Sink Projects Research Articles

Establishment of Performance Evaluation Index System of Forestry Carbon Sink Project Based on AHP Method

Forestry carbon sink has multiple functions, such as mitigating and adapting to climate change, restoring vegetation and protecting biodiversity, and realizing the sustainable development of communities, which is of great significance to achieve the carbon neutrality goal. Combined with literature research and project practice, the performance evaluation index system of forestry carbon sink project was established from the four evaluation dimensions of management, implementation, effect and impact, which consist of 4 criterion layers, 12 scheme layers and 40 evaluation elements by Analytic Hierarchy Process(AHP), aiming at better serve the development of forestry carbon sequestration project, and provide reference and guidance for theoretical research and practical activities related to forestry carbon sequestration.

Study on the Development Mode of Forestry Carbon Sink Project Based on Supply Perspective —Take Forest Management Forestry Carbon Sink Project in Tangwanghe,Yichun as an Example

Study on the Development Mode of Forestry Carbon Sink Project Based on Supply Perspective —Take Forest Management Forestry Carbon Sink Project in Tangwanghe,Yichun as an Example

Biodiversity studies through public-private partnership (PPP): The case of Fazenda São Nicolau in the northwest of Mato Grosso.

Peugeot-ONF Forest Carbon Sink Project, located at Fazenda São Nicolau (FSN) in Cotriguaçu Municipality, is a public-private initiative and has been supported by several French and Brazilian institutions. Its Research Program includes studies aiming Biodiversity Conservation, Ecology, Carbon Dynamics, Silvicultural Techniques. FSN comprises a high richness of species with more than 20 new species of beetles (Histeridae, Scarabaeidae e Melolonthidae) described among them one endemic genus. A quick overview of the SuperFamily Scarabaeoidea within the FSN area registered 260 species which nearly 100 species might be new to Science. One new species of fish as well as research with amphibian toxins as tools to treat cancer and malaria are also done with material collected at the FSN. Ecology of the decomposer´s fauna at reforestation sites showed that after 10 years, such places were more similar to native forest sites than pastures or abandoned pastures. Finally large mammals studies indicated that many large mammals use FSN as a refuge. We stress the importance to keep the FSN natural habitats linked with the Juruena National Park. The FSN contour is under heavy deforestation which will increase the species loss and turn FSN in one of the few major natural vegetation fragments.

Analysis of Development Status of Forestry Carbon Sink Project in China Based on CDM Mechanism

Analysis of Development Status of Forestry Carbon Sink Project in China Based on CDM Mechanism

Allometric equations and carbon stocks in tree biomass of Jatropha curcas L. in Senegal’s Peanut Basin

In Senegal, numerous initiatives exist to cultivate Jatropha curcas L. (JCL) trees as a multipurpose energy crop, including for fuel. Thus, research on this drought-resistant shrub has been predominately focused on biofuel production from its seeds, while its potential for carbon (C) sequestration, which could be valuable in sink projects (i.e., afforestation, reforestation) under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) of the Kyoto protocol, has been largely unstudied. This study was carried out in Senegal’s Peanut basin to develop allometric equations for estimating biomass of individual JCL shrubs, JCL plantations, and determining their respective C storage potential. We discovered a three-stage evolution of JCL biomass accumulation. A slow build-up stage (1–3 years), followed by a fast production of biomass (3–4 years), and a relatively slower stage where certain fractions-root and leaf biomass-reach a plateau (4–5 years). The ratio between belowground and aboveground biomass varies from 53% (1 year after planting) and 26% (5 year after planting), with an average of 41%. We developed allometric models that provide a reliable estimation of the different biomass fractions of JCL and according to tree age. The models revealed that the stocks of biomass and C become relatively important from the fifth year with a storage capacity of 5.07 kg per tree. Most of the biomass and organic C are stored in the aboveground fractions of trees, suggesting that JCL plantations may be valuable for C sink and CDM projects.

CO2-Zertifikate – ein Produkt aus Schweizer Wäldern? | CO2 certificates – a product from Swiss forests?

