Understanding zero deforestation and the High Carbon Stock Approach in a highly forested tropical country
Introduction
Global demand for agricultural commodities including palm oil has been associated with deforestation, biodiversity loss, and greenhouse gas emissions across the tropics (Meijaard et al., 2018, Pendrill et al., 2019). In response, private-sector initiatives have been established to eliminate deforestation from agricultural commodity supply chains (Lambin et al., 2018). These include the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), which sets a voluntary international standard for sustainable palm oil production (Nikoloyuk et al., 2010). Under pressure from non-government organisations (NGOs) including Greenpeace (2007), dozens of companies also adopted commitments to “zero deforestation” in their operations and supply chains (Rothrock et al., 2019).
RSPO certification is used by companies to implement zero deforestation commitments in the palm oil sector (Garrett et al., 2019). Until 2018, however, the RSPO standard did not guarantee zero deforestation, because it permitted clearing of logged or degraded forests outside riparian or High Conservation Value (HCV) areas (Carlson et al., 2018). In 2018, the RSPO adopted zero deforestation by requiring use of the High Carbon Stock Approach (HCSA) Toolkit (RSPO, 2018b). The HCSA distinguishes “High Carbon Stock” (HCS) forests from degraded areas that can be developed (Rosoman et al., 2017). Vegetated areas that meet the HCSA definition of “young regenerating forest” or more mature forest cannot be cleared, although some leeway is permitted for young regenerating forest patches <100 ha.
The HCSA was developed for fragmented forest landscapes in Indonesia and Malaysia (Rosoman et al., 2017), where remnant forest patches with low carbon stocks retain high biodiversity value (Deere et al., 2017). The relationship between biodiversity and carbon stocks is less clear for intact, old-growth forests in Africa (Sullivan et al., 2017). The strict application of zero deforestation through the HCSA in countries with high forest cover may also restrict agricultural expansion and conflict with economic development goals (Lyons-White et al., 2020). As the RSPO standard applies equally in countries with fragmented forests and countries with high forest cover, the application of zero deforestation and the HCSA in highly forested countries has become the subject of debate (Senior, 2018).
The Republic of Gabon in Central Africa is among the most highly forested countries in the world, with 88% forest cover (Sannier et al., 2014). Gabon’s forests are protected by national legislation including the Forest Code (2001), which regulates forest access, use, and management, and the National Park Law (2007), which governs 13 national parks covering 11% (3.0 million hectares [Mha]) of Gabon’s territory (Mikolo Yobo and Ito, 2016). Gabon is also committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by 2025 under the Paris Agreement (République Gabonaise, 2015a). Due to the declining production of petroleum, Gabon’s primary export, the government has targeted industrial agriculture to diversify the national economy (République Gabonaise, 2012). Gabon’s national development plan targeted 425,000 tonnes of palm oil production per year by 2025 (République Gabonaise, 2015b) and initiated a National Land Use Plan (NLUP) to optimally allocate areas to economic production or conservation (Lee, 2014). Gabon’s national partner in oil palm development is Olam International, a multinational agribusiness headquartered in Singapore. Olam has planted 63,000 hectares (ha) oil palm and produced 55,000 tonnes of palm oil in Gabon in 2019 (Olam International, 2019). As an RSPO member with a “no deforestation” commitment, Olam is bound by the RSPO’s HCSA requirements.
In total, 87% of Gabon is covered by forest with carbon stocks over 75 tonnes of carbon per ha (tCha−1), and 80% over 118 tCha−1, with 118 tCha−1 being the national average for secondary forests (Austin et al., 2017). This implies the availability of 1.2–1.7 Mha of non-HCV and non-HCS land suitable for oil palm, based on an HCS threshold of 75–118 tCha−1, which would protect 93–99% of Gabon’s carbon stocks. A study of carbon emissions from oil palm development in Gabon recommended restricting conversion to areas under 108–118 tCha−1, subject to the conservation of set-aside areas to offset greenhouse gas emissions (Burton et al., 2017). These thresholds are higher than the 35–75 tCha−1 for young regenerating forest specified by the HCSA (Rosoman et al., 2017). Although the HCSA permits regional validation of quantitative indicator thresholds, the requirement to conserve young regenerating forest is fixed. Thus, the HCSA could limit available land for RSPO-certified oil palm development in Gabon, if applied without adaptation.
