This study was presented during the conference “Production and Carbon Dynamics in Sustainable Agricultural and Forest Systems in Africa” held in September, 2010.

1. Forest, Carbon and REDD+
Peter Holmgren, FAO
ABSTRACT
Expectations are high that REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation)
will decrease human impact on the climate and at the same time improve livelihoods and biodiversity
conservation in the tropics.
The UNFCCC negotiations has advanced well on REDD+. While an overall climate change agreement
between countries is still missing, there is widespread consensus on REDD+., including mitigation
activities and governance safeguards. However, less attention has been given to the
operationalisation of REDD+, that is how can REDD+ strategies be implemented alongside other
national development objectives. Further, in the local scale, how can the practical implementation of
REDD+ , taking into account synergies and trade-offs with other management objectives. From this
overview perspective, the presentation will review requirements of forest monitoring for REDD+
implementation, including preliminary experiences with countries. Needs for integrated monitoring
across development objectives is emphasized. The different information requirements at strategic
and operational levels are illustrated. Issues and gaps in forest monitoring research will be
highlighted.
***
DISCUSSION after the presentation concerned the difference between IPCC estimates and FAO
estimates, and the fact that many climate models have a tendency to overestimate the level of
current deforestation.

2. Outline
1. Perspectives
2. REDD+ basics
3. REDD+ in Africa
4. MRV & Monitoring

3. Issued
25 September 2010

4. 100 years in the Nordic countries

5. Sweden: stem volume since 1920, by species
0
500
1000
1500
2000
2500
3000
3500
1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000
Year
Mm3
Pine
Spruce
Broad-leaved
Total
Long-term effort

6. Overlaps, Synergies and Trade-offs
National ->
International
National ->
Local
Climate
UNFCCC
“Carbon”
Biodiversity
CBD
“Species”
Food Security
WSFS
“Calories”
+ Human rights,
Health, Trade,
Education, .....
LOCAL
REALITIES
GLOBAL
OBJECTIVES

7. Two Goals of Our Time
1. Achieving Food Security
– 1 billion hungry
– Overall food production to increase 70% by
2050
– Adaptation to Climate Change critical
2. Avoiding Dangerous Climate Change
– ”2 degree goal” requires major emission cuts
– Agriculture and Land use = 30% of emissions..
– ..and needs to be part of the solution

8. Climate Change and Food
Security
Climate Change, Food and
Security

9. Keep it simple – SFM
suggestion
Standing
stock
Monetary income from all products and services

10. 2. REDD+ Basics

11. Current REDD+ construction
Deforestation
Forest Degradation
Conservation
Sustainable management
Enhancement
Consistent
Transparent &
Effective Governance
Rights of Communities
Stakeholder
Participation
Conservation
Reversals
Displacement
Country-driven
National
circumstances
Consistent with
development goals
Consistent with
adaptation needs
Equitable etc.
financing
Results-based
Principles Emission activities Safeguards
Overall Development
All Forest
Management No Harm

12. Relative importance of REDD+
International National Local
Carbon
Other Benefits and Impacts
Scale

13. The right REDD focus?
No. ‘It’s the agriculture, stu....’

14. REDD+ arrangements
• 4.5 b$ in interim finance (pre-2012)
– UN-REDD Programme
– Forest Carbon Partnership Facility
– Forest Investment Programme
– Congo Basin Forest Fund
– Bilateral arrangements
• Much more expected for transformation
phase
• Operational potential > 30 b$/yr

15. 3. REDD+ in Africa

16. Africa particulars
• Low deforestation rate
– relatively low potential for the 1st “D” in REDD+
• High levels of forest/land degradation,
largely due to small-scale agriculture
– relatively high potential for the 2nd “D”
• Very high potential for increased C storage
(especially outside “forests”)
– case for Terrestrial Carbon approach

17. COMESA views pre-Copenhagen
... Africa should push for the inclusion of AFOLU in the
Climate Change negotiations for the following reasons:
• Current CDM arrangements are not facilitating greater
African participation.
• Smallholder land activities in the agricultural sector are
largely responsible for deforestation and forest
degradation in Africa.
• Tenure and ownership is less controversial in small
farm/land holdings than forest areas.
• Agriculture and other land uses would potentially yield
more cobenefits than REDD alone.
• Carbon markets are growing and currently estimated at
US $118 billion globally and Africa can take advantage
of this opportunity.

18. 4. MRV & Monitoring

19. A solution?

20. What is the scope of a
“National Monitoring System for REDD+”?
Carbon
(Emission
activities)
Benefits &
Impacts
(Services,
Products)
Governance
(Safeguards)
Strategic level
(International
commitments,
National policies)
Operational
level (In-country
implementation)
Must have: High Accuracy, known Precision
Expensive measurements -> Sampling approaches
No need for full cover data
Must have: Complete coverage -> Payments/Enforcement
Must be low cost per measurement -> Remote sensing
No need for high accuracy -> instead: proxies

21. How to carry out the monitoring
Carbon
(Emission
activities)
Benefits &
Impacts
(Services,
Products)
Governanc
e
(Safeguards)
Strategic level
(International
commitments,
National policies)
Operational
level (In-country
implementation)

22. Strategic level example:
Zambia national inventory

23. Zambia: Biomass by tract
Zambia Distribution of biomass
0
100
200
300
400
500
1 191
Inventory tracts
biomass,t/ha
Series1

24. Zambia: Total C depends on choice
of estimation models

25. Operational level example:
DRC 1990 - 2005
10 km

26. 1991 - 2002
10 km

28. 100 years