Choice of Chinese Government on Forest and Resource - Essay Example

Choice of Chinese Government on Forest and Resource Forest conservation has taken a center-stage in the Chinese government’s agenda, most especially in relation to the transnational boundary forests and mountainous regions. Kangchenjunga Landscape (KL) and the Kailash Sacred Landscape (KSL) are two notable transnational boundary regions where the Chinese government has applied concerted efforts to conserve, owing to the cultural and ecological value that such regions hold both for china and the other nations with whom China shares the borders (Kandel & Chettri, n.p.). The KL is located in the Hindu Himalayan mountainous region border, which is shared by China, India and Nepal, while the KSL is shared by India, Bhutan, China and Nepal (Bernbaum, 304). Trans-boundary conservation efforts have been applied to promote cultural diversity and conservation of the regions, through the four countries involved in establishing certain sections of the forested and mountainous regions as designated Protected Areas (PAs) (Kandel & Chettri, n.p.). Under the Protected Areas, the ecology and biodiversity is to be protected from any form of human interference, thus sustaining such regions as natural conserved regions that represents natural habitat for different kinds of plant and animal species. In his respect, the transnational boundary conservation efforts between China, Nepal, India and Bhutan have brought a total of 72% forest and mountainous covered region under the designation of the Protected Areas (PAs), offering a natural habitat for plants and animals to the tune of 10,348 km2. In addition, 11% constituting of conservation corridors has also been designated for protection under the PAs, so that the corridors can allow for the continuity and contiguity of the natural habitats by connecting the isolated Protected Areas to form one large block of landmass (IUCN, 27). The essence of reconnecting all the protected areas through the conservation corridors is to ensure that habitat shrinkage is eliminated, while at the same time ensuring that the different isolated species of plants and animals in the different regions designated as protected areas can eventually connect and intermingle. This is meant to create a natural habitat for the plant and animal species that is diverse and all-encompassing, as opposed to the formation of separate habitats where each of the habitats carry different species of plants and animals (ITTO, 7). The cultivation of the natural habitat continuality at the expense of the creation of isolated habitats is a major strategy that China and its transnational boundary partners have adapted, to ensure that the endangered species are not exposed to isolated conditions that may result in their extinction. Further, the conservation effort by China and its transnational boundary partners work towards eliminating the vulnerability of the natural ecology and its species owing to the fact that; when the ecological system is isolated from the rest of the landmass, there are higher chances of the species inhabiting the ecology being highly vulnerable. It is these conservation efforts that has made the Himalayan mountainous region rank as one of the major critical centers of biodiversity globally, owing to the fact that the strategy for ecological and forest conservation has allowed the region to be inhabited by a high number of diverse plant and animal species, existing in a natural ecological environment (Kandel & Chettri, n.p.). The Outliers for forest resource consumption in China has taken the conservation approach more critically, resulting to a high rate of forest and mountainous regions conservation. According to the China National Forest Product Industry Association (CNFPIA), the Chinese government has focused more on importing timber and timber products, such that the supply for imported timber has already exceeded the demand, but still more timber continues to be imported (Oli, et al., n.p.). This strategy has resulted in the creation of large stocks of timber in China, with the local timber dealers finding it increasingly difficult to access the market, since the imported timber has made its price so cheap, compared to the cost of production incurred domestically. China has been importing a high volume of timber from North America, Europe (Scotland) and Russia, making the stock of timber in the country high than the domestic demand. The effect of this strategy is to ensure that there is less tree cutting in the China forests and mountains, thus contributing to the environmental conservation of forest in China. Therefore, the outliers for forest resource consumption in China compared to the same in other regions such as the Americas (Brazil), indicates a high level of discrepancy, since in China, the forests continues to be preserved, while the same are continuously exploited in the Americas. The importation of timber in China has increased by 52% in the first quarter of 2014, compared to the same period in 2013, with a high increase in importation of logs from Japan in 2014 (ITTO, 12). In addition, the conservation efforts of the bamboo forests in China have increased, such that it is predicted that the annual output of the Chinese bamboo industry by 2020 will be worth more than US$48 billion, a close to 300% increase in value compared to the current annual output of $14.5 billion worth of bamboo from the China (ITTO, 14). The current bamboo forest cover in China stands at 7.2 million hectares, which accounts for 25% of the global bamboo forest coverage, an indication that the Chinese forest conservation efforts have paid back through sustainable natural resource exploitation that contributes substantially to the country’s economy (Oli, et al., n.p.). The bamboo forest conservation in China does not only reward the country through ample ecological diversity and also economic gains that contribute to the growth of the economy through bringing into the economy $14.5 billion annually, but also through the massive creation of employment, which is targeted to reach 10 million people by 2020 (ITTO, 16). However, these benefits have not just occurred naturally, but through the concerted efforts of the Chinese government towards forest conservation. China ranks top among the top planters of bamboo globally, with the plantation of 6.93 million hectares of bamboo by 2013, which does not only increase the value of bamboo forest in the Chinese economy, but also contribute to the addition of the forest cover preservation (Bernbaum, 307). China’s Bamboo forest forms a large part of the country’s forest cover, accounting for 6.93 million hectares of the total forest cover of 20.8 million hectares, thus forming well over 34% of the China’s forest cover (ITTO, 2014). In addition, China is one of the countries in the world that