Forest protection in the Amazonian Forests of Bolivia for the benefit of the climate, biodiversity and people

At the Noel Kempff Mercado National Park, a project partnership between the government of Bolivia, Fundación Amigos de la Naturaleza (FAN), The Nature Conservancy and three U.S. based energy companies is proving that reliable measurements of site-specific changes in carbon stocks are technically feasible. Known as the Noel Kempff Climate Action Project, the project produces significant net carbon benefits that are scientifically valid and long-lasting. By protecting ecosystems and biodiversity, improving local environmental quality, and creating economic opportunities for local people, the project also is in line with the goals of sustainable development.

With a project size of over 600,000 hectares, the Noel Kempff Mercado Climate Action Project is the largest forest based carbon project in the world, and is estimated to have a net carbon benefit of 15 million metric tons of carbon over the next 30 years. The project was accepted by the U.S. Initiative on Joint Implementation in 1996 and began implementation in 1997. As such, Noel Kempff can serve as an example of how forestry projects can help to meet the goals of the Kyoto Protocol.

The Noel Kempff Mercado National Park spans over 1.5 million hectares in northeastern Bolivia, in one of the most biologically diverse areas in the world. Bridging dry and wet ecological communities, Noel Kempff is home to more than 130 species of mammals, 620 species of birds, and 70 species of reptiles. The area encompasses five important ecosystems ranging from Amazonian rainforest, gallery forest and semi-deciduous tropical forest to flooded savanna and cerrado. Prior to this project, the park was under imminent and demonstrable threat from logging and conversion to agriculture.

Accurate, reliable measurements of site-specific changes in carbon stock are technically feasible. An estimated net carbon benefit of 15 million mtC (metric tons of carbon) will be achieved on 634,286 hectares through a multi-component approach:

Forest conservation and the prevention of deforestation. Logging rights were terminated on 817,840 hectares of government-owned land and added to the existing national park. Protection activities-such as the hiring and training of park guards-were immediately undertaken.

Assurance of future forest conservation through the establishment of income-generating activities. These include a park endowment fund and an effort to commercialize biological resources.

Leakage avoidance and mitigation. By assisting the surrounding communities with economic development and creating an agreement with former forest concessionaires, the project addresses the problem of "leakage."

Quantifying and sharing evidence that the project indeed is resulting in real emissions avoidance and/or increases in net carbon stored is an important aspect of any forestry carbon project. A sound monitoring and verification program is the only way for a project to make claims of carbon benefits. Through peer-reviewed field procedures, the monitoring and verification program at Noel Kempff:

• quantifies how much carbon exists in the project area
• estimates how much carbon would exist without the project
• periodically measures the carbon in the area to "true up" the original estimates and, if necessary, adjust offsets
• quantifies the carbon in the project area at the end of the project period to finalize the total number of offsets generated

The monitoring and verification program at Noel Kempff was developed with assistance from forestry experts at the Winrock International Institute for Agricultural Development. The program is based on a peer-reviewed methodology that uses commonly accepted forest inventory practices, soil science and ecological survey principles.

The project assures that all carbon benefits achieved within the project boundaries are not negated by project-related impacts that might "leak" off site. The carbon sequestration project at Noel Kempff prevents the destruction of the forest by terminating logging concessions and protecting the area. "Leakage" would occur if, for example, logging or agricultural conversion was transferred to surrounding areas, leading to no net reduction in deforestation and no carbon benefits from the project.

The project at Noel Kempff is developing a leakage protocol to address this issue. In addition, two components of the project were designed specifically to address the risk of leakage. First, the project has a leakage agreement with the former timber concessionaires under which they are obligated to report on the use of the compensatory funds they received to cease operations, and to cooperate on sustainable forestry practices on their other logging concessions. Second, the project is working with local communities to create economic opportunities-such as bee keeping and improved heart-of-palm harvesting-that provide an alternative to encroaching on other forest lands. If measurable leakage occurs, the project will undertake mitigation efforts.

How is additionality demonstrated at Noel Kempff?

Project participants can take credit only for carbon offsets that result from the avoidance, reduction or mitigation of emissions additional to those that would have happened without the funds and activities of the project. At Noel Kempff, project developers have shown that while the government of Bolivia had hoped to end timber concessions and expand the park, the resources to accomplish this were not available. Without the project, logging concessionaires would have continued harvesting timber on the property and, subsequently, much of this land would have been cleared.

Are the net carbon benefits at Noel Kempff long lasting?

Carbon benefits from forests accrue as forest biomass increases or as forest loss is prevented over time. Notably, forests and the carbon benefits they generate are at risk of loss due to fire, illegal logging and other events. The project funds park guards, air patrols and other park protection activities to avert such losses.

The project's carbon benefits are expected to last in perpetuity as the site lies within a national park and a permanent endowment has been established to fund protection activities even beyond the 30-year life of the project.

What are the co-benefits of carbon sequestration at Noel Kempff?

Sustainable development, as promoted at the 1992 Global Environmental Summit in Rio de Janeiro, is a primary goal of the project. The project partners are dedicated to the conservation of local natural resources, the maintenance of local environmental quality, and the sustainable development of the local economy. The Noel Kempff project includes the following "co-benefits":

Local Sustainable Development -The project provides an opportunity to work extensively with the local communities in and around the national park to ensure that their livelihood flourishes and that they are integrated into protected area management. FAN has been able to hire approximately half of the park guards from the local communities, tapping into their knowledge of the area and their ability to explain conservation principals to other community members. In addition, the project is establishing revolving funds for microenterprises, such as heart-of-palm plantings and agroforestry projects. Most important, the project is assisting the local communities in their efforts to attain legal status as indigenous peoples and to secure land tenure.

Biodiversity Protection -The park is known to be home to 9 species of macaw, possibly the highest number of macaw species found in any one protected area. Sixty giant river otters have been recorded and 120 are estimated to reside in the park, out of an estimated global population of 1,000. Three to four hundred jaguar are said to live in the park, including a population of black jaguar. The expansion of the park through this project has more than doubled the safe range for these wide-roaming species.

Soil, Water and Air Quality -The cessation of logging has averted soil erosion and future agricultural runoff into the park's many rivers. Local air quality is expected to improve by reducing logging traffic and reducing the potential for slash and burn agricultural practices.

Conclusion

Tropical forests play a crucial role in maintaining the Earth's complex climate system, affecting greenhouse gas levels in the atmosphere and, subsequently, the stability of the global climate. Land use change and forestry activities such as the Noel Kempff Climate Action Project can avoid, reduce or mitigate carbon dioxide emissions in a significant and reliable manner. Flexible project design allows managers to adapt in a transparent manner to policy changes, new scientific findings, and unanticipated occurrences. In addition, these projects can be comparable in cost and verifiability to carbon offset projects in the energy sector.Carbon offsets are a valuable non-timber forest product, derived from a precious biological resource that must be conserved. The additional benefits of biodiversity conservation, environmental protection and sustainable development make forest projects even more attractive as a strategy for dealing with climate change.What do Forest Conservation and Management projects have to do with global climate change?Forests play a dual role in climate change by acting both as a source of greenhouse gas emissions, particularly emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), and as a storehouse of carbon, also called a "carbon sink." By avoiding or reducing the CO2 emissions that result from the destruction of forests, and enhancing their ability to absorb and store carbon, forest conservation and management projects work to reduce net CO2 emissions and thereby help mitigate the effects of climate change.

THE NOEL KEMPFF CLIMATE ACTION PROJECT: Vital Statistics