IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/wdevel/v40y2012i3p542-554.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Institutional Determinants of Success Among Forestry-Based Carbon Sequestration Projects in Sub-Saharan Africa

Author

Listed:
  • Reynolds, Travis W.

Abstract

This paper contributes to the debate on the economic and social implications of carbon forestry through the study of 42 programs in Africa using carbon offset payments to fund tree-planting activities. Such projects may be understood as multi-layered collective action problems: growing trees for carbon offsets requires not only international financial incentives to plant trees, but also local institutions to monitor, impose sanctions, and distribute benefits. Consistent with economic theories, large projects appear to realize economies of scale. Contrary to expectations, community-based projects on lower-quality sites often successfully generate and sell offsets, while private for-profit initiatives appear susceptible to collapse.

Suggested Citation

  • Reynolds, Travis W., 2012. "Institutional Determinants of Success Among Forestry-Based Carbon Sequestration Projects in Sub-Saharan Africa," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 40(3), pages 542-554.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:40:y:2012:i:3:p:542-554
    DOI: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2011.09.001
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0305750X11002233
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.worlddev.2011.09.001?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Nygren, Anja, 2005. "Community-based forest management within the context of institutional decentralization in Honduras," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 33(4), pages 639-655, April.
    2. Corbera, Esteve & Brown, Katrina, 2008. "Building Institutions to Trade Ecosystem Services: Marketing Forest Carbon in Mexico," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 36(10), pages 1956-1979, October.
    3. Oliver E. Williamson, 2000. "The New Institutional Economics: Taking Stock, Looking Ahead," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 38(3), pages 595-613, September.
    4. Pagiola, Stefano & Arcenas, Agustin & Platais, Gunars, 2005. "Can Payments for Environmental Services Help Reduce Poverty? An Exploration of the Issues and the Evidence to Date from Latin America," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 33(2), pages 237-253, February.
    5. Simeon Ehui & John Pender, 2005. "Resource degradation, low agricultural productivity, and poverty in sub‐Saharan Africa: pathways out of the spiral," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 32(s1), pages 225-242, January.
    6. Mary Gugerty, 2009. "Signaling virtue: voluntary accountability programs among nonprofit organizations," Policy Sciences, Springer;Society of Policy Sciences, vol. 42(3), pages 243-273, August.
    7. R. Mark Isaac & James M. Walker, 1988. "Group Size Effects in Public Goods Provision: The Voluntary Contributions Mechanism," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 103(1), pages 179-199.
    8. Adam G. Bumpus & Diana M. Liverman, 2008. "Accumulation by Decarbonization and the Governance of Carbon Offsets," Economic Geography, Clark University, vol. 84(2), pages 127-155, April.
    9. Klooster, Daniel, 2000. "Institutional Choice, Community, and Struggle: A Case Study of Forest Co-Management in Mexico," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 28(1), pages 1-20, January.
    10. Smith, Joyotee & Scherr, Sara J., 2003. "Capturing the Value of Forest Carbon for Local Livelihoods," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 31(12), pages 2143-2160, December.
    11. Agrawal, Arun, 2001. "Common Property Institutions and Sustainable Governance of Resources," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 29(10), pages 1649-1672, October.
    12. Barrett, Christopher B. & Lee, David R. & McPeak, John G., 2005. "Institutional Arrangements for Rural Poverty Reduction and Resource Conservation," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 33(2), pages 193-197, February.
    13. Benin, Samuel & Pender, John, 2006. "Collective action in community management of grazing lands: the case of the highlands of northern Ethiopia," Environment and Development Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 11(1), pages 127-149, February.
    14. Maxwell T Boykoff & Adam Bumpus & Diana Liverman & Samual Randalls, 2009. "Theorizing the Carbon Economy: Introduction to the Special Issue," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 41(10), pages 2299-2304, October.
