Carbon News and Info > Climate change news > Forest carbon & sustainability
Projects and Activities > Forest carbon > News & commentary
Thursday, 28 October 2010
Two separate studies have thrown doubt over forests’ ability to help offset global warming. Because trees rely on carbon dioxide to grow, it has been predicted that as CO2 levels rise in a warming world, trees would thrive on the increase, grow faster, and thus help soak up excess atmospheric carbon.
As a result of their findings, the authors of both studies have called into question the growth models for worldwide vegetation being used in official climate change forecasting for this century. The results of the studies may also have implications for some types of forest carbon projects such as reforestation and improved forest management, depending on the growth models they use. Ex ante, or upfront, crediting under some standards may see too many credits issued on forecast carbon sequestration with issuances having to be revised after later verification events during a project’s lifetime.
A study led by Dr Richard Norby of the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, and published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, has found that while increased CO2 levels engender higher growth for the first five to six years, after that time the growth rate tails off.
The study team, including US and Australian scientists, found the limiting factor was the fixed level of nitrogen in the soil. After five or six years, the extra soil nitrogen being used to fuel the growth of the trees starts to run out, preventing the trees from being continuing to make the most of the elevated CO2 levels.
Researchers exposed forest stands to CO2 levels 25 per cent higher than the current global concentration, a level expected to be reached by the second half of this century.
“The implication of that for the broader landscapes is that, particularly in nutrient poor soils, the rising CO2 concentration in the atmosphere is probably not going to be as beneficial to plants as we've been hoping,” Dr Belinda Medlyn a biologist at Macquarie University, Sydney, said. She said the models used in the IPCC 4th assessment report are likely to overstate CO2 sequestration on land by “a fair bit”.
A second study, from the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada, looked at 86 types of trees at more than 2,300 sites on six continents. It found that 80 per cent failed to respond to higher CO2 levels regardless of their species or geographical location. The researchers drew their results from examining tree rings, the distinctive marks left on trees allowing researchers to see how much growth takes place from year to year.
“There might be a very slight increase in the total rate of growth in trees, but they’re not going to be these vacuum cleaners that will magically suck up the CO2 that we’re emitting,” said Ze’ev Gedalof, study co-author and Associate Professor of Geography at the University of Guelph.
Other experts examining the study questioned whether growth rates observed in tree rings give an accurate measure of overall carbon uptake.
ABC Online, Canadian Press.
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
American Carbon Registry lifts carbon offset benchmark
28 September 2010
The American Carbon Registry (ACR) has raised the bar for the level of carbon that landowners must sequester under its forestry programmes in a move that it claims will stimulate the carbon offset market.
It has approved an Improved Forest Management (IFM) methodology for quantifying greenhouse gas removal and emissions reductions, targeting privately-owned industrial timberlands in the US already managed under a commercial timber harvesting programme.
ACR said that the methodology unleashes groundbreaking possibilities in the market, partly because it applies conservative assumptions to ensure that no additional activities are credited, a flaw that has plagued existing IFM methodologies.
Under the new methodology, which is the first to specifically target industrial timberlands, landowners must make a long-term commitment to sequester carbon on their properties above and beyond what would normally occur under an institutional timber owner’s typical business-as-usual management.
‘The Finite Carbon IFM methodology fills a critical gap in the US forest carbon market by providing a straightforward and scalable framework for commercial timber land managers to develop high-quality IFM projects,’ said Nicholas Martin, ACR’s chief technical officer.
To date, only five forest carbon projects have been registered and verified, four of which are California-based projects registered under the Climate Action Reserve, and the fifth is a large multi-state project registered on ACR.
ACR said that the methodology has been included as an eligible project type under both House and Senate cap-and-trade bills.
It is also consistent with pre-compliance recognition in recent federal bills and state programmes, making projects formed under the standard appealing for corporate social responsibility buyers.
ACR said it plans to complement the methodology in the future with additional methodologies for non-industrial private forests and public land.
‘The end result is a methodology that balances concerns of commercial operability, environmental integrity and cost, all of which are crucial for high-quality projects to be developed on a scale that will have an impact,’ said Finite Carbon president Scott Nissenbaum.
ACR was founded in 1996 as the US GreenHouse Gas Registry by the Environmental Defense Fund and Environmental Resources Trust.
Copyright © 2010 NewNet
The American Carbon Registry (ACR) has raised the bar for the level of carbon that landowners must sequester under its forestry programmes in a move that it claims will stimulate the carbon offset market.
It has approved an Improved Forest Management (IFM) methodology for quantifying greenhouse gas removal and emissions reductions, targeting privately-owned industrial timberlands in the US already managed under a commercial timber harvesting programme.
