Building Blue Carbon Projects - An Introductory Guide

Ramsar Convention on Wetlands - The Ramsar Convention is an intergovernmental treaty that provides the framework for national action and international cooperation for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources (Ramsar, 2013).Opportunities for Blue Carbon under the Ramsar Convention could include: o Allowing convention parties to access funding to implement relevant Resolutions for coastal Blue Carbon conservation through multilateral & bilateral processes (e.g. the Global  Environment  Facility  (GEF)). Ramsar’s  Small Grant  Programmes  could  also be  an   opportunity to support pilot projects in the ground (International Blue Carbon Initiative, 2012); and o Include Blue Carbon to the criteria for identifying wetlands of international Importance. Further information on the national and international context of Blue Carbon can be found in the following and in Sections 1.6 and 7: Coastal Blue Carbon as an Incentive for Coastal Conservation, Restoration and Management: A Template for Understanding Options (Emmett-Mattox and Crooks 2013) http://www.estuaries.org/images/blue%20carbon%20template_final.pdf Guidance for national blue carbon activities: fast-tracking national implementation in developing countries (International Blue Carbon Initiative, 2012) http://thebluecarboninitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/BCPWG_NationalRecs_small.pdf Incorporating Blue Carbon as a Mitigation Action under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change: Technical Issues to Address (Murray and Vegh , 2012) http://nicholasinstitute.duke.edu/sites/default/files/publications/blue-carbon-unfccc-paper.pdf Options for Blue Carbon within the International Climate Change Framework (Grimsditch, 2011) http://digitalcommons.wcl.american.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1465&context=sdlp Opportunities to Use Carbon Services to Advance Coastal Habitat Conservation (NOAA, 2011) http://www.ecosystemcommons.org/sites/default/files/coastal_blue_carbon_report_to_nocc_0613 11.pdf

Key takeaways:

Blue Carbon can support a wide range of national efforts in the sustainable use, management and conservation of coastal environments. Blue Carbon can support international commitments, such as in the fields of climate change mitigation and biodiversity conservation.

Building Blue Carbon Projects An Introductory Guide

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