The Second Phase of the Grain for Green Program: Adapting the Largest Reforestation Program in the World to the New Conditions in Rural China.

This paper introduces the second phase of the Grain for Green. The first phase ran from 1999 to 2014, and the second phase started in 2015. The second phase of the GfG (GfG/2) addresses some problems of the first phase (GfG/1), in particular the lack of income for the farmers, as well as some changes to the rural areas, in particular the small number of remaining farmers. The paper describes how the GfG/2 (unlike the GfG/1) encourages farmers to organize themselves in cooperatives, or work with investors, and grow fruit trees to generate sustainable incomes. The paper also describes the constraints that prevent the smooth implementation of the GfG/2, in particular the insufficient financial support, the fact that some of the land that should be converted is "essential farmland", and the small and scattered pieces of farmland. The paper argues that in spite of this, the program is likely to succeed, and help farmers generate sustainable incomes. The paper is based in four periods of fieldwork in Chongqing Municipality, Shaanxi Province, and Yunnan Province and extensive interviews of farmers and government officers.

Spatial-temporal variation, ecological risk, and source identification of nutrients and heavy metals in sediments in the peri-urban riverine system.

A great deal of attention has been directed to the toxicity, enrichment, and accumulation of urban river sediment pollution. To understand the spatial-temporal variation, ecological risk and source of nutrients, and heavy metals in sediments from the Weihe River, the concentrations of total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP), organic matter (OM), and 10 heavy metals (Cd, Sb, As, Co, Cu, Pb, Ni, Cr, Zn, and Mn) in sediments at 14 sampling sites along the river were investigated. The results showed that nutrients and heavy metals had an interannual decreasing trend, and that the high-value regions were concentrated in urban locations within the study area. Ecological risk assessment results showed that TN was between the security level (no toxic effect) and the lowest level (tolerable for organisms), TP was at the lowest level, and OM was within the security level, all mainly from external sources. The geoaccumulation index (Igeo) and enrichment factor (EF) of 10 heavy metals were all within the unpolluted level, while the pollution load index (PLI) of 12 sampling sites had reached the moderate pollution level. The results of Pearson correlation, principal component analysis, and cluster analysis showed that heavy metals originated mainly from industrial and domestic sources, geochemical environments, and agricultural activities, indicating that heavy metals in the Weihe River sediments were influenced significantly by anthropogenic activities. The results are expected to provide a scientific basis for the development and utilization of the Weihe River water resources.

Indigenous systems of forest classification: understanding land use patterns and the role of NTFPs in shifting cultivators' subsistence economies.

This article discusses the system of classification of forest types used by the Pwo Karen in Thung Yai Naresuan Wildlife Sanctuary in western Thailand and the role of nontimber forest products (NTFPs), focusing on wild food plants, in Karen livelihoods. The article argues that the Pwo Karen have two methods of forest classification, closely related to their swidden farming practices. The first is used for forest land that has been, or can be, swiddened, and classifies forest types according to growth conditions. The second system is used for land that is not suitable for cultivation and looks at soil properties and slope. The article estimates the relative importance of each forest type in what concerns the collection of wild food plants. A total of 134 wild food plant species were recorded in December 2004. They account for some 80-90% of the amount of edible plants consumed by the Pwo Karen, and have a base value of Baht 11,505 per year, comparable to the cash incomes of many households. The article argues that the Pwo Karen reliance on NTFPs has influenced their land-use and forest management practices. However, by restricting the length of the fallow period, the Thai government has caused ecological changes that are challenging the ability of the Karen to remain subsistence oriented. By ignoring shifting cultivators' dependence on such products, the involvement of governments in forest management, especially through restrictions imposed on swidden farming practices, is likely to have a considerable impact on the livelihood strategies of these communities.