Carbon Sequestration Projects in the Peruvian Tropical Forest: Payments for Environmental Services at the Intercept of Climate Protection and Development

Teresa Rojas Lara, Universität Hohenheim

Peru has the fourth largest area of tropical forest in the world. Like in many other tropical countries, a great part of its population lives below the poverty line, which puts special pressure on natural resources. Unsustainable practices such as shifting cultivation and slash and burn techniques, among others, contribute to deforestation and land use changes which account for around 60% of Peru’s greenhouse gas emissions. In this context, payments for environmental services (PES) could constitute a way to cope with these problems and contribute to creating sustainable projects which serve as a carbon sink, help avoid deforestation and provide options for economic development and poverty alleviation. Currently, some efforts to mitigate the greenhouse gas effects through the establishment of forestry-based systems are in process in Peru. As these projects directly involve poor communities, it would be necessary to determine whether these projects can also contribute to the reduction of rural poverty and increase the income of farmers. This study aims to assess the impact of carbon sequestration payments for different forest management systems and to analyze factors which can contribute to the adoption of such projects. Furthermore, national and international policies such as the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) that could act as driving forces to spread carbon-forest-projects shall be identified and evaluated.

The necessary data will be collected in a household survey in Chulucanas District (north of Peru) and Cerro Verde District (Peruvian Amazon), as well as interviews with key stakeholders in different areas of Peru.

For this study, a combination of qualitative and quantitative research design was selected. The qualitative research will assess the institutional arrangements of these projects, whereas the quantitative research will explore at the household level, the potential of these payments as an incentive for the adoption of more environmentally friendly land use systems, as well as their ability to act as a mechanism for forest conservation and poverty alleviation. It is envisaged to use a comparative multi period linear programming model to analyze household behavior and changes due to the introduction of the policy option of carbon payments in different forest management. Finally, different scenarios will be introduced into the model, which assess different payment options for carbon sequestration, as well as, one scenario with payments for reduce emissions for deforestation and forest degradation (REDD).