96-13613 Rambo Influence of forest fragmentation on watershed functions in Northern Vietnam Forest patches are rarely taken into consideration in rural development programs. This project aims to assess the management of forest fragments, as opposed to monolithic forest cover, as a valid new paradigm for sound watershed conservation. The investigators will test linked hypotheses relating to the consequences of forest fragmentation on watershed functions and socioeconomic forces and technological conditions that foster forest fragmentation. The project, to be undertaken in northern Vietnam, is expected to provide basic data for evaluating environmental changes and management actions, and develop some of the indicators and basic understanding necessary to manage ecosystems. Ecosystem experiments are the most direct method available for improving predictions of environmental response to management. This information is also urgently needed for the design of policies and programs that balance the need for watershed protection, forest conservation, and landscape restoration with the demands for socioeconomic development.
