CHANGES IN LAND-USE IN SOUTH AND SOUTHEAST-ASIA FROM 1880 TO 1980 - A DATA-BASE PREPARED AS PART OF A COORDINATED RESEARCH-PROGRAM ON CARBON FLUXES IN THE TROPICS

A geographically referenced data base, including time series of land use and population information in a standardized format, is now available for 13 South and Southeast Asian nations: India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Indonesia and the Philippines. Data are available for five dates (1880, 1920, 1950, 1970, and 1980), and the 13 countries have been subdivided into a total of 94 zones. Sources, methodology, and limitations of these data are reviewed. Between 1880 and 1980, the regional population of humans increased by 262%, the area of cultivated land expanded by 86%, and the area bearing grass and shrub vegetation increased by 20%, while total forest cover decreased by 29%. Expansion of arable land, and biomass removal driven by both local and external economic demands, were both linked to deforestation. The data indicate that even in 1880 (when much of the region was effectively in a preindustrial state), anthropogenic activity had already caused enormous modifications of the natural vegetation. Land use changes that occurred before the preindustrial period must therefore be taken into account in the development of carbon cycle models.