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Articles by Jon C. Lovett

Category : Research article

article id 1553, category Research article
Miguel Angel Salinas-Melgoza, Margaret Skutsch, Jon C. Lovett, Armonia Borrego. (2017). Carbon emissions from dryland shifting cultivation: a case study of Mexican tropical dry forest. Silva Fennica vol. 51 no. 1B article id 1553. https://doi.org/10.14214/sf.1553
Keywords: carbon stocks; slash-and-burn; swidden cultivation; REDD ; land sparing; Borlaug hypothesis
Highlights: Under REDD+, shifting cultivation should be considered degradation rather than deforestation; Carbon stocks in old fallows (>20 years) are higher than those in old growth forests which have never been used for shifting cultivation; Extending length of fallows increases rates of carbon emissions; Shortened fallow cycles result in higher carbon stocks and lower emissions at the landscape level; Cycle lengths could be optimized for carbon sequestration in a land sharing approach.
Abstract | Full text in HTML | Full text in PDF | Author Info

The article considers the relation of shifting cultivation to deforestation and degradation, and hence its impacts in terms of carbon emissions and sequestration potential. There is a need to understand these relationships better in the context of international policy on Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+). The article reviews the way in which shifting cultivation has been incorporated in global and national estimations of carbon emissions, and assembles the available information on shifting cultivation in Tropical Dry Forests (TDF) in Mexico, where it is widely practiced. It then takes the case of two villages, Tonaya and El Temazcal, which lie within the basin of the River Ayuquila in Jalisco, Mexico. Field data for the typical carbon stocks and fluxes associated with shifting cultivation are compared with stocks and fluxes associated with more intensive agricultural production in the same dry tropical forest area to highlight the carbon sequestration dynamics associated with the shortening and potential lengthening of the fallow cycles. The biomass density in the shifting cultivation system observed can reach levels similar to that of old growth forests, with old fallows (>20 years) having higher carbon stocks than old growth forests. Per Mg of maize produced, the biomass-related emissions from shifting cultivation in the traditional 12 year cycle are about three times those from permanent cultivation. We did not, however, take into account the additional emissions from inputs that result from the use of fertilizers and pesticides in the case of permanent agriculture. Shortening of the fallow cycle, which is occurring in the study area as a result of government subsidies, results in higher remaining stocks of carbon and lower emissions at the landscape level.

  • Salinas-Melgoza, University of Twente, Drienerlolaan 5, 7522 NB Enschede, the Netherlands ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3209-1659 E-mail: ma.masm@gmail.com (email)
  • Skutsch, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (CIGA-UNAM), Antigua Carretera a Pátzcuaro No. 8701, Col. Ex-Hacienda de San José de la Huerta, Campus Morelia, C.P. 58190, Michoacán, Mexico ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6120-4945 E-mail: mskutsch@ciga.unam.mx
  • Lovett, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT, UK E-mail: j.lovett@leeds.ac.uk
  • Borrego, CONACYT-Centro de Investigaciones en Geografía Ambiental, Antigua Carretera a Pátzcuaro No. 8701, Col. Ex-Hacienda de San José de la Huerta, Campus Morelia, C.P. 58190, Michoacán, México E-mail: aborrego@ciga.unam.mx

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