Assessing data availability for the development of REDD-plus national reference levels

Chisa Umemiya,Suphawadee Wilamart,Masahiro Amano

doi:10.1186/1750-0680-5-6

Abstract

BackgroundData availability in developing countries is known to be extremely varied and is one of the constraints for setting the national reference levels (RLs) for the REDD-plus (i.e. 'Policy approaches and positive incentives on issues relating to 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 in developing countries') under the UNFCCC. Taking Thailand as a case study country, this paper compares three types of RLs, which require different levels of datasets, including a simple historic RL, a projected forest-trend RL, and a business-as-usual (BAU) RL.ResultsOther than the finding that different RLs yielded different estimations on future deforestation areas, the analysis also identified the characteristics of each RL. The historical RL demanded simple data, but can be varied in accordance with a reference year or period. The forest-trend RL can be more reliable than the historical RL, if the country's deforestation trend curve is formed smoothly. The complicated BAU RL is useful as it can demonstrate the additionality of REDD-plus activities and distinguish the country's unintentional efforts.ConclusionsWith the REDD-plus that involves widespread participation, there should be steps from which countries choose the appropriate RL; ranging from simpler to more complex measures, in accordance with data availability in each country. Once registered with REDD-plus, the countries with weak capacity and capability should be supported to enhance the data collection system in that country.

Highlights

Data availability in developing countries is known to be extremely varied and is one of the constraints for setting the national reference levels (RLs) for the REDD-plus (i.e. ‘Policy approaches and positive incentives on issues relating to 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 in developing countries’) under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
Recognising the critical role of tropical forests in combating climate change, it is expected that an agreement under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) will be made with regard to: ‘Policy approaches and positive incentives on issues relating to 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 in developing countries’ (’REDD-plus’) [3,4]
Historical RL The area of forest loss per year and that averaged for the period of five years are presented in Figure 2(a) and

Summary

Introduction

Data availability in developing countries is known to be extremely varied and is one of the constraints for setting the national reference levels (RLs) for the REDD-plus (i.e. ‘Policy approaches and positive incentives on issues relating to 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 in developing countries’) under the UNFCCC. ‘Policy approaches and positive incentives on issues relating to 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 in developing countries’) under the UNFCCC. Recognising the critical role of tropical forests in combating climate change, it is expected that an agreement under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) will be made with regard to: ‘Policy approaches and positive incentives on issues relating to 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 in developing countries’ (’REDD-plus’) [3,4]. It is useful to compare different levels of experience in the preparation of inventories, which could indicate some disparities in countries’ capacities for estimating RLs, including the availability of data. Without fully taking into account such disparities in data availability among countries, there would be difficulty in ensuring widespread participation in REDD-plus [8]

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Discussion

Conclusion