Keeping the rainforest breathing for the world: Waterloo pays for Guyanese forest to keep going
Each day at least 80,000 acres (32,300 ha) of tropical forest disappear from Earth driven by agricultural businesses (palm oil, soya, beef) supplying demand in the western world. This deforestation is the second largest cause of global greenhouse gas emissions accounting for 18% (Stern); only power at 24% is greater. Tropical deforestation has huge implications for our climate.
The ecosystem services that the tropical forests provide for us all are hugely important. Firstly, they regulate the climate, absorbing heat, storing CO2 but also (and only newly understood) they create rainfall and the ensuing weather systems. Deforestation in SE Asia from palm oil growers could lead to serious effects on precipitation and weather in Southern Europe. Secondly, the biodiversity that forests sustain is vital to the pollination of crops and has been estimated to contribute $12 billion per year to agriculture. Thirdly, forests also play a crucial role in stabilising soil - just a century ago, 35% of Ethiopia was covered in forest, by 2000 this cover had declined to 4.2%, resulting in desertification which has contributed to decades of famine.
In order to preserve these ecosystem services The Waterloo Foundation invested in a pioneering deal with Canopy Capital, to secure the ecosystem services of a part of the Iwokrama nature reserve in Guyana. This ground-breaking deal has effectively priced the ‘utility value’ of rainforests opening the door to the future trading of such services on the global markets. Such a market could generate billions of dollars for developing nations, making it more valuable for them to keep their forests standing than to cut them down.
This visionary approach to safeguarding forests is being piloted in the Iwokrama Reserve in Guyana. The pristine million-acre reserve lies at the heart of the Guyana Shield, one of the four intact rainforest systems left in the world. The funds secured from Canopy Capital will be used to continue the management of the Iwokrama forest in accordance with its philosophy of conservation through sustainable best practice, providing livelihoods and business partnerships for the 7,000 people living in the forest and the surrounding area. Expressing the sentiments of the whole community, Iwokrama Head Ranger Ron Allicock said “I love this place. This is my home. I want it to be around for my children, my children's children, for ever.”
To learn more about the Canopy Capital deal in Iwokrama, please go to www.canopycapital.co.uk |
