Southeast Asia's Concession Land Forests Require Reform Beyond Carbon Markets
A new study highlights the limitations of carbon markets in conserving Southeast Asia's forests, revealing that legal constraints on concession land compel companies to engage in commodity production. The findings underscore the need for regulatory reforms to enable conservation, as significant areas of tropical forest remain at risk under current commercial mandates.
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The study published in Nature Communications analyzed 3,754 commercial concessions across Indonesia, Malaysia, Cambodia, and Myanmar, finding 42 million hectares of tropical forests legally designated for commercial harvesting. If these forests are lost, it could threaten 4.6 million hectares of Key Biodiversity Areas and release approximately 1.2 gigatons of CO2 within 30 years.
The breakeven price for carbon conservation varies across Southeast Asia, ranging from US$33 to US$1,677 per ton, while actual carbon credit prices are significantly lower, between US$5-12 per ton. The research indicates that regulatory reforms are crucial to allow conservation on concession lands, beyond relying solely on carbon markets.
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