Following the recent journey in Gabon of Amazon’s founder Jeff Bezos, the widely renowned magazine Forbes has just published an article which enlightes this African country’s efforts to tackle climate change. Here’s an extract.
When Amazon’s founder Jeff Bezos visited Africa’s Congo Basin for the first time this month, he became enamored of its rainforests, biodiversity, and wildlife. He then pledged $35 million to Gabon to support nature conservation — part of the Bezos Earth Fund’s $110 million donation to the region. The fund has promised to give $10 billion between 2020 and 2030 to battle climate change and preserve nature.
Bezos’ meetings in the Congo Basin occurred just before Gabon’s October issuance of carbon credits to help the country protect its rainforest — the largest ever and potentially worth more than $2 billion. The government is now in talks with a major oil company. And Amazon may also want those credits. A successful sale would give rainforest nations and climate advocates renewed faith.
Countries and companies have vowed to be carbon neutral — in alignment with the Paris climate agreement. But switching to renewables won’t get them all the way there. So they buy carbon credits. If the credits are purchased directly from the source, the country gets all the money, and the entire rainforest is sheltered.
Indeed, the influx of a billion dollars or more into Gabon would serve as an economic catalyst that not only adds value to the forests but also creates much-needed revenues for infrastructure. It also would generate new jobs linked to forestry management and domestic furniture making — all potential pathways for an overwhelmingly young population that will get out of school and need work.
“Jeff (Bezos) is very keen on Gabon,” says Gabon’s Minister of Water, Forests, Sea, and Environment Lee White, in an interview with this writer. “He was extremely engaged. We have an ally for Gabon and for the rainforests and biodiversity. The experience moved him.”
“Half of our people are under the age of 20,” says Minister White. “We have 800,000 kids in school. We now have a total of 400,000 jobs. We need 500,000 new jobs. Without more jobs, we will have an entire generation of angry people. It’s a recipe for civil war. If the carbon credits generate at least $1 billion, we can build roads, railways, and a sustainable forestry economy.”
For example, Gabon bans the sale of unfinished wood to foreigners. Instead, it has built a high-end furniture industry and can get top dollar for the finished product. That means it does not have to cut down as many trees. Those left standing also have more value — nature’s way of absorbing CO2, otherwise known as carbon sinks. Meantime, the country can hire forest rangers and build up tourism.
Moreover, the forests have not just endured, but have also absorbed 1 billion tons of CO2 over eight years, allowing the natural habitat to survive: Gabon’s elephant population has risen from 60,000 to 95,000 since 2000 while neighboring Cameroon lost 90% of its elephants.
Suppose Gabon’s holistic commercial model works. It would then become a blueprint for rainforest nations, allowing them economic diversification and climate protection. For context, Europe sells carbon credits for $100 a ton. In Africa, they expect to start at $25 a ton and rise to $35 a ton, although some economists say that the social cost of carbon is $50 — the estimated economic damage for every ton emitted.
“Gabon is carbon positive because we have created a forest economy that raises the value of our forests,” says Minister White. “But we need a $10 billion forestry industry — far more than what the carbon credit sale will bring in. The carbon credits could potentially be very influential. These are the best carbon credits to ever come on the market. But they have to be combined with something that creates jobs.
« We have reduced our emissions by 90 million tons,” adds the minister. “We have absorbed 1 billion tons. For every carbon credit someone buys, Gabon removes 10 tons of CO2 from the atmosphere. They are getting 10 credits for the price of 1. Plus, they are helping to increase the elephant population.”
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“We are 88% rainforests,” says Minister White. “The only way to maintain those forests is to give them value. Without a sustainable forest industry that is properly valued, the rainforests are condemned to die.”
Gabon’s carbon credit sale in October is a major global event. If companies and countries scoop them up at a high price, their trees will live on, combating climate change and providing jobs. Gabon could go on to prosper and become a beacon of hope for other rainforest nations.
Click here to read the full article on Forbes’ website.