Carbon storage in forests is a valuable service, which can be marketed through climate protection projects. In Switzerland, voluntary projects are in the fore, such as the establishment of forest reserves and the increase of wood stocks in managed forests. Up to now only few such sink projects have been realized, mainly due to low motivation, lacking methodological know-how and poor marketing activities. However, first market transactions show that there is quite a demand for Swiss certificates. In the end, the decision to develop such a product depends on the specific silvicultural and economic situation and is up to the management of each single forest enterprise.

Moving source profile data processing, modelling and comparison with 3D surface seismic data at the CO2SINK project site, ketzin, Germany

ABSTRACTBaseline moving source profiling data were acquired in borehole Ketzin 202/2007 along seven lines at the Ketzin CO2 injection site in 2007. The data were recorded on eight three‐component receivers spaced 10 m apart over a depth interval of 470–540 m. The main objective of the moving source profile survey was to generate high‐resolution seismic images around the borehole. This was especially important given that the 3D surface seismic data in the area have a low fold at the injection site. Mapping of the sandy layers in the target formation (Stuttgart Formation) at around 630 m, the approximate CO2 injection depth, was another objective of the research. A comparison with repeat moving source profile surveys, during and after the injection, will be done in the future. A processing sequence consisting in hodogram analysis, wavefield separation and prestack migration was applied to the moving source profile data. A median filter was used to separate the downgoing and upgoing wave modes. The data were processed to generate depth migrated images in the vicinity of the borehole that could be compared with the 3D surface seismic data. Both the modelling studies that were carried out and the migrated images, indicate that the sandy layers within the Stuttgart Formation can potentially be imaged in the moving source profile data whereas reflections from these layers are not as clearly observed in the 3D surface seismic data.

The Rule and sense of Small-Scale CDM & Sink Projects

The Rule and sense of Small-Scale CDM & Sink Projects

The Monitoring of ARD Activities for Sink Project Area using Satellite Data

The Monitoring of ARD Activities for Sink Project Area using Satellite Data

Regulation of small-scale carbon sink projects in the clean development mechanism from the perspective of aspects of multidisciplinary biodiversity

This paper considers the current regulatory framework of small-scale carbon sinks in the clean development mechanism (CDM). The legal characteristics are assessed from perspectives related to regulation theory. To what extent does CDM regulation support active biodiversity management in the small-scale implementation of afforestation and reforestation projects? After analysing the above question, fresh concepts for better consideration of biodiversity aspects during the implementation of small-scale carbon sink projects in developing countries are presented. These new concepts are examined in the framework of the current process of legal establishment, which seeks to encourage cost-effective project implementation in cases where biodiversity impacts are appropriately taken into account during small-scale projects. Is it possible to create a workable and plausible conceptual set-up for considering additional efforts to preserve and enhance biodiversity while sequestering carbon – and to do it in a way that makes it possible to reward those efforts in the CDM framework? These questions are discussed here in a multidisciplinary manner. It is found that biodiversity specialized carbon management, which includes the new concepts, can be seen as a potential small-scale project framework for maintaining biodiversity and local development in and around a small-scale project area.

3D seismic reflection surveying at the CO2SINK project site, Ketzin, Germany: a study for extracting shallow subsurface information