ACR said that the methodology unleashes groundbreaking possibilities in the market, partly because it applies conservative assumptions to ensure that no additional activities are credited, a flaw that has plagued existing IFM methodologies.
Under the new methodology, which is the first to specifically target industrial timberlands, landowners must make a long-term commitment to sequester carbon on their properties above and beyond what would normally occur under an institutional timber owner’s typical business-as-usual management.
‘The Finite Carbon IFM methodology fills a critical gap in the US forest carbon market by providing a straightforward and scalable framework for commercial timber land managers to develop high-quality IFM projects,’ said Nicholas Martin, ACR’s chief technical officer.
To date, only five forest carbon projects have been registered and verified, four of which are California-based projects registered under the Climate Action Reserve, and the fifth is a large multi-state project registered on ACR.
ACR said that the methodology has been included as an eligible project type under both House and Senate cap-and-trade bills.
It is also consistent with pre-compliance recognition in recent federal bills and state programmes, making projects formed under the standard appealing for corporate social responsibility buyers.
ACR said it plans to complement the methodology in the future with additional methodologies for non-industrial private forests and public land.
‘The end result is a methodology that balances concerns of commercial operability, environmental integrity and cost, all of which are crucial for high-quality projects to be developed on a scale that will have an impact,’ said Finite Carbon president Scott Nissenbaum.
ACR was founded in 1996 as the US GreenHouse Gas Registry by the Environmental Defense Fund and Environmental Resources Trust.
Copyright © 2010 NewNet
Monday, October 25, 2010
Denman Island - 750 ha.
October 21, 2010, Vancouver, British Columbia: ERA Carbon Offsets Ltd. (TSX¬-V: ESR) through its 100% owned subsidiary ERA Ecosystem Restoration Associates Inc, (ERA) is pleased to announce that it has executed a term sheet with the German-based company The Forest Carbon Group AG (FCG) for the sale of all Verified Emission Reductions (VERs) arising from the Denman Island project. This unique public – private partnership involves the acquisition of 750 hectares of private and Crown land on Denman Island for inclusion in the provincial parks and protected areas system. The transaction, which is subject to due diligence and entering a formal Verified Emissions Reductions Purchase Agreement (VERPA), would deliver several hundred thousand tonnes of VERs immediately following third party validation and verification.
The multi-faceted public-private partnership has involved the British Columbia Government, North Denman Island Lands Inc., ERA, and FCG. This arrangement involved the transfer of carbon rights associated with the private portion of the 750 hectares by North Denman Lands Inc. to ERA. The British Columbia Government will ultimately add these ecologically sensitive lands to the provincial parks and protected areas system. Without this partnership the private land area would have been slated for development. The newly protected lands are within the rare Coastal Douglas-fir biogeoclimatic zone. The acquisition also includes lands within the Chickadee Lake watershed and a previously logged area that provides habitat for the endangered Taylor’s Checkerspot butterfly.
The VERs will be validated and verified to the International Standard Organization’s 14064-2 standard and to either the Community, Climate and Biodiversity Alliance’s CCBA standard or to a mutually agreed upon equivalent standard. All VERs will be serialized and registered on the Markit Environmental Registry.
Holger Mayer, director of FCG, commented: “The rich biodiversity of B.C.’s forest ecosystems makes the province, and in particular the Pacific Coast, an ideal source of high-quality forest-based carbon offsets. And Denman Island is a “charismatic” project that has marketing appeal to our potential clients in Europe, because of its beauty and protection of biodiversity. We’re pleased to continue our partnership with ERA and contribute to the restoration of Denman Island’s natural environment.”
Dr. Robert Falls, ERA’s Chief Executive Officer, commented: “This agreement represents ground-breaking leadership in climate policy and environmental stewardship, using creative public – private partnerships. We wish to thank the Forest Carbon Group for seeing the value of the program, and the unique attributes of the carbon offsets that will be generated for the voluntary carbon market. The initiative and participation by North Denman Lands were essential to the success of this project. We also wish to recognize the Government of British Columbia for its forward-thinking resolve in facilitating climate mitigation solutions that provide multiple wins for the environment and for future generations.”
About The Forest Carbon Group AG.
The Forest Carbon Group works to protect and restore forests. Driven by the idea that ecology and economy should mutually benefit from one another, it invests in and co-develops large-scale forestry projects world-wide. These projects not only give value to forests’ ecosystem services but also have many social co-benefits that enable involved communities to create sustainable local economies. The Forest Carbon Group offers companies tailor-made solutions for becoming more sustainable and carbon neutral using the mechanisms of the voluntary carbon market. The full service approach includes identifying, developing and financing forestry projects, and providing guidance in marketing and communications to leverage the potential of companies’ sustainable investment. The Forest Carbon Group offers real, additional, and verifiable VERs that are approved and audited by internationally renowned third parties. Founded in 2009, the Forest Carbon Group consists of specialists with ma ny years’ experience in carbon markets, forestry, project development, marketing, communications and financing. The company’s headquarter is in Frankfurt, Germany.
