Testing the effectiveness of the forest integrity assessment: A field‐based tool for estimating the condition of tropical forest

Abstract Global targets to halt biodiversity losses and mitigate climate change will require protecting rainforest beyond current protected area networks, necessitating responsible forest stewardship from a diverse range of companies, communities and private individuals. Robust assessments of forest...

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Autores principales:	Andrew J. Suggitt, Kok Loong Yeong, Anders Lindhe, Agnes Agama, Keith C. Hamer, Glen Reynolds, Jane K. Hill, Jennifer M. Lucey
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Wiley 2021
Materias:	ecological integrity forest quality forest set‐aside high carbon stock human‐modified rapid assessment Environmental sciences GE1-350 Ecology QH540-549.5
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/c0f4e0993de84222919f1d0b5e4b2151
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:c0f4e0993de84222919f1d0b5e4b21512021-11-16T08:30:39ZTesting the effectiveness of the forest integrity assessment: A field‐based tool for estimating the condition of tropical forest2688-831910.1002/2688-8319.12067https://doaj.org/article/c0f4e0993de84222919f1d0b5e4b21512021-04-01T00:00:00Zhttps://doi.org/10.1002/2688-8319.12067https://doaj.org/toc/2688-8319Abstract Global targets to halt biodiversity losses and mitigate climate change will require protecting rainforest beyond current protected area networks, necessitating responsible forest stewardship from a diverse range of companies, communities and private individuals. Robust assessments of forest condition are critical for successful forest management, but many existing techniques are highly technical, time‐consuming, expensive or require specialist knowledge. To make assessment of tropical forests accessible to a wide range of actors, many of whom may be limited by resources or expertise, the High Conservation Value Resource Network (HCVRN), with the SE Asia Rainforest Research Partnership (SEARRP), developed a South East Asian version of the Forest Integrity Assessment (FIA) tool as a rapid (< 1 hour) method of assessing forest condition in the field, where non‐experts respond to 50 questions about characteristics of the local environment while walking a site transect. Here, we examined the effectiveness of this survey tool by conducting ∼ 1000 assessments of forest condition at 16 tropical rainforest sites with varying levels of disturbance in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo. We found good agreement (R‐squared range: 0.50–0.78) between FIA survey scores and independent measures of forest condition, including biodiversity, vegetation structure, aboveground carbon and other key metrics of ecosystem function, indicating that the tool performed well. Although there was variation among assessor responses when surveying the same forest sites, assessors were consistent in their ranking of those sites, and prior forest knowledge had a minimal effect on the FIA scores. Revisions or further training for questions where assessors disagree, for example, on the presence of fauna at a site, could improve consistency. We conclude that the FIA survey tool is a robust method of assessing forest condition, providing a rapid and accessible means of forest conservation assessment. The FIA tool could be incorporated into management practices in a wide range of forest conservation schemes, from sustainability standards, to community forestry and restoration initiatives. The tool will enable more organizations and individuals to understand the conservation value of the forests they manage and to identify areas for targeted improvements.Andrew J. SuggittKok Loong YeongAnders LindheAgnes AgamaKeith C. HamerGlen ReynoldsJane K. HillJennifer M. LuceyWileyarticleecological integrityforest qualityforest set‐asidehigh carbon stockhuman‐modifiedrapid assessmentEnvironmental sciencesGE1-350EcologyQH540-549.5ENEcological Solutions and Evidence, Vol 2, Iss 2, Pp n/a-n/a (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	ecological integrity forest quality forest set‐aside high carbon stock human‐modified rapid assessment Environmental sciences GE1-350 Ecology QH540-549.5
spellingShingle	ecological integrity forest quality forest set‐aside high carbon stock human‐modified rapid assessment Environmental sciences GE1-350 Ecology QH540-549.5 Andrew J. Suggitt Kok Loong Yeong Anders Lindhe Agnes Agama Keith C. Hamer Glen Reynolds Jane K. Hill Jennifer M. Lucey Testing the effectiveness of the forest integrity assessment: A field‐based tool for estimating the condition of tropical forest
description	Abstract Global targets to halt biodiversity losses and mitigate climate change will require protecting rainforest beyond current protected area networks, necessitating responsible forest stewardship from a diverse range of companies, communities and private individuals. Robust assessments of forest condition are critical for successful forest management, but many existing techniques are highly technical, time‐consuming, expensive or require specialist knowledge. To make assessment of tropical forests accessible to a wide range of actors, many of whom may be limited by resources or expertise, the High Conservation Value Resource Network (HCVRN), with the SE Asia Rainforest Research Partnership (SEARRP), developed a South East Asian version of the Forest Integrity Assessment (FIA) tool as a rapid (< 1 hour) method of assessing forest condition in the field, where non‐experts respond to 50 questions about characteristics of the local environment while walking a site transect. Here, we examined the effectiveness of this survey tool by conducting ∼ 1000 assessments of forest condition at 16 tropical rainforest sites with varying levels of disturbance in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo. We found good agreement (R‐squared range: 0.50–0.78) between FIA survey scores and independent measures of forest condition, including biodiversity, vegetation structure, aboveground carbon and other key metrics of ecosystem function, indicating that the tool performed well. Although there was variation among assessor responses when surveying the same forest sites, assessors were consistent in their ranking of those sites, and prior forest knowledge had a minimal effect on the FIA scores. Revisions or further training for questions where assessors disagree, for example, on the presence of fauna at a site, could improve consistency. We conclude that the FIA survey tool is a robust method of assessing forest condition, providing a rapid and accessible means of forest conservation assessment. The FIA tool could be incorporated into management practices in a wide range of forest conservation schemes, from sustainability standards, to community forestry and restoration initiatives. The tool will enable more organizations and individuals to understand the conservation value of the forests they manage and to identify areas for targeted improvements.
format	article
author	Andrew J. Suggitt Kok Loong Yeong Anders Lindhe Agnes Agama Keith C. Hamer Glen Reynolds Jane K. Hill Jennifer M. Lucey
author_facet	Andrew J. Suggitt Kok Loong Yeong Anders Lindhe Agnes Agama Keith C. Hamer Glen Reynolds Jane K. Hill Jennifer M. Lucey
author_sort	Andrew J. Suggitt
title	Testing the effectiveness of the forest integrity assessment: A field‐based tool for estimating the condition of tropical forest
title_short	Testing the effectiveness of the forest integrity assessment: A field‐based tool for estimating the condition of tropical forest
title_full	Testing the effectiveness of the forest integrity assessment: A field‐based tool for estimating the condition of tropical forest
title_fullStr	Testing the effectiveness of the forest integrity assessment: A field‐based tool for estimating the condition of tropical forest
title_full_unstemmed	Testing the effectiveness of the forest integrity assessment: A field‐based tool for estimating the condition of tropical forest
title_sort	testing the effectiveness of the forest integrity assessment: a field‐based tool for estimating the condition of tropical forest
publisher	Wiley
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/c0f4e0993de84222919f1d0b5e4b2151
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Testing the effectiveness of the forest integrity assessment: A field‐based tool for estimating the condition of tropical forest

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