Protected forest strips buffering rivers and streams of the Amazon rainforest should be significantly wider than the current legal requirement, according to pioneering new research by scientists at the University of East Anglia. This is the first wildlife study on remnant riparian tropical forest corridors.
Brazilian forestry legislation currently requires that all forest strips alongside rivers and streams on private land be maintained as permanent reserves and it sets a minimum legal width of 60m.
But after investigating the effects of corridor width on the number of bird and mammal species, Alexander Lees and Dr Carlos Peres of UEA's School of Environmental Sciences say a minimum critical width of 400m is necessary.
The findings come as the existing legislation protecting remnant forest corridors is being actively debated in the Brazilian Congress. "There are proposals on the table to actually weaken the minimum legal requirements, when they need to be strengthened," said Dr Peres.
"This is a huge wildlife conservation issue locally - with global implications in terms of biodiversity and climate change - and we would urge policy-makers to act on this important new research before it is too late."
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080218134554.htm
No comments:
Post a Comment