a review of forest carbon sequestration cost studies q: what is carbon sequestration? a: capture and...
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A Review of Forest Carbon Sequestration Cost Studies
Q: What is Carbon Sequestration?
A: Capture and Storage of Carbon in Sinks
• Terrestrial (forest, agriculture)• Ocean
Questions about carbon sequestration:
Global Questions:• How much can we do?• How much will it cost?
Implementation Questions:• What policies can we use?• How will the government monitor?• What will be the cost of administering the program?
Individual Project Questions:• How much did our project sequester?• How much will it cost?
A Review of Forest Carbon Sequestration Cost Studies
Issues in Modeling Sequestration Costs and Potential Quantities
• Types of Forest Practices• Geographic Scope• Data Requirements
A Review of Forest Carbon Sequestration Cost Studies
A Review of Forest Carbon Sequestration Cost Studies
Forestry Practices to Increase Carbon Sequestration
1. Afforestation of agricultural land2. Reforestation of harvested or burned timberland3. Modification of forestry management practices to emphasize carbon storage4. Adoption of low impact harvesting methods to decrease carbon release5. Lengthening forest rotation cycles6. Preservation of forestland from conversion7. Adoption of agroforestry practices8. Establishment of short-rotation woody biomass plantations9. Urban forestry practices
A Review of Forest Carbon Sequestration Cost Studies
Geographic Scope of Study:• Global• Regional• National• Subnational
A Review of Forest Carbon Sequestration Cost Studies
Data Requirements
• Available land area for practice• Treatment cost• Land Cost• Annual Carbon Yield
Ton
s ca
ptur
ed p
er h
ecta
re p
er y
ear
Age of Plantation
Rate of Carbon Capture as Function of Plantation Age
A Review of Forest Carbon Sequestration Cost Studies
Methods of Carbon Accounting:• Flow Summation• Average Storage Method• Levelization/Discounting
A Review of Forest Carbon Sequestration Cost Studies
Methods for Valuing Land Resource:
• Bottom-up Engineering Studies – What has agricultural land sold for in past?
• Sectoral Optimization Studies –How much does public welfare decline when agriculturalland is removed from production?
• Econometric Studies –How have landowners responded to past agriculture andforestry price signals?
Carbon Sequestration Costs for the Delta StatesComparison of Stavins (1998) with Richards (1997)
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
0 20 40 60 80 100
Rate of Carbon Sequestration (millions of metric tons per year)
Co
st
of
Ca
rbo
n
(do
llars
pe
r m
etr
ic t
on
of
ca
rbo
n)
Richards
Stavins
ModifiedStavins
A Review of Forest Carbon Sequestration Cost Studies
Other Cost Estimation Issues:
• Discount Rate• Administration Costs• Release of Carbon and the Role of Forestry Products• Components of Forest Ecosystem• Secondary Environmental Effects
A Review of Forest Carbon Sequestration Cost Studies
Implementation Issues:
• Provisions for Harvest• Scope of Program and the Problem of Leakage• Payment Patterns• Trading Ratios (Source Control vs. Sequestration)• Rate of Implementation
A Review of Forest Carbon Sequestration Cost Studies
Possible Rules about Harvest:
• Carbon Graveyard• Harvesting Only after Several Decades• Penalties for Harvesting
A Review of Forest Carbon Sequestration Cost Studies
Scope of Program and Problem of Leakage:
• Voluntary Participation => Problem of Leakage• Mandatory Participation => Problem of Monitoring,
Legal Constraints, Politics
A Review of Forest Carbon Sequestration Cost Studies
Payment Patterns:
• Pay for Planting Trees• Pay for Carbon Capture• Pay for Carbon Storage
A Review of Forest Carbon Sequestration Cost Studies
Trading Ratios (Source Control vs. Sequestration):
• Different Administration Costs• Different Risks/Uncertainties• Different Revenue-Raising Requirements
A Review of Forest Carbon Sequestration Cost Studies
Conclusions:• Need for Clear and Consistent Definition of
“Dollars per Ton”• Significant Opportunities for Large Quantities
of Carbon Sequestration at Low Cost• No Studies Effectively Address Implementation Costs