Question 1: How can we use such equipment in other BRs?
Answer: The construction of the monitoring system and system platform in Chebaling consists of two parts: hardware construction and software construction. The transmission network is currently available in the market and can be built according to the actual situation and needs of the reserve. The hardware environment for the information platform is also a mature server on the market. In the software part, the corresponding functional modules are also currently developed according to the monitoring system of the Chebaling Protected Area.
If the current Chebaling system and platform are to be extended to other biosphere reserves, two aspects need to be considered. The first is that the monitoring needs of different reserves may vary, and it is necessary to purchase and deploy monitoring equipment according to their own monitoring needs, and to build a monitoring and transmission network that meets the conservation needs. However, the interaction with the monitoring hardware, such as receiving data from the equipment, requires customized integration work. In a nutshell, the monitoring equipment needs to be purchased and deployed according to the needs of the protected area, and the software platform can be shared for the most part but may require some level of custom development.
In conjunction with Prof. Khan’s question, we are also doing some work to roll out the monitoring system and system platform to other protected areas. The current thinking is that we will condense and summarize some common monitoring needs of protected areas, such as infrared camera monitoring and habitat monitoring, and provide the corresponding software platform as a cloud service for protected areas to use.
Question 2: In terms of costs who pays and what can be offsets by ecosystem services?
Answer: The main body responsible for the construction of the Chebaling monitoring system and system platform is the Guangdong Chebaling National Nature Reserve Administration. The current status of the monitoring system and system platform is the result of many years of construction. The construction is mainly funded by the reserve administration applying for special funding from the competent department (Guangdong Forestry Bureau) and the government. In recent years, the state and government have attached great importance to ecological protection and funding support has been strong. In addition, as the research monitoring is carried out in collaboration with universities and research institutes, the collaborative teams of universities and research institutes also have financial support for research projects and also provide a certain degree of support in terms of human and material resources.
As for the PES mentioned by Prof. Khan, if it refers to any subsidies specifically for the monitoring system and the system platform, that is currently not available. But for protected areas, this piece of work done well can be very helpful for them to continue to apply for further specific funding support from the authorities or government.
Question 3: What can be the role of the citizens and private sector?
Answer: In terms of citizen participation, the reserve encourages citizens to participate in monitoring activities as volunteers, and many of the current research and monitoring activities, such as animal or plant surveys, already involve many volunteers. In addition, the reserve actively conducts various nature education activities as a function of the social services provided by the reserve. In addition, the large amount of data generated by monitoring supports the development of additional nature education products. So citizens can be both participants in monitoring activities and service recipients. As for the reference to the private sector, if it means funding these monitoring activities, or rather participating in them, this is something that has never been encountered in protected areas so far.
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