Assessment and Causes of Degradation in a Montane Cloud Forest, Granma, Cuba

Autor: Jiménez-Brizuela Y.; Rodríguez-Rodríguez S.F.; López-Sánchez R.C.; Grenzdörffer G.J.; Eichler-Löbermann B.; López-Álvarez S.L.; Vigoa-Escobedo Y
In:

Revista U.D.C.A Actualidad and Divulgacion Cientifica

Jahr: 2025

Einordung:
Institut: Professur Pflanzenbau

Abstract:
Forest degradation in tropical regions is a topic of concern due to its implications for climate and biodiversity. The objective of this research is to assess degradation and its causes in a montane cloud forest. The study was conducted in the La Platica Ecological Community within Turquino National Park (PNT), located in the west-central zone of the Sierra Maestra, Granma Province, Cuba. A land cover and use analysis was performed using remote sensing data. The primary causes of degradation affecting the area were evaluated through a survey administered to 20 experts, and 6 forest threats were assessed using a five-level Likert scale. It was demonstrated that, between 1985 and 2014, forest degradation occurred mainly due to agricultural activities. The inter-expert agreement analysis, using global and weighted Fleiss's kappa, revealed disagreement among experts in evaluating the degree of impact, but with a tendency to cluster into adjacent categories when weighting the distances between ratings (weighted Kappa). Selective logging and fuelwood extraction, forest fires, and irregular forest management practices were ranked as the highest-category threats. The most significant correlations, calculated using Kendall’s tau, corresponded to a positive association between extreme weather events and forest fires, and an inverse relationship between management irregularities and forest fragmentation. This underscores the need for an integrated approach when evaluating causes of forest degradation.

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