COMMUNITIES & CARBON, ESTABLISHING A COMMUNITY FORESTRY REDD PROJECT IN CAMBODIA COMMUNITIES &CARBON ESTABLISHING A COMMUNITY FORESTRY-REDD PROJECT IN CAMBODIA 2009 AMANDA BRADLEY PACT 1 Acknowledgements First and foremost, I wish to thank His Excellency Ty Sokhun, the Head of the Forestry Administration, for his strong support and visionary collaboration in working with CFI, Pact and other stakeholders to get this \ ! For very valuable assistance in reviewing this study, I would like to thank the following individuals: Robin Biddulph, Jörgen Pettersson, Long Ratanakoma, Mark Poffenberger, Leslie Durschinger, Andrew Wardell, Long Sona, Melissa Marschke, Jacob Kahl Jepsen, Hour Lim Chhun, Ty Sokhun, Kurt MacLeod, Leo Hosh and "#$ Amanda Bradley Community Forestry Partner Program Director Pact Cambodia PACT COMMUNITY FOCALI CLINTON CLIMATE INITIATIVE A Washington, DC-based NGO FORESTRY Focali (Forest, Climate, and Livelihood The William J. Clinton Foundation mandated to assist local communities INTERNATIONAL research network) is a Swedish research launched the Clinton Climate Initiative to empower themselves through the A California-based NGO dedicated to network focusing on forest bio-energy, (CCI) to create and advance solutions to introduction of effective government and protecting the world’s forests and the climate change and poverty issues. the core issues driving climate change. responsible public and private institutions. rights of the people who live near and Several Swedish universities and institutions Working with governments and businesses Using both grass-roots and high-level depend upon them for their livelihoods. are represented and the purpose is around the world, CCI focuses on three efforts to achieve its goals, Pact maintains With a motto of “Forest rights are to ensure that Sida and other Swedish strategic program areas: increasing an active presence in countries on human rights”, CFI can be credited with authorities have access to relevant energy efficiency in cities, catalyzing the five continents. conceiving of the idea of using the REDD knowledge for the effective use of forest large-scale supply of clean energy, and mechanism to safeguard the forests operations to achieve climate-poverty working to stop deforesation. Pact had been active in Cambodia since the of Oddar Meanchey. targets. Focali also aims to increase the early 1990s, focusing principally on flow of relevant information between Under its Forestry program, CCI works governance and civil society programs. With With an institutional focus on identifying the scientific community, industry, govern- directly with national governments, extensive natural resource management new innovative initiatives for forestry ment and civil society. Focali is funded by taking a made-to-measure approach to work in other regions, Pact was selected protection, CFI turned the responsibility Sida and the coordinating secretariat is respond to specific needs and goals. by CFI to take over its broader Community for REDD implementation over to placed at the University of Gothenburg. It has supported the validation process Forestry Program, under which the Oddar Pact in early 2009. and delivery of the Oddar Meanchey Meanchey REDD project falls. Focali has provided the funding for REDD project. the writing of this study. DANIDA CHILDREN’S MONKS COMMUNITY TERRA GLOBAL CAPITAL THE ROYAL DANISH EMBASSY, DEVELOPMENT FORESTRY ASSOCIATION A San Francisco-based company focus- PHNOM PENH ASSOCIATION (MCF) ing on the market for land-use carbon The Royal Danish Embassy in Phnom (CDA) MCF has been formed by the Venerable and other environmental credits. With Penh has administered a sizeable pool CDA is a local NGO based in Oddar Bun Saluth, a visionary monk in Samraong institutional expertise in the measurement of funds to support the natural resources Meanchey province. CDA has been pagoda (Oddar Meanchey), to support and monetization of carbon credits and sector in Cambodia, funds which include implementing community forestry projects the forest protection activities at Sorng carbon finance, TGC agreed to partner with contributions from Danida, DFID and in Oddar Meanchey province since 2002 Rokavorn CF, the largest of the 13 sites in the Government of Cambodia’s Forestry NZAID. The Oddar Meanchey REDD and currently plays an important role the project. MCF coordinates closely with Administration to measure the amount project received a critical start-up grant as a project partner. CDA implements a local villages to effectively protect the of carbon stored by Oddar Meanchey’s from this pool of funds in early 2008. range of village-level field activities forest area. community forests and sell the resultant In addition, colleagues at the Embassy and also provides valuable information credits on the global voluntary market. have provided valuable technical from the field to help address the support to the program. drivers of deforestation. 