Avoiding planned deforestation and its climate impact
Cikel Brazilian Amazon REDD APD Project Avoiding Planned Deforestation, Brasilien
The CIKEL forest conservation project in Brazil aims to prevent planned deforestation and thereby secure the long-term preservation of existing forest areas.
By maintaining existing forest cover, carbon stored in biomass and soils remains sequestered over the long term. Avoiding planned deforestation prevents the release of large volumes of CO₂ that would otherwise result from land conversion. In this way, the project delivers measurable emission reductions by protecting existing carbon stocks.
Forest protection is implemented through long-term land-use and forest management concepts designed to maintain forest areas and avoid deforestation. The project therefore links the protection of existing ecosystems with a clearly defined climate impact, demonstrating how forest conservation can contribute effectively and over the long term to climate mitigation—implemented in a traceable manner and with measurable results.
Technical project data – VCS832
Key facts about the forest conservation project at a glance.
| Parameter | Description | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Project location | Brazil; State of Pará, Municipality of Paragominas (Eastern Amazon) | Project Description (PD), Section 1.9 |
| Project type | REDD project to avoid planned deforestation (Avoided Planned Deforestation, APD) in the AFOLU sector | Project Description, Section 1.2 |
| Project standard | Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) | Monitoring Report, title page, p. 1 |
| Additional standard | Climate, Community & Biodiversity Standard (CCB) | CCB Validation Report, Executive Summary |
| Project developer | CIKEL Brasil Verde Madeiras Ltda. | Project Description, Section 1.3 |
| Project area | Approx. 27,435 ha of tropical forest | Project Description, Section 1.9 |
| Technology / approach | Avoided planned deforestation through long-term land-use planning, protection measures, and monitoring of existing forest areas | Project Description, Sections 1.2 & 2 |
| Baseline scenario | Implementation of approved forestry and land-use plans with significant forest conversion and CO₂ release | Project Description, Section 2.3 |
| Methodology | VM0007 – REDD Methodology Framework (REDD-MF), Avoiding Planned Deforestation | Monitoring Report, Section 2 |
| Project start | Start of the crediting period as per project registration (2009) | Project Description, Section 1.6 |
| Crediting period | Multi-year crediting period as per VCS registration (ongoing) | Monitoring Report, Section 1.7 |
| Project status | Registered VCS project with regular verifications | Verra Registry |
| Annual emission reductions | Project-specific per monitoring period; reported in the respective monitoring and verification reports | Monitoring Reports, Section 3 |
| Main impact mechanism | Avoidance of CO₂ emissions by maintaining existing forest carbon stocks in biomass and soil | Project Description, Sections 2 & 3 |
| Monitoring & verification | Regular monitoring of forest areas using remote sensing and on-site checks; independent verification by accredited VVBs | Monitoring Report, Sections 4 & 5 |
| Additionality | Implementation of forest protection measures financially enabled by revenues from the carbon market | Project Description, Section 2.5 |
| Permanence & risk management | Safeguarding of climate impact through the VCS AFOLU buffer pool, based on risk assessment | Non-Permanence Risk Report, Sections 4.1–4.2 |
| Carbon Credit Rating | No external carbon credit rating published | Verra Registry & project documentation |
| Carbon Credit Rating Type | No project-specific external rating (e.g. BeZero, Sylvera) | – |
| Article 6 Authorization (Paris Agreement) | No authorization under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement | Verra Registry |
| CCP Status (ICVCM) | No CCP classification published | ICVCM |
| Handling of double-counting risks | Clear allocation of VCUs within the Verra Registry | VCS Rules |
| Risk management (AFOLU) | Systematic assessment of non-permanence risks (incl. deforestation, fire, land-use change) and coverage via the VCS buffer pool | Non-Permanence Risk Report, Sections 4.1–4.2 |
| Monitoring approach | Combination of remote sensing, GIS analyses, sample-based field checks, and model-based emissions quantification in line with VCS requirements | Monitoring Report, Sections 3 & 4 |
| Project longevity / long-term perspective | Long-term forest conservation project with a multi-year crediting and monitoring structure | Project Description, Section 1.6 |
| Contribution to national climate strategy | Contribution to emission reductions in the AFOLU sector without national accounting under Article 6 | Project Description, Section 1.10 |
What the project can contribute
Here we summarize what the project is designed to achieve in practice and which tangible changes it makes possible.
- 1
Preserving existing forests over the long term
The CIKEL project protects existing tropical forest areas in the Brazilian Amazon from planned deforestation. This helps maintain large, intact forest ecosystems that would otherwise have been converted step by step.
- 2
Preventing carbon release
By avoiding deforestation, carbon stored in biomass and soils remains sequestered over the long term. The climate impact does not result from additional carbon removals, but from avoiding substantial CO₂ emissions that would be released through forest conversion.
- 3
Reorienting forest use
The project is based on an adjusted land-use and management strategy that prioritizes the conservation of forest areas. This aligns economic interests with climate mitigation without opening up additional land.
- 4
Safeguarding ecological functions
Protecting existing forests preserves key ecological functions such as carbon storage, water regulation, and habitats for numerous species. At the same time, it helps maintain the landscape’s resilience to climatic changes.
