Managing the environment, people and herds: sustainability of the Moroccan cedar forest

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to assess the impact of human factor on ecological conditions of Moroccan cedar forest with a view to drawing out implication for sustainable forest management. The study is set against the backdrop of the global depletion of natural capital in a rare axis which, if not brought under an integrated sustainability purview, might lead to the extinction of this quickly receding natural resource.

Design/methodology/approach

Data for this research are mined from publicly held databases but processed through a time series regression analysis in a way that measures variations in ecological/environmental variables.

Findings

Findings reveal that changes in precipitation and temperature account for a small but significant amount of variation during the period 1940-2006. However, most of the decline is attributable to human activities such as overgrazing and illegal logging. These are having far-reaching implications for forest conservation management.

Originality/value

Human agency, more than any effect of nature, is chiefly responsible for the unsustainable development in this sphere of natural capital. Whilst this may not altogether constitute new knowledge, the paper highlights ambivalent positions that both promote and constrain efforts to sustain cedar forest. Its novelty lies not only in the empirical substantiation it affords but also in ferreting out strategic initiatives to dis-incentivise unsustainable exploitation of this important aspect of natural capital.

Citation

Hamelin, N. and Nwankwo, S. (2013), "Managing the environment, people and herds: sustainability of the Moroccan cedar forest", World Journal of Science, Technology and Sustainable Development, Vol. 10 No. 4, pp. 260-277. https://doi.org/10.1108/WJSTSD-08-2013-0035