The Nature Conservancy Supports Commission on Climate and Tropical Forests’ Latest Report

ARLINGTON, VA — October 7, 2009—With momentum building in the United States for cost-effective action on climate change, the bipartisan, multi-sector Commission on Climate and Tropical Forests released its report today calling on the United States to lead a global effort to halve emissions from tropical forest destruction within a decade. “Protecting the Climate Forests: Why Reducing Tropical Deforestation is in America's Vital National Interest” identifies tropical deforestation as a threat to vital national interests and recommends that U.S. policymakers and the international community move rapidly to scale-up a global effort to protect tropical forests as the most cost-effective way to achieve fast, large-scale reductions in CO2 emissions.

“Tropical forests serve as the lungs of the Earth: they manage the world’s carbon dioxide levels, are home to the world’s most diverse species and provide essential services – such as food, water and shelter – to millions of people across the globe,” said The Nature Conservancy’s President and CEO Mark Tercek. “The good news is preserving these forests requires no new technologies – just a truly collaborative effort that provides incentives to protect forests long-term. Successful on-the-ground projects prove we can achieve carbon emission reductions while working with local stakeholders to incentivize forest preservation.”

“Protecting the Climate Forests” calls on the United States to galvanize bold international action by enacting strong domestic policies and guiding international agreements and incentives to anchor a new push to conserve the planet’s climate forests.

The report notes that a well-designed cap-and-trade program would provide an effective mechanism for financing and implementing the Commission’s recommendations. Four of the Commission’s thirteen recommendations deal directly with how to reduce emissions from tropical forests through a cap-and-trade system. The report notes that while prospects for Senate approval of a national, economy-wide cap-and-trade bill are uncertain, U.S. leadership in stemming deforestation must not be. It endorses U.S. companies investing in forest protection through strong and verifiable “offset” programs, and recommends a detailed policy framework to ensure transparency and achieve the greatest return on investment from forest financing projects.

Taken together, these recommendations describe a pragmatic mix of market mechanisms, government incentives and international collaboration that would enable the United States to work with other nations to make dramatic and quick gains against deforestation.

Reflecting the broad appeal of this approach, the Commission on Climate and Tropical Forests includes Democrats and Republicans; former elected and Cabinet officials; former high-level U.S. diplomats and military leaders; scientists and climate experts; business leaders in manufacturing and energy production; and environmental and development experts and advocates.

A complete list of Commissioners and their bios, along with the complete report text, are available at www.climateforestscommission.org.

The Commission on Climate and Tropical Forests, co-chaired by John Podesta and Senator Lincoln Chafee, is a bipartisan group of leaders from business, government, advocacy, conservation, global development, science and national security that has developed recommendations on the inclusion of tropical forest conservation in broader U.S. climate change policies. Tropical deforestation accounts for 17 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions and protecting tropical forests is integral to combating climate change. The Commission’s recommendations are designed to help ensure U.S. climate policies provide the most effective response to this issue and are aligned with global solutions.

The Nature Conservancy is a leading conservation organization working around the world to protect ecologically important lands and waters for nature and people. The Conservancy and its more than 1 million members have protected nearly 120 million acres worldwide. Visit The Nature Conservancy on the Web at www.nature.org.