Resumo

SOSA GUTIERREZ, Neyra et al. Implementation of Forest Condition Index (FCI) as an input for the design of forest public policies in Mexico. Invest. Geog [online]. 2017, n.92. ISSN 2448-7279.  https://doi.org/10.14350/rig.53915.

Public policies (PP) are defined as actions designed, implemented and evaluated by governments operating through programs, with the ultimate goal to improve and solve social problems in the short and long term. I theory, PP should be designed considering, among other things, basic social, economic and environmental information of the areas where such programs derived. However, a common deficiency in the design of public policies for the management of forest resources in Mexico is the lack of analysis in the complexity of a territorial context, which directly affects the results of the PP. This variable is relevant in Mexico, due to the great heterogeneity of the territory, so the results in the implementation of programs and projects arising from forest PP, usually lacks of a fundamental theoretical basis for obtaining better results. Thus, the objective of this study is the development of a methodological framework that incorporates the spatial variable to improve the design of forest PP ad hoc to each territory. The Forest Condition Index (FCI) was designed and implemented as an instrument to provide a robust spatial reference by assessing forest condition in contrast to the degree of marginalization of municipal entities. The inputs for the FCI describes the dynamics of the degree of marginalization and the dynamics of plant cover during the period 2000-2010 of all municipalities in the state of Michoacan, used as a study case. The application of the FCI to the 113 municipalities in the state, results in the categorization of municipalities in 4 classes, depicting possible trends between marginalization and forest cover. The largest number of municipalities (31), which represents 35.78% of the state’s land, were grouped in class IV, indicating a trend in the increase the index of marginalization and the decrease in forest cover. Only 26 municipalities were located in Class I, revealed a favorable trend with a decreasing rate of marginalization and an increasing on the forest cover. The identified classes, showed that there are significantly differing trends between municipalities, indicating different problems and challenges. We argue that social vulnerability may affect negatively or positively by the availability of forest cover. This consideration is based on the opportunity that sustainable use of the forest represents to access financial resources, and thus impact directly on the social and economic welfare of the population established in areas where forest management is main economic activity. According to the results of the FCI, it is necessary to propose an adequate model of PP design, according to the environmental condition of the territory, that allow a gradual increase of forest cover (conceived as the natural capital) and lower rates of marginalization through a model of sustainable use of forest resources. We emphasize the design of PP given the steps involved to improve forest conditions, such as processes of forest restoration, soil management, social organization, which together carry long periods of time. It is concluded that each area requires a design appropriate forest PP their condition to achieve their short- and long-term effectiveness. We discussed the relevance of results of the FCI in the light of forest public policies and their consequences in the degree of vulnerability of the territories in the consideration that the same PP applies for diverse areas. We highlight the work that is required for the PP design, in the fact that it is a crucial moment in the cycle of the PP. The FCI is proposed as an input for forest PP design that uses public information, seeking to improve efficiency in forest PP.

Palavras-chave : Public policies; forest resources; vulnerability; territorial planning; Mexico.