ABSTRACTThree‐dimensional (3D) reflection seismic data were recorded as part of a pilot scale carbon dioxide (CO2) geological storage project (CO2SINK) with the aim of mapping the structural geometry of the site and providing a 3D baseline prior to CO2 injection. Standard processing originally focused on the storage target, a saline aquifer at 500–700 m depth and successful imaged coherent reflections from 150 ms to 900 ms in the seismic volume. However, the relatively sparse distribution of sources and receivers, the frequency content of the data and artefacts of the processing resulted in the uppermost 150 ms being poorly resolved. This depth range contains caprock, shallow faults and an aquifer system. Thus, characterizing the shallow subsurface is important in terms of site delineation of potential leakage paths and monitoring after CO2 injection. In order to study the potential of mapping the uppermost reflectors and shallow structures associated with major fault zones, a comprehensive reprocessing effort on a subset of the 3D data was performed. The challenge in imaging shallow reflections is dependent upon the separation of ground roll and refracted energy from the reflected energy, as well as compensation for time shifts due to statics. Among the processing sequences, refraction static corrections, careful muting and filtering, velocity analysis and 3D time migration were key steps for enhancing the resolution and coherency of shallow seismic reflections. This study images a previously unmapped horizon, close to the Quaternary‐Tertiary boundary, at about 95–120 ms (~65–90 m depth). Correlation of lateral variations in reflectivity along this boundary, lateral velocity variations in the tomographic image and the seismic signature in modelling studies suggest an aquifer/aquitard complex and variable lithology with associated localized silty or clayey sediments, overlying the Tertiary Rupelton clay unit. In the previous processing it was not clear if the deeper faults imaged on the 3D seismic survey extended to shallower levels than the base Tertiary. Thus, a comprehensive fault detection technique, multi‐attributes and neural networks analysis, was employed in this study to allow a more reliable fault geometry to be interpreted. Tracking of faults in the seismic image and comparisons with a tomography study indicate that some deeper faults may penetrate into the overlying Tertiary unit. These findings are important for understanding potentially risky areas and can be used as a database for future monitoring programmes at the site.

UNFCCC negotiations (pre-Kyoto to COP-9): what the process says about the politics of CDM-sinks

One of the most contentious issues in the negotiations aimed at operationalizing the Kyoto Protocol was the treatment of sinks and, particularly, the eligibility of sinks projects in the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). This paper attempts to analyse the politics underlying these negotiations, drawing on methods of process tracing, key informant interviews, negotiating texts and secondary literature. Tracing the sinks debate and highlighting key lessons about the nature of global environmental agreements and their institutional arrangements is the first step to recounting the history of the politics of one of the major contemporary international environmental debates. The paper shows that the Kyoto Protocol negotiations on sinks and CDM-sinks were multilaterally supported as a practical solution, but went ‘off track’ due to actors’ interests and tradeoffs. As regards future negotiations on forest sinks in developing countries under the framework of the UNFCCC, the paper argues that these are likely to be influenced by similar constraints, and also by the conservation and development agenda of its supporters; as well as the experience gathered on the CDM and the interests and concerns of developing countries. We broadly frame the paper within the literature on global environmental politics.

Climate change mitigation: A spatial analysis of global land suitability for clean development mechanism afforestation and reforestation

Within the Kyoto Protocol, the clean development mechanism (CDM) is an instrument intended to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, while assisting developing countries in achieving sustainable development, with the multiple goals of poverty reduction, environmental benefits and cost-effective emission reductions. The CDM allows for a small percentage of emission reduction credits to come from afforestation and reforestation (CDM-AR) projects. We conducted a global analysis of land suitability for CDM-AR carbon ‘sink’ projects and identified large amounts of land (749 Mha) as biophysically suitable and meeting the CDM-AR eligibility criteria. Forty-six percent of all the suitable areas globally were found in South America and 27% in Sub-Saharan Africa. In Asia, despite the larger land mass, relatively less land was available. In South America and Sub-Saharan Africa the majority of the suitable land was shrubland/grassland or savanna. In Asia the majority of the land was low-intensity agriculture. The sociologic and ecological analyses showed that large amounts of suitable land exhibited relatively low population densities. Many of the most marginal areas were eliminated due to high aridity, which resulted in a generally Gaussian distribution of land productivity classes. If the cap on CDM-AR were raised to compensate for a substantially greater offset of carbon emission through sink projects, this study suggests that it will be increasingly important to consider implications on local to regional food security and local community livelihoods.

3D seismic traveltime tomography imaging of the shallow subsurface at the C O2 SINK project site, Ketzin, Germany

