A Brazilian standard is set to issue its first biodiversity credits generated through two separate conservation and restoration projects in the Pantanal and the Atlantic Forest biomes, Carbon Pulse has learned.

Life Institute said that the projects have already completed the initial assessment, conducted by independent third parties, and are currently in the final phase of the validation process.

“We want our credits to build on strong foundations, and independent verification is key to ensuring the credibility we aim to achieve,” Regiane Borsato, executive director of Life Institute, told Carbon Pulse.

One project, led by Pantanal-based organisation Caiman, combines livestock farming with biodiversity conservation initiatives, ranging from fauna and flora monitoring to the reintroduction of animal species, seeking to create a private natural heritage reserve.

Spanning an area of 5,600 hectares, the reserve harbours more than 500 animal species, including jaguars, giant anteaters, tapirs, capybaras, and ocelots, as well as approximately 350 species of birds.

A separate project, developed by the conservation organisation Wildlife Research and Environmental Education Society (SPVS), focuses on nature restoration within the 8,677-ha Guaricica natural reserve, in Brazil’s Atlantic Forest.

Recent monitoring recorded jaguars, pumas, and wild dogs among the animal species living in the area, which is also home to 860 plant species – some of them classified as threatened – like jucara palm, taruma, and peroba.

TWO-STEP ASSESSMENT

“Although species diversity is a critical component for measuring conservation and restoration outcomes, biodiversity is far more complex than that,” said Borsato.

“Our framework is designed to capture this complexity.”

Under Life Institute’s methodology, one credit represents a unit of Biodiversity Positive Performance (BPP), which is calculated in two separate stages through combining a wide range of indicators.

The initial assessment focuses on the key features of the conserved area, such as its size and biological importance as well as the fragility of the ecoregion and the level of implementation of actions aimed at preserving the site.

The second step focuses on monitoring and assessing conservation and restoration outcomes based on a set of indicators, including the maintenance of genetic variability and ecosystem services, the behaviour of populations of animal and plant species, and the landscape and trophic structures.

The project outcomes are verified by one of the independent bodies identified by the standard – the Parana Institute of Technology (TecparCert), Neocert, and Control Union.

“Once the verification process is finalised, we will inform the market,” said Borsato.

GOOD FOR OFFSETTING

Potential buyers include companies seeking to make positive contributions or offset their pressure on biodiversity to meet sustainability and environmental governance goals, as well as financial institutions, governments, and traders, she added.

Life Institute was recently involved in a separate initiative, announced earlier this month, seeking to establish Brazil’s first subnational biodiversity credit scheme in the Parana state.

During the COP15 summit in Montreal, the organisation launched the Life Business and Biodiversity Coalition, a group of companies committed to integrating biodiversity conservation into their sustainability goals, paving the way for venturing into the voluntary biodiversity credit market.

Over the last few months, several initiatives have emerged to scale biodiversity credits in Brazil.

Environmental trading platform Regen Network and Brazil-based Ecosystem Regeneration Associates (ERA) have recently started piloting their methodology in Pantanal, in partnership with non-profit organisation Instituto Homem Pantaneiro.

Meanwhile, developers Adryada and Fronterra teamed up last month to advance reforestation, afforestation, and agroforestry initiatives in four Latin American countries, including Brazil, aiming to generate both carbon and biodiversity credits.

By Sergio Colombo – sergio@carbon-pulse.com

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