Metrics and Equivalence in Conservation Banking
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Banking Nature? the Spectacular Financialisation of Environmental Conservation
Banking Nature? The Spectacular Financialisation of Environmental Conservation Sian Sullivan Department of Geography, Environment and Development Studies, Birkbeck, University of London, London, UK; [email protected] Abstract: In this paper I emphasise the financialisation of environmental conservation as 1. the turning of financiers to conservation parameters as a new frontier for investment, and 2. the rewriting of conservation practice and nonhuman worlds in terms of banking and financial categories. I introduce financialisation as a broadly controlling impetus with relevance for environmental conservation. I then note ways in which a spectacular investment frontier in conservation is being opened. I highlight the draw of assertions of lucrative gains, combined with notions of geographical substitutability, in creating tradable indicators of environmental health and harm. I disaggregate financialisation strategies into four categories—nature finance, nature work, nature banking and nature derivatives—and assess their implications. The concluding section embraces Marx and Foucault as complementary thinkers in understanding the transforming intensifications of late capitalism in environmental conservation, and diagnosing their associated effects and costs. Keywords: financialisation, environmental conservation, frontier, primitive accumulation, environmentality, Marx, Foucault Introduction: Nature’s Growing Financial “Value” Economic growth and the natural environment are mutually compatible. Sustainable economic growth relies on services provided by the natural environment, often referred to as “ecosystem services” ... [P]rotected natural areas can yield returns many times higher than the costs of their protection. There are multi-million pound opportunities available from greener goods and services, and from markets that protect nature’s services. Too many of the benefits we derive from nature are not properly valued. -
IUCN World Conservation Congress
S IUCN Resolutions, Recommendations and other Decisions World Conservation Congress Honolulu, Hawai‘i, United States of America 6 –10 September 2016 IUCN Resolutions, Recommendations and other Decisions World Conservation Congress Honolulu, Hawai‘i, United States of America 6–10 September 2016 The designation of geographical entities in this book, and the presentation of the material, do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of IUCN concerning the legal status of any country, territory, or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of IUCN. Published by: IUCN, Gland, Switzerland Copyright: © 2016 International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources Reproduction of this publication for educational or other non-commercial purposes is authorised without prior written permission from the copyright holder provided the source is fully acknowledged. Reproduction of this publication for resale or other commercial purposes is prohibited without prior written permission of the copyright holder. Citation: IUCN (2016). IUCN Resolutions, Recommendations and other Decisions. Gland, Switzerland: IUCN. 106pp. Produced by: IUCN Publications Unit Available for download from: www.iucn.org/resources/publications Contents Foreword 5 Acknowledgements 8 Table of Resolutions, Recommendations and other Decisions 10 Resolutions 17 Recommendations 216 Other Decisions 244 Annex 1 – Explanation of votes 248 Annex 2 – Statement of the United States Government on the IUCN Motions Process 297 3 Foreword It is with great pleasure that the Resolutions Committee hereby forwards to IUCN Members, Commission members, IUCN Secretariat staff, other Congress participants and all interested parties, the Resolutions and Recommendations as well as other key decisions adopted by the Members’ Assembly at the World Conservation Congress held in Hawai‘i, United States of America, 1–10 September 2016. -
Title: Using Carbon Investment to Grow the Biodiversity Bank
The following submission argues for a recognition of the biodiversity A version of this submission has been accepted for publication in the journal Conservation Biology Title: Using carbon investment to grow the biodiversity bank Authors’ addresses: Sarah A. Bekessy* and Brendan A. Wintle † * School of Global Studies, Social Science and Planning, RMIT University, GPO Box 2476V, Melbourne 3001, Australia † School of Botany, University of Melbourne 3010, Australia Introduction The fervour with which carbon initiatives are being adopted (Capoor & Ambrosi 2007) presents a unique opportunity to restore biodiversity while creating new financial and marketing incentives for investors. We argue that current approaches to carbon offsetting that rely largely on investment in monoculture plantations will rapidly lose appeal as the public becomes aware of their dubious carbon benefits (Guo & Gifford 2002; Glenday 2006) and the related environmental and social harm that they may bring (Jackson et al. 2005; Lamb et al. 2005). Here we describe a scheme that is more robust to uncertainty about carbon sequestration and is guaranteed to have broad environmental benefits, including restoration of degraded natural systems and endangered species habitats. The proposed scheme provides a mechanism for investing in the worlds most threatened ecosystems that makes carbon, biodiversity, and financial sense. The idea is simple: investors should be allowed to reap the dual benefits of carbon and biodiversity credits from the one parcel of land and those credits could later be traded on the relevant markets. Current approaches place investors’ hopes in future carbon and timber values that may be risky given available evidence about the real sequestration value of short rotation plantations (Guo & Gifford 2002) and the rapid rise in monoculture plantation projects (FAO 2005) potentially leading to a reduction in demand and a slowing of the plantation timber market. -