A 3D reflection seismic survey was performed in 2005 at the Ketzin carbon dioxide [Formula: see text] pilot geological-storage site (the [Formula: see text] project) near Berlin, Germany, to image the geological structure of the site to depths of about [Formula: see text]. Because of the acquisition geometry, frequency limitations of the source, and artefacts of the data processing, detailed structures shallower than about [Formula: see text] were unclear. To obtain structural images of the shallow subsurface, we applied 3D traveltime tomography to data near the top of the Ketzin anticline, where faulting is present. Understanding the shallow subsurface structure is important for long-term monitoring aspects of the project after [Formula: see text] has been injected into a saline aquifer at about [Formula: see text] depth. We used a 3D traveltime tomography algorithm based on a combination ofsolving for 3D velocity structure and static corrections in the inversion process to account for artefacts in the velocity structure because of smearing effects from the unconsolidated cover. The resulting velocity model shows low velocities of [Formula: see text] in the uppermost shallow subsurface of the study area. The velocity reaches about [Formula: see text] at a depth of [Formula: see text]. This coincides approximately with the boundary between Quaternary units, which contain the near-surface freshwater reservoir and the Tertiary clay aquitard. Correlation of tomographic images with a similarity attribute slice at [Formula: see text] (about [Formula: see text] depth) indicates that at least one east-west striking fault zone observed in the reflection data might extend into the Tertiary unit. The more detailed images of the shallow subsurface from this study provided valuable information on this potentially risky area.

India's Business Prospects in the Global Emissions Market

This article examines business opportunities for India in the global emissions market. It acknowledges that while many have been critical of outsourcing emissions reduction to developing countries, it nevertheless provides scope to introduce environmentally conducive technologies in industrial processes; thereby reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and in adopting sustainable development practices through developing carbon sink projects. It suggests the scope and role of business managers to stimulate projects under Clean Development Mechanism (CDMs) as part of the Kyoto Protocol, as also projects under joint initiatives for the voluntary carbon market.

Variation in carbon storage among tree species: Implications for the management of a small-scale carbon sink project

Despite growing evidence for an effect of species composition on carbon (C) storage and sequestration, few projects have examined the implications of such a relationship for forestry and agriculture-based climate change mitigation activities. We worked with a community in Eastern Panama to determine the average above- and below-ground C stocks of three land-use types in their territory: managed forest, agroforests and pasture. We examined evidence for a functional relationship between tree-species diversity and C storage in each land-use type, and also explored how the use of particular tree species by community members could affect C storage. We found that managed forests in this landscape stored an average of 335 Mg C ha −1, traditional agroforests an average of 145 Mg C ha −1, and pastures an average of 46 Mg C ha −1 including all vegetation-based C stocks and soil C to 40 cm depth. We did not detect a relationship between diversity and C storage; however, the relative contributions of species to C storage per hectare in forests and agroforests were highly skewed and often were not proportional to species’ relative abundances. We conclude that protecting forests from conversion to pasture would have the greatest positive impact on C stocks, even though the forests are managed by community members for timber and non-timber forest products. However, because several of the tree species that contribute the most to C storage in forests were identified by community members as preferred timber species, we suggest that species-level management will be important to avoiding C-impoverishment through selective logging in these forests. Our data also indicate that expanding agroforests into areas currently under pasture could sequester significant amounts of carbon while providing biodiversity and livelihood benefits that the most common reforestation systems in the region – monoculture teak plantations – do not provide.

Small-scale forest carbon projects: Adapting CDM to low-income communities

Given the decision to include small-scale sinks projects implemented by low-income communities in the clean development mechanism of the Kyoto Protocol, the paper explores some of the basic governance conditions that such carbon forestry projects will have to meet if they are to be successfully put in practice. To date there are no validated small-scale sinks projects and investors have shown little interest in financing such projects, possibly to due to the risks and uncertainties associated with sinks projects. Some suggest however, that carbon has the potential to become a serious commodity on the world market, thus governance over ownership, rights and responsibilities merit discussion. Drawing on the interdisciplinary development, as well as from the literature on livelihoods and democratic decentralization in forestry, the paper explores how to adapt forest carbon projects to the realities encountered in the local context. It also highlights the importance of capitalizing on synergies with other rural development strategies, ensuring stakeholder participation by working with accountable, representative local organizations, and creating flexible and adaptive project designs.

