Gary D. Paoli
University of Michigan
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Featured researches published by Gary D. Paoli.
Carbon Balance and Management | 2010
Gary D. Paoli; Philip L. Wells; Erik Meijaard; Andrew J. Marshall; Krystof Obidzinski; Aseng Tan; Andjar Rafiastanto; Betsy Yaap; J. W. Ferry Slik; Alexandra Morel; Balu Perumal; Niels Wielaard; Simon J. Husson; Laura D'Arcy
Deforestation and forest degradation in the tropics is a major source of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The tropics also harbour more than half the worlds threatened species, raising the possibility that reducing GHG emissions by curtailing tropical deforestation could provide substantial co-benefits for biodiversity conservation. Here we explore the potential for such co-benefits in Indonesia, a leading source of GHG emissions from land cover and land use change, and among the most species-rich countries in the world. We show that focal ecosystems for interventions to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in Indonesia do not coincide with areas supporting the most species-rich communities or highest concentration of threatened species. We argue that inherent trade-offs among ecosystems in emission reduction potential, opportunity cost of foregone development and biodiversity values will require a regulatory framework to balance emission reduction interventions with biodiversity co-benefit targets. We discuss how such a regulatory framework might function, and caution that pursuing emission reduction strategies without such a framework may undermine, not enhance, long-term prospects for biodiversity conservation in the tropics.
Ecology | 2005
Gary D. Paoli; Lisa M. Curran; Donald R. Zak
Plant communities on nutrient-poor soils are thought to use nutrients more efficiently to produce biomass than plant communities on nutrient-rich soils. Yet, increased efficiency with declining soil nutrients has not been demonstrated empirically in lowland tropical rain forests, where plant growth is thought to be strongly limited by soil nutrients, especially phosphorus (P). We tested for higher P uptake and use efficiency across a 16-fold soil P gradient in lowland Borneo by measuring the P content of aboveground net primary productivity (fine litter production plus new tree growth; ANPP) for 24 months. Extractable soil P was positively related to litter production, tree growth, and ANPP. Efficiency of P response (ANPP/available soil P), uptake (P uptake/available soil P), and use (ANPP/P uptake) increased monotonically with declining soil P and was significantly higher on P-rich soil than P-poor soil. Increased P uptake and use efficiency with declining soil P enabled higher than expected plant produc...
Cab Reviews: Perspectives in Agriculture, Veterinary Science, Nutrition and Natural Resources | 2010
Betsy Yaap; Gary D. Paoli; Koh LianPin
Impacts of oil palm plantation agriculture on biodiversity have proven severe, leading to increased human–wildlife conflict, homogenization of structurally and species diverse ecosystems, and destruction of habitat for globally threatened species. Growing international demand is likely to drive further expansion of this strategic commodity in producer countries. In response, a diverse set of tools and approaches with significant potential to mitigate future impacts have been developed and are being widely applied throughout Southeast Asia, the global centre of palm oil production. This paper aims to profile these mitigation tools, beginning first with a brief review of the documented biodiversity impacts of oil palm, followed by a description of conceptual frameworks for mitigation, and a critique of five emerging mitigation tools: (1) the High Conservation Value (HCV) approach, (2) land-use advocacy, (3) carbon offsets (4), biodiversity banking and (5) enhanced regulation and enforcement. A feature shared by all is the essential role played by civil society in the development and successful implementation of these tools. We conclude by highlighting further research needs and/or activist efforts most likely to yield lasting positive impacts to redirect the location, size and shape of the oil palm ‘biodiversity footprint’.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America | 2018
Kimberly M. Carlson; Robert Heilmayr; Holly K. Gibbs; Praveen Noojipady; David N. Burns; Douglas C. Morton; Nathalie F. Walker; Gary D. Paoli; Claire Kremen
Significance Demand for agricultural commodities is the leading driver of tropical deforestation. Many corporations have pledged to eliminate forest loss from their supply chains by purchasing only certified “sustainable” products. To evaluate whether certification fulfills such pledges, we applied statistical analyses to satellite-based estimates of tree cover loss to infer the causal impact of a third-party certification system on deforestation and fire within Indonesian oil palm plantations. We found that certification significantly reduced deforestation, but not fire or peatland clearance, among participating plantations. Moreover, certification was mostly adopted in older plantations that contained little remaining forest. Broader adoption by oil palm growers is likely needed for certification to have a large impact on total forest area lost to oil palm expansion. Many major corporations and countries have made commitments to purchase or produce only “sustainable” palm oil, a commodity responsible for substantial tropical forest loss. Sustainability certification is the tool most used to fulfill these procurement policies, and around 20% of global palm oil production was certified by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) in 2017. However, the effect of certification on deforestation in oil palm plantations remains unclear. Here, we use a comprehensive dataset of RSPO-certified and noncertified oil palm plantations (∼188,000 km2) in Indonesia, the leading producer of palm oil, as well as annual remotely sensed metrics of tree cover loss and fire occurrence, to evaluate the impact of certification on deforestation and fire from 2001 to 2015. While forest loss and fire continued after RSPO certification, certified palm oil was associated with reduced deforestation. Certification lowered deforestation by 33% from a counterfactual of 9.8 to 6.6% y−1. Nevertheless, most plantations contained little residual forest when they received certification. As a result, by 2015, certified areas held less than 1% of forests remaining within Indonesian oil palm plantations. Moreover, certification had no causal impact on forest loss in peatlands or active fire detection rates. Broader adoption of certification in forested regions, strict requirements to avoid all peat, and routine monitoring of clearly defined forest cover loss in certified and RSPO member-held plantations appear necessary if the RSPO is to yield conservation and climate benefits from reductions in tropical deforestation.
