Guyana's Low-Carbon Forestry Economy

At the preparatory conference of the climate change road map held in Bali early 2008, 27 countries including the US and China agreed that deforestation should be included in the Bali summit. It will create carbon market incentives for sustainable forestry management. It is one essential component of a new low-carbon cleaner-energy economy. Countries like Brazil and Guyana, endowed with huge rainforest resources, have started to identify strategic investments along the Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD) direction.

As reported in the Guyana Chronicle Feb 04, 2009,
Guyana and Norway have agreed that if the world is to prevent irreversible climate change, it is essential that greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation and forest degradation are drastically reduced, given that deforestation and forest degradation currently cause about one fifth of the global emissions.

The leaders from both countries will push for the incorporation of a REDD mechanism in a post-2012 climate change agreement.

Guyana is home to less than a million people and is also home to an intact rainforest larger than the size of England. Scientists estimate that the Iwokrama Reserve in Guyana holds close to 120 million tons of carbon—an amount equivalent to the annual emissions of the UK.

The rainforests have been serving a vital role in averting climate change and preserving biodiversity. Unfortunately, the services provided by the rainforests of the world are not remunerated and this has to change for equity’s sake and for achieving the steep targets that are necessary to stabilize the climate.

		Many parts of Guyana are vulnerable to rising sea level due to changing weather patterns. Most of the country’s productive land and its population are located on a coastal strip 1.4 m below sea-level. The coast line is protected by a 150 km sea wall, mangroves, canals, dykes and conservancies, which are centuries old and require massive upgrading to cope with new challenges. In 2005, floods caused loss of life and economic damage equivalent to 60% of the country’s GDP (Pic: Kaieteur Falls outside the Iwokrama Reserve, Guyana )

Guyana also has the potential to supply the global market with considerable volumes of sugarcane ethanol - a biofuel that can be grown in parts of the country where neither the rain-forest nor other agricultural development is sacrificed. Sugarcane production will create production capacity for this bio-fuel by 2010.

Deforestation results in declines in biodiversity. The Iwokrama Reserve is part of the Guyana Shield, one of the last four intact rainforests left in the world, home to mountains, 200 lakes, rivers flowing over volcanic dykes, lowland tropical rainforests, palm forests, and sheltering some of the world's most endangered species, including jaguars, harpy eagles, giant anteaters, giant river otters, anacondas, black caimans and giant river turtles.


Poison arrow frog		Forest pit-viper		Guyana jaguar

President Jagdeo's preferred models are those with low-carbon and rigorous business opportunities; enable profitable returns on the use of roads built, create job opportunities whilst ensuring forest conservation. His visionary approach demonstrates that conservation, environmental balance and sustainable economic activity can be mutually reinforcing:

"Forests do much more for us than just store carbon. We should move beyond emissions-based trading to measure and place a value on all the services they provide."

Norway has pledged up to about $430 million per year to reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries. So far, it has committed up to $1 billion to Brazil's Sustainable Amazon Fund provided the South American country meet targets for reducing deforestation. Guyana is getting significant backing, including financial support, from Norway, for its model.

References and related news:

Government of Guyana - Guyana's low carbon development vision
Norway to pay Guyana to save its rainforests
Guyanachronicle.com

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