2 STATEMENT BY H.E. TY SOKHUN, HEAD OF THE FORESTRY ADMINISTRATION The REDD mechanism presents an important opportunity to shift the global trend away from forest $$$ %$&$$$$'$$N )*+N$&$ - . $ S $$0&$!$'$$ can be highly effective in protecting forest resources, preventing encroachment, using forest products 1\\ ! Under our 2006 Community Forestry Guidelines, communities across the country are obtaining legal !\4$$ 5$7$44 mechanism, which promises to greatly enhance our efforts to both protect our valuable forests and S I would like to conclude by taking advantage of this opportunity to thank all the supporters and stakehold- $$9 FORESTRY ADMINISTRATION The arm of the Royal Government of Cambodia’s Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the FA is responsible for managing forest resources in the Kingdom of Cambodia. Through Government Decision No. 699 the FA has been appointed as the agent selling forest carbon through consultation with the Technical Working Group on Forestry and Environment. The FA has initiated the Oddar Meanchey REDD project and plays the leading role as Implementing Agency in the development and management of the project in collaboration with and support from development partners. Officials from the central level as well as from the relevant Inspectorate, Cantonment, Division and Triage levels have all been actively involved. COMMUNITIES & CARBON, ESTABLISHING A COMMUNITY FORESTRY REDD PROJECT IN CAMBODIA INTRODUCTION In December 2007, the Forestry Administration (FA) of the Royal Government of Cambodia introduced -.>-.9?!&$S\! the communities of Oddar Meanchey to safeguard their forests and, in the process, generate funds from PQ$# REDD (Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation) is a relatively new climate control $$$VXXZS&"[ \$#&&$&>&"]^N[\&&&?_ [$$!$\$$$ by their business activities by providing payments to developing nations who sustainably manage their forests \1 [\&&&!\#&"])!$VXX*& $# OM-REDD is being submitted for validation to the Climate Community Biodiversity (CCB) Alliance and `&>`&?VXX*7!!- $#VX]X Location -.&$S0VVj#$! &$$!_."`Sq!])z {#$\|$!_7$!&}!7` " 7$\9]*Z*}$>}?!-. $7VZ!]***!}.# In part because of long-standing security concerns, there have been fewer development agencies working 4 COMMUNITIES & CARBON, ESTABLISHING A COMMUNITY FORESTRY REDD PROJECT IN CAMBODIA Even with the effective termination of the KR regime, security and economic activity in the province remain hampered by the continuing $7VXX^ almost 10% of all mine casualties in Cambodia occurred in Oddar Meanchey, the third-highest level 7[\0& z)$[->4 ?$${$$$$ [-]*z*9VXXX Ironically, land mines have made the forests relatively less accessible and therefore perhaps contributed to !$!$$!$ #$$$$ Although recent dramatic increases in migration, land speculation and large-scale agricultural $-.!$S 7VXXj9X)$$! &$S Vj $! VZ+ )]+$!- PQ -.7VXXV!Z)+ !$9>$4?!$$ and agricultural and settlement land has resulted in a decline in forest cover at an average annual rate of V]+> X)+?-. Table 1. Forest Cover Change in Oddar Meanchey Forest Type & Forest Cover Forest Cover % Change % Annual Loss Condition in 2002 (ha) in 2006 (ha) Evergreen Forest 166,935 ]j*!]]* -11% 9Vz+ Semi-Evergreen Forest 71, 319 ))!]^z -23% 9)z+ Deciduous Forest V)]!ZVz VjX!zVj 9j+ 9]X+ Open Forest )!Zj^ 12,050 110% VZX+ Total Forest j*)!ZV) j)Z!]^] 9z+ 9V]+ Barren land ]qZ!jjX VXq!X^j 23% )z+ Total Land Area 663,165 663,165 0% XX+ Source: Forestry Administration and GRAS A/S at the University of Copenhagen 5 COMMUNITIES & CARBON, ESTABLISHING A COMMUNITY FORESTRY REDD PROJECT IN CAMBODIA New houses are being constructed by migrants throughout the province. Community approaches come into favor - . 4 ! \ }$ $0$$! $$9$$ The communities have long advocated for a collective, local approach to protecting the forest, in large part because it provides them more secure tenure for the forest resources they depend upon for ! Having pledged in 2000 that it would work towards retaining 60% forest cover in the country, the Government ultimately determined that a community forestry approach would be consistent with its !'$$$$ This determination led to the Community Forestry Sub-Decree (2003) and Community Forestry Guidelines >VXXq?VXXV $#$$ forestry, enabling local communities to secure rights to manage forest areas under 15-year renewable CF $ While CF establishment moved ahead swiftly in Oddar Meanchey, a country-level analysis of forest cover VXXV9VXXq\505\70! &$! bundle together a number of larger CF sites, was among the reasons for the selection of Oddar Meanchey