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Hitofumi Abe
 | School of Plant Biology (M090)
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Hitofumi Abe is currently employed by the Japan International Cooperation Agency as Chief Advisor for 'The Project for Enhancing Managment Capacity for National Parks and Nature Reserves of Samoa'.
BackgroundAfter I completed BSc I joined JOCV (Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers) and was dispatched to PNG (Papua New Guinea) to work at Kagamuga Forest Station, PNG Forest Authority for three and a half years. I was in charge of the nursery and also working for social forestry during that period. Then I was offered a job with JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency) and work at PNG-FRI (PNG Forest Research Institute) as a researcher for four and a half years. I was involved in several projects for both natural and planted forests. At the end of my contract, I was awarded a JICA scholarship and had an opportunity to study at UWA. Currently I am working on two projects. One is my PhD thesis project and the other is a project funded by RITE (Research Institute of Innovative Technology for the Earth). Both projects are being carried out at tropical forests in PNG. Details of the projects are described below. Research InterestsI am interested in tropical forestry and ecology in general. Research topics I have been working are population dynamics, biomass estimation, volume equation and nutrient cycling of both natural and plantation forests in tropical regions. PhD Thesis: Effect of logging on growth, diversity and nutrient cycling in lowland tropical rain forest at Finschhafen, Papua New GuineaSupervisors: Prof. Mark Adams (UNSW) & Dr Pauline Grierson (UWA) My PhD project is a part of larger research project at Finschhafen on forest ecology and silviculture. The project has been carried out by PNGFRI and JICA collaboratively. I have been one of the core researchers of that project from the beginning. Two 1ha plots were established in undisturbed lowland tropical rain forest in 1997. A year after establishment, mechanized commercial logging was started at the research area - one of the plots was logged while the other plot (with a buffer zone) was left undisturbed as a refernce site. In the plots, all trees dbh>5cm were measured for dbh and height, and the species recorded and numbered. Seedlings and saplings were also recorded in sub plots. The plots have been monitored regularly since establishment. Soil, litterfall, standing litter and plant (leaf and wood) samples have been collected at intervals. The change of light environment as the forest regrows after logging has also been monitored by using hemispherical photographs. Preliminary results of the impacts of logging on forest structure has been published (Abe et al. 2000). Since I began my studies at UWA in 2001, I have focused on meauring the impacts of logging on nutrient cycles and have established six 0.1ha sub-plots to enhance statistical reliability of the data. This is the first study concerning the impact of logging on forest ecosystems in PNG. The research results are expected to provide valuable information, which could contribute to igreatly improved forest conservation and management strategies for PNG' s tropical rain forests. RITE Project: Basic research concerning nutrient circulation for cultivating energy crops in Papua New Guinea This project is funded by RITE and is being conducted in collaboration with Tokyo University. This is a feasibility study for introducing biomass power plants to PNG. We, the UWA team, are working on nutrient cycling and biomass accumulation of fast growing plantation species for sustainable management. The team at Tokyo Univ. is working on the power plant technology and economics of such a plant, which will be fueled by biomass from the plantations. The Ecosystems research Group at UWA are working with the Ecosystem Management Program of PNG-FRI under the MOU between the two institutes. Initial studies are focussed on Eucalyptus deglupta plantations in Madan and Casuarina oligodon in Yonki. We are collecting data and samples for aboveground biomass, soils, standing litter and plant materials to meet the research purpose.
Selected PublicationsAbe H, Kale P & Kiyono Y (2000) Early stage growth of 12 high altitude species planted at Kindeng trial plot in Western Highlands Province, PNG. PNGFRI Bulletin 16:36-6 Abe H, Sam N, Niangu M, Damas K, Vatnabar P, Matsuura Y and Kiyono Y (2000) Preliminary results of the sudy on the effect of logging at Mongi-Busiga, Finschhafen, Papua New Guinea. PNGFRI Bulletin 17 (spec. edition) 79pp
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Useful linksJapan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) |
