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Paying smallholders not to cut down the amazon forest: impact evaluation of a REDD+ pilot project

Author

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  • Gabriela Simonet
  • Julie Subervie
  • Driss Ezzine-De-Blas
  • Marina Cromberg
  • Amy Duchelle

Abstract

We estimate the additional effects of a REDD+ pilot project offering Payments for Environmental Services to reduce deforestation by smallholders in the Brazilian Amazon. We collected original data from 181 individual farmers. We use DID-matching and find evidence that supports the parallel trend assumption. We estimate that an average of 4 ha of forest have been saved on each participating farm in 2014, at the expense of pastures versus croplands. This amounts to a decrease in the deforestation rate of about 50 percent. We find no evidence of leakage effects. Finally, we find that the project is cost-effective.

Suggested Citation

  • Gabriela Simonet & Julie Subervie & Driss Ezzine-De-Blas & Marina Cromberg & Amy Duchelle, 2015. "Paying smallholders not to cut down the amazon forest: impact evaluation of a REDD+ pilot project," Working Papers 1514, Chaire Economie du climat.
    • Handle: RePEc:cec:wpaper:1514
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    Cited by:

    1. Cammelli, Federico & Angelsen, Arild, 2017. "Amazonian farmers’ response to fire policies and climate change," Working Paper Series 04-2017, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, School of Economics and Business.
    2. Nicolas Quérou & Antoine Soubeyran & Raphael Soubeyran, 2015. "Moral hazard and capability," Working Papers hal-02795218, HAL.
    3. Gwenolé Le Velly & Céline Dutilly, 2016. "Evaluating Payments for Environmental Services: Methodological Challenges," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 11(2), pages 1-20, February.
    4. Nicolas Querou & Antoine Soubeyran & Raphael Soubeyran, 2015. "Motivating versus Funding," Working Papers 15-11, LAMETA, Universtiy of Montpellier, revised Oct 2015.
    5. Cammelli, Federico & Angelsen, Arild, 2019. "Amazonian farmers' response to fire policies and climate change," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 165(C), pages 1-1.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    REDD+; Payments for environmental services; Brazilian Amazon; Treatments effects; Quasi-Experiment.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • Q23 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Renewable Resources and Conservation - - - Forestry
    • Q57 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Ecological Economics
    • D12 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Consumer Economics: Empirical Analysis

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