Reducción de las emisiones derivadas de la deforestación y la degradación forestal
Los bosques son una solución clave basada en la naturaleza, disponible, eficaz y rentable, que puede proporcionar hasta un tercio de la mitigación necesaria para mantener el calentamiento global muy por debajo de los 2 °C. Los bosques tienen un potencial de mitigación de más de 5 GtCO2e al año mediante la detención de la pérdida y degradación forestal, y la gestión, conservación y restauración sostenible de los bosques (REDD+).
REDD+ es una solución de mitigación del cambio climático desarrollada por las Partes de la Convención Marco de las Naciones Unidas sobre el Cambio Climático (CMNUCC).
Su marco, el llamado Marco de Varsovia, se adoptó en 2013 en la COP 19 de Varsovia y proporciona la orientación metodológica y financiera para la ejecución de las actividades de REDD+.
El Acuerdo de París sobre el clima reconoce al programa REDD+ y su función central a favor de los bosques en el artículo 5.
REDD+ reduce la deforestación mediante la conservación y la gestión sostenible de los bosques y el apoyo a los países en desarrollo para que conviertan sus compromisos políticos, representados en sus Contribuciones Determinadas a Nivel Nacional, en acciones sobre el terreno.
Los bosques mitigan el cambio climático debido a su capacidad para eliminar carbono de la atmósfera y almacenarlo en la biomasa y los suelos. Cuando los bosques se talan o degradan, pueden convertirse en una fuente de emisiones de gases de efecto invernadero (GEI) al liberar ese carbono almacenado. Se calcula que, a escala mundial, la deforestación y la degradación forestal son responsables de alrededor del 11% de las emisiones de CO2.
To date, 118 countries have included forest and land use in their Nationally Determined Contributions pledges. This represents 162 million hectares of restored, reforested and afforested land, which is in line with the Bonn Challenge and the New York Declaration on Forests.
Since 2008 the UN-REDD Programme (UNEP, FAO and UNDP) has been supporting 65 partner countries in their nationally led efforts to become “REDD+ ready” and qualify for results-based payments.
As of today, UN-REDD countries have submitted forest emissions reductions equal to taking 150 million cars off the road for a year. And UN-REDD has channeled and mobilized more than USD 1 billion since inception.
Within the UN-REDD Programme, UNEP leads on private sector engagement, safeguards, knowledge management and communications.
Key facts
- During 2015–2020, the rate of deforestation was estimated at 10 million hectares per year.
- Currently 11% of all carbon emissions stem from deforestation – more than emissions from all means of transport combined.
- Limiting climate change to well below 2C cannot be achieved without REDD+.
- Halting deforestation and forest degradation can avoid emissions of more than 5 gigatons CO2e/year.
- Forest conservation and restoration can provide more than one quarter of the emissions reductions needed in the next two decades.
- The goals of the Paris Agreement cannot be met without the world's forests: their mitigation potential by 2030 is about 5 gigatons/year, on par with that of industry and only behind the energy sector.
- Forests, however, are more than that. Protecting the world's forests is crucial to meet the Sustainable Development Goals: they provide an array of critically important ecosystem services including habitat for biodiversity of global significance and livelihoods for vulnerable and indigenous communities.
- Forests and woodlands are important stores of planet-warming carbon dioxide, soaking up 30 per cent of emissions from industry and fossil fuels. But every year, the world loses 10 million hectares of forests, an area larger than Portugal.
- Deforestation and forest degradation account for approximately 11 percent of carbon emissions. If deforestation were a country, it would rank third in carbon dioxide emissions behind China and the United States of America.
- An annual outlay of $1 million in forest management can generate from 500 to 1,000 jobs in many developing countries, and 20 to 100 in most developed and middle-income countries. Investments in forests can become a backbone for COVID-19 recovery efforts in rural economies in developing countries.
For more information visit UN-REDD or learn more about UNEP's work on forests.
