An incentive program to reduce carbon emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, or REDD+, risks losing momentum over issues of land tenure and economic viability, a new study has revealed.
Researchers said in the study that the challenges were surmountable and a binding international climate agreement could go a long way in bolstering prospects of the REDD+ program to mitigate climate impacts.
The study titled “The Challenge of Establishing REDD+ on the Ground: Insights from 23 Sub-National Initiatives in Six Countries” is based on 23 local-level REDD+ initiatives around the world.
Hundreds of the initiatives designed to test the feasibility of REDD+ have got under way in recent years; however, some initiative proponents are losing their enthusiasm for REDD+, says the study, which was led by the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR).
“The initiative proponents are a spirited, determined group of people who believe in what they’re doing to protect forests,” said William Sunderlin, principal scientist at CIFOR and lead author of the study, which was made available to The Jakarta Post on Monday.
“They’re encountering major challenges whose root causes lie outside their project boundaries, particularly tenure insecurity and what we call the ‘disadvantageous economics’ of REDD+,” he added.
Sunderlin further said the sub-national initiatives needed more committed support nationally and internationally to create circumstances that would allow REDD+ to function as intended.
First emerging in 2007, REDD+ is a mechanism aimed at slowing anthropogenic climate change by providing financial incentives to protect forests as they can absorb carbon from the atmosphere. Deforestation and forest degradation contribute to up to 15 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, studies show.
Insecurity over tenure — the right to own, access or use land—remained the biggest challenge for proponents, the study found.
“REDD+ is being established in places where tenure rules are often unclear and contested,” said Sunderlin.
“The REDD+ rewards system, however, requires clarity over who holds the right to forests or carbon, who is responsible for reducing emissions, and who can claim the benefits.”
