Decrease of deforestation in Protected Areas of Madagascar during the Covid-19 years
Keywords:
Tree canopy density, Tree cover loss, National Park, IUCN conservation category, Forest, Tourism, park managersAbstract
Deforestation poses a significant threat to global biodiversity and ecosystem services. This study focuses on estimating the deforestation within Protected Areas (PAs) in Madagascar over a 21-year period from 2001 to 2022. A novel methodology utilizing remote sensing data and specific thresholds of tree canopy density is employed to estimate annual deforestation rates and identify trends and patterns within PAs. The analysis reveals significant deforestation in the PA network over the last decade, particularly in 2014, 2017, 2018, and 2019. Notably, the lowest annual deforestation rates were estimated during the Covid-19 years of 2020 (0.66%), 2021 (0.62%), and the subsequent year in 2022 (0.67%) when considering the entire network of 103 PAs with natural forests from 2013 to 2022.
Résumé
La déforestation constitue une menace importante pour la biodiversité mondiale et les services écosystémiques. Cette étude se concentre sur l'évaluation de l'efficacité des aires protégées (AP) pour lutter contre la déforestation à Madagascar sur une période de 21 ans, de 2001 à 2022. Une méthodologie novatrice utilisant des données de télédétection et des seuils spécifiques de densité du couvert arboré est employée pour estimer les taux annuels de déforestation et identifier les tendances et les modèles au sein des AP. Au cours de la dernière décennie, l'analyse révèle une déforestation significative dans le réseau des AP au cours de certaines années, notamment en 2014, 2017, 2018 et 2019. En revanche, il est intéressant de noter qu'entre 2013 et 2022, les taux annuels de déforestation les plus bas ont été estimés pendant les années de Covid-19 en 2020 (0,66 %), 2021 (0,62 %) et l'année suivante en 2022 (0,67 %) sur l’ensemble du réseau des 103 AP avec des forêts naturelles.
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