Natural resources & agriculture
Australian Greenhouse Office, Department of the Environment and Heritage, 2006
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Well planned and managed forest sink projects can contribute to greenhouse gas emission reduction goals and provide complementary environmental and socio-economic benefits. Sound planning, management, monitoring and reporting procedures are necessary if the carbon sequestered in a forest sink is to be formally recognised (e.g. under a government programme) or sold.
This Guide explains the concept of carbon sequestration in forests, provides information on planning, establishing and managing a forest for carbon sequestration benefits, and describes project-level carbon accounting approaches.
The information in this Guide is relevant to individuals and organisations who are planning to establish forest sink projects, as well as those considering investment in carbon sequestration to offset emissions. It is applicable to Australian Government greenhouse programme participants and is also likely to be relevant to other programmes and investment arrangements.
Trees and other plants take up (sequester) carbon dioxide from the atmosphere as they grow, through the process of photosynthesis. While soils may lose carbon, e.g. following cultivation, the amount of carbon in forest soils can increase over time. Forests represent a carbon sink when they are actively growing and sequestering carbon at a rate that exceeds any soil carbon and other emissions.
The rate at which forests sequester carbon is influenced by site productivity characteristics such as climate, topography and soils, as well as tree characteristics and management actions.
The Australian Government is committed to meeting the agreed Kyoto Protocol target of reducing greenhouse emissions to 108% of 1990 levels over 2008–12. Australia uses the rules and definitions developed internationally under the Kyoto Protocol to measure progress towards its 108% emissions target. The rules and definitions are explained in Appendix A.
Australian Government greenhouse programmes that recognise or support forest sinks require participating projects to meet the internationally agreed criteria and adopt carbon accounting approaches consistent with Australia’s national approach. Other programmes and private investors seeking to maximise confidence in the quality of the carbon sequestration claimed for forest sink projects are likely to adopt the same requirements.
The information presented in this Guide focuses on forest sinks and carbon accounting that are consistent with the national approach.
Forest sink management plans can be valuable in establishing clear objectives, providing for sound management and monitoring arrangements and allocating appropriate resources for a project.
A forest sink management plan may be prepared in conjunction with a legal contract setting out the ownership of forest carbon commodities and responsibilities of the landholder, forest manager (where applicable) and any other parties. The management plan could then become an attachment to such a contract, providing the details of work to be undertaken and responsibilities for such work.
The Australian Government is committed to meeting the agreed Kyoto Protocol target of reducing greenhouse emissions to 108% of 1990 levels over 2008–12
Forest sink management plans should build on good practice for multiple benefit plantation and revegetation activities and relevant natural resource management plans to promote achievement of carbon sequestration and other objectives.
Key elements of forest sink management planning are described to help guide the development of plans for all types of projects:
Carbon accounting is the process of estimating the carbon sequestered and emitted in a forest system. Estimating carbon sequestration in forest sink projects is important for planning and reporting purposes and for claiming emissions offsets.
Project-level carbon accounting involves forward estimates of carbon sequestration and ongoing estimates of sequestration achieved following forest establishment.
The National Carbon Accounting Toolbox enables project-level carbon accounts for forest sinks to be determined on a similar basis to Australia’s national greenhouse gas account for forest sinks, which is constructed through the National Carbon Accounting System. An introduction to using the Toolbox is provided at Appendix B.
Periodic reporting may be required for forest sink projects according to the requirements of specific programmes or transactions in which stakeholders may engage. Reports would provide an assessment of the extent to which the actions and outcomes envisaged in a forest sink management plan are being achieved. Reporting would focus on carbon accounts as well as project implementation and monitoring details relevant to carbon sequestration outcomes. This Guide outlines the types of information that could be included in a project report.
