Landscapes are complex mosaics of shifting land uses and land cover. Those dynamics have important local, regional, and global environmental implications. The objective of this research is to understand land-use/land-cover change dynamics in Guatemala with direct reference to land management regimes in diverse forest ecosystems. This research will develop a more thorough understanding of carbon sequestration implications of tropical forests and the prospect for different land management types to preserve and restore forests. Satellite imagery will be acquired for three periods (1991/93, 2001, 2006) to produce land cover classifications and estimates of aboveground biomass. Forest mensuration data will be used to relate satellite imagery to documented forest structure in tropical dry and tropical moist ecosystems. Semi-structured interviews will be conducted with local stakeholders to compare management regimes in public, private, and communally managed forests to assess the relative influence of each land management type on forest condition and aboveground biomass. Because land-use change poses a significant threat to the carbon balance and the global carbon cycle, proposals are being advanced to compensate tropical forest countries for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (known as REDD). This effort holds tremendous opportunities for both scientific research and development of national and project-based REDD initiatives. This research project will be able assess the utility of allometric equations and remote sensing to estimate aboveground biomass, which has direct relevance to the REDD programs.
The broader impacts of this research lie in its relevance to the contemporary international policy and development agenda. At the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of the Parties that took place in Bali in December 2007, the parties agreed that reduced emissions from deforestation and degradation would be included in the post-2012 agreements. Programs have already been initiated in Guatemala to assist local farmers and communities in developing sustainable land management practices through the provision of carbon services. Findings from this research will provide valuable data on forest carbon under diverse land management regimes and will contribute to the development of carbon offset programs for local stakeholders. As a Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement award, this award also will provide support to enable a promising student to establish a strong independent research career.
