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Productive agriculture: The project is working to support productive agriculture for over 11,000 people living in 50 communities around the project area, including four indigenous communities.

Project type: Forestry and landscapes

Region: Latin America

Standards:

Peru: Tambopata and Bahuaja-Sonene REDD+

The Tambopata and Bahuaja-Sonene REDD+ project is conserving over 540,000 hectares of rainforest in the Amazonian region of Peru. While the project area has national protected status, the construction of the South Interoceanic Highway has put biodiversity under threat. Improved access to the area has led to an increase in migration, which is accelerating land-use change and forest degradation from artisan gold mining and small-scale agriculture. To reduce levels of deforestation, the project is working to improve forest protection and support productive agriculture for over 11,000 people living in 50 communities around the project area, including four indigenous communities.

To support progress towards this goal, the project is providing farmers with resources, technical and commercial support, and infrastructure to build the supply and value chain for cocoa. This includes investment in fermentation facilities and warehousing to ensure the quality of cacao, and trucks and support routes to market which will secure higher value for the cocoa produced.

Beyond the sustainable cocoa programme, the project is improving monitoring and enforcement in the project area to help tackle deforestation. This includes improving existing checkpoints, constructing new checkpoints, providing technical support to surveillance committees, and training park guards.

Contribution to sustainable developmentThe project contributes to sustainable development in several areas.

Biodiversity protectionMadre de Dios is a Global 200 Ecoregion (Southwest Amazon Moist Forest), home to numerous endemic and listed species, as identified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). This includes the jaguar, giant armadillo and giant otter, with many more yet to be identified. With the highest biodiversity index of any region in Peru, a fixed budget has been allocated to the project’s biodiversity monitoring programme, to help protect the mosaic of habitats of high ecological and sociocultural importance.

The projectThe project is conserving 540,000 hectares of rainforest in the Tambopata National Reserve and Bahuaja-Sonene National Park, which cover a collective area of over 1.5 million hectares – an area the size of Connecticut1. While the area is internationally recognised for exceptional biodiversity, neither the Peruvian government nor the Association for Research and Integral Development (AIDER) - the NGO tasked with managing the area - has sufficient funding to adequately address existing deforestation challenges. With the support of carbon finance and an innovative climate fund, the project is implementing activities that address deforestation, including the development of sustainable cocoa production in the region.

The aim of the sustainable cocoa programme is to plant 4,000 hectares of cocoa trees on land bordering the project area, establish smallholder cooperatives to manage the process, and sell deforestation-free cocoa that will support the economic growth and environmental stability of the area.

Highway construction has improved access to the area, leading to accelerated land-use change and forest degradation

With the highest biodiversity index of any region in Peru, the project is helping to protect the mosaic of habitats of high ecological and sociocultural importance.

The first cocoa cooperative was set up in October 2014, and by July 2016, the cooperative had reached 262 farmer members.

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By reducing deforestation and gold mining in the watershed, the project is contributing to improved water quality and quantity.

Economic growthBy 2020 the project aims to create 2,000 jobs for local cocoa farmers. The first cocoa cooperative was set up in October 2014, and by July 2016, the cooperative had reached 262 farmer members. It has been successful in turning 400 hectares of degraded land into an operational agroforestry area.

Education and skillsBeyond sustainable agriculture and cocoa production, the project is facilitating community capacity building. By sharing best practice and offering technical assistance for effective monitoring, the project aims to improve participatory management of the area. The project is also working with the Tambopata National Reserve and Bahuaja-Sonene National Park to strengthen the management committees.

Financial securityFarmers living within the project area cultivate staple crops such as rice, corn and bananas on small plots of one to five hectares. While farmers can sell excess crops and cash crops to the market, revenue is limited by the small volume of product available from an individual household. By setting up a cooperative structure, the project aims to secure a higher return from cash crops by pooling produce from cooperative members and leveraging the volume to sell at higher margins. Improving the value of existing crops and encouraging crop diversification through the cocoa programme, enables farmers to strengthen their financial security.

Infrastructure developmentTo improve forest protection, the project is building strategically located control and surveillance checkpoints. Currently there are 10 checkpoints around the Tambopata National Reserve and the Bahuaja Sonene National Park, with more planned for construction.

In order to protect the area more effectively, the project is developing inter-institutional agreements between the state and the management committees working in the project area. The agreements allow improved governance of the resources found in the project zone, such as wood, gold and rubber. Through the introduction of land decrees and regulations on resource use, the project has strengthened governance in three native communities in the area, with support given to resolve border conflicts between two of the native communities: Infierno and Palma Real.

The sustainable cocoa programme aims to support the economic growth and environmental stability of the area

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© 2012 Nick Hall

By 2020 the project aims to create 2,000 jobs for local cocoa farmers and turn degraded land into operational agroforestry areas

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The main driver of deforestation in Madre de Dios is artisan gold mining. This activity was banned by the Peruvian government in February 2012, aside from a designated 500,000 hectare corridor within which a permit is required. However, it is believed that corruption and lack of government resources in Madre de Dios will make enforcing the law difficult2.

Project partnersThe project is primarily managed by two partners. Asociacion para la Investigacion y Desarrollo Integral (AIDER) is a Peruvian NGO with over 29 years’ experience in implementing and managing sustainable development and conservation projects. AIDER has the executive control over activities in the project area. The other partner is the Peruvian Ministry of Environment’s National Service for Natural Protected Areas (SERNANP), which supervises and manages Peru’s national protected areas.

1 Fodder’s Travel (2016), The Amazon Basin Sights – Tambopata National Reserve and Bahuaja-Sonene National Park, http://www.fodors.com/world/south-america/peru/the-amazon-basin/things-to-do/sights/reviews/tambopata-national-reserve-and-bahuaja-sonene-national-park-445360, Accessed 18/10/2016. 2 Macmillan Publishers Limited (2012), Peru Battles the Golden Curse of Madre de Dios, http://www.nature.com/news/peru-battles-the-golden-curse-of-madre-de-dios-1.10857, Accessed 18/10/2016.

Water stewardshipThe Tambopata and Heath Rivers flow through the project area and offer an important protein source for local populations - fish. Small-scale gold mining is a key driver of deforestation and degrades water quality. By reducing deforestation and gold mining in the watershed, the project is contributing to improved water quality and quantity, including enhanced filtration capacity and reduced soil erosion.

RegionLocated in the Amazon Basin, bordering Brazil and Bolivia, Peru is one of the top ten most biodiverse countries in the world, home to approximately 10% of global diversity. While the Madre de Dios region represents just 7% of the country’s landmass, it contains 50% or more of Peru’s mammals and birds. Composed mainly of low-lying Amazon rainforest, the river is the main mode of transport in the region.

The project is based in Tambopata National Reserve and Bahuaja-Sonene National Park. Peru is one of the top ten most biodiverse countries in the world, home to approximately 10% of global biodiversity.

By setting up a cooperative structure, the project aims to pool produce to secure a higher return from cash crops