MORE BRAZILIAN FOREST TECHNOLOGIES OF TOMORROW, TODAY!

Brazil, already known for advanced deforestation-tracking satellites, is getting even more high tech. A new satellite system, INDICAR - Imaging and Radar Deforestation Indicator, allows for enhanced imagery even under cloudy conditions – a pretty good feature when you’re taking pictures of a thing called the rainforest. And what’s more, a pilot project is underway attaching microchips to trees. Although the system isn’t cheap, the assurance it provides customers about the non-illegal origin of the lumber could allow such products to garner an increased market price. Read about the new satellite system here and here.

Hooray Brazil

HOME TREE ADVANTAGE

Director of the blockbuster film Avatar, James Cameron, is hoping to plant a million trees around the world in 2010 to offset the movie’s production emissions. A new story out of Canada highlights the work of several groups, including Manitoba high-schoolers who have helped plant 150,000 of those trees. Read more about the Avatar Home Tree Initiative, which has achieved about 25% of the 1 million tree goal thus far, here. 

Congrats James Cameron, excellent movies and excellent vision!!

NO SLEEP, TILL…MORATORIUM!

Civil society and environmental groups in Indonesia issued a joint statement urging the Indonesian government to follow through with logging moratorium plans, as described here in The Jakarta Post.  Voice of America News is also reporting businesses in Indonesia have also started to warm to the idea of the logging freeze, including a spokesperson from Asia Pulp and Paper who said that the freeze would provide a good opportunity to take a step back, take stock of what has gone wrong, and then fix it.  The government has indicated the moratorium will go ahead as scheduled, explained by The Jakarta Post here.

About time Indonesia gets onboard

WHAT CAN $4 GET YOU NOWADAYS?

That would be a TON of temporary carbon credits. No, really. The World Bank’s BioCarbon Fund is buying up half the carbon stored through 2017 from an Ethiopian forestry project at $US4 per credit (tCER). The Humbo Assisted Natural Regeneration Project is among Africa’s first forest projects under the CDM.  Read about the deal between Christian humanitarian organization World Vision, who helped develop the project, and the World Bank from Carbon Positive here.  Learn more about this project from its inventory listing on the Forest Carbon Portal here. 

REDD FOX GUARDING THE HENHOUSE?

Brazil has been patting itself on the back recently for reportedly dramatic reductions in its deforestation rate.  In efforts to further reduce illicit logging, the national government is now planning to auction off large swaths of Amazon forest to logging companies.  In reviving concessions – increasing from the current 150,000 hectares to nearly 11 million over the next 4 to 5 years – the hope is to improve forest management and reduce illegal practices (e.g. slash-and-burn).  Read more about these next steps as reported by Reuters here and about some of the concerns over this privatization of national forests in Mongabay here.

CARBON COMPANY HARVESTING TROUBLE IN LIBERIA

In the makings of a very bad forest carbon soap opera, several government officials in Liberia, have been caught in bed with UK company Carbon Harvesting Corporation (CHC). The supposed dirty dealing involves an exchange of a Liberia’s largest forest concession for"irregular payments" from CHC CEO, Michael Foster to Liberian government officials. International watchdog Global Witness exposed the ‘deal’ resulting in the arrest and commencement of extradition of Foster and investigation of interior minister Ambulai Johnson.  A Special Presidential Investigative Committee has recommended the impeachment of River Cess Senator Jonathan Banney. The former Managing Director of the Forestry Development Authority (FDA) in Liberia, dismissed allegations of any sort of deal between the FDA and CHC, both from Global Witness and the Special Presidential Committee. According to the Director, although he was pressured to pursue carbon crediting projects, he did not accept bribes. 

Stories like this destroy the credibility of our industry..

Everyone is innocent until proven guilty (so they say)

Chinese hydro project approved with new carbon standard

South Pole Carbon has got approval from the Social Carbon Standard for a hydro project in China.

South Pole is leading the way!!

Indigenous peoples’ organisation in Peru demands “an indigenous REDD outside of carbon market negotiations”

This week, World Bank’s Forest Carbon Partnership Facility’s Participants Committee will review Peru’s Readiness Preparation Proposal (R-PP). The Committee will have to take into account the comments received from the Inter-ethnic Association for the Development of the Peruvian Forest (AIDESEP).


Meanwhile, on 28 October 2010, AIDESEP put out a statement denouncing the government’s plans to hand out concessions for REDD, logging, mining and environmental services. The statement demands “an indigenous REDD outside of carbon market negotiations.”


Peru`s rainforest is priceless and we need to do everything possible to conserve...