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The Altai forests

Carbon sequestration in forests plays a significant role in the global carbon balance.The boreal forests of Eurasia and North America alone absorb around 1.6 billion tons of C02 per year. This is 25 times the greenhouse gas emissions of Denmark, where the fifteenth conference of Parties to the UNFCCC is gathered today; 3 times the emissions of France; and 1.2 times the emissions of Japan.

Russian forests compensate for over 300 million tons of industrial C0₂ emissions every year. Moreover, the country has huge potential to expand its carbon stocks with measures to manage existing forests and plant new ones.

The Kyoto Protocol creates conditions to attract carbon investment in forestry projects, with a joint implementation mechanism allotting Emissions Reduction Units (ERUs) for projects establishing forests on previously unforested land.

The potential for implementing forestry projects in Russia is valued at 3-5 million tons of C02 per year. And taking into account the long-term potential for building carbon sinks as the forests mature, carbon absorption could reach 7-10 million tons of C02 annually.

The advantages of forestry projects:

he long-term effects of forests in carbon absorption, promising compensation for greenhouse gas emissions for a minimum of 40-50 years.
he low prime cost of forest-planting in Russia, especially taking into account the benefits of prolonged carbon sink growth
he huge positive effects for the environment, populations, biodiversity, etc.

Forestry projects are attracting the interest of carbon investors seeking to hedge the risks of purchasing ERUs, and also of emissions source companies (for example, airlines, whose emissions will continue to grow in the long- term).

The first forestry pilot project in Russia was developed from 2008 to 2009 by the nonprofit organization, the Center for Ecological Innovation, in cooperation with the Administration of Altaisky Krai, Altaisky Krai Forest Management, and the Fund for 21^st Century Altai.

The project developersare offering to interested parties::

participation in the forest establishment demonstration project in Altaisky Krai, Russian Federation;
cooperative project development for the joint implementation of carbon-sequestering forest plantings in Russian regions;
Optimization of costs and minimization of the timeframe in forestry project realization in Russia.

The first pilot forest project in Russia

The first pilot project in Russia to establish carbon- sequestering forest plantings was developed in Altaisky Krai. The goal of the project was to plant forests on land formerly used for agricultural production.

The plantings are located in the Shipunovsky region. The project has already produced 1362 hectares (3366 acres) of forest. 600 more hectares are planned to be forested by 2012. This will increase the effects of carbon sinks.

The project land is forested with Scots Pine (Pinus sylvestris) because of its tolerance to local pests and climate, ensuring lower project risks.

Afforestation is monitored and inspected with GIS and GPS. The project is implemented with the support of the Administration and Forest Management of Altaisky Krai. Currently, a grant from the British Embassy is funding the preparation of the first PIN and PDD for a forestry project in Russia.

Additional opportunities

Potential future projects in Altaisky Krai:

planting 50,000 hectares of protective forest belts: reating sinks for up to 3.2 million tons of C02 by 2020.
planting 50,000 hectares of forest on degraded lands: creating sinks for up to 3.0 million tons of C02 by 2020.

Other territories in Russia with vast areas suitable for establishing carbon-sequestering forest and protective forest belts:

In Western Siberia: Tyumenskaya, Omskaya, Novosibirskaya, Tomskaya, and Kemerovskaya Oblasts, Altaisky Krai, and the Altai Republic.
In European Russia: Tverskaya, Tulskaya, Lipetskaya, Voronezhskaya, Belgorodskaya, Volgogradskaya, and Rostovskaya Oblasts, Krasnodarsky Krai, and the Kalmykia Republic.

Funding is still necessary for

The completion of ocumentation and verification procedures for the current project.
The implementation of scientific research (PIN and PDD) on all forest belts in Altaisky Krai.

A study of the important role in greenhouse gas sequestration played by the onversion of agricultural holdings to forest.

The involvement of the wider public, nonprofit organizations, and the media in the forest conservation process, and the fine-tuning of public interaction mechanisms

Project organizers and participants

The Center for Ecological Innovation
Altaisky Krai Forest Management
The Department for UNESCO of Altai State Technical University
The Fund for 21 “’Century Altai
The Higher School of Economics (Moscow)

Support for the project

The Administration of Altaisky Krai
Altaisky Krai Forest Management
The Embassy of Great Britain
Moscow State University
The Higher School of Economics
Altai State Technical University
Altai State Agricultural University
Altai State University

CONTACT INFORMATION FOR PARTICIPANTS OF THE PROJECT

Organization:

Center for Ecological Innovation

Address:

Ul. Lobachevskogo 46, k.17

Building:

46

City:

Moscow

Post code:

1195415

Country:

Russia

Telephone:

+7-926-911-05-14

Fax:

+7-495-431-47-57

Email address:

ABC@kyotoforest.ru

URL:

www.kyotoforest.ru

Contact:

Andrei Vladimirovich Stetsenko

Title:

President

Telephone number:

+7-926-911-05-14

Fax number:

+7-495-431-47-57

Mobile phone number:

+7-926-911-05-14

Organization:

Fund of 21^st Century Altai, Department of UNESCO (Altai State Technical University)

Address:

Matrosova 120

Building:

120

City:

Barnaul

Post code:

656058

Country:

Russia

Telephone:

+7-3852-75-72-00

Fax:

+7-3852-75-72-00

Email address:

hovd97@mail.ru

URL:

www.fondaltai21.ru

Contact:

Mikhail Yurevich Shishin

Title:

President

Telephone number:

+7(3852) 75-72-00

Fax number:

+7(3852) 75-72-00

Our parthenrs

656052, Barnaul, Matrosov st., 120
tel.:(3852) 75-72-00, 44-90-23
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