Assisting Cambodian Policymakers with Designing REDD Plus Approaches under a Post- 2012 International Climate Change Policy Framework David Ashwell Matthew Ogonowski Seiha Neou Callum McCulloch CENTER FOR CLEAN AIR POLICY ECO SYSTEMS INITIATIVE ECONOMIC INSTITUTE OF CAMBODIA April 2011 CENTER FOR CLEAN AIR POLICY ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This report was prepared by Mr. David Ashwell, Mr. Matthew Ogonowski of the Center for Clean Air Policy (CCAP), Mr. Seiha Neou of the Economic Institute of Cambodia (EIC), and Mr. Callum McCulloch, with the support of the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC). The authors would like to thank HE Dr. Mok Mareth, Senior Minister and Minister for the Environment, for his support in undertaking the assessment. HE Thuk Kroeun Vutha, Secretary of State for the Ministry of Environment responsible for Climate Change, provided guidance on arrangements for working with the Ministry’s Cambodian Climate Change Department (CCD) and other government agencies. Dr. Tin Ponlok, Mr. Sum Thy and Mr. Chea Chanthou of the CCD provided ongoing support to the assessment in the form of additional guidance, liaison with other government agencies and the Interim REDD+ Taskforce. Staff of the CCD also took full responsibility for the organization of the kick-off and final project workshops in March 2009 and June 2010. The work also benefited from the discussions and views expressed by participants at the final project workshop in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. We would also like to thank Dr. Madhurjya Kumar Dutta for the support of the Economic Institute of Cambodia (EIC) and for coordination of the economic analysis. Mr. Paul Gager (Aruna Technologies) and Mr. Choun Phirom (FFI) undertook GIS mapping and analyses. The authors would also like to thank Mr. Andrew McNaughton (Mekong Rain Natural Foods Co. Ltd), Ms. Lesley Perlman (Wildlife Alliance), Ms. Amanda Bradley (PACT), Mr. Frank Momberg (FFI), Mr. Tom Clements (WCS), Mr. Graeme Brown, Mr. Khou Eang Hourt, Mr. Jeremy Broadhead (FAO), Mr. Marcus Hardtke, Dr. Supote Senphon, Ms. Vittoria Elliot (Frontier), and Mr. Khim Lay (UNDP) for the support, comments and information provided. The assistance of Wildlife Alliance in the facilitation of field visits is also much appreciated. The authors also wish to express their gratitude to CCAP, the main sponsor of this report, and especially to Mr. Ned Helme, Mr. William Whitesell, Ms. Sally Schlichting, Ms. Diana Movius, Mr. Anmol Vanamali and Ms. Saba Raza. The authors would like to thank Øyvind Dahl and the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad) for their generous financial support for the project. For avoidance of any doubt and for the purpose of clarity, the authors wish to state that this report is based on an independent study, and the contents of the report reflect their views and not necessarily the views of the Cambodian or Norwegian governments. The Eco Systems Initiative kindly provided supplementary financial support for Mr. Ashwell. The report has been shared for comment with the Royal Government of Cambodia, but the results have not been peer reviewed and are subject to further refinement. Citation: Ashwell, D.A., Ogonowski, M., Neou, S. and McCulloch, C. (2010) Assisting Cambodian Policymakers with Designing REDD Plus Approaches under a Post-2012 International Climate Change Policy Framework. Center for Clean Air Policy, the Eco Systems Initiative and the Economic Institute of Cambodia. CCAP Forestry and Climate Change Program Report. Washington, D.C. TABLE OF CONTENTS ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS ......................................................................................... v 1. Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 1 1.1. International REDD Policy and Project Background .................................................... 1 1.2. Project Focus, Approach and Methodology ................................................................ 3 1.3. Report Structure ......................................................................................................... 4 2. Cambodia’s Forests and Climate Change ........................................................................... 6 2.1. Development Context ................................................................................................. 6 2.2. Cambodia’s Forests .................................................................................................... 7 2.3. Cambodia’s Protected Areas System ........................................................................10 3. Case Study Overview.........................................................................................................20 3.1. Objectives and Approach ...........................................................................................20 3.2. Selection of Case Study Area ....................................................................................21 3.3. The Coastal Hinterlands Case Study Landscape .......................................................23 3.4. Target Area ...............................................................................................................25 4. Historical, Current and Potential Carbon Stock Estimates ..................................................27 4.1. Objectives and Approach ...........................................................................................27 4.2. Source Data and Calculations ...................................................................................27 4.3. Methods for Estimating Carbon Stocks ......................................................................31 4.4. Results of Carbon Stock Estimates ............................................................................32 5. Deforestation Baseline .......................................................................................................35 5.1. Objectives and Approach ...........................................................................................35 5.2. Methodology ..............................................................................................................35 5.3. Results ......................................................................................................................37 6. Opportunity Cost Analysis of Alternative Land Uses ..........................................................42 6.1. Overview of Study Crops in Cambodia ......................................................................42 6.2. Methods for Economic Analysis .................................................................................47 6.3. Summary of Results: Opportunity Costs of Study Crops ............................................49 6.4. Policy Implications .....................................................................................................50 6.5. Sensitivity of Analysis ................................................................................................51 7. The Cost of REDD in the Koh Kong Target Area................................................................52 7.1. Approach and Methods ..............................................................................................52 7.2. Results - Net Present Value .......................................................................................52 8. Policy Blueprint: Protected Areas and REDD Plus in Cambodia ........................................55 8.1. Purpose .....................................................................................................................55 8.2. Principles for a Policy Framework ..............................................................................55 8.3. Policy Elements .........................................................................................................55 8.4. Barriers and Challenges ............................................................................................59 8.5. Potential Co-Benefits .................................................................................................59 8.6. Implementation Guidance ..........................................................................................60 9. Policy Blueprint: Enhancement of Carbon Stocks through Forest Rehabilitation ................64 9.1. Quantitative Analysis .................................................................................................64 9.2. Policy Discussion .......................................................................................................64 9.3. Barriers and Implementation Guidance ......................................................................65 10. National and International Implications of Cambodia Analysis .......................................68 10.1. Capacity ....................................................................................................................68 10.2. Policy .........................................................................................................................69 10.3. Baselines ...................................................................................................................71 10.4. Scale .........................................................................................................................72 References ...............................................................................................................................74 Center for Clean Air Policy iii Annex I: Summary Report