Additional information on The Forest Carbon Group can be found at www.forestcarbongroup.ag or by contacting contact@forestcarbongroup.de
About ERA Carbon Offsets Ltd.
ERA is a Canadian pioneer in forest restoration and conservation carbon offset projects. The company’s Community Ecosystem Restoration Program located in the Lower Fraser Valley, British Columbia, began in 2005 in the District of Maple Ridge, and has grown to include five communities including Metro Vancouver. ERA has delivered over 1,000,000 tonnes of carbon offsets to the voluntary market and is engaged in the development of forest carbon projects in Canada, Africa and the Hawaiian Islands to supply international and North American voluntary and pre-compliance markets. ERA’s clients and product users include Air Canada, Catalyst Paper, HSE – Entega, Rolling Stone Magazine, Shell Canada Limited, The Forest Carbon Group, and The Globe Foundation of Canada. ERA’s carbon offsets are being validated to the ISO 14064, CCBA, and VCS standards.
Additional information on ERA can be found on the corporate website www.eracarbonoffsets.com or by contacting investor@eracarbonoffsets.com
The multi-faceted public-private partnership has involved the British Columbia Government, North Denman Island Lands Inc., ERA, and FCG. This arrangement involved the transfer of carbon rights associated with the private portion of the 750 hectares by North Denman Lands Inc. to ERA. The British Columbia Government will ultimately add these ecologically sensitive lands to the provincial parks and protected areas system. Without this partnership the private land area would have been slated for development. The newly protected lands are within the rare Coastal Douglas-fir biogeoclimatic zone. The acquisition also includes lands within the Chickadee Lake watershed and a previously logged area that provides habitat for the endangered Taylor’s Checkerspot butterfly.
The VERs will be validated and verified to the International Standard Organization’s 14064-2 standard and to either the Community, Climate and Biodiversity Alliance’s CCBA standard or to a mutually agreed upon equivalent standard. All VERs will be serialized and registered on the Markit Environmental Registry.
Holger Mayer, director of FCG, commented: “The rich biodiversity of B.C.’s forest ecosystems makes the province, and in particular the Pacific Coast, an ideal source of high-quality forest-based carbon offsets. And Denman Island is a “charismatic” project that has marketing appeal to our potential clients in Europe, because of its beauty and protection of biodiversity. We’re pleased to continue our partnership with ERA and contribute to the restoration of Denman Island’s natural environment.”
Dr. Robert Falls, ERA’s Chief Executive Officer, commented: “This agreement represents ground-breaking leadership in climate policy and environmental stewardship, using creative public – private partnerships. We wish to thank the Forest Carbon Group for seeing the value of the program, and the unique attributes of the carbon offsets that will be generated for the voluntary carbon market. The initiative and participation by North Denman Lands were essential to the success of this project. We also wish to recognize the Government of British Columbia for its forward-thinking resolve in facilitating climate mitigation solutions that provide multiple wins for the environment and for future generations.”
About The Forest Carbon Group AG.
The Forest Carbon Group works to protect and restore forests. Driven by the idea that ecology and economy should mutually benefit from one another, it invests in and co-develops large-scale forestry projects world-wide. These projects not only give value to forests’ ecosystem services but also have many social co-benefits that enable involved communities to create sustainable local economies. The Forest Carbon Group offers companies tailor-made solutions for becoming more sustainable and carbon neutral using the mechanisms of the voluntary carbon market. The full service approach includes identifying, developing and financing forestry projects, and providing guidance in marketing and communications to leverage the potential of companies’ sustainable investment. The Forest Carbon Group offers real, additional, and verifiable VERs that are approved and audited by internationally renowned third parties. Founded in 2009, the Forest Carbon Group consists of specialists with ma ny years’ experience in carbon markets, forestry, project development, marketing, communications and financing. The company’s headquarter is in Frankfurt, Germany.
Additional information on The Forest Carbon Group can be found at www.forestcarbongroup.ag or by contacting contact@forestcarbongroup.de
About ERA Carbon Offsets Ltd.