The HCSA Steering Group (2018) has ruled out adapting the HCSA for high forest cover landscapes. The RSPO and HCSA Steering Group established a “No Deforestation Joint Steering Group” to develop procedures for implementing the 2018 RSPO standard (including the HCSA) in high forest cover countries. This covers development pathways chosen by communities or indigenous groups, rather than company-led oil palm development (RSPO, 2019). A National Interpretation of the RSPO standard for Gabon noted the development of a national HCS methodology, but still requires the HCSA Toolkit (RSPO, 2020b). Consequently, the potential impacts of zero deforestation and the HCSA on Gabon’s agro-industrial development plans remain unclear. In light of the ongoing debate about forest definitions and zero deforestation, Gabon postponed signing the Marrakesh Declaration for Sustainable Development of the Oil Palm Sector in Africa, which committed signatories to zero deforestation (CAFI, 2020).
The high stakes associated with zero deforestation in highly forested countries demand engagement with diverse stakeholder perspectives. Research on perspectives in Liberia found the HCSA can marginalise rural valuations of land and forest (Cheyns et al., 2019), but did not investigate issues arising specifically from Liberia’s highly forested context. Perspectives on “deforestation-free” in Central Africa were explored in a multi-stakeholder meeting in Gabon in 2017 (Taylor et al., 2017) and in a consulting report for RSPO (Senior, 2018). However, a systematic empirical assessment of perspectives on zero deforestation and the HCSA in a highly forested country is yet to be conducted, limiting the evidence base for policymaking.
Here, we explored the perspectives of stakeholders in Gabon using Critical Systems Heuristics, a systems thinking methodology novel to tropical forest conservation. Our aims were to: 1) develop a systemic understanding of stakeholders’ perspectives on zero deforestation and the HCSA, and Gabon’s emerging palm oil sector; and 2) develop recommendations for international stakeholders including RSPO, and national stakeholders including government, to inform the effective and equitable implementation of zero deforestation in Gabon.
Section snippets
Methodology
In Critical Systems Heuristics (CSH; Ulrich, 1983), “systems” are viewed as conceptual devices which can be used to understand and positively transform problematic situations (Ulrich and Reynolds, 2020). Using systems involves making “boundary judgements” about what elements are part of a system or part of its environment. Boundary judgements thus result in “reference systems” that are selective, partial conceptions of a situation (Ulrich, 2000). Asking stakeholders about their boundary
Results
In total, 25 semi-structured interviews (mean: 61 min; range: 35–100 min) were conducted with participants representing 17 organisations (Table 2). For rural communities, a pair of focus groups was conducted (with three and four participants) rather than interviews, as this was the communities’ preference and it was deemed important to include the views of these potentially-marginalised groups. Results are presented as a reference system organised using the CSH boundary categories (see Table 1
Discussion
This is the first empirical study to have investigated stakeholder perspectives regarding zero deforestation and the HCSA in a highly forested country with a developing palm oil sector. It provides insights useful not only for Gabon, but also for other highly forested countries. Government, agribusiness, and NGO participants recognised the importance of conserving forests, but were concerned about the implications of zero deforestation for Gabon’s economic development. Other NGOs and
Conclusions
“Zero deforestation” represents an international perspective on palm oil and forest conservation that marginalises important issues from a national perspective in Gabon. This produces unintended consequences and undermines the legitimacy of zero deforestation policy. Our study suggests that in highly forested countries, a flexible approach to zero deforestation – based on contextual understanding and adapting implementation tools – is required to support positive environmental outcomes.
CRediT author Contribution Statement
Joss Lyons-White: Conceptualisation, Methodology, Investigation, Data curation, Formal analysis, Project administration, Writing – original draft. Christian Mikolo Yobo, Robert Ewers: Methodology, Supervision, Writing – review & editing. Andrew Knight: Conceptualisation, Methodology, Supervision, Writing – review & editing.
Declaration of Competing Interest
The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: The Nature Conservancy provided J.L.-W. with a workspace and accommodation in Libreville. Olam International provided J.L.-W. with advice on fieldwork, a workspace in Libreville, travel between Libreville and Mouila, and accommodation in Mouila. J.L.-W. has undertaken paid consultancy work for the High Conservation Value (HCV) Resource Network and is a member of
Acknowledgements
We thank all participants for giving up their time to participate in this research. We thank: Christopher Stewart, Quentin Meunier, Pascal Mathieu, Igore Sylvano Boussougou, Audrey Lee and colleagues at Olam International, and Marie-Claire Paiz, Ericka Moussavou and colleagues at The Nature Conservancy, for advice and assistance with fieldwork logistics; Olivia Scholtz and Michelle Lee for advice on fieldwork; Kathleen Dahir, Marine Coispeau, Marie Hardouin, Kathleen Drake and Paul Kanemouono
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