Florencia B. Pulhin

Carbon mitigation potential and costs of forestry options in Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Mexico, the Philippines and Tanzania

This paper summarizes studies of carbon (C) mitigation potential and costs of about 40 forestry options in seven developing countries. Each study uses the same methodological approach – Comprehensive Mitigation Assessment Process (COMAP) – to estimate the above parameters between 2000 and 2030. The approach requires the projection of baseline and mitigation land-use scenarios. Coupled with data on a per ha basis on C sequestration or avoidance, and costs and benefits, it allows the estimation of monetary benefit per Mg C, and the total costs and carbon potential. The results show that about half (3.0 Pg C) the cumulative mitigation potential of 6.2 Petagram (Pg) C between 2000 and 2030 in the seven countries (about 200× 106 Mg C yr-1) could be achieved at a negative cost and the remainder at costs ranging up to

Forest land use change in the philippines and climate change mitigation

100 Mg C-1. About 5 Pg C could be achieved, at a cost less than

Mainstreaming adaptation in developing countries: The case of the Philippines

20 per Mg C. Negative cost potential indicates that non-carbon revenue is sufficient to offset direct costs of these options. The achievable potential is likely to be smaller, however, due to market, institutional, and sociocultural barriers that can delay or prevent the implementation of the analyzed options.

Potential of Community-Based Forest Management to Mitigate Climate Change in the Philippines

Tropical forests in countries like thePhilippines are important sources and sinks of carbon(C). The paper analyzes the contribution of Philippineforests in climate change mitigation. Since the 1500s,deforestation of 20.9 M ha (106 ha) of Philippineforests contributed 3.7 Pg (1015 g) of C to theatmosphere of which 2.6 Pg were released this century. At present, forest land uses store 1091 Tg(1012 g) of C and sequester 30.5 Tg C/yr whilereleasing 11.4 Tg C/yr through deforestation andharvesting. In the year 2015, it is expected that thetotal C storage will decline by 8% (1005 Tg) andtotal rate of C sequestration will increase by 17%(35.5 Tg/yr). This trend is due to the decline innatural forest area accompanied by an increase intree plantation area. We have shown that uncertaintyin national C estimates still exists because they arereadily affected by the source of biomass and Cdensity data. Philippine forests can act as C sink by:conserving existing C sinks, expanding C stocks, andsubstituting wood products for fossil fuels. Here weanalyze the possible implications of the provisions ofthe Kyoto Protocol to Philippine forests. Finally, wepresent current research and development efforts ontropical forests and climate change in the Philippinesto improve assessments of their role in the nations Cbudgets.

Lessons From Early REDD

The Philippines, as an archipelago and a developing country, is very vulnerable to climate change. Current efforts to address the impacts of climate change exist but may not be sufficient. The first part of this paper reviews current knowledge on mainstreaming climate change adaptation into development. It then assesses how far climate change has been mainstreamed into key development plans and programmes in the Philippines. Interviews with key informants were also conducted. The results show that there is no mainstreaming in the Philippines. All the major development plans and policies reviewed did not contain any reference to climate change adaptation. Interviews with key stakeholders reveal a similar trend. The main reason preventing mainstreaming are that national priorities are biased towards concerns deemed more pressing, and that there is a pervasive lack of awareness about the impacts of climate change on sustainable development. However, there are massive investments in infrastructure projects designed to adapt to weather-related hazards. Projects such as these could provide an entry point for integrating climate change adaptation into development plans and policy in the Philippines.

Economic valuation for sustainable mangrove ecosystems management in Bohol and Palawan, Philippines.

Community-based forest management (CBFM) is the principal strategy in managing inhabited ‘forest land’ in the Philippines. It involves the participation of local communities in various forestry activities to achieve sustainable forestry, advance social justice and improve socioeconomic welfare, and promote a stable and healthy environment. This paper analyses the potential benefits of agroforestry farms in CBFM sites to mitigate climate change. The incorporation of trees in farms and landscapes has led to enhanced carbon storage and sequestration. Half a million hectares of agroforestry farms in CBFM sites in the Philippines are estimated to store 25 MtC while sequestering 2.7 MtC annually. Lessons are drawn from three carbon sequestration projects under development using CBFM as the main approach. Income from carbon credits is not sufficient to recover the cost of tree planting. The transaction costs of forestry CDM projects are substantial and could prove to be the greatest barrier to project fruition. Government institutions must find ways to encourage project developers by simplifying rules and regulations for forestry carbon projects. Forest definition must be assessed. Project developers and the government could also explore the voluntary carbon market which is more flexible than the CDM market. Policy and technical studies must be conducted to ascertain the potential of the REDD for CBFM sites in the country.

