How we compensate
This REDD+ project conserves 182,000 hectares of one of the most threatened ecosystems in the tropical, Peruvian Amazon, through forest management and community programmes.
Protecting this area is of critical importance to the survival of Peru's endemic fauna and flora and creates 500,000 tonnes of emission reductions each year.
Even with the protection of the Peruvian government as one of the nation's Natural Protected Areas, the project area faces intense deforestation, pressure from illegal logging and unsustainable farming practices. Since the mid 1990's a boom in coffee prices has led to surging coffee production and until the implementation of the project in 2008, led to 4000 hectares (7000 football fields) of land being cleared each year.
Voluntary conservation agreements with families living in the region have halted deforestation, in exchange for ecological agriculture training, organisational capacity building, Fair Trade certification, and market linkages that have transformed their livelihoods. The project works to provide land security for the families that inhabit the forest and is establishing new approaches to sustainable farming, primarily in the coffee supply chain. Through conservation agreements, communities receive direct technical assistance aimed at improving ecological health and crop yields. The project is helping farmers to realise the economic value of forest protection and modelling a sustainable development pathway for the Government of Peru and civil society stakeholders, who view this project as a leading example of how REDD+ can support the country's broader conservation and sustainable development goals.
The project is accredited under Voluntary Carbon (VCS) and Climate, Community & Biodiversity (CCB) Standards. This ensures that the project produces genuine carbon emission reductions and supports local communities whilst protecting the fantastic biodiversity of the project region.
Biogas plants enhance economic growth by expanding the farmers' areas of work from cultivation and pig farming to energy production.
Hence, sustainable new economic opportunities are created within the farming sector. Agricultural operations have been shaping the landscape and the way of life in the Dutch Provinces of central and southern Netherlands for several hundred years. Until today, this is a mostly rural region with relatively little heavy industry, where agro-swine industry still plays the significant role. This concentration of livestock has already led to a situation in which the excess manure cannot be disposed of on the fields in the region anymore due to the reached nitrogen absorption limit of the soil.
Excessive amounts of pig manure can cause environmental destruction if not treated and applied appropriately, especially when stored in open tanks. Hence, proper treatment of manure is very important. The digestion of manure in a closed and controlled technical system guarantees a significant reduction of methane gas emissions. It also eliminates the odorous emissions that occur during the application of raw manure to the fields.
The project enhances diversification of the sources of electricity generation and optimises the use of natural resources and wastes. Since the project activity utilise a renewable energy source, it will positively contribute towards the reduction in use of finite natural resources like coal, gas and oil minimising depletion or else increasing its availability to other important processes.
The project is accredited under Voluntary Carbon (VCS) and enables job creation for local, rural communities and farmers. Along the value-chain for the plant, additional business opportunities are created for local logistic, construction and manufacturing companies as well as suppliers. The project plans to further expand the plant to increase capacity.
Many rural communities in Rwanda still lack access to clean water and rely on firewood for cooking and purifying their drinking water, which has wide-reaching environmental, social and economic impacts.
Furthermore, the effects of climate change with a rise of extreme weather events such as droughts places pressure on these local communities. Safe water access therefore holds multiple positive impacts on communities including reducing the need to use firewood, reducing smoke related health risks created by the use of traditional three stone fires, and improving gender equality by reducing the amount of time women spend collecting water.
This project finds a solution by installing new water pumps and rehabilitating existing pumps to provide access to a safe and reliable water supply to rural communities, particularly in dry regions of Rwanda. With a strong focus on community engagement and empowerment, further project activities include water quality testing and training local water resource committees on basic maintenance, as well as educating the rural population on the importance and reasons for appropriate sanitation and hygiene, in an effort to reduce the spread of diseases and improve health and wellbeing.
The project so far provides 90,000 people with access to safe water, 245 million litres of clean, safe water supplied annually and saves around 190,000 tonnes of wood per year usually used to purify water which equates to 10,000 tCO2e reduced emissions each year. Registered under Gold Standard this program is certified to contribute to the UN sustainable development GOAL 3: Good Health and Wellbeing, GOAL 5: Gender Equality, GOAL 6: Clean Water and Sanitation and GOAL 13: Climate Action.
