Avoided Deforestation Partners
Encyclopedia
Avoided Deforestation Partners, or ADP, is an organization promoting the role of the world’s forests in stopping climate change
. The organization is involved in the climate change debate. Deforestation
has become a heated scientific and legislative issue because loss of trees causes nearly 20 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, the equivalent of the world's entire transport sector.
ADP has published several studies which promote the idea that preserving tropical forests is one of the most affordable ways to reduce pollution and strengthen U.S. domestic agriculture. The National Farmers Union and Avoided Deforestation Partners calculate that stopping global deforestation would boost U.S. agricultural revenue by $190 billion to $270 billion through 2030 by cutting unfair competition from agricultural companies in the developing world which can offer better prices on the world market. Lower prices are possible because these farmers use deforested land that does not meet international standards for sustainability. Timber, beef and soy in particular are often produced from deforested land. Some farming groups have been skeptical about the overall impact of climate change legislation which is pending in the U.S. Senate.
s market for forest conservation. Businessweek and Politico.com say Horowitz has played a key role in drafting legislation to protect the rain forests and helping build consensus among a diverse group of players in the debate.
In May 2009, groups including the Sierra Club
, the Natural Resources Defense Council
, Duke Energy
and American Electric Power
signed the "Tropical Forest and Climate Unity Agreement", a set of 14 specific principles endorsing market and non-market mechanisms to protect tropical forests as part of U.S. climate policy. The agreement was drafted and coordinated by Horowitz.
Avoided Deforestation partners campaigns for development of this global conservation process, called REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation), which would allow developed countries to invest in rain-forest protection in the tropical world in exchange for carbon credits. At the December 2009 international climate meeting in Copenhagen, the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack said the American government will give $1 billion over the next three years to developing countries that enact REDD projects to build their countries’ capacity to slow and eventually halt deforestation.
passed by the House of representatives in June 2009 set a goal of conserving the carbon trapped in forests equal to 10% of U.S. emissions, and in doing so, set aside 5% of total emissions allowance value from carbon auctions, which could bring $3 billion to $5 billion a year, to the protection of forests in developing nations. The Kerry-Lieberman bill in the Senate has the same broad goal for conserving forests but devotes no specific funds to stopping deforestation. ADP believes the unfunded mandate in the Senate bill is a blow to large scale implementation of the REDD process.
, The Sierra Club, and The Nature Conservancy
. Mr. Horowitz advocates a market friendly approach to forest preservation with a recognition of the commodity value of environmental resources.
Glenn Hurowitz is the Washington Director of ADP. Mr. Hurowitz is a specialist on the intersection of climate science and policy and also a significant player in the movement for market-based conservation.
Climate change
Climate change is a significant and lasting change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns over periods ranging from decades to millions of years. It may be a change in average weather conditions or the distribution of events around that average...
. The organization is involved in the climate change debate. Deforestation
Deforestation
Deforestation is the removal of a forest or stand of trees where the land is thereafter converted to a nonforest use. Examples of deforestation include conversion of forestland to farms, ranches, or urban use....
has become a heated scientific and legislative issue because loss of trees causes nearly 20 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, the equivalent of the world's entire transport sector.
ADP has published several studies which promote the idea that preserving tropical forests is one of the most affordable ways to reduce pollution and strengthen U.S. domestic agriculture. The National Farmers Union and Avoided Deforestation Partners calculate that stopping global deforestation would boost U.S. agricultural revenue by $190 billion to $270 billion through 2030 by cutting unfair competition from agricultural companies in the developing world which can offer better prices on the world market. Lower prices are possible because these farmers use deforested land that does not meet international standards for sustainability. Timber, beef and soy in particular are often produced from deforested land. Some farming groups have been skeptical about the overall impact of climate change legislation which is pending in the U.S. Senate.
Jeff Horowitz
The organization's founder, Jeff Horowitz, is mainly interested in energy policy and the creation of a carbon creditCarbon credit
A carbon credit is a generic term for any tradable certificate or permit representing the right to emit one tonne of carbon dioxide or the mass of another greenhouse gas with a carbon dioxide equivalent equivalent to one tonne of carbon dioxide....
s market for forest conservation. Businessweek and Politico.com say Horowitz has played a key role in drafting legislation to protect the rain forests and helping build consensus among a diverse group of players in the debate.
