Climate change mitigation and sustainable development through carbon sequestration: experiences in Latin America

This article discusses the links between sustainable development and carbon sequestration as a climate change mitigation (CCM) strategy with a focus on Latin America, which has hosted the majority of sequestration activities to date. The global potential for CCM through a combination of sequestration and reduced deforestation is projected to be roughly 60-80 billion tonnes of carbon (GtC) by mid-century, with a large fraction of that potential lying in Latin America. Such activities can, in theory, contribute to sustainable development by contributing to rural livelihoods, providing fuel and timber, and enhancing biodiversity and other environmental services. However, due to political-economic constraints and the nature of the carbon market itself only a small fraction of this technical potential is likely to be reached. Moreover, the degree to which carbon sequestration and forest conservation activities contribute to positive social and environmental outcomes is not clear. To date, carbon sequestration and forest conservation projects in Latin America have had mixed results. Some of these experiences are reviewed and alternative policy options are discussed.