From Principles to Numbers: Approaches in Implementing Payments for Environmental Services (PES) in the Philippines

There is growing interest globally in REDD+ initiatives to help mitigate climate change; the Philippines is no exception. In this paper, we review early REDD+ project experiences in the country. The guiding document for REDD+ in the Philippines is the National REDD+ Strategy (PNRPS) which was prepared by a multisectoral group of authors. There are five REDD+ projects that are underway. The critical factors emerging from these early REDD+ actions are the following: external support, local participation, free prior and informed consent, capacity building, sustainability, national laws and policies, biodiversity conservation, and use of safeguards. The pioneering projects reviewed here as well as the emerging lessons from them will hopefully provide a firmer basis for future REDD+ actions in the country.

Community-Based Mangrove Management in the Philippines: Experience and Challenges in the Context of Changing Climate

The study used the total economic value as a framework for estimating the values of the different uses of mangroves in Palawan and Bohol, Philippines. Market surveys were conducted to estimate the revenues from the major mangrove products collected in the two study sites. Contingent valuation method and travel cost method questionnaires were used in the survey to determine the biodiversity and recreational values (in Philippine pesos or PHP). Results of the market survey showed that the highest direct use value per year was estimated for Banacon site in Bohol with PHP 33.368 million per year as compared to Kamuning site in Palawan (PHP 25.521 million). The highest value of benefit for Banacon came from crab catch with PHP 13.23 million. Mollusk catch gave higher benefits to Kamuning, amounting to PHP 17.65 million. In terms of the values of benefits from shrimp and fish catch, the values for Banacon were higher than those in Kamuning site (PHP 8.06 million and PHP 6.38 million, respectively for Banacon, and PHP 4.32 million and PHP 0.16 million, respectively, for Kamuning). Nipa thatch was the source of the third highest value of benefit for Kamuning amounting to PHP 2.42 million. The result of the contingent valuation analysis done (combining the data sets from Palawan and Bohol) using a least-squares method (i.e., bid function approach) showed a mean willingness-to-pay amount of PHP 44/month per individual. The different factors affecting the willingness to pay (25% level) include education, income and information (new). In terms of the recreation/ecotourism value of mangroves, the estimated values in Banacon, Bohol, and Kamuning, Palawan, were PHP 83,079 and PHP 2769, respectively.

Chapter 11 Climate change adaptation and community forest management

This paper proposes a way to classify PES projects based on how environmental service payments are justified and determined. Using the IPCC1 approach as a model, we recommend the use of the tier system to classify PES projects. The three tiers are summarized below: Tier 1: Payments based on established ecological principles and local knowledge Tier 2: In addition to the above, payments based on simulation modeling and limited site information Tier 3: In addition to above, payments based on site-specific quantitative measurements of environmental services We illustrate this with case studies from existing PES projects in the Philippines. We then presented a decision tree to determine how the tier system can be used.

Philippine forest ecosystems and climate change: Carbon stocks, rate of sequestration and the Kyoto Protocol

This chapter synthesizes the experiences and challenges in community-based mangrove management in the Philippines in the context of changing climate. Over the past three decades, mangrove rehabilitation and protection has received considerable attention considering its declining condition vis-a-vis its ability to provide a mix of environmental goods and services including the potential to reduce climate change impacts and disaster risks. Community-based approach was lauded as a sustainable strategy to revert degraded mangroves back to their once verdant condition. However, major issues emerged in view of unclear access and utilization rights of local communities over the mangrove trees they planted and the poor ecological outcomes of many rehabilitation projects. The chapter recommends key strategies to overcome these challenges toward a more sustainable community-based mangrove management in the country while fostering climate-resilient local communities.