Reduction of emission from deforestation and degradation
Who where the top REDD negotiators at Copenhagen?
Destruction of forests — burning or cutting trees to clear land for plantations or cattle ranches — is thought to account for about 20 percent of global emissions. That's as much carbon dioxide as all the world's cars, trucks, trains, planes and ships combined.
Carbon offset schemes like REDD have been a big part of the Copenhagen negotiations so far, but in practice they can go horribly wrong, reports Angela Dewan
One of the bright spots at the Copenhagen climate change summit could be the establishment of a scheme to protect forests and their carbon-absorbing capacity
A number of issues still need to be resolved, but the scheme on reduced emissions from deforestation and degradation (REDD) is likely to make progress at the climate conference, says the chairman of the REDD talks within the UN climate negotiations. The potential is an agreement on a carbon trading scheme worth billions of dollars a year from 2013.
"I think it's a foregone conclusion that REDD will be part of the new agreement. Ironically it's actually the most advanced now," says Tony La Vina, chair of the REDD negotiations, to Reuters.
Farmers who cut and burn trees in Brazil's part of the Amazon River Basin cause less environmental destruction, than rich Western nations have done in the past, the Brazilian President says. (read more about historical deforestation here)
An expert has warned that the REDD emissions reduction scheme designed to protect forests could be prone to conflicts between rich and rainforest nations, including Indonesia, which could in turn threaten bilateral relations because of complicated mechanisms involved in the monitoring of the scheme.
Prince Charles announces funding scheme to protect rainforests
A global emergency funding scheme to drastically reduce the destruction of tropical rainforests over the next five years was announced by the Prince of Wales today, with the US pledging $275m (£165m) towards rainforest protection.
