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GABON
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Gabon Forest Figures
Forest Cover
Total forest area: 21,775,000 ha
% of land area: 84.5%
Primary forest cover: n/a
% of land area: n/a
% total forest area: n/a
Deforestation Rates, 2000-2005
Annual change in forest cover: -10,200 ha
Annual deforestation rate: n/a
Change in defor. rate since '90s: 1.5%
Total forest loss since 1990: -152,000 ha
Total forest loss since 1990:-0.7%
Primary or "Old-growth" forests
Annual loss of primary forests: n/a
Annual deforestation rate: n/a
Change in deforestation rate since '90s: n/a
Primary forest loss since 1990: n/a
Primary forest loss since 1990:n/a
Forest Classification
Public: n/a
Private: n/a
Other: n/a
Use
Production: n/a
Protection: n/a
Conservation: n/a
Social services: n/a
Multiple purpose: n/a
None or unknown: n/a
Forest Area Breakdown
Total area: 21,775,000 ha
Primary: n/a
Modified natural: n/a
Semi-natural: n/a
Production plantation: 36,000 ha
Production plantation: n/a
Plantations
Plantations, 2005: 36,000 ha
% of total forest cover: 0.2%
Annual change rate (00-05): n/a
Carbon storage
Above-ground biomass: 5,971 M t
Below-ground biomass: 1,314 M t
Area annually affected by
Fire: n/a
Insects: n/a
Diseases: n/a
Number of tree species in IUCN red list
Number of native tree species: n/a
Critically endangered: 3
Endangered: 6
Vulnerable: 59
Wood removal 2005
Industrial roundwood: 3,600,000 m3 o.b.
Wood fuel: 627,000 m3 o.b.
Value of forest products, 2005
Industrial roundwood: n/a
Wood fuel: n/a
Non-wood forest products (NWFPs): n/a
Total Value: n/a
More forest statistics for Gabon
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Gabon is home to some of Africa's most biodiverse rainforests. With around 80 percent of the country forested, Gabon has an estimated 8,000-10,000 species of plants (20 percent of which are endemic), over 670 species of birds, and nearly 200 mammals including lowland gorillas, chimpanzees, 10 species of monkeys, forest elephants, and even hippos that surf ocean waves. The Central African country was the ending point of biologist Michael Fay's 455-day Megatransect across the Congo rainforest. Gabon is one of few places on Earth where primary tropical rainforest extends all the way to the beach. Offshore the country has a wealth of marine life including a large population of humpback whales.
Primary forest makes up a little less than 40 percent of Gabon's forests. Unlike rainforests of Southeast Asia and the Amazon, Gabon's rainforests are drier and somewhat seasonal. Some deciduous trees are present.
In September 2002, at the World Summit in Johannesburg, Gabon announced the establishment of its first national park system consisting of a network of 13 parks that would cover 10 percent of the country's lands mass—10,000 square miles (25,900 sq. kilometers). Previously, Gabon lacked a park system and "protected areas" were sometimes open to logging. Less than 1 percent of Gabon was truly protected under the old system.
In 2002 the government also moved to cancel some logging concessions that had been granted in pristine forest areas.
Despite these positive developments, Gabon's forests still face an uncertain future.
Gabon is Africa's third richest country in terms of income per person, thanks to its relatively small and urbanized population, and its abundant natural resources—especially oil. About one-third of government revenue comes from offshore oil deposits. This heavy reliance on petroleum means that Gabon is highly sensitive to fluctuations in oil prices. In an effort to diversify its economy and reduce its dependence on energy exports, Gabon is looking towards agriculture, forestry, and tourism as additional sources of income. In the late 1990s, when oil prices dropped steeply and Asian demand for timber products fell sharply, the cash-strapped Gabonese government granted large logging concessions—this was because it had to continue making payments on its unusually high national debt but couldn't qualify for debt relief since its per capita income is relatively high compared to the rest of sub-Saharan Africa. By November 1997, more than 100 logging companies, most of them European, were operating in the country and exporting raw logs—the least valuable forest product from a tax-revenue standpoint.
Of even greater concern to conservationists is the construction of logging roads, which open interior forest areas to exploitation by colonists, poachers, oil companies, and gold miners. Cheap weapons, abundant wildlife, and soaring cross-border demand for wildlife products mean that poaching is increasingly a problem in Gabon despite new legislation enacted to control the trade. Gabon is now a major source of bush meat for urban centers in Central Africa. "Pygmies"—short-statured forest people who have a wealth of knowledge about local wildlife—are sometimes hired as hunting guides.
The Gabonese government knows it will have to stem these activities that are at odds with what it believes holds the most promise for future: eco-tourism. With its unmatched wildlife, long coastline with ample sport-fishing potential, and stable political environment, Gabon could become the "Costa Rica" of tropical Africa within a generation. The newly established park system is simply the first step in such a development. With its oil supplies dwindling, now's the time for Gabon to recognize the value of its ecosystems.
Pictures of Gabon
Recent articles | Gabon news updates | XML
Biochar fund to fight hunger, energy poverty, deforestation, and global warming
(3/10/2008) Biopact, a leading bioenergy web site, has announced the creation of a "Biochar Fund" to help poor farmers improve their quality of life without hurting the environment.
Rainforest logging threatens endangered sea turtles
(2/25/2008) Logging is having an unexpected impact on endangered sea turtles in Central Africa, reports a new study published in Oryx. Aerial surveys in Gabon reveal that logs lost during transport are clogging beaches, preventing critically endangered leatherback turtles (Dermochelys coriacea) from nesting.
