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Forests, Ag., Carbon, and Risk

“Chronicle of a Storm Foretold”EKO Asset Management Partners

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The Ecosystem Services

Provisioning

FoodFiberGenetic resourcesBiochemicalsFresh Water

Cultural Services

Spiritual and religious valuesAesthetic valuesRecreation and ecotourism

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The Ecosystem Services

Regulating Services

Air quality regulationClimate regulationWater regulationErosion regulationWater purification Waste treatmentDisease regulationPest regulationPollinationNatural hazard regulation

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Who are we Really?

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We Know the Problem...We are experiencing global climatic disruption

The disruption and its impacts are growing more rapidly than “the scientific consensus” predicted

Serious harm is occurring as a result

We know what is causing it - GHG emissions - and emissions are growing faster than we thought

We need to both reduce energy-related GHG emissions AND increase uptake of CO2 by land-based sinks

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“Green Carbon”

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Forests, agriculture and soil carbon offsets have historically been excluded from the carbon market

Green carbon is now considered part of the solution:

International recognition that forestry and ag carbon make up 25-30% of global GHG problem (around 6-7% in the US)

Green carbon a major part of proposed federal carbon market and already a part of California’s compliance market

Ag states and interests have a powerful voice in US legislative process - used it to shape the Waxman-Markey Bill, changing the politics of climate change

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Agriculture is Central Issue

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A More Inexpensive Solution...

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Role of Forests, Soil and AgPlay a crucial role both as source of emissions and sinks (sequester emissions)

Landowners and farmers are critical stakeholders in the political process

As a sink, have a tremendous role to play in balancing carbon flows:

Reducing emissions is not enough

Need to reduce atmospheric concentrations of CO2

Sinks are a key part of the solution to reverse build up of GHG’s

As part of a market based solution to climate change, green carbon tons are under-utilized

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Creating a Carbon Credit

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Project design

Validation of project design

Registration of project

Monitoring of project

activity

Verification of project

Issuance of credits

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Types of Offsets for Investment

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Agricultural practice changes

• Conservation tillage / No-till

• Crop rotations

• Modified fertilizer techniques

• Winter cover crops

• Perennial crops

• Biochar

Forestry

• Sustainable forest management

• Afforestation / Reforestation

• Avoided deforestation

Other land-use changes

• Grasslands restoration

• Rangeland management

• Wetlands restoration / peat bogs

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Ag Methodologies•Submitting methodologies for soil,

rangeland management in next few months (VCS, ACR)

•Agricultural practice methodologies further away (Biochar, Soil, other)

•Only existing methodologies on ag are in the CCX and Alberta

•CCX methodologies have been widely criticized and not likely to survive untouched

•Working with coalition of scientists, NGOs, agricultural concerns, and others to generate workable methodologies (C-AGG)

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Standards and MethodologiesCAR, ACR, VCS

CAR Protocols for Forestry

Afforestation

Sustainable forestry management

Forest conservation

No protocols yet on Ag

CAR in the process of commissioning “White Paper” that could lead to protocol

Broader networks/coalition (C, T, and M-AGG)

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In Short...We see two key trends:

US building a $100b carbon market from scratch

Renewed interest in “Green Carbon” (i.e. forests, soil, and agriculture as sources and sinks)

EKO will work with clients to help them profit from these trends, opportunities that may soon disappear

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Galileo Galilei“What greater stupidity can be imagined than calling jewels, silver, and gold ‘precious’ and earth and soil ‘base’? People who do this ought to remember that if there were a greater scarcity of soil as of jewels or precious metals, there would not be a prince who would not spend a bushel of diamonds... to have enough soil to plant a jasmine in a little pot, or to sow an orange seed and watch it sprout, grow and produce its handsome leaves, it fragrant flowers, its fine fruit.”

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“In theory there is no difference between theory and practice.

... In practice there is.”

Yogi Berra

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Where are We?

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Where are We?

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Where are We?

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