1. Most recent experimental efforts at FORI have concentrated on nonagricultural issues, such as streambank stabilization and the reclamation of toxic mine tailings. FORI researchers have also cultivated test plots of a rather remarkable cloud-forest plant, the so-called petroleum shrub ( Pitasporum resiniforum ). Its highly flammable seeds contain a high-quality fuel, and foresters hope that one day commercial plantings may be feasible.

2. Bulldozer owners derive income from government road-building contracts, from clearing their own new garden plots, and from clearing the plots of other farmers in exchange for either cash or a section of land.