ERA is a Canadian pioneer in forest restoration and conservation carbon offset projects. The company’s Community Ecosystem Restoration Program located in the Lower Fraser Valley, British Columbia, began in 2005 in the District of Maple Ridge, and has grown to include five communities including Metro Vancouver. ERA has delivered over 1,000,000 tonnes of carbon offsets to the voluntary market and is engaged in the development of forest carbon projects in Canada, Africa and the Hawaiian Islands to supply international and North American voluntary and pre-compliance markets. ERA’s clients and product users include Air Canada, Catalyst Paper, HSE – Entega, Rolling Stone Magazine, Shell Canada Limited, The Forest Carbon Group, and The Globe Foundation of Canada. ERA’s carbon offsets are being validated to the ISO 14064, CCBA, and VCS standards.
Additional information on ERA can be found on the corporate website www.eracarbonoffsets.com or by contacting investor@eracarbonoffsets.com
World Bank pays $4 for forest CERs
Carbon News and Info > Carbon trading prices > CER market reports
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Carbon News and Info > Climate change news > Forest carbon & sustainability
Projects and Activities > Forest carbon > News & commentary
Friday, 22 October 2010
Africa’s first significant CDM forest carbon project has attracted a price of $US4 per tonne in temporary CER (tCER) carbon credits, according to a media report. The World Bank will buy the credits for half the carbon stored up to 2017 from an Ethiopian forestry project, the Humbo Assisted Natural Regeneration Project.
The first large-scale afforestation and reforestation (A/R) project to be registered under the Kyoto Protocol’s CDM, the Clean Development Mechanism, began in 2007. It involves the restoration and replanting of indigenous tree species on 2,728 hectares of degraded mountain forest area that has been stripped for fuel wood in south-western Ethiopia.
The Humbo project developer, World Vision, has arranged 800 local people into seven reforestation cooperatives. The carbon credit proceeds fund payments to the members, replacing their previous incomes from the sale of firewood. To minimise the potential leakage - the pushing of wood collection into forest outside the project area - the project also includes growing plantations for fuelwood harvest.
The World Bank BioCarbon Fund is buying tCERs for 165,000 tonnes of Humbo’s CO2 emissions reductions, nearly half the 338,000 tonnes the project is expected to sequester in its first ten years.
The Bank has agreed to pay $726,000 at $US4 per tCER, according to Hailu Tefera, manager of Climate Change Programmes at World Vision Ethiopia, one of the project proponents. His comments were published in the Addis Fortune newspaper.
The World Bank does not generally reveal the prices paid for CERs by its various carbon funds. But it did confirm in March a commitment to purchase 165,000 tonnes of CO2e for a sum suggesting a price of just over $US4 each.
Under the CDM rules for its A/R segment, permanent CERs cannot be issued over forest carbon sequestration, only temporary or long term CERs. This is because of the questions marks over the permanence of the planted forests. tCERs expire after five years and must be reissued upon verification the forest is still standing, or replaced with permanent CERs from elsewhere.
The World Bank says the development of such forestry and land-use projects is crucial for Africa, a continent that has so far attracted little CDM project investment
Carbon News and Info > Climate change news > Carbon finance, emissions trading & offsets
Carbon News and Info > Climate change news > Forest carbon & sustainability
Projects and Activities > Forest carbon > News & commentary
Friday, 22 October 2010
Africa’s first significant CDM forest carbon project has attracted a price of $US4 per tonne in temporary CER (tCER) carbon credits, according to a media report. The World Bank will buy the credits for half the carbon stored up to 2017 from an Ethiopian forestry project, the Humbo Assisted Natural Regeneration Project.
The first large-scale afforestation and reforestation (A/R) project to be registered under the Kyoto Protocol’s CDM, the Clean Development Mechanism, began in 2007. It involves the restoration and replanting of indigenous tree species on 2,728 hectares of degraded mountain forest area that has been stripped for fuel wood in south-western Ethiopia.
The Humbo project developer, World Vision, has arranged 800 local people into seven reforestation cooperatives. The carbon credit proceeds fund payments to the members, replacing their previous incomes from the sale of firewood. To minimise the potential leakage - the pushing of wood collection into forest outside the project area - the project also includes growing plantations for fuelwood harvest.
The World Bank BioCarbon Fund is buying tCERs for 165,000 tonnes of Humbo’s CO2 emissions reductions, nearly half the 338,000 tonnes the project is expected to sequester in its first ten years.
The Bank has agreed to pay $726,000 at $US4 per tCER, according to Hailu Tefera, manager of Climate Change Programmes at World Vision Ethiopia, one of the project proponents. His comments were published in the Addis Fortune newspaper.
The World Bank does not generally reveal the prices paid for CERs by its various carbon funds. But it did confirm in March a commitment to purchase 165,000 tonnes of CO2e for a sum suggesting a price of just over $US4 each.
Under the CDM rules for its A/R segment, permanent CERs cannot be issued over forest carbon sequestration, only temporary or long term CERs. This is because of the questions marks over the permanence of the planted forests. tCERs expire after five years and must be reissued upon verification the forest is still standing, or replaced with permanent CERs from elsewhere.