THE EMERGING MARKET IN CARBON CREDITS IN AUSTRALIA

Climate change policy in Australia is in a state of upheaval.The Federal Government, after years of opposing mandatory carbon constraints, has changed tack and is now investigating emissions trading as a possible means of reducing greenhouse gas emissions.With a federal election looming, the Labor Opposition has committed to ratifying the Kyoto Protocol and reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 60% (against 1990 levels) by 2050. Not to be left out, the State governments say they will introduce an emissions trading regime themselves, if the federal government of the day does not move quickly enough.It now seems clear that there will be some form of carbon price signal in Australia within the next five to 10 years. What is unclear is the form that the carbon constraints might take.Amid this policy uncertainty, large energy producers and users are starting to invest in emissions reduction projects in Australia, as a form of risk management for potential future carbon liabilities. These projects are unusual in that the carbon rights that are being traded are not recognised under any existing Australian statutory scheme, nor are they part of the Kyoto mechanisms. Consequently, they are not recognised by law and do not have any real value today. Their value is largely potential future value under some form of emissions trading scheme or carbon tax regime (which places a price on carbon emissions).These projects raise some novel issues for project developers and purchasers. What is the carbon right that is being sold? How do you frame it to maximise flexibility for use under a future carbon constraint regime?How do you ensure ongoing validity of the carbon right for an indefinite period into the future? For carbon sink projects, the purchaser will want some comfort regarding permanence of abatement of CO2 emissions.Project developers are often small start-up companies with few assets and limited cash flow. They may not be in a position to offer securities for performance. What mechanisms can a purchaser use to assist with start-up funding and also secure the rights they are purchasing?What pricing structures are available, particularly for future sales, against the background of a possible future carbon market?What obligations should the developer/seller have in relation to verification, monitoring and reporting of avoided emissions?How might projects be structured to involve multiple buyers to support the project and facilitate development of a market?

Carbon Sequestration by Carbonization of Biomass and Forestation: Three Case Studies

We proposed the carbon sink project called “Carbon Sequestration by Forestation and Carbonization (CFC),” which involves biomass utilization and land conservation by incorporating the products of biomass carbonization into the agents for soil improvement, water purification, etc. Our purpose was to demonstrate the potential of the CFC scheme for carbon sequestration, particularly carbon storage in soil. Case studies were conducted in both developing and developed countries. 1. In southern Sumatra, Indonesia, 88,369 Mg-C year−1 of wood residue from a plantation forest and excess bark from a pulp mill would be converted into 15,571 Mg-C year−1 of the net carbon sink by biochar for soil improvement. The fixed carbon recovery of the system is 21.0%. 2. In a semiarid region in western Australia, the carbonization of wood residue was incorporated with multipurpose projects of a mallee eucalyptus plantation that involved the function of salinity prevention. During the project period of 35 years, the total carbon sink would reach 1,035,450 Mg-C with 14.0% by aboveground biomass, 33.1% by belowground biomass and 52.8% by biochar in soil. 3. In southern Kyushu, Japan, the study was focused on the effective use of surplus heat from a garbage incinerator for carbonizing woody materials. Sawdust of 936.0 Mg-C year−1 would be converted into the net carbon sink of 298.5 Mg-C year−1 by carbonization, with the fixed carbon recovery of the system being 31.9%. Consequently, the CFC project could encourage the creation of a carbon sink in soil. However, we recognize that the quality standard of biochar, the stability of biochar in soil, and the methods for monitoring biochar utilization must be clarified before incorporating biochar carbon into the carbon credit system.

Planting Trees to Mitigate Climate Change: Contested Discourses of Ecological Modernization, Green Governmentality and Civic Environmentalism

Forest plantations or so-called carbon sinks have played a critical role in the climate change negotiations and constitute a central element in the scheme to limit atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations set out by the Kyoto Protocol. This paper examines dominant discursive framings of forest plantation projects in the climate regime. A central proposition is that these projects represent a microcosm of competing and overlapping discourses that are mirrored in debates of global environmental governance. While the win-win discourse of ecological modernization has legitimized the inclusion of sink projects in the Kyoto Protocol, a green governmentality discourse has provided the scientific rationale necessary to turn tropical tree-plantation projects operational on the emerging carbon market. A critical civic environmentalism discourse has contested forest sink projects depicting them as unjust and environmentally unsound strategies to mitigate climate change. The article examines the articulation and institutionalization of these discourses in the climate negotiation process as well as the wider implications for environmental governance.