Conservation Finance Network

Small forests add up to potentially significant pools of carbon storage. Carbon credits as structured don't make that an economic business for small owners- yet.

Economists and scientists agree that carbon taxes help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by creating an incentive for people to use less fossil fuels. But that’s not all they can do.

Swiss finance giant Credit Suisse has partnered with The World Bank to issue a $28.6m bond aimed at financing the protection and restoration of fresh and saltwater resources and habitats.

A key goal of the Environmental Markets and Finance Summit, hosted by Forest Trends and AEMI, was to begin mapping out what a coordinated financial strategy could look like, in order to scale up global restoration and sustainable land use dramatically. Environmental markets (the most prominent of which focus on carbon offsets, wetland and habitat credits, sustainably certified products, and water quality offsets and trading) have matured mostly in silos. It is time to start putting the pieces together and cross-pollinating solutions.

The Sentinel Landscapes Partnership recently introduced an Interactive Landowner Resources Tool. By compiling over 300 landowner assistance programs in a single, user-friendly location, this product makes it easier for you to find voluntary, state and federal landowner assistance programs. In addition, the updated website includes interactive GIS maps and information pertaining to local Sentinel Landscape events, project highlights and funding data.

USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service is awarding about $12.5 million in grants to support the development of innovative systems and technologies for private lands conservation. The funding is provided through the Conservation Innovation Grants program, which is funding the future of agriculture and conservation through grants to organizations and universities that are developing the next generation of tools and technologies to boost conservation on agricultural lands.

Treasury continues to work on additional guidance under a section of the tax code that governs charitable contributions, an agency official said. The IRS in June issued final rules under Section 170 aimed at state workarounds of the $10,000 limit on deductions for state and local taxes.

Having already developed the first parametric insurance policy to insure and enhance the resilience of a coral reef section of the Mesoamerican Reef in Mexico, The Nature Conservancy is now looking to expand the product’s reach into Florida and Hawaii.