INVENTORY of INCENTIVES for Community-Based Conservation
INVENTORY OF INCENTIVES for community-based conservation 1 Cate- # Name Implementing body Country Summary References INVENTORY OF INCENTIVES gory 1 Conservation Conservation 14 countries A (1) Conservation International’s Conservation Stewards Programme (CSP) [1] www.conservation.org/ FOR COMMUNITY-BASED CONSERVATION Stewards International works with communities who agree to protect their natural resources, as well projects/Pages/conservation- Programme as the benefits they provide, in exchange for a steady stream of compensation stewards-program.aspx from investors. A conservation agreement is a deal between a community and a [2] www.conservation.org/ group or person funding a conservation project. In exchange for making specific publications/Documents/ conservation commitments, communities receive benefits from the funder. CSP’s Conservation%20 conservation agreement model offers direct incentives for conservation through Agreements%20Private%20 a negotiated benefit package in return for conservation actions by communities. Partnership%20Platform.pdf Thus, a conservation agreement links conservation funders to people who own and use natural resources. Benefits typically include investments in social services like health and education as well as investments in livelihoods, often in This inventory is part of the 2020 Luc Hoffmann Institute publication the agricultural or fisheries sectors. Benefits can also include direct payments and wages. The size of these benefit packages depends on the cost of changes entitled ‘Diversifying local -
Scoping Study for the Design and Use of Biodiversity Offsets in an English Context
Scoping Study for the Design and Use of Biodiversity Offsets in an English Context Scoping study for the design and use of biodiversity offsets in an English Context Final Report to Defra (Contract NE 0801) NEE 0801 Final Report: April 2009 1 Scoping Study for the Design and Use of Biodiversity Offsets in an English Context Compiled by Jo Treweek (Treweek Environmental Consultants) With contributions from: Kerry ten Kate, freelance consultant Bill Butcher, WGB Environment Orlando Venn, Treweek Environmental Consultants Lincoln Garland and Mike Wells, Biodiversity by Design Dominic Moran, Scottish Agricultural College Stewart Thompson, Oxford Brookes University Acknowledgements The authors are grateful for input from the participants at the stakeholder workshops and for advice and comments provided by several people including Roger Morris, Ian Hepburn, Riki Therivel, David Hill, Derek Wilkinson, Paul Raven, Graham Tucker. David Parkes, Michael Crowe, Anne Buchan and their colleagues at the Victoria Department of Sustainability and the Environment in Australia generously shared their experience of designing and operating a system of biodiversity offsets. The Project Steering Committee (Sarah Lucking, Pete Brotherton, Andrew Dodd, Helen Dunn, James Vause, Julian Harlow, Phil Lewis, Sarah Webster), provided valuable input and constructive criticism throughout. NEE 0801 Final Report: April 2009 2 Scoping Study for the Design and Use of Biodiversity Offsets in an English Context Executive Summary Defra commissioned a scoping study for the design and use of biodiversity offsets in an English context. The results of the study are summarised in this report and are intended to inform debate on the possible contribution of biodiversity offsets to conservation and sustainable development goals in England. -
Making the Market Work for Nature How Biocredits Can Protect Biodiversity and Reduce Poverty
Making the market work for nature How biocredits can protect biodiversity and reduce poverty Ina Porras and Paul Steele Issue Paper Economics; Biodiversity Keywords: March 2020 Conservation, wildlife, financing for development, investment About the authors Ina Porras was formerly a senior researcher in IIED’s Shaping Sustainable Markets Group. She now works as an Economics Adviser at the Department for International Development, UK. Paul Steele is chief economist in IIED’s Shaping Sustainable Markets Group (www.iied.org/users/paul-steele). Email: [email protected] Acknowledgements We thank, without implicating: Stephen Porter formerly of IIED, Dorothea Pio of Flora & Fauna International, Richard W Diggle of World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Namibia, Oliver Withers of the Zoological Society of London and Glen Jeffries of Conservation Capital. All errors and omissions are the responsibility of the authors. Produced by IIED’s Shaping Sustainable Markets Group The Shaping Sustainable Markets Group works to make sure that local and global markets are fair and can help poor people and nature to thrive. Our research focuses on the mechanisms, structures and policies that lead to sustainable and inclusive economies. Our strength is in finding locally appropriate solutions to complex global and national problems. Published by IIED, March 2020 Porras, I and Steele, P (2020) Making the market work for nature: how biocredits can protect biodiversity and reduce poverty. IIED Issue Paper. IIED, London. http://pubs.iied.org/16664IIED ISBN 978-1-78431-782-9 This publication has been reviewed by Dorothea Pio from Fauna and Flora International and Stephen Porter formerly from the International Institute for Environment and Development. -
