The consultant will work under the general guidance and supervision of the project manager and in coordination with the project staff to finalize the required consultancy framework. He/she shall develop an ecological assessment for the districts of Zahle, Rachaya, and West Bekaa.
The consultant shall perform a desk review followed by field work to compile required information and produce the relevant analysis and recommendations. This assessment should be done three times during the project lifetime: beginning to set the baseline, mid-term to check on the progress and eventually suggest any realignment, and at the end of the project to ensure that all activities undertaken have met the targets set by the project document. The consultant shall perform among other, the following tasks:
Desk Review
- Perform stocktaking of all biodiversity related publications and working documents related to the Qaraoun catchment and more specifically within the three districts of Zahle, Rachaya, and West Bekaa;
- Review of biodiversity literature in Lebanon in general and as applicable to this project;
- Build a preliminary database on the rangelands and forest species based on inventory done in the targeted area.
Methodology and work plan:
- Develop a methodology of work for a representative rapid assessment (forest and rangelands) detailing all the parameters and measurements that will be performed during this exercise. The methodology selected should be in line with international best practice but based on applicability in the national content, cost-considerations of the project and the requirements of the project and donor (GEF);
Monitoring guidelines/IMP preparation:
- Design an integrated monitoring plan (IMP) to be implemented over three years’ period in line with the project outputs and indicators; the plan shall include but not restricted to, the indicators and the tracking tools set by the project document related to both the forests and rangelands components;
- Develop monitoring guidelines for future monitoring initiatives, in line with the IMP requirements.
Field work
- In coordination with a GIS/remote sensing expert contracted through the project, validate acquired information to come up with a confirmed spatial analysis of forests fragmentation, distribution, rangelands and grazing routes;
Specific tasks related to forests:
- Perform a rapid ecological assessment of vegetation communities and species composition, germination and regeneration capacity of the forests as per the methodology set and agreed upon with the project team in each of the three districts;
- As part of the findings, provide recommendations on the selection of suitable afforestation/reforestations sites and corridors for intervention and advise on the respective list of species to be used (trees and lower strata);
- Identify and map existing and potential forest services and related income generating activities that would support in the production of forest management plans;
- Produce a report including all findings and data collected (i.e. inventories, surveys and analysis).
Specific tasks related to rangelands:
- Perform a rapid ecological assessment of the rangelands in terms of vegetation communities and species composition (with a focus on forage species) and evaluate their productivity and their carrying capacity including biomass production;
- Perform an exhaustive survey covering the districts of Rachaya and West Bekaa to determine the size and type of flocks and seasonality and their respective feed type and intake;
- As part of the findings, advise on enrichment plantings on rangelands and identify species of interest taking into account their palatability, intake, digestibility, and nutrient content for future reseeding programs and modalities; The species proposed ought to take into account economic factors governing the sector;
- Support in the selection of suited rangelands sites for intervention;
- Produce a report including all findings and data collected (i.e. inventories, surveys and analysis).
All information gathered in raw and/or processed format are the sole property of UNDP.
For additional information, please refer to ANNEX I – Terms of Reference
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