John Costenbader

Sr. Consultant, Climate Focus

National consultation on Papua New Guinea forest and REDD+

related policy & legislationPort Moresby, Papua New Guinea

25 July 2014

Overview of REDD+ and

Main Policy & Legal Issues

Objectives

1. Understand REDD+ in the context of evolving international forest and climate policy

2. Consider forest and land use sector law and policy needs & challenges for REDD+

Structure

I. Overview of REDD+

1. Basic Background

2. Key Elements

II. Main Legal/Policy Issues for REDD+

1. Substantive & Procedural Issues

2. Practical Options

Part I

Overview of REDD+

What is REDD+?

Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation in developing countries; and the role of conservation, sustainable management of forests and enhancement of forest carbon stocks

1. Basic Background

• REDD+ broadens policy focus from forest conservation to climate change mitigation.o Underlying problems remain the same and basing forest

conservation on emissions has its own challenges.

• For REDD+ to succeed, causes of deforestation and degradation must be addressed.o Causes may be local, national or international, and are often

cross-sectoral;

o Main causes: agricultural expansion & unsustainable logging.

1. Basic Background

• REDD+ differs from traditional approaches in its national-level performance basis;‡

• Develping countries able to reduce deforestation/degradation relative to a reference time period can receive financial compensation.

• Goal is emissions reductions but potentially multiple benefits.

1. Basic Background

Phase 1: Developing strategies &

plans, policies & measures; capacity building;

Phase 2: Implementation

of strategies, policies and

measures; pilot projects

Phase 3: Result-based actions fully measured,

reported and verified.

Scale

National with sub-national as an interim measure.

Phased approach

1. Evolution of REDD+, 2005-2014

2005

• RED

• (Direct) compensationpayment for avoided deforestation

• Criterion: avoided emissions

• Financing: international offsets from cap & trade mechanisms

• Pilot projects with state/ national strategy

2014

• REDD+

• (Direct or indirect) incentives for forest conservation, sustainable management, restoration

• Criteria: reduced emissions, carbon stocks + safeguards, MRV

• Financing: mix of sources, major potential: international payment for performance

• Jurisdictional (nested) programs

2. Key elements of REDD+ system

1. Reference level;

2. Monitoring, reporting and verification;

3. Financing;

4. Incentive allocation;

5. Safeguards.

Reference level: A baseline for assessing performance in reducing emissions, expressed in tons of carbon dioxide equivalent per year.

Historical emissions from deforestation

Projected emissions without REDD+Reference level

Ton

ne

sC

02eq

Implementation of REDD+ Policies and Measures (PAMs)

Actual emissions with REDD+

REDD+ Payments

2.1 Reference level

Time

Forest carbon measurement:

Combines remote sensing and inventory data

2.2 Measurement, Reporting & Verification

2.2 Measurement, Reporting & Verification

2.3 Financing

• Private

• voluntary carbon markets & projects;

• Public

• UNFCCC agreement;

• bilateral agreements;

• multilateral funds:

2.4 Incentive allocation

• Form of incentives at different levels:

o Cash?

o Development support?

• In return for:

o Implementation of policies & measures?

o Emissions reductions?

o Both?

2.5 Safeguards

Cancun Safeguards (2011):

(a) Follow nat’l forest programs, int’l conventions & agreements;

(b) Transparent and effective national forest governance structures;

(c) Respect knowledge and rights of indigenous and local people, noting UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP);

(d) Full and effective participation of relevant stakeholders;

(e) Consistent with conserving natural forests & biodiversity

(f) Actions to address the risks of reversals;

(g) Actions to reduce displacement of emissions.

Part II

Policy & Legal Issues for REDD+

Importance & challenge of REDD+ law & policy

Forest and Land Use Change: 10-20% of overall emissions

How to develop a system that is:

• Functional;

• Measurable;

• Just;

• Evolving…

• … and Simple???

Main Policy & Law Issues for REDD+

1. Substantive Issues:1. Land, Forest & Carbon Rights

2. Institutional Arrangements

3. Implementation

4. Land-Use Planning

5. (Et al. Issues)

2. Procedural Approaches:

1. Balancing Policy, Legislation & Regulation

1.1 Land, Forest & Carbon Tenure

• Legal provisions on scope & ownership of rights• Recognition of traditional rights, community

forests

• Gaps or conflicts in land, forest, carbon rights regulations

• Identification of persons possessing rights

• Systems for registration of rights

1.2 Institutional Arrangements

• Institutions designated for forest & climate change program design & implementation

• Horizontal (inter-agency, inter-sectoral) & vertical(central-provincial-local) coordination

1.3 Land Use Planning

• Coordination/harmonization across:

• land use & related economic sectors

• national and provincial levels

• Forest/land use maps; prioritization of areas; identification of eligible activities & actors

1.4 Implementation

• Regulations for implementing national & sub-national law

• (but… overregulation problem)

• Capacity of administrative, legislative and judiciary branches in policy development, implementation, oversight process

1.5 Et al. Law & Policy Issues

i. Incentive allocation

ii. Safeguards

iii. Gender mainstreaming

iv. Measurement & MRV

2.1 REDD+ Procedural Approaches

Main questions: • Subnational or national leadership?• Branches involved:

• Executive policy or regulation?• Parliament legislation?

• New law or existing law?• How much to include, and where?• Where to start?

Brazil Mexico Indonesia DRC

Policy Environmental Policy Climate Change Policy National Plan on Climate

Change Plan for the Prevention

and Control of Deforestation in Legal Amazon

[Draft REDD+ Strategy]

National REDD+ Strategy

National REDD+ Strategy

Legislation Constitution [Draft REDD+ Law] Forest Code Public Forest Mgmt. Law National Climate Change

Policy (Law) Legal Land Program Access to Information

Law Environmental

Information Law

Constitution General Climate

Change Law General Law for

Sustainable Forest Development

General Environmental Protection Law

Agrarian Law Sustainable Rural

Development Law

Constitution Forestry Law Agrarian Law Regional Autonomy Law Fiscal Balance Law Spatial Planning Law

Constitution Forest Code Land Tenure Code Agriculture Code Decentralization

Law

Regulation Public Forest Mgmt. Law Decree

National Climate Change Policy Decree

• Law for Sustainable Forest Development Decree

Implementation of Forest Carbon (Reg. 20)

REDD+ Demonstration Activities (Reg. 68)

REDD+ Implementation (Reg. 30)

Licensing Carbon Sequestration and Storage (Decree 36)

Establishing REDD+ Task Force (Decree 30)

* REDD+ImplementationStructure (Decree09/40)

Conclusions

• Evolution in REDD+, from:• projects to programs, and • private to public finance

• Importance of creatively adapting REDD+ to national & subnational contexts• No one best system• “With or without REDD+”

• Need to consider science and (subnational, national, international) policy contexts

Thank you!

John Costenbaderj.costenbader@climatefocus.com