    15. Robert N. Stavins, 1999. "The Costs of Carbon Sequestration: A Revealed-Preference Approach," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 89(4), pages 994-1009, September.
    16. Michaelowa, Axel & Jotzo, Frank, 2005. "Transaction costs, institutional rigidities and the size of the clean development mechanism," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 33(4), pages 511-523, March.
    17. Golub, Alla & Hertel, Thomas & Lee, Huey-Lin & Rose, Steven & Sohngen, Brent, 2009. "The opportunity cost of land use and the global potential for greenhouse gas mitigation in agriculture and forestry," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 31(4), pages 299-319, November.
    18. Adam G. Bumpus & Diana M. Liverman, 2008. "Accumulation by Decarbonization and the Governance of Carbon Offsets," Economic Geography, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 84(2), pages 127-155, April.
    19. Michael Taylor & Sara Singleton, 1993. "The Communal Resource: Transaction Costs and the Solution of Collective Action Problems," Politics & Society, , vol. 21(2), pages 195-214, June.
    20. Shahi, Chander & Kant, Shashi, 2007. "An evolutionary game-theoretic approach to the strategies of community members under Joint Forest Management regime," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 9(7), pages 763-775, April.
    21. Gibson, Clark C. & Williams, John T. & Ostrom, Elinor, 2005. "Local Enforcement and Better Forests," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 33(2), pages 273-284, February.
    22. Reynolds, Travis W. & Farley, Joshua & Huber, Candice, 2010. "Investing in human and natural capital: An alternative paradigm for sustainable development in Awassa, Ethiopia," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 69(11), pages 2140-2150, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Leventon, Julia & Kalaba, Felix K. & Dyer, Jen C. & Stringer, Lindsay C. & Dougill, Andrew J., 2014. "Delivering community benefits through REDD+: Lessons from Joint Forest Management in Zambia," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 10-17.
    2. Julia Szulecka, 2019. "Towards Sustainable Wood-Based Energy: Evaluation and Strategies for Mainstreaming Sustainability in the Sector," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(2), pages 1-21, January.
    3. Martinelli, Gabrielli do Carmo & Schlindwein, Madalena Maria & Padovan, Milton Parron & Vogel, Everton & Ruviaro, Clandio Favarini, 2019. "Environmental performance of agroforestry systems in the Cerrado biome, Brazil," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 122(C), pages 339-348.
    4. Aggarwal, Ashish & Brockington, Dan, 2020. "Reducing or creating poverty? Analyzing livelihood impacts of forest carbon projects with evidence from India," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    5. Shames, Seth & Bernier, Quinn & Masiga, Moses, 2013. "Development of a participatory action research approach for four agricultural carbon projects in east Africa," CAPRi working papers 113, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    6. Purdon, Mark, 2015. "Opening the Black Box of Carbon Finance “Additionality”: The Political Economy of Carbon Finance Effectiveness across Tanzania, Uganda, and Moldova," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 462-478.
    7. Clot, Sophie & Stanton, Charlotte Y., 2014. "Present bias predicts participation in payments for environmental services: Evidence from a behavioral experiment in Uganda," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 108(C), pages 162-170.
    8. Fisher, J.A. & Cavanagh, C.J. & Sikor, T. & Mwayafu, D.M., 2018. "Linking notions of justice and project outcomes in carbon offset forestry projects: Insights from a comparative study in Uganda," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 73(C), pages 259-268.
    9. Howard, Rebecca Joy & Tallontire, Anne & Stringer, Lindsay & Marchant, Rob, 2015. "Unraveling the Notion of “Fair Carbon”: Key Challenges for Standards Development," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 70(C), pages 343-356.
    10. Cecilia Luttrell & Erin Sills & Riza Aryani & Andini Desita Ekaputri & Maria Febe Evinke, 2018. "Beyond opportunity costs: who bears the implementation costs of reducing emissions from deforestation and degradation?," Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Springer, vol. 23(2), pages 291-310, February.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Andersson, Krister, 2013. "Local Governance of Forests and the Role of External Organizations: Some Ties Matter More Than Others," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 226-237.
