Forestry, Land Conservation and Restoration

 

 

 

Status: The Forestry, Land Conservation and Restoration Criteria is available for use in certifications. Get in contact with certification@climatebonds.net(link sends e-mail)to start the certification process of your green bond. 

Bonds and loans linked to these eligible assets and projects will be aligned with the Paris Agreement 1.5oC limit.

We held 2 live Webinars on the Forestry Criteria in June and July 2018. The recording of this webinar, may be a useful introduction to the criteria requirements.

 

 

What are the Forestry, Land Conservation and Restoration Criteria?

For many countries and regions, land conservation and restoration is important both environmentally and economically. These habitats and thus their related investments can form a significant part of the capital assets of these countries. The UNFCCC has estimated that financial flows required to meet natural ecosystem protection needs are estimated at an increase in annual expenditure of USD 12–22 billion[1]. A clear understanding of what sorts of investments are consistent with improving the climate resilience of conserved or restored land assets will help bond investors quickly determine the environmental credentials of green bonds related to land conservation and restoration.

The Land Conservation & Restoration requirements of the Forestry Criteria lay out the requirements that land conservation and restoration assets and/or projects must meet to be eligible for inclusion in a Certified Climate Bond. The bond must also meet the reporting and transparency requirements of the overarching Climate Bonds Standard in order to receive Certification.

The scope of the Criteria includes any natural, non-commercial landscape, including wetland, peatland, grassland (and savannahs), and desert landscapes

Forestry is an integral industry for many developed and developing countries and forestry-related investments thus form a huge part of the capital assets of these countries. The UNFCCC has estimated that, globally, an additional USD 14 billion in financial flows will be required to address climate impacts in agriculture, forestry, and fisheries in 2030[1]. For forestry more specifically, UNEP estimates that USD 17-33 billion per year is required to achieve a 50% reduction in deforestation by 2030. A clear understanding of what sorts of investments are consistent with improving the climate resilience of forestry assets will allow bond investors to quickly determine the environmental credentials of forest-related green bonds. 

These Criteria lay out the requirements that assets or projects must meet to be eligible for inclusion in a Certified Climate Bond. The bond must also meet the reporting and transparency requirements of the overarching Climate Bonds Standard in order to receive Certification.

 

Scope of Criteria

The type of projects which can receive Certification are:

 

 

Development of Forestry, Land Conservation and Restoration Criteria

Development of the Criteria originally began through scoping and testing criteria for wider Land Use. However, it was decided that to improve the ambition of each the Criteria, the land sector should be tackled by several separate criteria. Development of the Forestry, Land Conservation and Restoration Criteria with a separate Criteria for Agriculture followed.

To create the Criteria, we convened a Technical Working Groups (TWG) and an Industry Working Group (IWG) with representatives from investors, public entities, environmental and forestry NGOs and international policy bodies from around the world.

Forestry Criteria Technical Working Group Members

Lead Specialist

Versant Vision Christine Negra

 

Eco System Service Limited Stuart Clenaghan	Agrobanco Torsten Boettcher	University of Oxford Sergio Collaço de Carvalho	Forest Trends Rupert Edwards