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Project brief: This project aims to demonstrate the economic and conservation benefits of maintaining mixed species stands, restricting harvest levels, and of implementing certification schemes for bamboo from sustainably managed forests. The project combines work with bamboo harvesters at township level at pilot sites in Hunan, Sichuan and Yunnan provinces, with policy and monitoring work at national level.
Output 1. Site demonstration established in Hunan on technologies and practices to protect the biodiversity in natural bamboo forests, including canopy trees, understory vegetation, fauna, and micro-organisms in the soil.
Output 2. Site demonstration established in Sichuan on technologies and practices to restore biodiversity in monoculture forests.
Output 3. Site demonstration established in Yunnan on technologies and practices to protect the endangered bamboo species Qiongzhuea tumidinoda.
Output 4. A series of handbooks and guidelines on technologies, best-practices, and strategies created to integrate bamboo forest biodiversity conservation in forest management.
Output 5. A nation-wide technology exchange and policy dialogue platform to stimulate the implementation of improved policies and strategies of best practices and technologies on biodiversity conservation in natural bamboo forests.
This project commenced in mid 2007. Activities to date:
 ★ Establishment of 45ha field sites in each province.
Photo shows plot boundaries in Qiongzhuea tumidinoda stand in Yunnan province.
Qiongzhuea tumidinoda is listed in the Red List of Rare and Endangered Plants in China. This species and another seven members of the genus are being overexploited because of their commercially valuable culms and edible shoots. Such overexploitation has caused serious damage to the natural forests of which these bamboos are an integral part. At present, there are no forest tenure and management arrangements in place to regulate the exploitation of Qiongzhuea spp. However, local communities harvest the Qiongzhuea shoots and culms without any government and technical regulations.
 ★ Baseline biodiversity surveys at each site completed.
Photo shows Sichuan Forestry Department staff surveying biodiversity in a Phyllostachys pubescens ("Moso") forest.
The surveys covered tree, shrub and understorey species, as well as bamboo productivity.
 ★ Farmers in Yunnan trained in management of Qiongzhuea bamboos.
Photo shows student volunteers training villagers how to tell the age of the bamboo poles.
This was the farmers' first time to learn about the management of bamboo, even though they lived with it everyday. They said they feel proud to be part of the project, and hope that it will bring them more knowledge and skills. |
