Carbon and watershed function as conditionality for community forestry: case study in Sesaot Lombok

Forests provide a number of ecosystems services to human life-support. The most important are as climate regulation which is close relationship with carbon sequestration and watershed function. However, forest conversion and degradation occurred in the large area in Indonesia due to economic reason. Involving community on managing degraded forest through agro-forestry systems is an alternative option to enhance carbon stock, biodiversity, maintaining watershed function and generate income for community. Assessment of carbon stock, watershed and livelihood condition was conducted in buffer area of Sesaot protected forest, West Lombok, Nusa Tenggara Barat. Rapid carbon stock appraisal (RaCSA) and participatory landscape appraisal (PaLA) developed by ICRAF was applied to assess carbon stock and watershed condition. Amount of 30 plots were set up in for land use systems namely secondary forest and agroforest which differentiate based on land status (private land, management permitted, non permitted). Household survey was conducted for 120 respondents across three land status. Carbon stock in agroforestry system is affected by type of planted trees as well as land status. Higher carbon stock was found in agroforestry of private land (72 ton/ha) compared to forest land (42 ton/ha). More timber trees were grown in private land rather than in forest land, both in management permitted or non-permitted. Water quality and quantity in this area is relatively good. There is no high fluctuation of discharge between wet and dry season. Dependence of local community to forest land in is quite high, because 33-59% of total income come from agroforestry systems in the buffer area of protected forest and play an important role in poverty alleviation through narrowing inequity income.

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