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Development opportunities, forest use transition, and farmers' income differentiation: The impacts of Giant panda reserves in China

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  • Li, Yi
  • Gong, Peichen
  • Ke, Jiesheng

Abstract

This paper examines the impact of the natural conservation policy in China's giant panda reserves on forest resource utilization and its economic consequences. Different support policies have created different development opportunities for local communities and farmers, which have led to changes in forest use by farmers and their forest-related livelihoods. The empirical results indicate that the use of forest resources by communities and farmers is changing from traditional consumptive uses, such as timber harvest and the collection of nontimber products, to nonconsumptive uses such as ecotourism, forest farming and forest guard. While the share of farmers who are dependent on forests has generally been similar (30% -39%), farmers who are engaged in different types of forest-related activities have shown significant income differentiation. With more participation in eco-tourism, farmers are more likely to become a wealthy group with high income and high assets, whereas engaging in forest farming and logging and NTFP gathering is not conducive to increasing farmers' current incomes. The income inequality among the farmers in the study area is more serious than in other regions. Promoting equal opportunities through diversification and the wide participation of poor groups should be one of the directions for community development in the giant panda reserves.

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  • Li, Yi & Gong, Peichen & Ke, Jiesheng, 2021. "Development opportunities, forest use transition, and farmers' income differentiation: The impacts of Giant panda reserves in China," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 180(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecolec:v:180:y:2021:i:c:s0921800920310405
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2020.106869
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    1. Li, Fanlue & He, Ke & Wang, Yuejie & Zhang, Junbiao, 2021. "Does Indoor Air Pollution from Solid Fuels Influence the Mental Health of Rural Residents? Evidence from China," 2021 Conference, August 17-31, 2021, Virtual 315024, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    2. Li, Yi & Song, Zhenjiang, 2022. "Have protected areas in China achieved the ecological and economic “win-win” goals? Evidence from the Giant Panda Reserves of the Min Mont Range," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 144(C).
    3. Hu, Yuan & Kuhn, Lena & Zeng, Weizhong & Glauben, Thomas, 2023. "Who benefits from payments for ecosystem services? Policy lessons from a forest carbon sink program in China," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 214(C).
    4. Junli Gao & Chaofeng Shao & Sihan Chen, 2022. "Evolution and Driving Factors of the Spatiotemporal Pattern of Tourism Efficiency at the Provincial Level in China Based on SBM–DEA Model," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(16), pages 1-17, August.

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