Upper Green River Basin Ecosystem Services Feasibility Analysis Project Report
Upper Green River Basin Ecosystem Services Feasibility Analysis Project Report Russell Schnitzer By Esther A. Duke, Amy Pocewicz, and Steve Jester December 2011 Upper Green River Basin Ecosystem Services i Authors Esther A. Duke, Consultant, The Nature Conservancy - Wyoming Chapter, and Coordinator of Special Projects and Programs, Colorado State University Email: [email protected] Amy Pocewicz, Landscape Ecologist, The Nature Conservancy - Wyoming Chapter Email: [email protected] Steve Jester, Executive Director, The Guadalupe-Blanco River Trust Acknowledgements This feasibility analysis was possible due to financial support from the Dixon Water Foundation, the World Bank Community Connections Fund, and The Nature Conservancy. We thank our partners at the University of Wyoming and Sublette County Conservation District, who include Kristiana Hansen, Melanie Purcell, Anne Mackinnon, Roger Coupal, Ginger Paige, and Tina Willson. We are also grateful to Jonathan Mathieu and The Nature Conservancy’s Colorado River Program and to the many individuals who participated in interviews and focus group discussions. The report also benefitted from discussion with and review by Ted Toombs of the Environmental Defense Fund. Suggested citation: Duke, EA, A Pocewicz, S Jester (2011) Upper Green River Basin Ecosystem Services Feasibility Analysis. Project Report. The Nature Conservancy, Lander, WY. Available online: www.nature.org/wyoscience December, 2011 The Nature Conservancy Wyoming Chapter 258 Main St. Lander, WY 82520 Upper Green River Basin -
Increasing Privatization of Environmental Permitting
University at Buffalo School of Law Digital Commons @ University at Buffalo School of Law Journal Articles Faculty Scholarship 2013 Increasing Privatization of Environmental Permitting Jessica Owley University of Miami School of Law Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.law.buffalo.edu/journal_articles Part of the Environmental Law Commons, and the Land Use Law Commons Recommended Citation Jessica Owley, Increasing Privatization of Environmental Permitting, 46 Akron L. Rev. 1091 (2013). Available at: https://digitalcommons.law.buffalo.edu/journal_articles/171 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Faculty Scholarship at Digital Commons @ University at Buffalo School of Law. It has been accepted for inclusion in Journal Articles by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ University at Buffalo School of Law. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE INCREASING PRIVATIZATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL PERMITTING Jessica Owley * I. Introduction .................................. 1091 II. The Rise of Compensatory Mitigation .............. 1092 A. Background .......................... ....1 092 B. Examples........................... 093 III. Privatization of Mitigation... .................... 1101 A. Background ....................... ....... 1102 B. Examples................................ 1106 C. Benefits of Private Mitigation Programs .... ..... 1116 D. Concerns with Private Mitigation ....... ....... 1118 TV. Conclusion: Harnessing Strengths while Minimizing Harms. ................................ -
Regulated Destruction: How Biodiversity Offsetting Enables
REGULATED DESTRUCTION How biodiversity offsetting enables environmental destruction Author Jutta Kill The research for this publication was carried out between February and October 2018. Design Somerset Bean Image credits Cover, p5, p24 Community agroecology and agro-forestry project, Sungai Buri, Sarawak, Indonesia. Members of the women’s group picking vegetables. Amelia Collins/Friends of the Earth International p11 Penang Inshore Fishermen Welfare Association (PIFWA), Mangrove Education Centre, Seberang Perai Selatan, Penang, Malaysia. Amelia Collins/Friends of the Earth International p21 Community agroecology and agro-forestry project, Sungai Buri, Sarawak, Indonesia, Members of the women’s group including the two women leaders. Amelia Collins/Friends of the Earth International Friends Of The Earth International is the world’s largest grassroots environmental network with 73 member groups and over two million members and supporters around the world. Our vision is of a peaceful and sustainable world based on societies living in harmony with nature. We envision a society of interdependent people living in dignity, wholeness and fulfilment in which equity and human and peoples’ rights are realised. This will be a society built upon peoples’ sovereignty and participation. It will be founded on social, economic, gender and environmental justice and be free from all forms of domination and exploitation, such as neoliberalism, corporate globalisation, neo-colonialism and militarism. We believe that our children’s future will be better because -
Mitigation Banking Information Cover Sheet
