Developing a Framework for Blue Carbon Payments
Abstract
Referred to collectively as ‘blue carbon’ ecosystems, salt marshes, seagrasses and
mangroves sequester and store significant amounts of carbon which, when destroyed
or degraded, release CO2 into the atmosphere contributing to climate change. The
long term sustainable future of these ecosystems may rely in part, on the development
of a framework to aid in the process of acquiring payments to protect and restore
these ecosystems. Blue carbon ecosystems provide numerous values, services and benefits
to humans; however, many of the services are not traded in a marketplace and are unvalued,
which has led to overutilization and exploitation. This paper examines the concept
of payments for blue carbon protection through the lens of three blue carbon research
sites in Abu Dhabi, Madagascar and Mozambique. A literature review, coupled with research
and interviews with practitioners at the three blue carbon research sites served to
inform the development of this paper.
The overarching goal of payments for blue carbon is to aid in the protection of these
vital ecosystems while also providing resources and a means for the people living
in these sensitive areas. This paper uncovers various opportunities, constraints and
issues of uncertainty related to financing blue carbon protection through the sale
of carbon offsets from blue carbon ecosystems. These issues are applied and examined
in the context of three blue carbon research sites to uncover potential solutions.
Type
Master's projectPermalink
https://hdl.handle.net/10161/8527Citation
Barnes, Niles (2014). Developing a Framework for Blue Carbon Payments. Master's project, Duke University. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10161/8527.Collections
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