Quantifying carbon benefits from protecting and restoring tropical forests and agro-forestry landscapes in Vanuatu

Quantifying carbon benefits from protecting and restoring tropical forests and agro-forestry landscapes in Vanuatu | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Quantifying carbon benefits from protecting and restoring tropical forests and agro-forestry landscapes in Vanuatu Clint Cameron, Olivia Bird, Jeffery Lava, Andrew Finaly This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7680245/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Background Vanuatu is among the most vulnerable countries in the world to the impacts of climate change and natural disasters, with rural populations inherently reliant on subsistence-based agricultural livelihoods increasingly affected. Payment for Ecosystem Service (PES) projects are touted as one mechanism that can help diversify livelihoods, develop climate resilient agricultural production systems, and ensure rural communities are better equipped to mitigate the effects of climate change and natural disasters. This study reports on the Life & Land Project , a PES initiative in Vanuatu which works with the communities of South River on Erromango, and Whitegrass and Middlebush on Tanna. Research was focused on assessing community structure, baseline carbon stocks of forest and agroforestry sites, and the drivers and rates of deforestation and/or forest degradation using remote sensing analysis coupled with ground truthing. Appropriate responses to factors impacting forest health were developed as Forest Protection , Forest Restoration , and Improved Forest Management interventions, and potential project-derived carbon benefits estimated. Results Results showed high variability in structural composition and forest carbon stocks between sites, reflective of differences in landuse, landcover, and environmental pressures. The mature, healthy, predominantly primary tropical rainforest of Whitegrass had an average carbon stock of 490.7 ± 32.6 Mg C ha − 1 , in marked contrast to the invasive vine-smothered degraded forests of Imanaka Creek (Middlebush) and the Forest Enhancement Zone of South River (106.7 ± 10.7 Mg C ha − 1 and 128.2 ± 22.7 Mg C ha − 1 respectively). Deforestation and forest degradation at Whitegrass was driven through clear-fell logging, ad-hoc garden development, and quarry operations, while invasive vines were the main ecological issue impeding forest health at most sites. Options to address pressures included establishing a Community Conservation Area at Whitegrass ( Forest Protection ) with community developed and enforced by-laws, and undertaking vine clearance, maintenance, and replanting for Forest Restoration and Improved Forest Management interventions. Overall carbon benefits are estimated at 6,675 Mg CO 2 e ha − 1 year − 1 . Conclusions The study helps Vanuatu and other Small Island Developing States, particularly those of the South Pacific, solidify the platform and evidence base from which other PES projects could be developed. Vanuatu tropical rainforests carbon stocks community structure landuse and landcover change Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Supplementary Files SupplementaryMaterials.docx Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7680245","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":531858696,"identity":"aa473521-49a8-46ad-8548-47b44e301083","order_by":0,"name":"Clint Cameron","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Moana Conservation","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Clint","middleName":"","lastName":"Cameron","suffix":""},{"id":531858697,"identity":"2959b376-e04b-4df2-8cb3-04de55205a20","order_by":1,"name":"Olivia Bird","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Tearfund New 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Vanuatu","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"Vanuatu, tropical rainforests, carbon stocks, community structure, landuse and landcover change","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7680245/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7680245/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eBackground\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eVanuatu is among the most vulnerable countries in the world to the impacts of climate change and natural disasters, with rural populations inherently reliant on subsistence-based agricultural livelihoods increasingly affected. Payment for Ecosystem Service (PES) projects are touted as one mechanism that can help diversify livelihoods, develop climate resilient agricultural production systems, and ensure rural communities are better equipped to mitigate the effects of climate change and natural disasters. This study reports on the \u003cem\u003eLife \u0026amp; Land Project\u003c/em\u003e, a PES initiative in Vanuatu which works with the communities of South River on Erromango, and Whitegrass and Middlebush on Tanna. Research was focused on assessing community structure, baseline carbon stocks of forest and agroforestry sites, and the drivers and rates of deforestation and/or forest degradation using remote sensing analysis coupled with ground truthing. Appropriate responses to factors impacting forest health were developed as \u003cem\u003eForest Protection\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eForest Restoration\u003c/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eImproved Forest Management\u003c/em\u003e interventions, and potential project-derived carbon benefits estimated.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eResults\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eResults showed high variability in structural composition and forest carbon stocks between sites, reflective of differences in landuse, landcover, and environmental pressures. The mature, healthy, predominantly primary tropical rainforest of Whitegrass had an average carbon stock of 490.7\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;32.6 Mg C ha\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e, in marked contrast to the invasive vine-smothered degraded forests of Imanaka Creek (Middlebush) and the Forest Enhancement Zone of South River (106.7\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;10.7 Mg C ha\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e and 128.2\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;22.7 Mg C ha\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e respectively). Deforestation and forest degradation at Whitegrass was driven through clear-fell logging, ad-hoc garden development, and quarry operations, while invasive vines were the main ecological issue impeding forest health at most sites. Options to address pressures included establishing a Community Conservation Area at Whitegrass (\u003cem\u003eForest Protection\u003c/em\u003e) with community developed and enforced by-laws, and undertaking vine clearance, maintenance, and replanting for \u003cem\u003eForest Restoration\u003c/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eImproved Forest Management\u003c/em\u003e interventions. Overall carbon benefits are estimated at 6,675 Mg CO\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003ee ha\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e year\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eConclusions\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe study helps Vanuatu and other Small Island Developing States, particularly those of the South Pacific, solidify the platform and evidence base from which other PES projects could be developed.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Quantifying carbon benefits from protecting and restoring tropical forests and agro-forestry landscapes in Vanuatu","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2025-10-23 20:39:27","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7680245/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"b62788be-5a56-48dc-9a3f-2429ce58ee61","owner":[],"postedDate":"October 23rd, 2025","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"posted","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-01-11T12:09:02+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2025-10-23 20:39:27","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-7680245","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-7680245","identity":"rs-7680245","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"8U1c8b4HqxoKbykW_rLl7","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}