Posted on 08 December
2010
Cancun, Mexico – A global strategy
for reducing emissions from deforestation
and forest degradation, known as REDD+,
is among the key agreements that need to
come out of the United Nations climate talks
ongoing in Cancun.
Reaching an agreement
on REDD+ is critical to saving forests,
preserving biodiversity, and benefitting
people, WWF said.
An estimated 60 million
indigenous people worldwide depend on forests
for their livelihoods, and forest resources
directly support the livelihoods of 90 percent
of the 1.2 billion living in extreme poverty,
according to public data.
“REDD+ is ripe for a
decision in Cancun,” said Gerald Steindlegger,
Policy Director of WWF’s Forest Carbon Initiative.
“But because a few critical issues are unresolved,
there’s a real risk that governments could
end up with a REDD+ deal that doesn’t benefit
people or the planet. The world’s governments
need to ensure they get REDD+ right.”
Government negotiators
meeting in Cancun this week are considering
several proposals to tackle climate change,
including the emissions caused by deforestation
and forest degradation which account for
15 percent of total global greenhouse gas
emissions.
“Without a strong outcome
here in Cancun, there will not be the necessary
political signal or adequate funding to
stem deforestation. Without an agreement
on REDD+, negotiators will delay tackling
the 15 percent of global greenhouse gas
emissions caused by deforestation. They
would also delay taking urgent steps to
conserve biodiversity and ecosystem integrity.”
REDD+ aims to reduce
emissions by having developed countries
pay developing countries to not cut down
their forests. Because forests and their
soil act as one of the largest storage for
carbon on earth, this in turn reduces emissions
because the forests are not cleared.
“Negotiators need to
make a decision on REDD+ here in Cancun
– or they risk losing progress made on proposals
here to actually provide the basis to get
this framework moving. A decision on REDD+
in Cancun would provide the security for
countries to scale up their own ambitions
stop deforestation.”
But negotiators still
have some work to do to secure a strong
REDD+ agreement.
Among the major issues
negotiators are grappling with on REDD+
is the possibility that deforestation prevented
in one area moves to another place, rather
than actually being avoided. Under the current
draft proposal in Cancun, countries could
maintain a healthy forest in one region,
while at the same time clearing a forest
somewhere else. This needs to be fixed in
the final deal.
In Cancun, negotiators
need to address this risk, also referred
to as “leakage or “displacement,” by supporting
the ambitions of many countries to address
this issue at the national level.
National-level approaches
allow countries to address the root causes
of deforestation and forest degradation,
which are often tied to national policies
on agriculture, timber, and mining. National
programmes also allow countries to demonstrate
accountability and results.
Though vital to the
long-term success of REDD+, national programmes
cannot be created overnight and REDD+ activities
will need to happen at all levels – national,
provincial, and local – as countries progress
towards national programmes. Public funding
should be used to help build these programs,
while private market finance can play a
role once those programs are in place.
Many countries while
in Cancun are already announcing plans for
their national-level frameworks for REDD+,
including Mexico, the host country for these
climate talks, and the Democratic Republic
of Congo (DRC), home to the second largest
rainforest in the world.
Among other challenges
for a REDD+ agreement are a lack of important
language in the text on addressing the international
drivers of deforestation, such as inadequate
trade and economic policies. Concerns also
exist on the financing for REDD+, with strong
public financing from developed countries
and the associated capacity building in
tropical forest countries needed before
any market offsets for REDD+ are considered.
There have been encouraging
developments on fundamental pieces of the
REDD+ agreement. The REDD+ text recognizes
that REDD+ must demonstrably contributes
to significant greenhouse gas reductions,
while respecting and protecting the rights
of indigenous peoples and local communities,
and conserving natural forests and biodiversity.
Verifying that REDD+ programmes are actually
being implemented with these critical social
and environmental safeguards is key to ensuring
that REDD+ supports improved livelihoods
and conservation of biodiversity.
“For REDD+ to succeed,
all countries must do their fair share,
with developed countries significantly cutting
emissions domestically while providing long-term,
adequate and reliable finance to support
forest countries’ efforts to reduce their
emissions from deforestation and forest
degradation.”
