Mechanism of Compensation for Non-commercial Forests in Shanghai

Abstract

There have been many studies on the compensation for non-commercial forests in China, and great achievements have been made in practice (Li et al. 2006). In 2001, China officially inaugurated the compensation fund for forest ecological benefits. By 2008, the central government had earmarked over RMB 10 billion for compensation of key national non-commercial forests. So far, over 20 provinces have enacted local policies on the compensation of forest ecological benefits, and the highest compensation is RMB 30/mu (Guangzhou). However, existing theoretical and practical studies focus on mountainous and forest areas, and there studies on the compensation for non-commercial forests in urban areas and plains are far from enough. The main reason might be that the size of non-commercial forests in plains is relatively small, and their ecological niches are not so sensitive. Moreover, forests in many cities are operated as green systems funded by public finance and there is no need for compensation.