Optional Draft Prospectus Checklist for Conservation and Mitigation Banks in California [Revised May 2021] Please refer to the “Interagency Guidance for Preparing Mitigation Bank Proposals in California”, revised May 2021, for procedures related to the submission of a conservation and mitigation bank proposal. We recommend that you review the policies and guidance from all the agencies with jurisdiction for the credits you are seeking. Some of the websites where you can find these policies are included below. • U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) -- http://www.spd.usace.army.mil/Missions/Regulatory/Public-Notices-and-References/ • U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) -- https://www.epa.gov/cwa- 404/federal-guidance-establishment-use-and-operation-mitigation-banks • U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) -- https://www.fws.gov/endangered/landowners/conservation-banking.html • National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) -- http://www.westcoast.fisheries.noaa.gov/habitat/conservation/index.html • California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) -- https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Planning/Banking • State Water Resources Control Board -- https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/ Following Interagency Review Team (IRT) review of the Draft Prospectus, additional information may be requested for evaluating the proposal. Acceptance of a Draft Prospectus does not guarantee final approval of a Bank; only that the review can proceed to the Prospectus. This preliminary review is optional but strongly recommended. It is intended to identify potential issues early so the Bank Sponsor may attempt to address those issues prior to the start of the formal review process. The following information is needed to evaluate the Draft Prospectus. A greater level of detail provided in the Draft Prospectus will result in a more comprehensive assessment of the site’s suitability. -
Working Paper NI WP 16-02 NICHOLAS INSTITUTE for ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY SOLUTIONS February 2016
Working Paper NI WP 16-02 NICHOLAS INSTITUTE FOR ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY SOLUTIONS February 2016 www.nicholasinstitute.duke.edu Managing Risk in Environmental Markets Lydia Olander* CONTENTS SUMMARY Executive Summary 2 Environmental markets use voluntary approaches Overview 3 to meet regulatory requirements and to target cost- Wetland and Stream Mitigation Banking 8 effective, flexible, and efficient means to achieve Conservation Banking 24 environmental results. Although these markets create Carbon Offsets Markets 34 opportunities, they also involve some risk for regulated Water Quality Trading 48 buyers, project developers (sellers), landowners, and Synthesis 59 the public. This paper reviews technical risk, extreme Appendix 67 events, behavioral uncertainty, regulatory uncertainty, References 68 and market uncertainty in four markets that engage agricultural and forest landowners in the United States: Author Affiliation wetland and stream mitigation banking, conservation *Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions, Duke University banking, greenhouse gas offsets, and water quality trading. Because these markets involve transactions Citation L. Olander. 2016. “Managing Risk in Environmental Markets.” that range from annual to permanent transfers of NI WP 16-02. Durham, NC: Duke University. http:// environmental benefits, they entail different risks and nicholasinstitute.duke.edu/publications. liabilities. Disclaimer Working papers present preliminary analysis and are intended to stimulate Given robust risk management strategies and discussion and inform debate on emerging issues. Working papers may be significant similarity across programs, only a few risk eventually published in another form, and their content may be revised. management mechanisms have yet to be tried in all markets. One such mechanism is clarifying rules about how water quality and carbon offsets projects can sell into multiple markets, thereby enhancing flexibility and reducing risk for buyers and sellers. -
Building Biodiversity Business
Building Biodiversity Business Joshua Bishop, Sachin Kapila, Frank Hicks, Paul Mitchell and Francis Vorhies 1. One of the 73 frog species found in the 1 Gamba Complex, Gabon © Carlton Ward Jr. 2. A water lily in Jacana, Botswana IUCN Photo Library © IUCN / Sue Mainka 3. Masked butterflyfish in the Red Sea, Egypt IUCN Photo Library © Christian Laufenberg 2 3 4. Chameleo dilepis © Carlton Ward Jr. 5. Alcedo leucogaster © Carlton Ward Jr. 6. Forest in the Garajonay National Park, Spain IUCN Photo Library © Jim Thorsell Carlton Ward Jr. is an environmental photojournalist from Florida, 4 5 6 USA with graduate training in ecology and anthropology. Through his photographs, he aims to promote conservation of natural environments and cultural legacies. Building Biodiversity Business Joshua Bishop1, Sachin Kapila2, Frank Hicks3, Paul Mitchell4 and Francis Vorhies5 2008 1 IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) 2 Shell International Limited 3 Forest Trends 4 Green Horizons Environmental Consultants Limited 5 Earthmind Publication Data Bishop, J., Kapila, S., Hicks, F., Mitchell, P. and Vorhies, F. 2008. Building Biodiversity Business. Shell International Limited and the International Union for Conservation of Nature: London, UK, and Gland, Switzerland. 164 pp. © Shell International Limited, International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources and the authors 2008 ISBN: 978-2-8317-1019-8 Reproduction of this publication for educational or other non-commercial purposes is authorised without prior written permission from the copyright holder provided the source is fully acknowledged. Reproduction of this publication for resale or other commercial purposes is prohibited without prior written permission of the copyright holder.