Linking international

standards to REDD+ projectsManuel Estrada, CIFOR

Latin American MRV Workshop, Petropolis, March 8, 2012

International standards and methods forREDD+

IPCC GL 2006 + IPCC LULUCF GPG

Voluntary market

Standards and

methodologies

VCS,

ACR,

etc

Project level –

Jurisdictional level

UNFCCC

Results-based

REDD+

National level –

(Subnational

level)

REDD+ project types

� REDD:

� Avoided Planned Deforestation (APD)

� Avoided Unplanned Deforestation and Degradation (AUDD)

� Improved Forest Management (IFM)

� Afforestation, Reforestation and Revegetation (?)

VCS Approved methodologies applicable to

AUDD REDD projects as of March 2012

VM0006 - Methodology for Carbon Accounting in Project Activities that Reduce Emissions from

Mosaic Deforestation and Degradation, v1.0

VM0007 - REDD Methodology Modules (REDD-MF), v1.1

VM0009 - Methodology for Avoided Mosaic Deforestation of Tropical Forests, v1.1

VM0015 - Methodology for Avoided Unplanned Deforestation, v1.0

Basic elements and steps for AUDD baselines

• REDD+ baselines are comprised of 2 main elements: a land use and land

cover (LU/LC) change component and the associated carbon stock change

component.

• General steps for the estimation of REDD+ baselines:

Step 1. Definition of the project type

Step 2. Definition of the project boundary

Step 3. Projection of LU/LC in the baseline

Step 4. Estimation of baseline carbon stock changes

Step 5. Estimation of baseline GHG emissions

Step 6. Estimation of the baseline net GHG emissions and removals

Project boundaries

The project boundary is defined by:

�The geographical boundary within which the project will be implemented.

Only land qualifying as ‘forest’ for a minimum of 10 years prior to the

project start date can be included in the project boundary.

�Additionally, other geographical boundaries need to be established for AUDD

projects: A Reference Region, a Leakage Belt and, if applicable, Leakage

Prevention areas

�The project crediting period. The project crediting period for REDD projects

shall be between 20 and 100 years.

�The sources and sinks, and associated types of GHGs (i.e. CO2, N2O and

CH4), the project will affect.

�The carbon pools that the project will consider.

Characteristics of the RR in differentAUDD methodologies

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Leakage belts in different AUDD methodologies

Source: “Project Developer’s Guidebook to VCS REDD Methodologies”. Version 1.0, November 2011, developed by

TerraCarbon for Conservation international

Projection of LU/LC in the baseline

�Identify where deforestation would likely occur using spatial analysis and

projections based on historical factors over at least the previous 10 years that

explain past patterns and can be used to make future projections of deforestation.

�The criteria and procedures for identifying alternative baseline scenarios shall take

into account such factors as historical deforestation and/or degradation rates and

require the development of a baseline by determining and analyzing a reference

that shall be similar to the project area in terms of drivers and agents of

deforestation and/or degradation, landscape configuration, and socio-economic

and cultural conditions

RS required by AUDD methodologies forthe LU/LC projection

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Estimation of baseline C stock changes

The calculation of emission factors from carbon stock changes comprises 2 steps:

� Step 1. Estimation of the carbon stocks of the forests and each post-deforestation

LU/LC category identified in the project area

� Step 2. Determination of emission factors of all LU/LC change categories

expected in the project area:

� The emission factors due to the transition from forest to other LU/LC

categories are estimated by obtaining the difference between the carbon

stocks in the forest and in the post-deforestation LU/LC category.

