AsianScientist (May 6, 2013) – The Greater Mekong subregion in Southeast Asia risks losing more than a third of its remaining forest cover within the next two decades, warns a new WWF report.
WWF’s analysis reveals the Greater Mekong has retained about 98 million hectares of natural forest, just over half of the region’s land area, but further rapid loss is expected if current deforestation rates persist.
Between 1973 and 2009, the five countries of the Greater Mekong lost just under one-third of their remaining forest cover. During this period, Cambodia lost 22 percent of its 1973 forest cover, Laos and Myanmar lost 24 percent, and Thailand and Vietnam lost 43 percent.
Large connected areas of core forest also declined significantly across the region, from over 70 percent in 1973 to about 20 percent in 2009. If current trends continue, WWF predicts that by 2030 only 14 percent of the Greater Mekong’s remaining forest will consist of contiguous habitat capable of sustaining viable populations of many wildlife species.
“The Greater Mekong is at a crossroads,” said Peter Cutter, Landscape Conservation Manager with WWF-Greater Mekong. “One path leads to further declines in biodiversity and livelihoods, but if natural resources are managed responsibly, this region can pursue a course that will secure a healthy and prosperous future for its people.”
The report, Ecosystems in the Greater Mekong: past trends, current status, possible futures, offers two scenarios for the region’s ecosystems, one predicts what will likely happen by 2030 under an unsustainable growth model persists, while the other scenario assumes a 50 percent cut in the annual deforestation rate and offers a future based on green growth.
“The green economy approach is the choice for a viable future in the Greater Mekong,” added Cutter. “Regional leaders have already affirmed that healthy economic growth goes hand in hand with healthy and productive ecosystems, but fast and effective responses are needed now to avoid permanent environmental degradation.”
The report highlights the controversial Xayaburi dam development as a key threat to the health and productivity of the Mekong river and delta. The Mekong basin hosts 13 unique, yet connected, freshwater ecosystems, but the project will sever the mainstem of the lower Mekong river, blocking migratory fish and sediment flow with devastating consequences for livelihoods and food security for 60 million people, it says.
It also maps the enormous decline in the range of several important and iconic species of the region, including the tiger, Asian elephant, Irrawaddy dolphin, and the endemic saola.
“Many protected areas exist in name only,” added Cutter. “Even relatively secure protected areas are under intense pressure from poaching and timber theft, while others have been reduced in size by government’s eager to cash in on land concessions to mining companies or plantation owners.”
Despite documenting the degradation of ecosystems over the past 50 years, the report also emphasizes the vast natural wealth of the region that still remains.
“Given that the majority of the region’s biological heritage and supporting ecosystems occur in landscapes that cross borders, regional collaboration is critical,” concluded Cutter. “Increased and more sustainable investment in maintaining ecosystem integrity must also be a priority at landscape, national, and regional scales.”
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Source: WWF; Photo: Elizabeth Kempf/WWF-Canon.
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