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Plantar project |
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Background on the project The Plantar project in Minas Gerais, Brazil is the first carbon sink project seeking credit through the Kyoto Protocol's Clean Development Mechanism. It involves planting 23,100 ha of Eucalyptus plantations to produce wood for charcoal, which will then be used in pig iron production instead of coal. In addition to this so-called fuel-switching component, the project also claims carbon sequestration credits for the trees planted. According to the project documents, these carbon sequestration credits are required to make the remainder of the project economically viable, turning the project essentially into a carbon sinks project. The project is developed under the auspices of the World Bank's Prototype Carbon Fund (PCF). The PCF has a number of government and corporate investors who get a pro rata share of the credits from PCF projects. If approved as CDM project, Plantar will reap millions of dollars for bogus carbon credits, and industrialised countries will be allowed to meet their Kyoto reduction target using unsustainable plantations and climatically worthless credits. A closer look reveals that the Plantar project is neither clean nor will it contribute to sustainable development: Plantar seeks credit for carbon sequestered in industrial monoculture tree plantations. This is despite the numerous negative impacts associated with industrial tree plantations like Plantar's (see WRM report on Plantar's FSC certified tree plantations http://www.wrm.org.uy/countries/Brazil/fsc.html), and also despite the fact that the Validator of the project, DNV, has said that it cannot currently ensure carbon will be sequestered permanently and thus cannot ensure that there will be a long-term benefit to the climate. If these credits will result in no benefit to the climate they have no value. Click here for a letter from over 50 Brazilian NGOs, civil society movements, churches and unions urging PCF investors not to buy credits from the Plantar project. http://www.fern.org/pubs/ngostats/Plantport.htm (Portugese version, original); http://www.fern.org/pubs/ngostats/Planteng.htm (English version) Read the CDM Watch briefing paper on the Plantar project Read the WRM report on problems arising from the FSC certification of already existing Plantar plantations. http://www.wrm.org.uy/countries/Brazil/fsc.html The project design document, validation report and other documentation relevant to the registration of Plantar as a CDM project can be downloaded from the PCF website. http://prototypecarbonfund.org/router.cfm?Page=DocLib&Dtype=1 PCF investors:
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