Central Africa's 'Most Beautiful Waterfall' to be destroyed
(11/4/2007) One of Africa's most dramatic waterfalls will be destroyed by a hydroelectric project in Gabon, according to reports from a Gabonese NGO and the Inter Press Service (IPS).
Low deforestation countries to see least benefit from carbon trading
(8/13/2007) Countries that have done the best job protecting their tropical forests stand to gain the least from proposed incentives to combat global warming through carbon offsets, warns a new study published in Tuesday in the journal Public Library of Science Biology (PLoS). The authors say that "high forest cover with low rates of deforestation" (HFLD) nations "could become the most vulnerable targets for deforestation if the Kyoto Protocol and upcoming negotiations on carbon trading fail to include intact standing forest."
Logging roads rapidly expanding in Congo rainforest
(6/7/2007) Logging roads are rapidly expanding in the Congo rainforest, report researchers who have constructed the first satellite-based maps of road construction in Central Africa. The authors say the work will help conservation agencies, governments, and scientists better understand how the expansion of logging is impacting the forest, its inhabitants, and global climate.
China tropical log imports jump at Jiangsu port
(5/16/2007) Logs imports through Zhangjiagang Port in Jiangsu Province, China have increased significantly in 2007, reports the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) in its bi-weekly update.
Congo forest elephants declining from logging roads, illegal ivory
(4/2/2007) Fast-expanding logging roads in the Congo basin are becoming 'highways of death' for the fierce but elusive forest elephant, according to a new study published in the journal Public Library of Science. Logging roads both provide access to remote forest areas for ivory poachers and serve as conduits of advancing human settlement.
Avoided deforestation could send $38 billion to third world under global warming pact
(10/31/2006) Avoided deforestation will be a hot point of discussion at next week's climate meeting in Nairobi, Kenya. Already a coalition of 15 rainforest nations have proposed a plan whereby industrialized nations would pay them to protect their forests to offset greenhouse gas emissionsm. Meanwhile, last month Brazil -- which has the world's largest extent of tropical rainforests and the world's highest rate of forest loss -- said it promote a similar initiative at the talks. At stake: potentially billions of dollars for developing countries. When trees are cut greenhouse gases are released into the atmosphere -- roughly 20 percent of annual emissions of such heat-trapping gases result from deforestation and forest degradation. Avoided deforestation is the concept where countries are paid to prevent deforestation that would otherwise occur. Policymakers and environmentalists alike find the idea attractive because it could help fight climate change at a low cost while improving living standards for some of the world's poorest people and preserving biodiversity and other ecosystem services. A number of prominent conservation biologists and development agencies including the World Bank and the U.N. have already endorsed the idea.
When elephants attack. Surviving an elephant charge in the Congo rainforest of Gabon
(6/26/2006) The elephant charges. The ground trembles. Hearts racing, we are now sprinting through the forest dodging vegetation as the elephant plows right through it. The problem with being chased by an elephant, aside from their obvious size advantage, is they can run faster than you. While wild elephants can be dangerous animals under the right circumstances, other creatures are responsible for more deaths in Africa. Topping the list is the hippo, whose penchant for capsizing canoes that come too close results in the dumping of passengers who often can't swim. Buffalo, crocodiles, and lions are directly responsible for more deaths and injuries.
Pictures of Gabon: gorillas, rainforest and white sand beaches
(6/26/2006) Mongabay.com, a leading rainforest and environmental web site, today announced the availability of new photos from the Central African country of Gabon. Site founder Rhett A. Butler visited Loango National Park in Gabon in late May and early June.
Rainforests worth $1.1 trillion for carbon alone in Coalition nations
(11/29/2005) If a coalition of developing countries has its way, there could soon be new forests sprouting up in tropical regions. The group of ten countries, led by Papua New Guinea, has proposed that wealthy countries pay them to preserve their rainforests. The Coalition for Rainforest Nations argues that all countries should pay for the benefits -- from carbon sequestration to watershed protection -- that tropical rainforests provide.
Gabon sets aside 10 percent of country as protected parks
(9/24/2005) In a move that sets a new standard in African conservation, the nation of Gabon, which contains some of the most pristine tropical rainforests on earth, announced today that it will set aside 10 percent of its land mass for a system of national parks. Up to this point, Gabon had no national park system. The Gabonese government has been working closely with The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) on conservation issues for the past ten years. The announcement is a major victory for Africa's wildlife.
The Congo rain forest, an overview of a threatened ecosystem
(6/5/2005) Known as the heart of darkness by Joseph Conrad, the Congo region has long conjured up thoughts of pygmies, mythical beasts, dreadful plagues, and cannibals. It is a land made famous by the adventures of Stanley and Livingstone and known as a place of brutality and violence for its past -- the days of the Arab slave and ivory trade, its long history of tribal warfare -- and its present -- the ethnic violence and massacres of today.
Gabon: Environmental Profile
(2/15/2005) An overview of tropical rainforets found in Gabon. Includes forest cover and deforestation statistics.
Suggested reading - Books
Unless otherwise specified, this article was written by Rhett A. Butler [Bibliographic citation for this page]
Other resources
Contact me if you have suggestions on other rainforest-related environmental sites and resources for this country.
Image copyright Google Earth, MDA EarthSet, DigitalGlobe 2005
CIA-World Factbook Profile
FAO-Forestry Profile
Last updated: 4 Feb 2006 |
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