Bosques Amazonicos Project Becomes First Validated Peruvian REDD Carbon Offset Project

Scientific Certification Systems (SCS) has announced the validation of Peru's first Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD) carbon offset project. The project will use revenue generated from the sale of carbon credits to prevent illegal deforestation on 290,695 hectares of Peruvian rainforest.

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The Madre de Dios forestland has been jeopardized by illegal forest clearing for subsistence farming and illegal mining. This project will implement a monitoring and surveillance system to prevent illegal deforestation and invest in a Brazil nut processing plant to increase livelihood conditions of Brazil nut concessionaries among other activities. The area's Brazil nut concessioners are highly dependent on local ecosystems, but have few resources with which to protect their concessions. The project was sponsored by the Federation of Brazil Nut Concessioners of Madre de Dios (FEPROCAMD) and Bosques Amazónicos (BAM).

"Bosques Amazónicos' REDD project is a great example of the numerous benefits of forest conservation," said Robert J. Hrubes, Senior Vice President of SCS. "The project will provide a steady income for Brazil nut concessioners while protecting biologically diverse rainforest land."

SCS validated the project to the Verified Carbon Standard. The project is expected to generate approximately 2 million Verified Carbon Units (VCUs) per year. The validation process involved evaluating the carbon monitoring plan and calculation of baseline carbon emissions.

"Having our REDD project validated is a historic milestone for the Peruvian forestry sector and is especially satisfactory because it was obtained with an interdisciplinary Peruvian team," remarked the General Manager and founder of BAM, Jorge Cantuarias.

Scientific Certification Systems (SCS) has been a global leader in third-party environmental and sustainability certification, auditing, testing and standards development for more than 25 years. SCS programs span a wide cross-section of sectors, recognizing exemplary performance in natural resource management, green building, product manufacturing, food and agriculture, retailing and more. SCS is a Certified B Corporation™, reflecting its commitment to socially and environmentally responsible business practices.

Bosques Amazónicos (BAM) is a Peruvian company, established in 2004, dedicated to the conservation, restoration and sustainable management of tropical forest in the Amazon. BAM's projects include a reforestation project with native species in Campo Verde, Ucayali and a REDD project in Small Forestry Concessions in Madre de Dios. The reforestation project in Campo Verde obtained validation under the Verified Carbon Standard (2009) and the Climate, Community and Biodiversity Standards (2010) and achieved its first verification in June 2012.