has taken the issue of forest conservation as important, by meeting and surpassing the global forest cover requirement of at least 10% of the total landmass within a country. The 20.8 million forest acreage accounts for a total national forest cover of 21.63% (ITTO, 16). Human Development Index in China has a positive relationship with the forest cover in the country. This is because, the Human Development Index measures how the economy is performing, in relation to how the population in the economy is fairing. Therefore, the positive relationship between HDI and the forest cover in China stems from the fact the Chinese bamboo industry is predicted to have employed over 10 million people by 2020 (ITTO, 17). Additionally, the bamboo industry currently contributes a total of $14.5 billion annually, and the economic contribution to the economy is expected to grow immensely in this decade, such that the bamboo industry will be contributing $48 billion to China’s economy by 2020 (ITTO, 18). This positive relationship between HDI and forest cover emanates from the fact that the Chinese have taken up forest conservation as a serious business, through planting bamboo forest to a tune of 6.93 million hectares by 2013, which is expected to grow to 7.2 million hectares by 2020, and the forest cover has in turn rewarded China through creating employment for its population and contributing to the economic growth through pushing $1.45 billion into the economy annually (ITTO, 16). Additionally, the annual growth of the forestry output in the Chinese economy grows by more than 20% annually, thus causing the total output contribution of the forestry sector in the Chinese economy to hit RMB4.73 trillion, while at the same time the value of trade in forestry products such as timber and bamboo increased to a massive $126 billion by 2013 (ITTO, 17). It is such economic contribution of the forestry sector that in turn contributes to the overall welfare of the whole Chinese population. This is because, when the forestry sector is creating over 10 million jobs for people, it contributes greatly to improving the standards of living of such households. On the other hand, the economic growth resulting from the contribution of RMB4.73 trillion into the economy in 2013 allows the Chinese government to improve on the country’s transport infrastructure, education, health and other social services provision to the population (Bernbaum, 305). Further, the HDI is positively related to the forest conservation in the China, since the continued conservation and rehabilitation of the forests and planting of more bamboo forest acreages every year, is a sustainable method of improving the welfare of the Chinese population, through ensuring that the benefits obtained from the forestry sector in the country such as employment creation and GDP growth are sustained. Forest cover contributes to HDI through creating a favorable environment to live, both for humans and the natural habitat. For example, Norway has been ranked as the country with a high HDI, owing to the fact that the country had a total forest cover of37% of the total landmass, which then contributed to the country being seen as the best place to live (IUCN, 21). It is in this respect that China also has a high HDI, owing to the fact that the country has a forest cover of 21.63%, while the forest cover continues to increase every other year, due to the concerted effort of the country to plant more bamboo, thus creating a higher coverage of bamboo forests. It is not only the bamboo forests that have seen expansion in the China, but also the tree forests, most especially in the Wen'an County of China, where the wood industry is the basis of economy. Thus, the recent years have seen the expansion of tree planting in the region to 28,700 hectares, in a bid to prepare for the provision of the raw materials required for the forestry-based industries in the region, which hosts over 1500 forestry-based enterprises (ITTO, 18). This is yet another aspect of positive relationship between HDI and forest cover in China, where forest cover is the basis of the creation of over 1500 enterprises, as well as the efforts to increase the tree forest cover. The forest cover has also contributed positively to the HDI, owing to the fact that; due to the high acreage of forest cover in China, coupled with the high rate of importation of timber and timber products from different parts of the world, the cost of housing in major cities of China has gone down by a large margin, with 95% of the cities recording a reduction in the price of housing, due to the low costs of the construction materials (ITTO, 17). Further, the impact of the cross-border forest conservation has been the improvement in the standards of living of the populations of the countries that share in the cross-border forest and mountainous region conservation effort, where tourism to the conserved and protected areas has contributed to economic growth (Kandel & Chettri, n.p.). Additionally, the cross-border decision to conserve the forests and mountains has resulted in enhanced trade between the nations involved in the cross-border conservation and the rest of the world, while at the same time determining the health of these economies. For example, the housing sector in China accounts for 12% of the country’s GDP, and its health status also influences many other sectors of the economy (Oli, et al., n.p.). Consequently, the regional governments involved in the conservation of Kangchenjunga Landscape (KL) and the Kailash Sacred Landscape (KSL) forest and mountainous regions are encouraging more home ownership by their respective populations, to take advantage of the low cost of housing arising from the availability of construction materials in the countries (Kandel & Chettri, n.p.). Works Cited Bernbaum, Edwin. “Sacred Mountains: Themes and Teachings.” Mountain Research and Development, 26, 4 (2006). 304-309. Print. International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO). “Biodiversity & Trans-boundary conservation: Tropical Timber Market Report.” ITTO TTM Report 8(8), (2014): 1-27. Print. IUCN. “The World Commission on Protected Areas, 2nd Southeast Asia Regional Forum, Pakse, Lao PDR, 6-11 December 1999”. Vientiane, Lao PDR: IUCN Lao PDR, 2000. Print. Kandel, Pratikshya and Chettri, Nakul. “Kangchenjunga Transboundary Conservation and Development Initiative in the Hindu Kush Himalayas.” The Global Transboundary Conservation Network. Web. October 27, 2014 < http://www.tbpa.net/page.php?ndx=87> Oli, Prasad. K, et al. “The Role of Traditional Knowledge and Customary Arrangements in Conservation: Trans-boundary Landscape Approaches in the Kailash Sacred Landscape of China, India & Nepal”, 2012. Web. October 27, 2014 < http://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/pdf/Part%20II,%20Chapter%203.pdf> Read More