Each year forest fire causes enormous damage to Nepal's forest ecosystems and landscape. For an active community involvement at the landscape level, policymakers must take the interests of local forest managers into account to increase social acceptability. This research explores the perception of community forest managers, who are constantly managing forests at the grassroots level, to understand the relationship between their priorities, needs, and attitudes toward forest fire management. Eighty–eight key informants from six districts were interviewed using a structured questionnaire. The questionnaire was divided into three major sections, (i) forest fuel management and infrastructure, (ii) forest fire management strategies and actions, and (iii) public education and awareness on forest fire management. The data were analyzed using the Kruskal–Wallis test, where the respondents rated above 4.2 out of 5 for activities like increase of insurance mechanisms, providing training for firefighting volunteer groups, and provisioning firefighting equipment. The majority of the respondents agreed on the activities under the forest fire management strategies and actions section (Kendall's Tau = 0.8501), followed by forest fuel management and infrastructure (Kendall’s Tau= 0.6757). We anticipate that the results of this study will be helpful for the local decision–makers in involving different communities and identifying their priorities while implementing various forest fire management activities in diverse landscapes or provinces of the country.

The impact of forest management activities on the ability of forest ecosystems to sequester and store atmospheric carbon is of increasing scientific and social concern. This research estimated the aboveground carbon stocks and carbon sequestration rates of forests under various management regimes in the Churia region of Nepal. We used tree data from 469 permanent sample plots distributed across the region from the data archive of Forest Research and Training Centre for the study. The data from 2012 and 2017 were used. The volumes of individual trees were calculated using species–specific allometric equations, which were then converted to biomasses using their respective wood densities. The carbon content was calculated by multiplying the biomass by 0.47 and was converted to the amount of sequestrated CO2 by multiplying by 3.67. We found that the average estimated aboveground carbon stock increased from 78.43 t ha–1 in 2012 to 89.20 t ha–1 in 2017, resulting in an average annual carbon sequestration rate of 5.34 t ha–1 yr–1 (i.e. 7.90 t CO2 ha–1 yr–1). The results showed significant differences in aboveground carbon stocks and annual carbon sequestration rates among different forest management regimes in the region. Generally, aboveground carbon stock was found to be the highest in protected areas in both years whereas, the annual carbon sequestration rate was found to be the highest in government–managed forests. It can be concluded that the Churia region has great potential in terms of carbon sequestration. The evidence of the strong association of carbon stock and sequestration rate with management regimes provides valuable information for policymakers to maintain and further enhance carbon storage in a geographically vulnerable region like Churia.

Global forests, valued at over USD 150 trillion and supporting the livelihoods of 25% of the world’s population, are threatened by degradation and deforestation, particularly in developing nations. Several forest management systems are in practice, but leasehold forestry (LF) is considered the best for achieving the dual goals of preventing degradation and alleviating poverty. Nepal is a pioneer in LF, prioritizing it since 1978. It is now practiced in 39 districts, covering 43,994 hectares of forests. Using DFID’s sustainable livelihood assessment guidelines (a framework never before applied to LF) and incorporating seven additional indicators identified through extensive literature review and expert consultation, as well as semi-structured interviews with key informants (n = 14) and LF users (n = 228), this study quantifies the contribution of LF in Nepal to 5 core assets and 21 livelihood indicators across three categories: “successful”, “moderately successful”, and “not successful”. The results reveal that LF significantly contributes to natural and financial capital, with a lesser impact on social and physical capital. Among the key indicators, LF has the greatest influence on savings and investment, but the least on infrastructure. This study offers targeted lessons and recommendations for less successful LF initiatives, which can help improve their outcomes. These insights are also valuable for policymakers and stakeholders to refine policies and programs and to optimize livelihood and restoration benefits from LF. Additionally, the baseline data provided will serve as a reference for monitoring and evaluating LF initiatives.

Tree taper functions expressed in terms of height and diameter at breast height (BDH) can provide accurate and timely information on current growing stock. Taper equations are very important for calculation of growing stock in forest inventories, however, in the context of Nepal, these are still unavailable at the required level. The study aimed to develop taper equations, so that those can be used to predict the diameter anywhere along the stem, and estimate tree volumes at desired sections. The input data was a destructive sampling method of 81 sample trees of Shorea robusta distributed in ten locations of the far western Terai of Nepal (Kailali and Kanchanpur districts). Using two independent B-Spline and 5th-degree polynomial taper models, the upper stem diameters were imputed. Both models were applied on the whole dataset, irrespective of DBH size, to get common fitted taper models. Later, the same models were tested for three different DBH classes to compare and evaluate the best-fit model. Taper models, developed under the B-spline polynomial model of 3^rd degree, were found to be highly dependent on the tree (DBH) sizes. Thus, better models could be developed by classifying the whole dataset based on different DBH classes. On the other hand, developed models under the 5^th degree polynomial taper model did not exhibit their dependency on the tree (DBH) sizes and a better model was found for the unclassified datasets, i.e. for all DBH sizes.

Tree height is one of the basic variables which is used for estimation of growing stock, biomass, carbon stock and site quality. Measuring tree height is expensive, time-consuming, and error prone due to stand structure and efficiency of measuring instruments. Here, we try to explore the errors and efficiencies associated with Vertex, Abney’s level, and Laser Rangefinder for tree height measurement. Standing tree height was measured using all three instruments and the true height was determined with the careful measurement using linear tape after felling. In total 102 trees of Arunkhola community forest of Nawalpur districts were sampled. It was found that the Vertex (0.55 m) and Abney’s level (2.36 m) overestimated the tree height whereas, Rangefinder (-1.65 m) was underestimating. There was significant difference in errors for all the evaluated instruments at 95% confidence interval. However, there was no relation between true height and DBH with difference in measurement for all instruments. Average time required to measure individual trees was 4.15, 2.29 and 0.93 minutes for Abney’s level, Rangefinder, and Vertex respectively. It was estimated that efficiency for Vertex was 4.46 followed by Rangefinder with 22.69 by reflecting Vertex as the most precise and efficient instrument for measuring tree height.