The World Bank says the development of such forestry and land-use projects is crucial for Africa, a continent that has so far attracted little CDM project investment
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Wesfarmers signs carbon offset deal - Australia
Published 9:44 AM, 5 Oct 2010
By a staff reporter
The insurance arm of Western Australian conglomerate Wesfarmers has signed a deal to offset its 2010 carbon emissions.
Wesfarmers Insurance says the deal will see carbon forest sink developer Carbon Conscious Ltd plant 26,000 eucalyptus trees in West Australian farmland.
“We are pleased to be a part of a program where Carbon Conscious was planting trees in many of the regional areas where our business operates. Additionally, by retiring voluntary carbon units, we have also ensured that we will be National Carbon Offset Standard compliant and this is important to our efforts around sustainability,” Wesfarmers Insurance corporate affairs manager Georgie Morell said in a statement.
Carbon Conscious has carried out similar carbon offsetting projects with Origin Energy and BP Singapore, the statement said.
By a staff reporter
The insurance arm of Western Australian conglomerate Wesfarmers has signed a deal to offset its 2010 carbon emissions.
Wesfarmers Insurance says the deal will see carbon forest sink developer Carbon Conscious Ltd plant 26,000 eucalyptus trees in West Australian farmland.
“We are pleased to be a part of a program where Carbon Conscious was planting trees in many of the regional areas where our business operates. Additionally, by retiring voluntary carbon units, we have also ensured that we will be National Carbon Offset Standard compliant and this is important to our efforts around sustainability,” Wesfarmers Insurance corporate affairs manager Georgie Morell said in a statement.
Carbon Conscious has carried out similar carbon offsetting projects with Origin Energy and BP Singapore, the statement said.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
ERA Denman Island Project
October 12, 2010, Vancouver, British Columbia: ERA Carbon Offsets Ltd. (TSX¬-V: ESR) through its 100% owned subsidiary ERA Ecosystem Restoration Associates Inc, (ERA) is pleased to announce Canada’s first carbon project involving a unique public-private partnership. The Denman Island Conservation Project will protect over 750 hectares of ecologically sensitive lands, distributed over 18 properties on Denman Island in British Columbia.
The public-private partnership involving the British Columbia Government, North Denman Island Lands Inc, ERA Ecosystem Restoration Associates Inc (ERA), and the Forest Carbon Group AG (FCG) uses an innovative agreement involving land donations, the transfer of local development rights, and carbon sequestration rights. This multifaceted agreement enabled the British Columbia Government to purchase the land for future inclusion in the BC parks and protected areas system. Without this partnership the future park area, approximately 15% of Denman Island, would have been slated for subdivision into residential properties and agricultural properties including vineyards and hayfields.
The newly protected lands are within the Coastal Douglas-fir biogeoclimatic zone, one of the rarest zones in B.C. The acquisition also includes land within the Chickadee Lake watershed and a previously logged area that provides habitat for the globally endangered Taylor's Checkerspot butterfly.
“Achieving the protection of such a large amount of both private and Crown land demonstrates that capital investment can effectively be put to the service of community and conservation goals,” said Henning Nielsen of North Denman Lands Inc.
Dr. Robert Falls, ERA’s Chief Executive Officer, commented: “This project represents groundbreaking leadership in climate policy and environmental stewardship, using creative public–private partnerships – a triple win for the province, the environment and the climate. The rich biodiversity of B.C.’s forest ecosystems makes the province, and in particular the Pacific Coast, an ideal setting for high quality forest-based carbon offset programming.”
Alexander Zang, FCG’s Director, commented: “We’re pleased to continue our partnership with ERA and contribute to strengthening Denman Island’s natural environment.”
About The Forest Carbon Group AG.
The Forest Carbon Group works to protect and restore forests. Driven by the idea that ecology and economy should mutually benefit from one another, it invests in and co-develops large-scale forestry projects world-wide. These projects not only give value to forests’ ecosystem services but also have many social co-benefits that enable involved communities to create sustainable local economies. The Forest Carbon Group offers companies tailor-made solutions for becoming more sustainable and carbon neutral using the mechanisms of the voluntary carbon market. The full service approach includes identifying, developing and financing forestry projects, and providing guidance in marketing and communications to leverage the potential of companies’ sustainable investment. The Forest Carbon Group offers real, additional, and verifiable VERs that are approved and audited by internationally renowned third parties. Founded in 2009, the Forest Carbon Group consists of spec ialists with many years’ experience in carbon markets, forestry, project development, marketing, communications and financing. The company’s headquarter is in Frankfurt, Germany.
