Forest history in Yunnan, or the history of forest degradation there, centers on the forests surrounding its fertile basins. The history of exploitation of forest resources, mainly by the Han people who inhabit the basins, is clearly engraved in these forests.
During the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution, these forests were damaged without restriction or protection. In this time of political confusion, people uprooted forests without thought for the future.
Following this ecological disaster, the most effective policy for reforestation was division of the forest. Communally managed forests were divided among individual families, who were expected to replant the depleted forest for their own economic interest.
Bare and eroded forest land could only be replanted with a limited number of pioneer trees, including species of
Eucalyptus. Fortunately, eucalypts turned out to be valuable for the oil that could be extracted from their leaves, and thus they began to be widely planted.
Given the limited demand for eucalyptus oil, however. the economic value of eucalypts may not remain high. Here, I discuss the future of eucalypt plantations and the forests surrounding basins.
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