Researchers examined 12 voluntary projects of Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+) in the Brazilian Amazon since 2008 and found that the projects overestimated reduction of deforestation and carbon emission, when compared with estimates based on synthetic controls; decreasing deforestation trends in the Amazon during early stages of REDD+ projects may explain why such projects resulted in less avoided deforestation than expected, according to the authors.
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Article #20-04334: "Overstated carbon emission reductions from voluntary REDD+ projects in the Brazilian Amazon," by Thales A. P. West, Jan Börner, Erin O. Sills, and Andreas Kontoleon.
MEDIA CONTACT: Thales A. P. West, Scion, Rotorua, NEW ZEALAND; e-mail: < thales.west@scionresearch.com >
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences