The forests’ role in climate change got a further boost at the global negotiations at COP15. Key issues for the reduction of emissions from deforestation and degradation (REDD+) were agreed. Progress in streamlining the negotiations on accounting rules for forestry can be seen also as steps forward for the possible inclusion of "sustainable forest management" as a fundamental part of the mitigation of global warming.

The UN Climate Change Conference (COP 15) held in December in Copenhagen was the  major event to decide the next steps in mitigating global warming. However, The summit did not, however, reach a political deal. Its major outcome, the Copenhagen Accord, marks the first step towards a legally binding global climate agreement. A two and a half page document captures the political agreement to cap the rising temperature, reduce emissions and raise financing for climate change mitigation and adaptation. This will be used as a stepping stone to COP16, to be held in Mexico City, Mexico in 2010.

A range of forest-related issues were discussed in the Copenhagen negotiations. The major achievements deal with the reducing emissions from deforestation and degradation (REDD). The Copenhagen Accord recognises the crucial role of REDD and the need to establish a mechanism to support this. It is the first time an agreement was made on concrete figures for  funding from developed to developing countries. This is supposed to be around $30 billion for the period 2010-2012. Further financial commitment of $100 billion a year by 2020 is expected from public and private sources. The support of forestry is widely seen as the major positive development of the Accord.

A noteworthy outcome for the European forest sector is the progress in streamlining the negotiating text on the land use, land use change and forestry (LULUCF), an important element of the Kyoto Protocol’s regime. The lack of significant development in this further proved that setting carbon accounting rules for forestry is complex. The rules need to consider not just how people’s recent actions affect the amount of carbon a forest absorbs or releases, but also the impact of nature, climate, and, even more importantly, past practices. Hence the ongoing discussion on a set of options for accounting carbon sequestration in forestry on a post-2012 framework is elemental.

Two options are still being considered. Depending on the calculation method, forests can be a sink or source of carbon emission. Both methods stand for a mandatory inclusion of forest management for greenhouse gas emission flows in developed countries. The gross-net model, which allows to account total net greenhouse gas emissions from LULUCF in a given year, offers better solutions for countries with an extensive forest cover and sustainable forestry. In addition, the inclusion of harvested wood products (HWP) as part of the accounting rules for forests would also require transparent and consistent data and methodologies. Given the remaining challenges and lack of agreement on above even among the EU member states, it looks like serious talk in greater detail about the inclusion of forest is still ahead.

To capture this positive political momentum, representatives of the European forest owners as well as the pulp and paper industries addressed the negotiating parties at COP15. CEPI and CEPF held a joint press briefing on the 12th of December. CEPF President Mr. Christer Segersteen and Mr. Philip Guttenberg, a CEPF Board Director spoke along with Ms Teresa Presas, managing director of CEPI. The speakers urged the negotiating parties at COP15 to take into account the IPPC recommendations which recognize the significant potential of forests in mitigating climate change. European forest owners and industry have been implementing sustainable forest management principles. They call for these practices to be recognized in forestry policies to be put in place in order to achieve national commitments for carbon reduction. 



To this end, CEPF called for accounting improvements in LULUCF. The rules need to be practical and provide maximum incentives for actions to achieve real emissions reduction.  The existing rules for forestry are not a long term solution. They do not send the right signals on forest management to a sector which is critical for achieving a global solution to climate change. 
Building on the Copenhagen’s outcome, joint efforts are needed to put in place some more realistic and rational rules for forestry in future legally binding global climate agreements.

For more details please consult the press release or view the press briefing.