- 5
Securing climate impact over time
Emission reductions are safeguarded through continuous monitoring, independent verification, and AFOLU-specific risk management. This includes coverage via the VCS buffer pool to address non-permanence risks.
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Global climate relevance
Avoiding irreversible emissions
Deforestation releases large amounts of carbon that cannot be fully re-sequestered over human timescales. By protecting forest areas, the project avoids emissions that would otherwise contribute permanently to the global greenhouse effect.
Protecting a forest area under high pressure
The project site is located in a region with high deforestation pressure. Conservation measures take effect where the risk of emissions is particularly high and where protection therefore has correspondingly high climate relevance.
Preserving climate-relevant landscape functions
Large forest landscapes influence local and regional climate processes, for example through evapotranspiration, temperature regulation, and precipitation patterns. Preserving these structures supports the stability of climate-relevant processes beyond the project boundaries.
Long-term impact enabled by secured financing
Revenues from the voluntary carbon market enable sustained financing for protection, monitoring, and risk management. This ensures that climate impact is maintained not as a one-off effect, but over many years.
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – The relevant and the complementary contributions
Beyond avoiding greenhouse gas emissions, the CIKEL project contributes to the long-term preservation of existing forest ecosystems, the safeguarding of ecological functions, and the protection of large-scale tropical forest landscapes. By preventing planned deforestation, essential climate and ecosystem services are maintained. In this way, the project supports several objectives of the UN Sustainable Development Agenda (Sustainable Development Goals). The most material contributions relate to SDG 13 (Climate Action) and SDG 15 (Life on Land). Other goals are supported in a complementary or indirect way. Some SDGs should be considered peripheral, as they are not part of the project’s core focus.
The CIKEL project contributes to climate mitigation by avoiding planned deforestation. As a result, large amounts of carbon stored in biomass and soils remain sequestered over the long term and are not released into the atmosphere as CO₂.
The climate impact arises from avoiding emissions that would otherwise result from the conversion of forest land.
Contribution:
Avoidance of greenhouse gas emissions through the preservation of existing forest carbon stocks.Protecting existing tropical forests preserves diverse ecosystems and their functions. This includes habitats for numerous species, soil stability, and natural regulation processes across the landscape.
Maintaining contiguous forest areas supports the long-term stability and resilience of these ecosystems.
Contribution:
Preservation and stabilization of existing terrestrial ecosystems by avoiding planned deforestation.The project creates employment through forest protection measures, monitoring, administration, and project implementation. These activities support local economic activity without creating additional incentives for deforestation.
Contribution:
Support for local employment and economic activity in forest conservation and project implementation.By adjusting land-use and management strategies, long-term forest conservation is prioritized. Short-term use interests are deprioritized in favor of a more responsible approach to forest resources.
Contribution:
Resource-conserving use of forest areas through long-term oriented land-use strategies.Maintaining large forest areas has positive effects on the regional water balance. Forests help regulate runoff, infiltration, and soil erosion, thereby supporting stable hydrological processes.
Contribution:
Indirect support for a more stable water balance through the preservation of natural forest structures.Maintaining large forest areas has positive effects on the regional water balance. Forests help regulate runoff, infiltration, and soil erosion, thereby supporting stable hydrological processes.
Contribution:
Indirect support for a more stable water balance through the preservation of natural forest structures.The project contributes to establishing long-term structures for forest protection, monitoring, and land-use planning. These structures support the sustainable management of forest areas, but they are not the main focus of the project.
Contribution:
Contribution to the development of long-term organizational and monitoring structures in forest conservation.
How CO₂ savings are generated
Forests and soils store carbon. When they are protected, reforested or managed more sustainably, this carbon remains stored and does not enter the atmosphere as CO₂. These avoided emissions can be measured and form the basis for CO₂ certificates.
Land use and forestry projects change how an area develops over time. Without the project, forests would degrade or be cleared, or soils would store less carbon. With the project, more carbon remains stored — or additional carbon is captured, for example through newly planted trees.
Depending on the region, vegetation and soil type, there are established factors that indicate how much carbon a forest or soil can store on average.
For each project, the expected development of the area without the intervention (baseline) is compared with the carbon that is retained or additionally stored through the project activities. The difference represents the avoided or newly captured emissions. These values are verified, regularly updated — and form the basis for issuing CO₂ certificates.
Context and transparency
The CIKEL forest conservation project is registered under the Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) and is subject to regular monitoring and independent verification. The issued emission reduction credits are based on audited monitoring and verification reports and on approved methodologies for quantifying avoided greenhouse gas emissions from planned deforestation.
Legally robust carbon compensation and credible carbon offsetting
Carbon offsetting is under far closer scrutiny than it used to be—driven by tighter regulation, more critical audiences, and stricter requirements for environmental claims. Anyone communicating climate-neutral, carbon-neutral, or offset needs solid foundations: a robust Corporate Carbon Footprint (CCF), and—where relevant—a Product Carbon Footprint (PCF), plus clear documentation of what has been offset and how.
For legally robust compensation, three elements are decisive:
- Transparent methodology (accounting approach and project logic are traceable)
- Independent assurance (e.g., monitoring and verification under recognized standards)
- Clear, defensible communication (no overclaims; precise wording; verifiable statements)
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