Central African forests, carbon and climate change

The tropical forests of the world are receiving considerable attention in t erms of their role in climate change. Not only does tropical land use chang e provide an important term in balancing the global carbon budget, but trop ical forests also present opportunities for carbon trading in the emerging carbon markets. The Congo Basin contains the second largest area of contigu ous rainforest in the world, yet for various reasons has received relativel y little attention in terms of these climate change issues. This paper prov ides an assessment of the current state of the forests of Central Africa, t heir carbon stock, recent rates of deforestation and a simple predictive mo del of forest change over the next 60 yr. The roles of agriculture and logg ing which are driving deforestation are discussed. The future of the forest s, whether for commercial use, carbon trading or biodiversity is inextricab ly linked to how these valuable resources are managed. Suggestions are made for potential carbon trading projects, forest management strategies and a climate change research agenda for the region. Effective forest monitoring and management are seen as essential components for the economic developmen t of this region.