सूचक

• The Forest Act (2019) and Forest Regulation (2022) prohibit conversion of forest areas to other land use systems. The Forest Act (2019) restricts conversion of forest land to non-forest land use, except in certain cases for infrastructure development approved by the cabinet. 

• The Forests Act (2019) also allows the Government to declare forest areas important from environmental, ecosystem, scientific, and cultural perspectives, and areas important for preserving plants and wildlife, as protected forest, in consultation with Provincial Governments, and to make arrangements for the protection of national parks, wildlife reserves, conservation areas and buffer zones. 

• The Buffer Zone Management Regulation (1996) prohibits the clearing of forest, damage of forest resources and illegal hunting/damage to wildlife within Buffer Zone forests.

• The National Land Use Act (2019) and Land Use Regulation (2022) also have provisions to safeguard land use classes, making it difficult to change land use from forest to another use.

• The Forestry Sector Strategy (2016-2025), National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (2014), Environment Protection Act (2019) and Environmental Protection Regulations (2020), as major environmental policies and laws, do not permit conversion of forests to non-forest land and do not allow plantation to replace natural forests. 

Data Sources:

• The Environment Protection Act (2019) and Environment Protection Regulation (2020) require environmental assessment of proposed development activities through Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs), Initial Environmental Examinations (IEEs) and other applicable environmental assessment procedures. These processes require the identification, assessment and mitigation of impacts on forests, biodiversity, wildlife habitats and environmentally sensitive ecosystems before projects are approved. For example, DFOs conduct IEEs for their five-year forest management plans.

• The Forest Regulation (2022) provides additional procedural safeguards for forests and forest carbon programs and projects. Rule 107 requires emission reduction and forest carbon activities to avoid adverse impacts on natural forests, biodiversity and ecological systems, and requires Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) of affected forest users and local communities.

• The Strategic Environmental and Social Assessment (SESA) (2014), which informed the development of the National REDD+ Strategy (NRS) and the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) Emission Reduction (ER) Program, assessed possible social and environmental impacts and benefits related to reducing conversion of forests, such as promoting the development of environmentally friendly infrastructure, and sustainable management of natural fuelwood resources. Risks identified included potential encroachment into forests from successful agricultural intensification leading to agricultural expansion, and habitat loss/fragmentation due to promotion of access to forests and private plantations. 

• The NRS (2018, 2025) includes strategic actions to address the drivers of deforestation and forest degradation through sustainable forest management, forest restoration, strengthened forest governance, community-based forest management, improved law enforcement, sustainable livelihoods and landscape-level planning. These measures are intended to reduce pressures leading to forest conversion and degradation while maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem services.

• The 2024 NRS review found that forest land conversion remains one of the major drivers of deforestation, and recommended actions to further address this issue, which have been included under Strategy 9 of the updated NRS (2025-2034). 

• The FCPF ER Program addresses key drivers of deforestation and forest degradation through sustainable forest management, community-based and collaborative forest management, improved protected area management, promotion of alternative energy and strengthened land-use planning procedures. Mitigation measures to avoid/reduce conversion and degradation of natural forests are also set out in its Environmental and Social Management Framework (ESMF) and associated safeguard measures.  

• The LEAF ER Program is based on Nepal's NRS, and is thus focused on reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation through sustainable forest management, restoration of degraded forests, natural regeneration, forest fire management, grazing management, agroforestry and strengthened forest governance. These measures are designed to address the underlying drivers of forest loss and degradation while maintaining natural forests and associated ecosystem services. The consultation process for the Program has included discussion of the potential social and environmental impacts of the interventions, e.g. concerns related to conservation of natural forests, inclusion of wetlands, and risks of human-wildlife conflict. 

• The REDD Implementation Center (REDD IC) is responsible for the design and implementation of ER Programs, and has determined that the interventions covered by the LEAF ER Program do not fall within the scope of the Environmental Protection Regulations (2020) schedules requiring IEE/EIA. 

• The proposed Benefit Sharing Plan (BSP) for the Program also refers to Rule 117 of the Forest Regulations (2022), which provides a “negative list’’ or list of activities ineligible for the use of money received from ER trading, such as activities not approved by the Forest Development Fund regulating committee.  
   

Data Sources: