A Zimbabwean elephant rewilding company is planning to more than double the area from which it will generate biodiversity credits up to 84,000 hectares, Carbon Pulse has learned.

Family-run organisation Wild is Life is already preparing to generate credits from the Panda Masuie project, which spans around 34,000 ha, said Jos Danckwerts, conservation manager at the organisation.

Wild is Life is also looking to develop pilots in two other forests in the region, based on Plan Vivo’s methodology, said Danckwerts.

“We would like to develop these three forests as a pilot with room for expansion at a later stage into the communal areas in between.”

“The security of these forests is quite tenuous. That’s why we chose these areas. We didn’t want to work in an area that was already safe and functional,” said Danckwerts.

Elephants in Panda Masuie, 2023. Credit for all images: Donal Boyd

The Panda Masuie pilot is undergoing the final stage in the Plan Vivo approval process. Once that is complete, Wild is Life will look to expand the pilot into the other areas.

Working with Wild is Life has helped Plan Vivo in understanding how to apply its methodology at scale, a spokesperson at the latter company said.

“Applying landscape level conservation projects is important to biodiversity and the local communities for building ecological and climate resilience,” they said.

ORPHANED ELEPHANTS

Wild is Life was founded in by Danckwerts’ mother in 1998, when the country was facing significant political, economic, and social challenges that contributed to an increase in poaching.

“Elephants were being poached, and often if it was an elephant cow, there would be a baby left behind, and no one would know what to do with them,” said Danckwerts.

What began as a response to rewild orphaned elephants, has evolved into an effort to establish large-scale conservation areas.

“In 2014, after many years of negotiating with the government, we made an agreement to have an elephant rescue, rehabilitation, and release programme.”

Panda Masuie, 2023

The heart of the operation is the Panda Masuie forest, a former wildlife hunting area turned into a leased animal refuge. The initiative lies strategically between two national parks, creating a much larger protected area.

“The results have been pretty amazing,” he said.

The area is now home to over 40 large mammal species including lions, leopards, and cheetahs. The habitat is primarily teak forest, part of a broader savannah woodland, growing on sandy soil.

1.5 MLN CREDITS?

Wild is Life sees biodiversity credits as an opportunity to ensure the long-term sustainability of habitats, without relying on disruptive tourism.

Optimistic estimates have projected the Panda Masuie initiative could generate between 18 and 20 biodiversity credits per ha, more than 1.5 million a year, fetching around $10 a credit.

However, these figures have yet to be finalised, and Danckwerts wants to avoid the voluntary carbon markets’ mistake of oversupplying the market. About 60% of any funds raised will go to communities in the region.

To generate the credits, Wild is Life will collect five metrics on birds, small plants, mammals, amphibians, and large trees.

The organisation is focused on finding a few committed buyers who will engage with the project, rather than purchasing credits for trading or offsetting.

“We don’t want them to be hawked around. We would like to have an offtake agreement with one or two buyers, for those people to buy into the project, not just the credits,” Danckwerts said. An off-take agreement is a contract to purchase credits before they have been generated.

South Africa-headquartered institution Standard Bank has expressed interest in funding the project, he said.

“I think they will back us, we need to borrow money to develop this. It depends on where they have least interest in the offtake.”

Wild is Life relies on donations from NGOs and individuals to fund its work, with no commercial arm.

“Our main core goal is the rescued elephants, after they’ve been rehabilitated, for them to go back to the wild. So if we have any kind of tourism, it would compromise that.”

By Thomas Cox – t.cox@carbon-pulse.com

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