C stock estimates in AUDD methodologies

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Simplified example – Estimating an AUD Baseline

1. Definition of boundaries

2. Analysis of historical LU/LC change

3. Analysis of agents, drivers and causes of D and chain of events leading to D

4. Projection of annual areas and location of D in the RR in the baseline

5. Identification of forest classes in areas that would be D in the baseline and post D LU classes in the project area

6. Estimation of baseline C stock changes and non-CO2 from fires (if any)

Non-forest

Forest

Historical deforestation (e.g. 2002-2011)

Projected deforestation (e.g. 2012-2021)

Reference Region

Project boundary

Leakage prevention areas

Leakage belt

Forest 100tC/ha

Agriculture 5tC/ha

C stock change: -95tC/ha

Base

d o

n the V

CS

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eth

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M0015

Combined projects

� Project developers may implement multiple activities across a landscape in connection with a REDD project, for example, carrying outforest protection in one area with complementary improvedagricultural management activities in another. Project developers mayeither:

� Develop the project as a stand-alone REDD activity, being sure toaccount for any increases in emissions resulting from activitiesimplemented outside the project area, unless deemed de minimis, or

� Combine multiple activities under a single VCS Project Description (PD), each delineated as a separate VCS project activity.

� When combining multiple activities under a single VCS project, different activities must be segregated spatially (i.e. no overlap) tofacilitate accounting by activity type using an activity-specificmethodology, or a methodology that covers multiple activities(currently none exists).

Results-based REDD+ under the UNFCCC

� Parties need to establish REDD+strategies, MRV and baselines

� Subnational allowed as an “interim” measure

� Subnational results-based actions require national monitorin

� Methodological guidance and modalities and procedures are still being negotiated.

Approval

National

government

Subnational

governmentsAggregator

Successful REDD+ activities

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Policies and

programs

“REDD+ units”

Rest of the country´s

forest areas

MRV reports

UNFCCC

Review body

MRV reports

• Jurisdictional and Nested REDD Initiative

� Developing guidance and criteria for jurisdictional REDD programs to enable crediting at multiple scales (project, state/province and national)

� Create a pathway for projects to “nest” within larger scale jurisdictional programs (both sub-national and national)

� Develop best practice nested accounting and crediting at jurisdictional scales

� Frameworks may serve multiple markets (voluntary, bilateral, pre-compliance, potentially compliance)

� Interest and participation from a number of countries and donors seeking to set up jurisdictional and/or nested project crediting schemes

VCS Jurisdictional & Nested REDD Initiative

9 March 2012

Current thinking

� Multiple accounting and crediting pathways to give flexibility

� Scenario 1: Project crediting only (with jurisdictional baseline)

� Scenario 2: Jurisdictional and project crediting

� Scenario 3: Jurisdictional crediting only

� “Nesting” can occur at multiple scales

� Project within jurisdiction

� Subnational jurisdiction within national jurisdiction

9 March 2012

Simplified visual representation….

VCS

Registry

?

?

VCS

Registry

VCS

Registry

= jurisdictional BL only = VCS credited project = jurisdictional BL & crediting = jurisdiction “credited” project

Scenario 1: Jurisdictional baseline with stand alone

project crediting

Scenario 2: Jurisdictional crediting scheme with direct crediting to nested activities

Scenario 3: Jurisdictional crediting scheme with

internal allocation program

Note: Only 1 jurisdictional scale is shown. Grandfathering is not depicted

Buffer Buffer Buffer

9 March 2012

Developing a nested system

� Requires addressing technical issues such as:

� Defining boundaries

� Developing and nesting baselines (inc. scope, pools, additionality, updating)

� Grandfathering

� Leakage

� MRV

� Crediting (inc. timing, distribution, double counting)

� Reversals and force majeure (inc. crediting implications in nesting)

� Requires addressing other issues such as:

� Legal issues

� Safeguards

� Approvals

9 March 2012

Process and Timeline

� Advisory and Technical Committees convened in Q1 2011

� Technical Recommendations released Oct 2011, peer and Advisory Committee review Oct-Nov 2011, currently under revision

� Draft guidance and requirements to be issued for public comment by end of 1st quarter of 2012

� Final release in mid-2012

� Phase Two: Pilots, 2012-

9 March 2012

Thank you.

mporruacop9@gmail.com