Tropical Conservation Science | 2012
Mark Harrison; Gary D. Paoli
One major concern regarding the biodiversity impacts of Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD+) is “leakage” of threats from REDD+ to non-REDD+ forests, particularly if those forests storing the highest amounts of carbon – and thus prioritized under REDD+ – do not coincide with those most important for biodiversity conservation. This concern applies globally, and has been previously discussed in Indonesia, where the highest-carbon forests on peat are known to support lower species diversity and concentrations of threatened species than lowland mineral-soil forests. To help refine management of this risk, we discuss previously overlooked considerations regarding biodiversity threat leakage, suggest three strategies for managing leakage risk, and outline important questions to address with respect to these. We emphasize (1) the need to recognize intrinsic differences in threat displacement vulnerability among forests not currently protected/proposed to be protected under REDD+; and (2) that not pursuing REDD+ in high-carbon forests in an attempt to avoid leakage will not necessarily reduce this risk in low-carbon, non-REDD+ forests, due to the often high intrinsic vulnerability of these forests. Further to previous recommendations, suggested strategies for reducing risk of threat displacement include (1) focusing “traditional” conservation resources on the most vulnerable high-biodiversity forests not scheduled for protection under REDD+; (2) reducing costs, simplifying procedures and encouraging community-based approaches for pursuing REDD+ in low-carbon, high-biodiversity forests; and (3) developing more creative measures, especially fiscal and financial incentives, for protecting vulnerable low-carbon forests. Inter-disciplinary research is urgently needed to evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of these strategies to successfully manage biodiversity leakage risk from pursuing REDD+ in high-carbon forests and, thus, for ensuring REDD+ achieves its potential for generating biodiversity conservation gains.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America | 2011
Gary D. Paoli; Kimberly M. Carlson; Aljosja Hooijer; Susan E. Page; Lisa M. Curran; Philip L. Wells; Ross Morrison; Jyrki Jauhiainen; Alice M. Pittman; David M. Gilbert; Deborah Lawrence
Success of the emerging Low Emissions Development paradigm in Southeast Asia depends on mitigating impacts of oil palm (OP) expansion on carbon-dense ecosystems, especially tropical peatlands. To this end, Koh et al. (1) mapped OP planted before 2002 across Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, and Borneo to estimate emissions and biodiversity losses from peatland conversion (≈880,000 ha). Unfortunately, emissions scenarios are oversimplified, remote-sensing (RS) methods are unsuitable for OP monitoring, and recommendations for peatland restoration are overstated.
Science | 2010
Chris J. Kettle; Jaboury Ghazoul; Peter S. Ashton; Charles H. Cannon; Lucy Chong; Bibian Diway; Eny Faridah; Rhett D. Harrison; Andy Hector; Peter M. Hollingsworth; Lian Pin Koh; Eyen Khoo; Kanehiro Kitayama; Kuswata Kartawinata; Andrew J. Marshall; Colin R. Maycock; Satoshi Nanami; Gary D. Paoli; Matthew D. Potts; Douglas Sheil; Sylvester Tan; Ichie Tomoaki; Campbell O. Webb; Takuo Yamakura; David F. R. P. Burslem
![Figure][1] Dipterocarp tree seedlings. Many endangered Indonesian trees rarely produce seeds. CREDIT: CAMPBELL WEBB Large-scale restoration of tropical forest is increasingly recognized as a credible option for climate change mitigation and biodiversity conservation ([ 1 ][2]–[ 3 ][3
Trends in Ecology and Evolution | 2010
Gary D. Paoli; Erik Meijaard
Koh et al. [1] advocate use of ‘designer landscapes’ to maintain biodiversity and livelihoods in oil palm biofuel plantations. By promoting agroforestry as a revenue source for local people and a buffer to conservation set-asides within plantations, the authors seek to balance economic, social and environmental values of multifunctional landscapes. However, they present little evidence to show that their solution is in any way optimal for these values. We argue that the approach is highly context-dependent and constrained by socio-political and biological realities.
Tropical Conservation Science | 2016
Betsy Yaap; Ainhoa Magrach; Gopalasamy Reuben Clements; Christopher J. W. McClure; Gary D. Paoli; William F. Laurance
Riparian forests are often the last remaining areas of natural vegetation in agricultural and plantation forestry landscapes. Covering millions of hectares of land in Indonesia, industrial pulpwood plantations have rapidly replaced native forests. Our study aimed to better understand the conservation importance of linear remnants of riparian forest by examining their use by larger (>1 kg) mammal species. Our study site was located within an extensive acacia (Acacia mangium) plantation adjoining Tesso Nilo National Park in Sumatra, Indonesia. Camera traps were used to detect mammals at 57 sites to assess the effects of corridor design and land cover covariates and species behavioral traits on mammal habitat use of four linear riparian forests. We recorded 17 species (including one International Union for Conservation of Nature [IUCN] Critically Endangered, two Endangered, and four Vulnerable) in riparian forests inside the plantation, including the Sumatran tiger (Panthera tigris sumatrae), Malay tapir (Tapirus indicus), and sun bear (Helarctos malayanus). Some threatened species were only detected in the park buffer zone. Species varied in their responses to riparian forests, but distance to the national park, remnant width, and percent forest cover around the camera site were common predictors of remnant use. Many mammal species used riparian forests regardless of whether they were surrounded by intact acacia forests or recently cleared land. Our results indicate that linear remnant riparian forests ≤ 200 m in width can facilitate local (< 4 km) movements of many large mammal species in Sumatra, but wider riparian remnants would likely be more effective at promoting mammal movements over longer distances.
Science | 1999
Lisa M. Curran; I. Caniago; Gary D. Paoli; D. Astianti; M. Kusneti; Mark Leighton; C. E. Nirarita; H. Haeruman