Brazil is taking an important step towards discovering the exact amount of natural and planted forests within its borders. An initiative by the Brazilian government, supported by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) will update Brazil's National Forest Inventory from 1980. For the new version, the forest survey methodology has been adapted to the enormous diversity in Brazil spread over five biomes. Currently, only China, the United States and Canada update their national inventories.
According to Antonio Carlos Hummel, director of the Brazilian Forest Service, the propose of the survey is to produces information on natural and planted forest resources in Brazil every five years, supporting the formulation of public policy on development, usage and conservation.
The inventory will also support the drawing up of reports for international agreements and conventions to which Brazil is a signatory, such as the Biodiversity Convention, the UN Convention on Climate Change, the UN World Forum on Forests, the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) and the Global Forest Resources Assessment (FRA) at the FAO.
"With the inventory, we will know how much forest there is in Brazil, where it is, who works in conservation and management, and how much carbon is stored in the forests", says Hummel. Some universities will participate in the project, working in field survey quality control. Other government agencies, private companies and nongovernmental organizations will be involved in the collection of field data through contracts and agreements with the Forest Service.
The Brazilian inventory will cost about US$ 45 million. To make sure of the investment, the project will be included among the strategic goals set out in the Brazilian government's official plan for investment in the country.
Background
Brazil is the largest country in Latin America, occupying an area of 8.5 million square kilometers, of which approximately 4.8 million square kilometers are covered with forests. Despite the importance of its forest resources, the country does not yet carry out an evaluation of its forests to support the formulation of public policies and strategic projects in conservation and usage. In the 1980s, Brazil carried out its first and only national forest inventory, the main objective of which was to provide information on timber stocks in natural and planted forests.
Until that time, most Brazilian forest inventories were mainly focused on timber production. Since then, only regional inventories have been conducted in Brazil, to meet particular demands for information and support settlement or planning programs. More recently, with recognition of the forests' multiple uses in the production of goods and environmental and social services, and the emergence of new technology, some Brazilian states have taken the initiative to conduct their own forest inventories. Such is the case for Rio Grande do Sul, São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Santa Catarina.
Source: Portal Brazil
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