Understanding Afforestation, Reforestation, & Revegetation (ARR) projects

4 min read

November 14, 2023 at 3:09 PM

What are Afforestation, Reforestation & Revegetation (ARR) projects?

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Afforestation, Reforestation, and Revegetation (ARR) projects focus on establishing new forests or restoring degraded land by planting trees and implementing soil conservation practices.

What are the three main components of afforestation, reforestation, and revegetation projects?

Afforestation: planting trees on land that has not been previously forested;
Reforestation: replanting trees in areas that have been deforested;
Revegetation: restoring vegetation cover in areas where it has been lost.

By increasing forest cover, ARR projects enhance carbon sequestration, improve soil health, and promote ecosystem resilience. These projects often involve community engagement, land-use planning, and monitoring to ensure the forested areas' successful establishment and long-term sustainability.

For more information on the two kinds of climate contribution projects and how they can be divided into seven categories, please read our blog: How to Select Climate Contribution Projects.

What are the environmental, social and economic benefits of afforestation, reforestation and revegetation projects?

ARR sequesters carbon in the tree’s biomass. ARR provides several notable benefits:

A nature-based solution that doesn’t require high-tech infrastructure or technology;
Low cost alternative;
Employment and livelihood opportunities (i.e. training in beekeeping, see example below for more information);
Access to resources and ecosystem services.

Not only can afforestation and reforestation projects promote carbon sequestration goals, but they can also help forests by enhancing landscape connectivity, and reducing fragmentation. Additionally, afforestation and reforestation can:

Preserve biodiversity hotspots. Planting trees can create new habitats for more tolerant species and enhance biodiversity. For example, favoring native species and avoiding invasive ones.
Control the level of soil degradation by encouraging local communities to move towards agroforestry or silvo-pastoral farming systems. This can also bring new income opportunities to the locals.

Protect natural resources, and regulate water flow through the forest’s hydrological-related ecosystem services, storm flow regulation, and erosion control.

What are the associated challenges of afforestation, reforestation, and revegetation?

The large-scale implementation of ARR requires the recruitment of landowners to implement forestry practices on their land. This can be time-consuming, expensive, and difficult in terms of physical labor.

The forest design must consider biodiversity and water yield aspects to ensure spatial alignment and effective planning of its components.

Some examples of existing methodologies

Some of the current methodologies used in the VCM can be found below:

CDM

AR-AMS0007 Afforestation and reforestation project activities implemented on land other than wetlands
AR-ACM003 Afforestation and reforestation of lands except wetlands
AR-AMS0003 Afforestation and reforestation project activities implemented on wetlands
AR-AM0014 Afforestation and reforestation of degraded mangrove habitats

Gold Standard

Afforestation/reforestation (A/R) GHG emission reduction and sequestration methodology

ACR

Afforestation and reforestation of degraded land

CAR

Forest Projects protocol
Urban tree planting protocol

Verra

VM0047 Afforestation, reforestation and revegetation

Current status of projects and credits

As of May 2023, a large number of projects, 290, are registered under Verra, Gold Standard with 47 has the second largest number of projects, CAR and ACR stand with 14 and 11 projects, respectively. The total number of credits issued is almost 60 million, most of them concentrated in South America, with Uruguay as the main reference, and East Asia, with China as the main promoter of this type of projects. In the South American country, reforestation and afforestation with eminently productive objectives predominate, while in China there is a greater diversity of objectives in these actions, with projects with both productive and protection objectives.

Punjab Agroforestry Project (13) 1

Project Example: Agroforestry in Punjab

Punjab, primarily an agricultural region, relies heavily on a traditional rice-wheat cropping system that has been crucial for India's food security. However, certain areas are experiencing challenges such as nutrient depletion, declining groundwater levels, and increased pests and diseases due to overexploitation. These issues highlight the need to transition from the current cropping system.

Agroforestry has emerged as a promising alternative to diversify from the conventional rice-wheat rotation. This sector currently supplies over 80% of the country's wood and wood products, with 6% coming from natural forests and 12% through imports. In Punjab, agroforestry not only supplements farm income through carbon revenue but also addresses the socio-economic needs of farming communities. It aims to empower and uplift their livelihoods, significantly contributing to climate resilience. Various tree species, both native and non-native, are cultivated across Punjab's diverse agro-climatic zones, enhancing biodiversity. Agroforestry meets the rising demand for timber and tree-based products while simultaneously conserving and rehabilitating ecosystems.

Other KPIs:

4,073 of managed land
1,822 farmers included
24.8M tCO₂e sequestered during the project's lifetime

If you would like to purchase carbon credits for this project, please contact us.

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