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7.4.5 Other Development Activities
7.4.5.1 NTFPs
While planning and carrying out the assessment of NTFPs, the following issues should be studied:
7.4.5.2 TOF
1. Identify and list the tree associated NTFP products, which can be surveyed as a part of the standard FRA, i.e.
bark, leaves, fruit, etc.
2. Find the NTFPs, whose habitat is known. Group these according to habitat types: altitude, east-west and habitat
type matrix.
3. Define indicators, which characterize these habitats. Indicators should preferably be such that they can be
detected by means of remote sensing. Concise habitat mapping provides some information concerning
production and harvest potential of these NTFP’s. Habitats can be used as sample units for further analysis and
field surveys.
4. The survey and its design should be made in close cooperation with local forest officials, traders, local healers,
collectors, community forest user groups, local people, etc.
5. Importance values and Prominence values will be used for the quantification of NTFPs.
TOF can be classified according to occurrence as follows.
Physiological
shrubland
Shrubland
Degraded
forests
TOF
Farmland, village squares,
roadsides, terraces, etc.
Other lands
Forest patches/tree groups smaller than
the defined minimum area for forests
Basically, the standard field sample should cover the shrub land. In case of other areas, the advantage of more intensive use
of high resolution satellite images (VHR) should be studied. As soon as the VHR images are available, the development of
the method can be started. The final approach should be incorporated in the standard FRA applying two phase sampling with
the necessary modifications in the field work procedures. It is assumed that TOF inventory can be incorporated in the
national FRA from the beginning of the field inventory.
7.4.5.3 Biodiversity
Biological diversity in Nepal is very high. Thus, assessment of biodiversity is an extremely complex work. The assessment
will concentrate on forest ecosystem, vegetation composition, forest types and habitats. The first activity will be to assess the
appropriateness of the existing forest habitat classification in Nepal. The next activity would be the description of the habitat
specific indicators (soil, climatic conditions, altitude range, associated indicator species, etc.).
The key output of biodiversity assessment will be forest habitat and forest type classifications. Moreover, name of each forest
type will be determined by ordering the Importance Values of each tree species. Importance Value will be obtained by
summation of the relative frequency, relative density, and relative dominance (Krebs 1994). Relative dominance of trees will
be determined by calculating the basal area. The coverage of ground flora will be calculated by converting the recorded cover
percentage to midpoint cover classes according to Zobel et al. 1987.
In case of grassland and shrub land Prominence Values (Dinerstein 1979) will be used for classification. Prominence Value
will be calculated by multiplying mean percent cover with square root of frequency of same species. Further, the ultimate
objective is to incorporate the biodiversity assessment (area and distribution of habitats) in the national FRA system.
The project staffs responsible for implementation:
CTA, NPC, Biodiversity Mapping Experts, Project Field Manager, JTA and respective short term experts and national
counterparts will bear the responsibility.
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