Additional information on The Forest Carbon Group can be found at www.forestcarbongroup.ag or by contacting contact@forestcarbongroup.de
About ERA Carbon Offsets Ltd.
ERA is a Canadian pioneer in forest restoration and conservation carbon offset projects. The company’s Community Ecosystem Restoration Program located in the Lower Fraser Valley, British Columbia, began in 2005 in the District of Maple Ridge, and has grown to include five communities including Metro Vancouver. ERA has delivered over 1,000,000 tonnes of carbon offsets to the voluntary market and is engaged in the development of forest carbon projects in Canada, Africa and the Hawaiian Islands to supply international and North American voluntary and pre-compliance markets. ERA’s clients and product users include Air Canada, Catalyst Paper, HSE – Entega, Rolling Stone Magazine, Shell Canada Limited, The Forest Carbon Group, and The Globe Foundation of Canada. ERA’s carbon offsets are being validated to the ISO 14064, CCBA, and VCS standards.
Additional information on ERA can be found on the corporate website www.eracarbonoffsets.com or by contacting investor@eracarbonoffsets.com
On behalf of the Board of Directors of
ERA CARBON OFFSETS LTD.
“Robert Falls”
Chief Executive Officer
For further information, please contact:
Alex Langer,
Telephone: 604-646-0400
Email: alex.langer@eraecosystems.com
FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS: This document includes forward-looking statements as well as historical information. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the continued advancement of the company’s general business development, research development and the company’s development of forest-based carbon offsets. When used in this document, the words “anticipate”, “believe”, “estimate”, “expect”, “intent”, “may”, “project”, “plan”, “should” and similar expressions may identify forward-looking statements. Although ERA Carbon Offsets Ltd. believes that their expectations reflected in these forward looking statements are reasonable, such statements involve risks and uncertainties and no assurance can be given that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ from these forward-looking statements include fluctuations in the marketplace for the sale of carbon credits, the inability to implement corporate strategies, the ability to obtain financing and other risks disclosed in our filings made with Canadian Securities Regulators.
NEITHER TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE NOR ITS REGULATION SERVICES PROVIDER (AS THAT TERM IS DEFINED IN THE POLICIES OF THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE) ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE.
The public-private partnership involving the British Columbia Government, North Denman Island Lands Inc, ERA Ecosystem Restoration Associates Inc (ERA), and the Forest Carbon Group AG (FCG) uses an innovative agreement involving land donations, the transfer of local development rights, and carbon sequestration rights. This multifaceted agreement enabled the British Columbia Government to purchase the land for future inclusion in the BC parks and protected areas system. Without this partnership the future park area, approximately 15% of Denman Island, would have been slated for subdivision into residential properties and agricultural properties including vineyards and hayfields.
The newly protected lands are within the Coastal Douglas-fir biogeoclimatic zone, one of the rarest zones in B.C. The acquisition also includes land within the Chickadee Lake watershed and a previously logged area that provides habitat for the globally endangered Taylor's Checkerspot butterfly.
“Achieving the protection of such a large amount of both private and Crown land demonstrates that capital investment can effectively be put to the service of community and conservation goals,” said Henning Nielsen of North Denman Lands Inc.
Dr. Robert Falls, ERA’s Chief Executive Officer, commented: “This project represents groundbreaking leadership in climate policy and environmental stewardship, using creative public–private partnerships – a triple win for the province, the environment and the climate. The rich biodiversity of B.C.’s forest ecosystems makes the province, and in particular the Pacific Coast, an ideal setting for high quality forest-based carbon offset programming.”
Alexander Zang, FCG’s Director, commented: “We’re pleased to continue our partnership with ERA and contribute to strengthening Denman Island’s natural environment.”
About The Forest Carbon Group AG.
The Forest Carbon Group works to protect and restore forests. Driven by the idea that ecology and economy should mutually benefit from one another, it invests in and co-develops large-scale forestry projects world-wide. These projects not only give value to forests’ ecosystem services but also have many social co-benefits that enable involved communities to create sustainable local economies. The Forest Carbon Group offers companies tailor-made solutions for becoming more sustainable and carbon neutral using the mechanisms of the voluntary carbon market. The full service approach includes identifying, developing and financing forestry projects, and providing guidance in marketing and communications to leverage the potential of companies’ sustainable investment. The Forest Carbon Group offers real, additional, and verifiable VERs that are approved and audited by internationally renowned third parties. Founded in 2009, the Forest Carbon Group consists of spec ialists with many years’ experience in carbon markets, forestry, project development, marketing, communications and financing. The company’s headquarter is in Frankfurt, Germany.
Additional information on The Forest Carbon Group can be found at www.forestcarbongroup.ag or by contacting contact@forestcarbongroup.de
About ERA Carbon Offsets Ltd.
