Tree-Based Carbon Storage in Developing Countries: Neglect of the Social Sciences

Abstract

While much is now known about the biophysical potential of carbon storage in the tropics, lacking is an equally vigorous examination of the sociopolitical potential. The result has been a profoundly uneven understanding by the policy community of the overall potential of carbon storage. This article argues that the neglected domains of governance, development, and benefits obfuscate a realistic estimation of the carbon that can be stored on tropical landscapes.

Keywords:

• avoided deforestation
• benefits
• carbon
• development
• global warming
• governance
• mitigation
• sequestration
• tropics

Notes

Carbon storage here refers to reforestation, afforestation, agroforestry, and the avoidance of deforestation (known in the UN as REDD: Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries). Both REDD and carbon sequestration through tree planting face the same problems articulated in this article—neglect of the sociopolitical domain. Both efforts endeavor to change what people currently do, including stopping tree cutting (avoided deforestation), and planting trees on agricultural or other landscapes. How this change would be brought about is the problem, and the topic of this article.

Niles et al. (2002) showed that over 10 years, 48 tropical and subtropical countries could reduce atmospheric carbon by 2.3 billion tonnes. This would involve over 50 million hectares of land for implementation of carbon-friendly land uses.

As compared to medium or high carbon emission estimation over the coming decades.