In May 2009, groups including the Sierra Club
Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is the oldest, largest, and most influential grassroots environmental organization in the United States. It was founded on May 28, 1892, in San Francisco, California, by the conservationist and preservationist John Muir, who became its first president...
, the Natural Resources Defense Council
Natural Resources Defense Council
The Natural Resources Defense Council is a New York City-based, non-profit, non-partisan international environmental advocacy group, with offices in Washington DC, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Beijing...
, Duke Energy
Duke Energy
Duke Energy , headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, is an energy company with assets in the United States, Canada and Latin America.-Overview:...
and American Electric Power
American Electric Power
American Electric Power is a major investor-owner electric utility in various parts of the United States. AEP ranks among the nation's largest generators of electricity, owning nearly 38,000 megawatts of generating capacity in the U.S...
signed the "Tropical Forest and Climate Unity Agreement", a set of 14 specific principles endorsing market and non-market mechanisms to protect tropical forests as part of U.S. climate policy. The agreement was drafted and coordinated by Horowitz.
Carbon Offsets
Central to the avoided deforestation movement is the idea of creating a forestry carbon offsets protocol, designed to incentivize developing countries like Indonesia and Brazil to stop cutting and burning rain forests. Essentially this means placing a value on not cutting down trees so countries can reap economic benefit from preserving their forests.Avoided Deforestation partners campaigns for development of this global conservation process, called REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation), which would allow developed countries to invest in rain-forest protection in the tropical world in exchange for carbon credits. At the December 2009 international climate meeting in Copenhagen, the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack said the American government will give $1 billion over the next three years to developing countries that enact REDD projects to build their countries’ capacity to slow and eventually halt deforestation.
Legislation
The American Clean Energy and Security ActAmerican Clean Energy and Security Act
The American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 was an energy bill in the 111th United States Congress that would have established a variant of an emissions trading plan similar to the European Union Emission Trading Scheme...
passed by the House of representatives in June 2009 set a goal of conserving the carbon trapped in forests equal to 10% of U.S. emissions, and in doing so, set aside 5% of total emissions allowance value from carbon auctions, which could bring $3 billion to $5 billion a year, to the protection of forests in developing nations. The Kerry-Lieberman bill in the Senate has the same broad goal for conserving forests but devotes no specific funds to stopping deforestation. ADP believes the unfunded mandate in the Senate bill is a blow to large scale implementation of the REDD process.
Climate-Forests Agreement
In May 2010, ADP announced an agreement among a diverse group of major corporations and interest groups on polices aimed to protect the world's tropical forests. Signatories include: American Electric Power, Marriott International, Mercy Corps, National Wildlife Federation, Natural Resources Defense Council, NorthWestern Energy, Ohio Corn Growers Association, PG&E Corporation, Republicans for Environmental Protection, Starbucks Coffee Company, The Walt Disney Company, Union of Concerned Scientists, Virgin Group.Partners, Origins
ADP was co-founded in 2007 by Jeff Horowitz along with an international coalition of businesses and non-profit organizations. The organization's for-profit partners include American Electric Power, Duke Energy, PG&E, and El Paso Gas. Major non-profit partners include Conservation InternationalConservation International
Conservation International is a nonprofit organization headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, which seeks to ensure the health of humanity by protecting Earth's ecosystems and biodiversity. CI’s work focuses on six key initiatives that affect human well-being: climate, food security, freshwater...
, The Sierra Club, and The Nature Conservancy
The Nature Conservancy
The Nature Conservancy is a US charitable environmental organization that works to preserve the plants, animals, and natural communities that represent the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive....
. Mr. Horowitz advocates a market friendly approach to forest preservation with a recognition of the commodity value of environmental resources.
Glenn Hurowitz is the Washington Director of ADP. Mr. Hurowitz is a specialist on the intersection of climate science and policy and also a significant player in the movement for market-based conservation.