Effectiveness of the obligation of keeping forest strips for native forest connectivity and conservation in the dry Chaco, Argentina

Aim of study: The Chaco Region is one of the main deforestation hotspots in Latin America. Forest strips, i.e. native forest strips that surround cultivated areas, were established by the end of 1980’s as an attempt to mitigate the effects of wind erosion and as a way of conserving and interconnecting the remaining native forest patches. The aim of this study is to assess the effectiveness of the scheme for the authorization of new agricultural land in the conservation of native forests. Area of study: The most recent nuclei of agricultural expansion in the provinces of Chaco, Santiago del Estero, Salta and Formosa, Argentina. Materials and methods: Landscape structure, forest connectivity and compliance with the obligation of leaving forest strips was assessed in satellite images for the years 1988 and 2015 within a Geographic Information System. Main results: Forest strips differ from other forest patches in structure, presenting a greater perimeter/area ratio and smaller mean size. A great loss of landscape connectivity, lower than expected compliance of regulations and few forest strips with the minimum mandatory width were observed. Notable differences between provinces were found. Research highlights: Forest strips would not be effective to conserve and interconnect the native forest patches. In light of new land clearings, other alternatives should be proposed in which the remaining forest persists as few large fragments with landscape and extra-landscape scale interconnection and minimizing the edge effect.