Colombia: Caribbean Savannah
(BioCarbon Fund)
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The vegetation remains green even during the peak of the dry season; trees provide forage during the dry periods (Photo: CIAT) |
The project aims to enhance the productivity and natural resource base of 2,000 hectares of degraded lands by fostering the improved use of agricultural and tree material, notably through the expanded use of a silvopastoral system developed by the Colombian National Agricultural Research Organization (CORPOICA). This system consists in the planting of forage shrubs very well adapted to the region (Gliricydia sepium, Cresentia Cujete and Leucaena leucocephala) with high-value timber species (Pachira quinata, Switenia macrophylla and Tabebuia rosea). The original degraded pastures are recuperated using improved grasses, fertilizer application and other interventions to correct soil compaction. In the vast areas where land degradation has advanced to a severe grade, the project will implement reforestation using native tree species (Albizia saman, Guzima ulmifolia, Anacardium excelsum, Tabebuia billbergii, etc.). In this case grasses will also be established in the soils most devoid of vegetation, to favor rapid land cover, minimize erosion, and accelerate the rebuild of soil organic matter. Priority in reforestation will be given to areas surrounding water streams and undulating terrain where soil erosion is a major problem. External resources will be employed to cover up-front costs linked to the establishment of the system and that exceed the capability of local producers to allow its expansion at a significant enough rate to slow the process of land degradation. The project expects to cover 400 farms in the region surrounding Monteria.
The project is expected to sequester 0.14 Mt CO2e by 2012 and 0.32 Mt CO2e by 2017. Total carbon accumulation of 23 t CO2 equivalents per hectare per year could be obtained in the reforestation sites given the high tree number per unit area used for the reforestation (tree cover will reach 60% in the fourth year and 90% in year 10). The improved management will increase the storage of carbon both above- and below-ground. The recovery of the degraded land and reestablishment of a grass and tree cover will favor biodiversity and will reduce erosion, triggering in turn other environmental benefits. Rural communities living of small scale livestock production will benefit through an increase in their income and in the sustainability of their livelihood (currently threatened by land degradation). Local residents will also enjoy social benefits through the creation of direct employment for the tree nurseries, planting operations, fencing and maintenance of the established silvopastoral and reforestation systems. The local economy will be stimulated by the increased resources being injected in the economy through the project implementation and especially through higher productivity. Local and regional institutions including academic bodies will benefit from capacity building in topics related to CDM projects and silvopastoral systems. The activities proposed will not change land ownership and are not expected to result in leakage outside the project boundaries. The additional income from carbon sequestration will be key for the development of the activities, while the increase in income they will generate will clearly increase the incentive of farmers to keep them permanently.
The project is developed by Centro Internacional de Agricultura Tropical (CIAT, www.ciat.cgiar.org) and the Colombian National Agricultural Research Organization (CORPOICA, www.corpoica.org.co). CIAT is part of the Consultative Group for International Agriculture Research (CGIAR), and has an outstanding list of contributions both in scientific research and in impact to improve the livelihoods of rural people in the tropics. CORPOICA's mandate is to generate and validate technology suitable for the Colombian agricultural systems. As such, CORPOICA is the leading institution in the development and evaluation of silvopastoral systems as an alternative for recovering degraded land and pastures in Colombia and in the Andean Region. Corporación del Valle del Sinu, an environmental regional government agency will also contribute to the financing of the project.
THEMATIC INFORMATION
For more information on this project's thematic information (i.e., Biodiversity, Other Environmental Benefits and Risks, Socio-economic benefits and risks, Leakage, Risk of Non Permanence, and Additionality), please click here.
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