Rubber mapping reveals opportunities and current limitations of deforestation due-diligence
Ahrends, A.; Harrison, S. B.; Hollingsworth, P. M.; Heath, J. D. J.; Wang, Y.; Xu, J.; Green, J. M. H.
Show abstract
Commodity maps and the ability to monitor commodity-driven deforestation are essential for sustainability risk assessment and due diligence. Natural rubber (Hevea brasiliensis), used primarily in tyres, remains challenging to map because of its similarity to other tree cover. Integrating optical and radar satellite data, we produced a 10 m map of rubber distribution in Southeast Asia for around 2020 and assessed this map and similar products for deforestation due diligence. In continental Southeast Asia, estimated users accuracy was 0.95 and area-adjusted producers accuracy 0.78. Rubber-associated clearances of natural and semi-natural tree cover during 2011-2016 were estimated at 0.3-0.4 Mha, predominantly associated with industrial-scale plantations and concentrated in Cambodia. Historical clearances were less certain, with plausible bounds of 1.3-3.0 Mha since 1990. Evaluation of rubber and forest maps highlighted persistent limitations, particularly in insular Southeast Asia and smallholder systems. Accounting for these limitations is critical for fair and effective due diligence.
Matching journals
The top 4 journals account for 50% of the predicted probability mass.
Similar papers in this journal
Similar papers in this journal
- Increased likelihood of heat-induced large wildfires in the Mediterranean Basin 91%
- GlobalUsefulNativeTrees, a database of 14,014 tree species and their uses, supports synergies between biodiversity recovery and local livelihoods in landscape restoration 91%
- Big trees drive forest structure patterns across a lowland Amazon regrowth gradient 90%
Similar papers in this journal
- Land-use change from food to energy: meta-analysis unravels effects of bioenergy on biodiversity and amenity 91%
- Positive effects of projected climate change on post-disturbance forest regrowth rates in northeastern North American boreal forests 90%
- Targeting current species ranges and carbon stocks fails to conserve biodiversity in a changing climate: opportunities to support climate adaptation under 30x30 90%
"Similar papers" are the closest papers from that journal in the model's embedding space. They show what the match is built on, but the ranking comes mostly from a classifier over the whole training set, not from these examples alone.