Conservation Program Update: Public Comment Period - Chyulu Hills REDD+ Carbon Project

MWCT has recently started a REDD+ (Reducing emissions from deforestations and forest degradation) Carbon Project. The REDD+ mechanism has been introduced by the United Nations as a climate change mitigation strategy. The goal of a REDD+ project is to prevent deforestation and forest degradation by active forest protection and provide alternative livelihoods for local communities living in and around the forest area.

For the Chyulu Hills REDD+ Carbon Project, MWCT is working in collaboration with 8 other conservation organizations (Conservation International, African Wildlife Foundation, Big Life Foundation, Wildlife Works, David Sheldrick Trust, Forestry Service, Kenya Wildlife Service, Kari Kiboko) to protect the forests and woodlands in and around the magnificent Chyulu Hills, referred to by Ernest Hemingway as the "Green hills of Africa".

The Chyulu Hills

The Chyulu Hills REDD+ carbon project encompasses an area of 4105 kilometres squared and includes 3 Maasai owned Group Ranchers (Kuku, Rombo and Mbirikani), Chyulu Hills National Park, a section of Tsavo West National Park, Kibwezi Forest Reserve and the Kari-Kiboko research area. The Chyulu Hills REDD+ carbon project is unique in that it is not only protecting the forests and woodlands, but it also protects a vital watershed.

The Chyulu Hills have a relatively higher rainfall than the surrounding areas and form a crucial water source in the further arid to semi-arid environments. The cloud forest that grows on top of the hills even collects water by cloud condensation on the leaves of the trees, the mosses and ferns during the dry season. Furthermore, the Chyulu Hills consist of highly porous volcanic rock causing most of the water to immediately infiltrate and create underground rivers. These rivers emerge in the form of springs all around the Chyulu Hills, where volcanic soils meet solid basement rocks. The most well-known of all these springs are the Mzima Springs in Tsavo West National Park. Here, an astonishing 190 million litres of water a day emerges from underneath the rocks. A pipelines transports part of this water to the human population in the costal area of Kenya. In this way, 40% of the freshwater in Mombasa originates from the Chyulu Hills.

There, the disappearance of the forest on top of the Chyulu Hills would not only have disastrous effect on the surrounding Tsavo-Amboseli ecosystem and its human population, but also on the human population further away in the coastal province of Kenya.

Since the project started, the biomass plot sampling (to assess the total amount of carbon currently present in the project area) has been completed as well as the FPIC (Free Prior and Informed Consent) process. For the FPIC process, several community outreaches were held across the project area in order to inform the community about the project and seek their support. MWCT was responsible for the outreaches on Kuku and Rombo Group Ranches and conducted a total of 25 FPIC outreaches.

The FPIC (Free Prior and Informed Consent) outreaches conducted by MWCT's outreach officer 

In June, the Project Design Document has been completed and is now open for public comments on the CCB website until 27th of July. All comments, positive remarks, constructive criticism or simple suggestions, are welcome!

Please visit: http://www.climate-standards.org/2014/06/25/chyulu-hills-redd-project/