    2. Long, Hexing & de Jong, Wil & Yiwen, Zhang & Liu, Jinlong, 2021. "Institutional choices between private management and user group management during forest devolution: A case study of forest allocation in China," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 132(C).
    3. Phan, Thu-Ha Dang & Brouwer, Roy & Davidson, Marc David, 2017. "A Global Survey and Review of the Determinants of Transaction Costs of Forestry Carbon Projects," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 133(C), pages 1-10.
    4. Tschakert, Petra, 2007. "Environmental services and poverty reduction: Options for smallholders in the Sahel," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 94(1), pages 75-86, April.
    5. Bluffstone, Randy & Robinson, Elizabeth & Guthiga, Paul, 2013. "REDD+and community-controlled forests in low-income countries: Any hope for a linkage?," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 43-52.
    6. Lacuna-Richman, Celeste & Devkota, Bishnu P. & Richman, Mark A., 2016. "Users' priorities for good governance in community forestry: Two cases from Nepal's Terai Region," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 69-78.
    7. Hayes, Tanya & Persha, Lauren, 2010. "Nesting local forestry initiatives: Revisiting community forest management in a REDD+ world," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 12(8), pages 545-553, October.
    8. Tai, Hsing-Sheng, 2007. "Development Through Conservation: An Institutional Analysis of Indigenous Community-Based Conservation in Taiwan," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 35(7), pages 1186-1203, July.
    9. Robinson, Brian E. & Provencher, Bill & Lewis, David J., 2013. "Managing Wild Resources: Institutional Choice and the Recovery of Resource Rent in Southwest China," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 120-132.
    10. Emma Paulsson, 2009. "A review of the CDM literature: from fine-tuning to critical scrutiny?," International Environmental Agreements: Politics, Law and Economics, Springer, vol. 9(1), pages 63-80, February.
    11. Bortoletto, Wagner Wilson & Pacagnella Junior, Antonio Carlos & Cabello, Otavio Gomes, 2023. "Exploring the scientific literature on clean development mechanisms: A bibliometric analysis," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 183(C).
    12. Soltani, Arezoo & Sankhayan, Prem Lall & Hofstad, Ole, 2016. "Playing forest governance games: State-village conflict in Iran," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 73(C), pages 251-261.
    13. Monge, Juan J. & Bryant, Henry L. & Gan, Jianbang & Richardson, James W., 2016. "Land use and general equilibrium implications of a forest-based carbon sequestration policy in the United States," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 127(C), pages 102-120.
    14. Rong Li & Brent Sohngen & Xiaohui Tian, 2022. "Efficiency of forest carbon policies at intensive and extensive margins," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 104(4), pages 1243-1267, August.
    15. Pagiola, Stefano & Rios, Ana R. & Arcenas, Agustin, 2008. "Can the poor participate in payments for environmental services? Lessons from the Silvopastoral Project in Nicaragua," Environment and Development Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 13(3), pages 299-325, June.
    16. Jennifer M. Alix-Garcia & Elizabeth N. Shapiro & Katharine R. E. Sims, 2012. "Forest Conservation and Slippage: Evidence from Mexico’s National Payments for Ecosystem Services Program," Land Economics, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 88(4), pages 613-638.
    17. Kosoy, Nicolás & Corbera, Esteve, 2010. "Payments for ecosystem services as commodity fetishism," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 69(6), pages 1228-1236, April.
    18. Jayme Walenta, 2020. "Climate risk assessments and science‐based targets: A review of emerging private sector climate action tools," Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 11(2), March.
    19. Anna Davies & Niamh Kirwan, 2010. "Rescaling climate justice: sub-national issues and innovations for low carbon futures," The Institute for International Integration Studies Discussion Paper Series iiisdp340, IIIS.
    20. Michetti, Melania & Parrado, Ramiro, 2012. "Improving Land-use modelling within CGE to assess Forest-based Mitigation Potential and Costs," Climate Change and Sustainable Development 122862, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei (FEEM).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:40:y:2012:i:3:p:542-554. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/worlddev .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.