. Cloud Forest Agenda. UNEP-WCMC Biodiversity Series 20. Cloud forest agenda. Threats to cloud forests Cloud forests face many of the same threats to their existence as other tropical forests, but their unique ecology and their location on mountain slopes make them particularly susceptible to some deforestation forces and especially to climate change. This report presents a first assessment of the relative importance of these threats to ctoud forests, using information from the database of tropical montane cloud forest sites (the WCMC directory) (Aldrich ef a/., 1997). The database was compile
. Cloud Forest Agenda. UNEP-WCMC Biodiversity Series 20. Cloud forest agenda. Threats to cloud forests Cloud forests face many of the same threats to their existence as other tropical forests, but their unique ecology and their location on mountain slopes make them particularly susceptible to some deforestation forces and especially to climate change. This report presents a first assessment of the relative importance of these threats to ctoud forests, using information from the database of tropical montane cloud forest sites (the WCMC directory) (Aldrich ef a/., 1997). The database was compiled from correspondence with people knowledgeable about cloud forests in different regions of the world and from literature searches. A summary was written of the locations and principal species of cloud forests and their conservation issues for 41 countries. The amount of information for each country is very variable, but threats to cloud forests are mentioned for 15 African countries, 11 Latin American countries and ten Asian countries (see Appendix 11. Conversion to agricultural land Clearance of cloud forests for farming is the most widely recorded threat. It is reported from 90 per cent of Latin American and Asian countries and 53 per cent of African countries. It is likely to be a major deforestation pressure in all countries with cloud forests. The cleared land is principally used for subsistence agriculture by resource- poor farmers, although commercial production of temperate-zone fruits and vegetables is expanding in cloud forest areas in Asia. There are complex processes driving this agricul- tural clearance. They include poverty, population growth, land degradation and marginalization of mountain commu- nities and indigenous groups. Clearance for commercial production of temperate-climate vegetables, fruits and flowers is being driven by demand from expanding urban centres in Asia and by the ease of transporting these products by air to European and North American mar
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