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Projects
- USDA Forest Service launches CC resource center website –info/tools under 1 roof for land mngrs to understand, plan & mng for CC, esp in W. Set of video presentations avail.
News
- All things Mitigation – Ecosystem Marketplace’s Mitigation Mail (7/24)
---CA local gov decided to create miti bank for ~newly listed tiger salamander, backs off when considers legal liability + need to come up with $$ to pay for hab cons plan. Impacters left to figure out HCP and miti ratios (? – hard to understand article) &title=Group_aims_to_revive_salamander_strategy
---Proposed port expansion in Portland OR gets new NIMBY argument: forget the development, make a mitigation bank (if can’t get outright protection)
---Pub empoyees for env respons (PEER) slams ME DOT’s proposal for st-wide umbrella miti bank. Criticisms: WL miti doesn’t work, they didn’t give a location for the bank, PEER wants w/in watershed/onsite miti, ME DOT isn’t qualified to restore WL.
---New 266-ac vernal pool fairy shrimp cons bank proposed in southern OR by Wildlands Inc. Neighbors (ag, viniculture) are concerned that turning off the irrigation taps in the summer for the species could impact their w supply.
- All things C – Ecosystem Marketplace’s V-Carbon News (7/29)
---Discussion about lack of/new REDD methodologies
---World Bank finances REDD readiness in 14 countries to estab emiss baselines, adopt REDD strat, design monitoring.
---NYMEX will sell options/futures for RGGI starting late-August.
---WL store 20% of world’s C & if destroy them, you release a “Carbon bomb” say scientists.
---Article tested 10 C calculators and found variation of 30k+ tons (~= to yrly emiss of 3 cars). Only 2 calc’s recc lifestyle changes to reduce C footprint.
(graphic source: Seattle Post Intellincer)
- Certif – study on PA sales of FSC/non-FSC sales shows PA got 10% incr in rev from FSC-certified.
- PES – PBS Frontline highlights Sierra Gorda PES project in Mexico – comm. paid to plant trees, hope to sell > svcs in the future.
- PES – Ecosys M’place article highlights wildlife tourism PES in Tanzania. Tourism interests in past paid just for concessions in wildlife viewing, now paying for (non-tourism) wildlife hab protect. Successful deals allow local comm. trad grazing, but prohibit ag, settlement, tree-felling.
- Instit – FTC to create “green” marketing standards/guidelines in 2009 – to prevent deceptive claims.
- Misc – judge includes loss of ecosys svcs in damages from a wildfire: “It's an important development in the law to have courts saying decisions aren't limited to the value of timber," said Sean Hecht, executive director of the UCLA Environmental Law Center. "A calculation is now allowed to look at the value of wildlife and the ecosystem.”
Meetings / Seminars
- 5/7-9 - 11th Annual National Mitigation & Ecosystem Banking Conference – day summaries for May 9th, May 8th, and May 7th
Projects
- Mapping – National Geographic/NatureServe’s LandScope, to be launched 2008, brings maps/data/photos/info about conserved/priority cons/planning areas, trends, etc. for US/states together to inform/target efforts on the part of land trusts/st & local gov/private landowners/etc.
- Mapping – Trust for Public Land launches Conservation Almanac--lists data (1998-2005) about conserved areas in each st, acres acquired, $s spent, LandVote ballot measures, profile of state policy/conserv programs. Helpful for st/regional cons stats.
- Markets – AgTrader, a Craig’s List for MD farmers launched
News
- CC – US FWS lists Polar Bear as threatened due to loss of habitat (sea ice), says won’t use listing to force regulatory action
- All things C – Ecosystem Marketplace’s V-Carbon Mail (5/2/08)
---CCAR launches Climate Action Reserve that provides standardized protocols for C projects, info on projects, and tracks credits.
---Bush - proposal of zero emissions growth by 2025
---Canada and Greece out of compliance w/Kyoto can’t trade in EU C market until they get their act together
---Sir Nicholas Stern (of Stern report fame in ’07) says he goofed and to minimize dangerous risks of CC, need to reduce emiss by 50% for world and 90% for US
- C - Ecosys M’place releases 2007 State of the Voluntary C Market. Interesting stats:
---65 mill tonnes of C credit transactions in vol mkt [42mill from OTC mkt, 23 from CCX transactions]
---ave pr of credit went from $4.10->$6.10/tonne from 06 to 07
---OTC mkt tripled to 42 mill tonnes C credit transactions (val of $258mill in 07)
---dominant projects in OTC: NRG efficiency, renew NRG, methane, forestry/land projects
- WQT – summary of MD’s newish (4/18/2008) PT-PT trading policy
- Leadership – TNC appoints Goldman Sachs’ green guru Mark Tercek as new president/CEO
- PES - Special Issue on PES in Developing and Developed Countries – May 2008 Ecological Economics, 65.4. Sven Wunder, Stefanie Engel and Stefano Pagiola (ed).