ERA is a Canadian pioneer in forest restoration and conservation carbon offset projects. The company’s Community Ecosystem Restoration Program located in the Lower Fraser Valley, British Columbia, began in 2005 in the District of Maple Ridge, and has grown to include five communities including Metro Vancouver. ERA has delivered over 1,000,000 tonnes of carbon offsets to the voluntary market and is engaged in the development of forest carbon projects in Canada, Africa and the Hawaiian Islands to supply international and North American voluntary and pre-compliance markets. ERA’s clients and product users include Air Canada, Catalyst Paper, HSE – Entega, Rolling Stone Magazine, Shell Canada Limited, The Forest Carbon Group, and The Globe Foundation of Canada. ERA’s carbon offsets are being validated to the ISO 14064, CCBA, and VCS standards.
Additional information on ERA can be found on the corporate website www.eracarbonoffsets.com or by contacting investor@eracarbonoffsets.com
On behalf of the Board of Directors of
ERA CARBON OFFSETS LTD.
“Robert Falls”
Chief Executive Officer
For further information, please contact:
Alex Langer,
Telephone: 604-646-0400
Email: alex.langer@eraecosystems.com
FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS: This document includes forward-looking statements as well as historical information. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the continued advancement of the company’s general business development, research development and the company’s development of forest-based carbon offsets. When used in this document, the words “anticipate”, “believe”, “estimate”, “expect”, “intent”, “may”, “project”, “plan”, “should” and similar expressions may identify forward-looking statements. Although ERA Carbon Offsets Ltd. believes that their expectations reflected in these forward looking statements are reasonable, such statements involve risks and uncertainties and no assurance can be given that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ from these forward-looking statements include fluctuations in the marketplace for the sale of carbon credits, the inability to implement corporate strategies, the ability to obtain financing and other risks disclosed in our filings made with Canadian Securities Regulators.
NEITHER TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE NOR ITS REGULATION SERVICES PROVIDER (AS THAT TERM IS DEFINED IN THE POLICIES OF THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE) ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Pulp and paper firm signs carbon deal in Sumatra
Rhett A. Butler, mongabay.com
October 05, 2010
Indonesian pulp and paper firm Asia Pulp and Paper (APP) has signed a deal to protect 15,640 hectares of peat forest in Sumatra in exchange for carbon payments, reports Reuters.
Under the agreement signed with Carbon Conservation, a forest carbon broker based in Singapore, APP supplier PT Putra Riau Perkasa will forgo conversion of a concession located in carbon-dense peat forest on the Kampar Peninsula in Sumatra. The deal could avoid emissions of million tons of carbon dioxide over its 33-year life.
To complete the deal, Putra Riau Perkasa will need to change its Industrial Timber Plantation (HTI) conversion permit for the concession into one that allows for conservation or restoration. If the licensing change is approved by the forest ministry, it would set a precedent for Riau province, potentially ushering in other forest carbon pacts.
The Kampar Peninsula, which has one of the largest intact peat forests in the province in Riau, is a chief battleground between APP and international environmental groups, including the Rainforest Action Network, WWF, and Greenpeace. Greens blame APP for destructive logging practices, while APP maintains it operates in compliance with Indonesian law.
Location of PT. Putra Riau Perkasa (PRP) plantation forest concession in Semenanjung Kampar, Riau, Sumatra. APP's suppliers manage about 2.5 million hectares according to Aida Greenbury, sustainability director for APP. The animosity between APP and environmentalists recently reached new heights following Greenpeace's release of How Sinar Mas is Pulping the Planet, a report that alleged environmental transgressions by APP's suppliers. APP fired back with a report of its own, claiming that Greenpeace made errors in its mapping and sourcing of information. Greenpeace responded by affirming its conclusions and noting that APP's 'auditor' is controlled by Alan Oxley, who also is involved in the company's public relations efforts, negating the claimed independence of the report.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, activists were skeptical of the forest carbon deal.
"While we support the conservation of the Kampar, this project in no way makes up for the tremendous amount of damage that APP and its affiliates are having on rainforests and peatlands across Indonesia," said Lafcadio Cortesi, forest campaign director at the Rainforest Action Network (RAN), in a prepared statement. "APP should not be praised or compensated for doing something that they should have been doing in the first place."
"A critical question that needs to be answered, with public private partnerships and all land related agreements, is whether or not local communities and government know that this is happening and have a meaningful role in decision-making," he continued. "RAN maintains that if these types of conservation projects are to be successful, they must have the free, prior and informed consent of local communities and these communities must participate and receive an equitable share of the benefits."
