General Law for Sustainable Forest Development
The bill seeks to regulate and promote the conservation, protection, restoration, production, organisation, agricultural activity and management of Mexico’s forests in order to secure sustainable forest development. To this end, it creates the National Forest Service, formed by different government authorities and the Mexican Forest Fund, charged with preparing and updating National Forestry and Soils Inventory, facilitating access to financial services and promoting payment for environmental services schemes.
The bill also seeks to develop environmental goods and services in forests while preserving and enhancing biodiversity, and improving the social standards of forest peoples. It creates certification schemes in accordance with international practices. There is a strong focus on the creation of economic instruments for the development of forest activity such as fiscal stimulus, credit and funds.
The National Forest Commission also co-ordinates the National Programme for Forest Research and Technological Development and participates in the formulation and implementation of national policy on sustainable forest development and elaboration of National Forestry Programme.
The National Forestry Programme 2014-2018 was adopted on 28 April 2014 and aims among others at reducing GHG emissions and climate change impacts through protection and development of forest ecosystems. It includes the assessment of the state of Mexico’s forestry sector, sets the Programme within the forestry policy framework constituted by different legislative documents and lays down 5 specific objectives, 28 strategies and 122 action directions.
The five key objectives are the following:
• Increase sustainable production and productivity of forests
• Promote conservation and restoration of forest ecosystems
• Protect forest ecosystems (forest fires, illegal logging)
• Promote and strengthen forest governance and local capacity building
• Promote and foster an enabling institutional framework for sustainable forest development
Moreover, the Programme sets targets for sustainable forest development. These include:
• Increase the percentage of sustainably harvested forest resources from 31.6% in 2013 to 58.7% in 2018
• Reach 94% of forest areas certified under “good forest management practice” by 2018
• Include at least 10.2% of forest area in the ‘payment for ecosystem services’ scheme
• Increase the percentage of restored or rehabilitated forest area from 0.71% in 2013 to 5.45% in 2018 (out of the areas designated for restoration)
• Reduce the annual net deforestation rate from -0.24% in 2010 to -0.20% in 2015 (18% reduction)
• Reduce the percentage of wood sold on illegal markets from 27.6% in 2012 to 0% in 2018 (proxy indicator)
• 8,750,000 tons of avoided CO2e emissions from deforestation and forest degradation by 2018
• Increase by 30% the credits allocated for forestry development and conservation programmes by the Development Bank of Mexico between 2012 and 2018
