Sustainable Forest Finance Toolkit - PwC

Forest carbon and otherecosystem services briefing note1 of 5New Application HOMEWhat’s the issue?When forests are harvested, converted or burned at a fasterrate than they grow back, they contribute to climate change.In a sustainably managed forest, logging is balanced by regrowth,but when forest land is converted to other uses therecan be a significant net contribution to greenhouse gasemissions. An estimated 24% of global carbon dioxideemissions are attributable to land-use changes and forestryactivities (Baumert et al., 2005).In addition to storing carbon, forests provide other crucialecosystem services, which are quickly lost if forests are notsustainably managed. The Millennium EcosystemAssessment defines ecosystem services as the benefits thatpeople obtain from ecosystems. The diagram oppositeillustrates these.A diverse group of stakeholders brought together by TheForests Dialogue’s Initiative on Forests and Climate Changein 2008 agreed that:• Forests have a unique ability to simultaneously reducegreenhouse gas emissions, capture carbon, and lessenthe vulnerability of people and ecosystems to climatechange.• Forests store a vast amount of carbon. Conserving thisstore by reducing deforestation and forest degradationand promoting sustainable forest management must beone of the world’s highest priorities.• Restoring forests and planting new forests greatlyincreases the forest-based carbon store. Sustainablymanaged forests not only retain their carbon, they alsosupport the livelihoods of millions of rural people anddeliver many products and ecosystem services, such asthe clean water and wildlife habitat that societies need.• Sustainably harvested forest products and wood-basedbioenergy can reduce greenhouse gas emissions bysubstituting high emission materials such as petrol, steelor concrete for neutral or low emission, renewable ones.• For forests to fully achieve their potential to addressclimate change, their governance must be improved andprocesses established to empower disenfranchisedpeople, including indigenous peoples.Page 55pwc