbon stocks: Home gardens, Farmer’s Woodlots and Forest

plantations

Inhibitory measure Forest Carbon

Intermediate and Dry Zone

Stocks

Wet Zone

Farmers Woodlots

Co management 2.38 tonnes C ha

-1

year-1

2.68 tonnes C ha-1

year-1

Forest Plantations 1.72 tonnes C ha-1

year-1

2.30 tonnes C ha-1

year-1

Home gardens: conservation

oriented land use; has more

continuous biomass removal

1.12 tonnes C ha-1

year-1

1.55 tonnes C ha-1

year-1

Carbon stocks = Live biomass (difference between carbon gain in annual growth and carbon

loss in biomass removal) + Soil carbon sequestration

All three measures show carbon stock increase.

Both home gardens and farmers woodlots could have an impact on decentralization of the

forest management activities to provincial levels and encourage better participation of

communities.

Forest plantations could facilitate the involvement of the private sector.

Reference:

Drivers of Deforestation and forest degradation in Sri Lanka: Identification of key

policies and measures, Study report compiled by the Science and Technology Cell of the

University of Colombo, Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Contacts:

Sri Lanka UN-REDD Programme

Project Management Unit

419/1, Pannipitiya Road, Pelawatta, Battaramulla,

Sri Lanka.

Tel: +94 11 2787532, +94 11 2786077, Fax: +94 11 2786255