***********************************************
WORLDWIDE
FOREST/BIODIVERSITY CAMPAIGN NEWS
Plan to
Protect Bolivian Rainforests and Offset Greenhouse Gases
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Forest
Networking a Project of Ecological Enterprises
http://forests.org/
12/9/96
OVERVIEW
& SOURCE by EE
In a
highly interesting international project, Bolivia is to be
compensated
for rainforest protection on the basis of the forest's
ability
to mitigate global emissions of greenhouse gases. This move
is
worthy of support for a number of reasons.
It recognizes the
necessity
of large transfers of resources, in this case financial but
also
technical, which will be necessary to bolster attempts to
conserve
and manage rainforests and adjacent lands.
This plan also
recognizes
the links between various ecological systems and the
environmental
problems that each face. As a word of
caution, it would
be
foolish to think that carbon emissions can trend upwards
indefinitely
because of forests carbon sequestration.
Nonetheless,
this
seems to be an innovative effort to reduce atmospheric carbon
while
making the resources necessary for specific forest conservation
to
occur. The following photocopy comes
from PR Newswire.
g.b.
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RELAYED
TEXT STARTS HERE:
Vice
President Gore Announces Approval of International Project to
Protect
Bolivian Rain Forest and Offset Greenhouse Gases;
American
Electric Power and The Nature Conservancy Partner With
Bolivian
NGO on Carbon Sequestration Project
SANTA
CRUZ, Bolivia, Dec. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- Vice President Al Gore
will
join Bolivian President Gonzolo Sanchez de Lozada today to
announce
U.S. and Bolivian government approval of an international
effort
to mitigate global emissions of greenhouse gases by protecting
2.2
million acres of endangered tropical rain forest and promoting
sustainable
development in and around Noel Kempff Mercado National
Park in
Santa Cruz, Bolivia.
American
Electric Power (AEP) has joined forces with The Nature
Conservancy
(TNC) and Fundacion Amigos de la Naturaleza (FAN) to
develop
the Noel Kempff Mercado Climate Action Project with the goal
of
simultaneously protecting a large tract of rain forest and
mitigating
global greenhouse gas emissions -- a goal outlined in the
1992
Framework Convention on Climate Change (FCCC) developed during
the Rio
Earth Summit.
Under
the terms of the FCCC, the U.S. and more than 150 other
countries
committed to balancing greenhouse gas emissions. Forests
act as
a "sink" for greenhouse gases and experts project that
protection
of these 2.2 million acres may offset as much as 14.5
million
metric tons of carbon (C02) over 30 years.
A portion of these
offsets
will be shared by Bolivia with the project's investors.
The
activities of this project will take place under the U.S.
Initiative
on Joint Implementation, which supports pilot conservation
projects
between U.S. companies and other organizations in other
countries.
"This
breakthrough agreement offers a compelling model for achieving
our
international environmental goals," said Vice President Gore. "I
want to
salute the Bolivians, The Nature Conservancy and AEP for
bringing
about this victory for our common natural heritage. This
will
put us another step closer toward developing innovative
mechanisms
to combat the potential threats of global warming."
A
similar carbon sequestration project is underway in Belize, but this
is the
first project of its kind in South America.
"This is the type
of
project I have envisioned since the beginning of my term: a
sustainable
development project that provides for the conservation of
natural
resources without limiting the development of our country, but
rather
improving our quality of life and opening new and promising
opportunities
for our people. This is a novel
solution to an old
problem,"
said President Sanchez de Lozada.
The
project which will continue for 30 years, calls for the long-term
protection
of Noel Kempff Mercado National Park by:
expanding the
park's
boundaries; providing technical assistance to area logging
firms
on low-impact logging practices; establishing a genetic
resources
and ornamental plant and flower venture; and supporting an
eco-tourism
program that will provide income to the park while
improving
the standard of living for local communities.
An
investment of $8.78 million will be made in the project. In
addition
to providing funding for the development of the proposal, AEP
plans
to raise about $7 million by selling shares in the project to
other
U.S. companies. The Nature Conservancy will provide financial,
management,
and technical support for the project, and FAN will
implement
the project and provide additional financial support.
"AEP's
partnership with TNC and FAN represents an extension of our
ongoing
efforts to find innovative, cost-effective ways to mitigate
greenhouse
gas emissions," said Dr. E. Linn Draper, Jr., AEP chairman,
president
and CEO. "AEP is proud to be part of this historic endeavor,
and we
are confident this project will help demonstrate the viability
of
joint implementation strategies to mitigate greenhouse gas
emissions."
"Lots
of projects are described as 'win-win,' but this really does
benefit
all parties involved," Watson said.
"It will help Bolivia
achieve
its economic and sustainable development goals; provides AEP
with
low-cost mechanisms for reaching its environmental goals; and for
the
Conservancy, it demonstrates an exciting new technique for
conserving
living natural resources while helping to reach global
goals
of reducing greenhouse gas emissions."
"This
climate action project represents the crowning achievement of
FAN's
efforts to assure that the area's important ecosystems are
represented
within the park's boundaries are adequately protected.
Additionally,
this project provides for the participation of the local
communities
in such a way as to concretely support the improvement of
their
quality of life. The project's
financial mechanisms make
possible
and viable the cost-effective mitigation of greenhouse
gases,"
said FAN's executive director, Hermes Justiniano.
Noel
Kempff Mercado National Park is located in the extreme northeast
of the
Department of Santa Cruz, bordering Brazil.
The park is home
to as
many as 700 bird species and many mammal species, including the
South
American tapir, the jaguar, spider monkey, howler monkey, giant
anteater,
and giant armadillo. The park's
expansion area is
threatened
by poaching, logging, and unplanned conversion to slash-
and-burn
agriculture.
FAN is
a private, non-profit organization based in Santa Cruz,
Bolivia,
that has assisted the National Department of Conservation of
Biodiversity
(DCNB), under the Bolivian Ministry of Sustainable
Development
and Environment, with the protection and management of
Noel
Kempff Mercado and Amboro National Parks.
The
Nature Conservancy is an international, non-profit organization
that
protects plants, animals, and natural communities by protecting
the
lands and waters they need to survive.
Working with partners, the
Conservancy
has helped protect nearly 10 million acres in the United
States,
and more than 57 million acres in Latin America, the
Caribbean,
and the Asia/Pacific region.
Based
in Columbus, Ohio, AEP is one of the United States' largest
investor-owned
utilities and provides electric energy to 7 million
people
in Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, West Virginia, Virginia, Tennessee,
and
Kentucky. Wholly-owned subsidiaries of AEP provide power
engineering,
consulting and management services throughout the world.
CONTACT:
Laura Viani, 703-841-8743, or Maria Naehu, 703-841-4220, both
of The
Nature Conservancy; or Tanya Madison of AEP, 614-223-1656, or
pager,
888-935-7846
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