But Dorjee Sun, CEO of Carbon Conservation, which has another project in Aceh Province in northern Sumatra, told mongabay.com, the Kampar is an opportunity to engage a historic destroyer of forests, perhaps helping it down a more sustainable path.
Conversion of forest land for a plantation in Riau, Sumatra, May 2010. Photo by Rhett A. Butler "This is an important project that Carbon Conservation had to undertake," he said via email. "After 2 years of deliberation on this APP opportunity we realized that to change the world we must change the economy. To change the economy we must change the multinational corporations. To change the multinational corporations, we must engage multinational corporations. Furthermore in Indonesia someone has to engage massive land owners like APP and it needs to be a credible carbon partner and not a fly-by-night operation."
Ultimately though, for this project to work we must ensure long lasting community benefits and that is only possible via active conservation bring poverty alleviation, healthcare, family planning & alternative livelihoods. This is of great significance because it comes at a time when UN leadership is adrift and REDD+ is one of the few rays of hope prior to Cancun. So as the first commercial REDD peatland plantation concession and will lead to a globally replicable pilot all partners have agreed to having total accountability and regular updates the media because so much is at stake.”
October 05, 2010
Indonesian pulp and paper firm Asia Pulp and Paper (APP) has signed a deal to protect 15,640 hectares of peat forest in Sumatra in exchange for carbon payments, reports Reuters.
Under the agreement signed with Carbon Conservation, a forest carbon broker based in Singapore, APP supplier PT Putra Riau Perkasa will forgo conversion of a concession located in carbon-dense peat forest on the Kampar Peninsula in Sumatra. The deal could avoid emissions of million tons of carbon dioxide over its 33-year life.
To complete the deal, Putra Riau Perkasa will need to change its Industrial Timber Plantation (HTI) conversion permit for the concession into one that allows for conservation or restoration. If the licensing change is approved by the forest ministry, it would set a precedent for Riau province, potentially ushering in other forest carbon pacts.
The Kampar Peninsula, which has one of the largest intact peat forests in the province in Riau, is a chief battleground between APP and international environmental groups, including the Rainforest Action Network, WWF, and Greenpeace. Greens blame APP for destructive logging practices, while APP maintains it operates in compliance with Indonesian law.
Location of PT. Putra Riau Perkasa (PRP) plantation forest concession in Semenanjung Kampar, Riau, Sumatra. APP's suppliers manage about 2.5 million hectares according to Aida Greenbury, sustainability director for APP. The animosity between APP and environmentalists recently reached new heights following Greenpeace's release of How Sinar Mas is Pulping the Planet, a report that alleged environmental transgressions by APP's suppliers. APP fired back with a report of its own, claiming that Greenpeace made errors in its mapping and sourcing of information. Greenpeace responded by affirming its conclusions and noting that APP's 'auditor' is controlled by Alan Oxley, who also is involved in the company's public relations efforts, negating the claimed independence of the report.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, activists were skeptical of the forest carbon deal.
"While we support the conservation of the Kampar, this project in no way makes up for the tremendous amount of damage that APP and its affiliates are having on rainforests and peatlands across Indonesia," said Lafcadio Cortesi, forest campaign director at the Rainforest Action Network (RAN), in a prepared statement. "APP should not be praised or compensated for doing something that they should have been doing in the first place."
"A critical question that needs to be answered, with public private partnerships and all land related agreements, is whether or not local communities and government know that this is happening and have a meaningful role in decision-making," he continued. "RAN maintains that if these types of conservation projects are to be successful, they must have the free, prior and informed consent of local communities and these communities must participate and receive an equitable share of the benefits."
But Dorjee Sun, CEO of Carbon Conservation, which has another project in Aceh Province in northern Sumatra, told mongabay.com, the Kampar is an opportunity to engage a historic destroyer of forests, perhaps helping it down a more sustainable path.
Conversion of forest land for a plantation in Riau, Sumatra, May 2010. Photo by Rhett A. Butler "This is an important project that Carbon Conservation had to undertake," he said via email. "After 2 years of deliberation on this APP opportunity we realized that to change the world we must change the economy. To change the economy we must change the multinational corporations. To change the multinational corporations, we must engage multinational corporations. Furthermore in Indonesia someone has to engage massive land owners like APP and it needs to be a credible carbon partner and not a fly-by-night operation."
Ultimately though, for this project to work we must ensure long lasting community benefits and that is only possible via active conservation bring poverty alleviation, healthcare, family planning & alternative livelihoods. This is of great significance because it comes at a time when UN leadership is adrift and REDD+ is one of the few rays of hope prior to Cancun. So as the first commercial REDD peatland plantation concession and will lead to a globally replicable pilot all partners have agreed to having total accountability and regular updates the media because so much is at stake.”
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