Voluntary carbon market and its contributions to sustainable development: analysis of the Monte Pascoal-Pau Brasil Ecological Corridor

Abstract

This paper aims to analyse the co-benefits of reforestation projects developed in the voluntary carbon market based on the analysis of a single case study: the Ecological Corridor Project Monte Pascoal–Pau Brazil, the first forest restoration project in Latin America to receive the seal climate community and biodiversity (CCB). To achieve this purpose, the research combined: i) primary sources, obtained from visits and interviews with key actors and script for semi-structured, with; ii) secondary sources, including reports of institutions on this theme and references. The results presented showed that forestry projects have positive co-benefits beyond those achieved in reducing deforestation and carbon sequestration, whether in environmental and social benefits. The case study had interesting picture of forest governance, growing in transparent structures of popular participation, but has exposed deficiencies in the sector, as the absence of a strong institutional framework – which leads to legal uncertainty and policy.