CLIMATE ACTION BONDS
the co-operative approach
Playing our part
Most of us in developed countries are responsible for adding about 10 tonnes of carbon to the atmosphere every year-and that's without lots of flights. We know we need to get to zero but this is virtually impossible for most of us as the products and services we would need are not available yet. Neither can we remove the carbon emitted over our lifetimes. In the meantime, we can pay others to reduce their emissions, or lock up more carbon than they otherwise would have done. This is called offsetting and is currently unregulated and of questionable effectiveness.
The problem with offsets
Offestting has got a bad name recently:
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being used as an excuse for not reducing our carbon emissions wherever possible.
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spurious claims about carbon that would have been reduced anyway
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immediately ‘banking’ Co2 absorbed by trees over their entire lifetime and unrealistic survival rate assumptions.
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funding large projects without considering social and other environmental impacts
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Ignoring the plight of the poorest communities around the world being hit by the effects of climate change now
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Projects collapse once short-term funding dries up
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Large management and certification costs prevent small community projects accessing this funding and absorb much of the income.
Climate Action Bonds are different
As a co-operative we are driven by values rather than profit. Purchasers of co-offsets can be sure that :
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They are helping disadvantaged young people in Malawi take action in their communities to increase resilience to the effects of the changing climate
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their money provides training, advice, and information to those we work with to increase the chances of success.
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The co-operatives we support are focused on sustainable development for their communities, and believe in self-help and caring for others.
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members have democratic control over the management and are independent of political interference.
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Members share equally in the success of the business making them less dependent on grants and donations over time.
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all the projects will reduce carbon emissions
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we are committed to openness and honesty-we encourage our supporters to engage with our projects and will report regularly on progress
Key assumptions for carbon impact
Estimates of CO2 absorbed by trees vary significantly but the most commonly used figures are based on the paper ‘Global carbon dioxide removal rates from forest landscape restoration activities by Blanca Bernal, Lara T. Murray & Timothy R. H. Pearson’. We have used a figure of 11.5kg Co2 per tree per year based on 750 trees/hectare which is 15% below the average reported range for agroforestry (10.8-15.6 tonnes CO2 per hectare per year). There are over 300 types of trees in the miombo woodlands with lifespans from 50-150 years and we have used the lowest figure. On average, about 50% of planted trees survive beyond five years, according to studies on tropical and subtropical reforestation efforts. However, with proper care, such as selecting suitable species, ensuring adequate watering, and protecting saplings from pests, survival rates can exceed 80%. Given the training we provide and the support from the Forestry Department we believe 60% survival rate is conservative for our project.
Given the above assumptions:
CO2 absorbed per tree planted in its lifetime 11.5 X 50 X 0.6=345kg. This is equivalent to an average per tree over the life of all the trees planted of 6.9 kg /year
The above figure is similar to the amount of CO2 absorbed by miombo woodland according to a survey of detailed research which highlighted the wide variability of estimates (Carbon Stocks in Miombo Woodlands: Evidence from over 50 Years MedhaBulusu 1,2, Christopher Martius 1,3,* and Jessica Clendenning 1,4).