Project:
REDD+ Brazil Nut Concessions

In Compensate's portfolio since: 08/2020 - 08/2021

Carbon credits bought: 33 410

Country: Peru

Equivalent to protecting 425 218 square meters of rainforest

Sustainable livelihoods, forest protection

Project duration: 30 years (2010 - 2040)

The project is located in Madre de Dios, Peru, the most biodiverse rich area of the Amazon rainforest. The project protects 300 000 hectares of brazil nut concession land from unplanned deforestation.

A new Interoceanic highway, completed in 2012, passes through the concession land and has significantly facilitated access to the forest, exposing it to illegal activities. Thus, the project protects the rainforest from invasion of illegal loggers and miners from across Peru and the neighbouring countries, especially Brazil. In addition, the project aims at increasing concessionaires’ income from sustainable harvest of brazil nuts and contributing to region’s sustainable development.

Traditions, people, climate

Brazil nut is a South American tree and also the name of the tree's commercially harvested edible seeds. It is one of the largest and longest-lived trees in the Amazon rainforest.

The project area encompasses 300 000 hectares of brazil nut concession land in the Amazon rainforest biodiversity hotspot – Madre de Dios, Peru. The project works closely with 405 concessionaires who have a binding commitment with the State to sustainably manage the forest and be "custodians of the forest".

Brazil nut harvesting is a traditional activity during the rainy season between January and March, where rural families from Madre de Dios go into the rainforest to crack fallen pods and harvest in-shell nuts.

Prior to the project implementation, processing of the Brazil nuts has taken place in concessionaires’ houses, where the brazil nuts are peeled or sold in-shell to intermediaries. Brazil nut sales represent the main source of income for rural families and is a source of employment for around a third of the total population in Madre de Dios.

Sustainable income

The key objective of the project is to prevent deforestation, to increase concessionaires’ income from sustainable harvest, and to prevent illegal logging and mining.

While being the least populated region in Peru, Madre de Dios has the highest growth rate due to the new interoceanic highway connecting Western Brazil with the Pacific Ocean. The highway has increased the flux of migrants including even Brazilian farmers, which in turn has put immense pressure on the forests. Brazil nut harvesting is a seasonal activity, which puts the Brazil nut concessions under a higher threat of deforestation.

To prevent unplanned deforestation by illegal actors, the project has entered into a long-term cooperation with the Departmental Federation of Brazil nut Producers of Madre de Dios (FEPROCAMD). Under this cooperation has been legally formalised the activities of the concessionaires involved and cooperation agreements and alliances with the Government of Madre de Dios has been established. In addition, the project has implemented an Early Alert System to prevent deforestation and trained the main deforestation agents in alternative livelihoods incl. improved forest management, and tree nursery establishment.

The project initially planned to purchase a Brazil nut processing plant. However, the implementation of the brazil nut processing plant was canceled due to the changed market situation. In the beginning when the project started there were only two processing plants in Madre de Dios and the implementation of the plant was of vital importance. In the coming years the market for brazil nuts became more dynamic due to new market entrants, resulting in the the construction of nine production plants in the region. These nine plants have the capacity to process brazil nuts not only from Peruvian but also from Bolivian forests, and are also offering support in entering national and international markets. Thus, the construction of a new processing plant as part of the project activities would no longer bring added value for the concessionaires and the project decided to put their efforts in other immediate priority activities.

Concessionaires bring the harvested Brazil nuts in-shells to the plants close by, where the nuts are processed and the peeled high-quality products including Brazil nuts and oil are packed and prepared to be sold in international markets. In addition, some of the second class and byproducts are sold in the domestic market for the cosmetics, bakery and candy industries. Furthermore, as a guarantee for the sustainability of the products and processes, they obtain organic, fair trade or FSC certification. In addition, 30% of carbon credit certificates were awarded to the Federation.

As of 2021, any surplus, after the project costs are covered, is equally divided between the project developer and the Federation of Brazil nut Producers of Madre de Dios. Surplus was realised for the first time in 2020.

Enriching the forest

Madre de Dios rainforest is recognized as one of the most biodiverse areas of the planet. The project area is home to a variety of plant and animal species, including endangered wildlife such as the otter, jaguar, puma, lowland tapir and the giant anteater.  The project goal is to further enrich the forest by establishing a tree nursery and planting native species, such as Brazil nut, Cumaru and Tornillo. The research on the selection of the best specimens from multiple provinces in Peru is conducted in cooperation with the Technological Institute of Costa Rica (TEC), one of the leading institutions in research of native species worldwide.

In 2019, the project finalized the selection of 20,000 trees with the best genetic load, out of which are chosen 10 best trees that we will be planted from 2020 onwards. The project facilitates the knowledge transfer to each of the concessionaires and contributes to sustainability and local development. The project also provides training in forestry management, and promotes the utilization of reduced impact techniques.

Without the project, it is unlikely that concessionaires could finance a processing plant, a control and surveillance system, and enriching the forest by establishing a tree nursery. In addition, the project utilizes remote sensing spatial data incl. Landsat images for monitoring and baseline renewal. The project monitors and accounts for any emissions due to degradation activities, such as extraction of trees for illegal timber or fuelwood and charcoal and selective logging from forest management areas possessing FSC certificate.

Photo credit: Bosques Amazónicos For the documentation on this project, visit Verra's database

The project supports 11 out of the 17 SDGs. In addition to preventing deforestation, the project aims at increasing concessionaires’ income from sustainable harvest of brazil nuts and contributing to region’s sustainable development.

More projects