- Nonmarket val – UFORE analysis of Houston’s regional forests: store $721mill worth of C, gen $456mill of env bene/yr, save $131mill in res NRG costs.
- Nonmarket val – WSJ Natural Cap blog discusses bene-cost analysis for env policy; crux of debate – whether economists value future generations’ benefits enough (via disc rates)
Meetings / Seminars
- WSJ ECO:nomics, Creating Environmental Capital conference - was invite only/$$$ & w/lots of big-wigs. Wal-mart: we’re not sure when we’ll get to 0 waste and 100% renew NRG. GE: capitalizing on green tech. Governator: re-think nuclear? Rainforest Action Network: kickin’ it old school, crashes party & slams ADM re: palm oil (w/schoolchildren petitions, no less). Summary of conference
- WQT – just came across a 2/21 PA Sen Repub Policy Committee hearing on Ches Bay nutr reduction goals. Speculations on why nutr trading isn’t going gangbusters. Main points below, audio file here
- C – Western Climate Initiative Offsets Subcommittee – discussed what will qualify as offsets under WCI’s cap&trade (incl role of forestry, ag). Draft proposal out ~May. PPTs
News
- WL miti – EPA/Corps issue official reg’s on wetland miti (had been just guidance). Changes: gives pref to miti from (in order): mitigation banks, in-lieu fee programs, ~on-site mitigation (big change b/c on-site was previously 60% of miti); watershed-scale miti gets pref; in-lieu held to miti bank standards; approval process has timelines. Regs, detailed analysis, news story
- All things Mitigation - Ecosystem Marketplace’s Mitigation Mail
---Species recovery credits – if there’s TES habitat on gov land, agency (ex – Army) can shift respons of protecting habitat to adjacent landowners. Criticisms: less accountabil than cons banking (mngt/monitoring plans, ecological milestones); no endowments to cover unforeseen exp; long-t mngt stays w/ landowner (as opposed to a cons group); less/no transparency (/landowner confidentiality).
---Pomo tribe (CA) creating WL miti bank to miti for development w/in their lands
---GA school board to set up a WL miti bank on their lands
---WA state lets local gov give final approval of WL banks
---rural WA credits go for $75k, Seattle/Belleview credits go for $400-500k
---new 500-acre bank in MS
-WQT – MD announces final [point-to-point source] nutrient trading. Have to upgrade WWTPs before can trade.
- WQ – Nature article on study of (72 US) streams’ ability to absorb N: 10-20% w/in 1 hour. As incr N loads, “precipitous drop” in abil to absorb. Impli: if incr N (say, from incr biofuels prod), more N pollution/dead zones. Mullholland et al., 2008, Nature, vol. 452.
- All things C - Ecosystem Marketplace’s V-Carbon News
---TNC has vol C credits to VCS & CCS standards from project in LA, pricey ($20/credit)
---JPMorgan buys UK C offset co
---Env Defense has RFP for potential offset providers on new FightGlobalWarming.com, which helps co’s buy hi-qual C offsets
- C – new WY legis: 1) estab state reg framework for C seq projects, 2) gives owners surf rights the rights to underground CO2 storage
- C – AgraGate (subsidiary IO Farm Bureau) does 15-yr forestry contracts (afforest, sust mngt), pools credits, sells on CCX, pays landowners (- service fee). Currently has 100 contracts/60k acres afforest in southern US.
- C – CCX C prices rising, from low of $1.70 last year to $5.70 last week (b/c all 3 pres candidates are talking about C cap&trade)
- C seq – forest industry study concludes managed forests seq 2x more C than unmanaged
- Planning – program/tool Corporate Ecosystem Services Review (WRI) - ~EMS-ish, but easier, review risk/opp/strategies from ecosys service perspective. xls/ppt/cases to help
- Planning –Ecosystem Services: A Guide for [public sector/gov] Decision Makers (WRI)- a how-to framework for taking es into account in economic/social policy decisions. Story/case study provides ex of how to imple
- Woody biomass –NV plant (designed to power prisons) halts production. Blames USFS, says can’t get supply; USFS counters: we have S, it’s just transport $$ to get to plant.
- Incen for conserve – article re: 3,600 forestland conservation easements in US, held by 16 states & 355 cons org’s (from survey of land trusts/gov easement holders w/ ~50%response rate). Failure to address shortcomings (lack/poor baseline, record keeping, professional mngt plans) = lose legitimacy.
- Incen for conserve – 1st time in 2 years farmers can sign up for CSP in these watersheds
- Info – Dovetail report, basic explan of forest opp’s in eco-markets, emph on C (16p)
- Internat PES – WWF/CARE Guatemala studies on: hydro, eco val, w’shed selection, legal framework (in Spanish). Contact
vreyes@wwfca.org
- Certification – WWF new focus on certif., how it can val env services (can you get a price premium?, actually impr biodiv?, does is impr rural incomes?). Contact Pablo.gutman@wwfus.org
- PES – new website, ex’s of PES around the world
