Rise and spread of national and sub-national forest carbon schemes

International climate change negotiations at COP17 in Durban, December 2011 saw further developments on the proposed REDD+ mechanism to reduce forest-based emissions and enhance forest carbon sinks. A binding international REDD+ agreement and a larger climate change agreement will likely be many years in the making. In the meantime, countries and states or provinces within countries have initiated their own forest-related emission reduction and offsetting schemes within the last year.

Developed countries and states with emission reduction targets such as Australia, California (USA), Quebec (Canada), UK, Japan and South Korea are allowing domestic polluters to use forest carbon offsets, and are setting up domestic forest carbon offsetting standards and/or supporting forest offset projects in developing countries. Developing countries like China, India and Ecuador are launching their own forest carbon sequestration or protection programs independent of or in advance of agreement on a REDD+ mechanism under the UNFCCC. This brief provides an update on national and international REDD+ and other forest carbon policies from April 2011 to January 2012.