B2F_Report

Business to forest. 2013 report 3

Approximately 40 percent of the Moscow Region is covered by forestland. More than 300 rivers also traverse the region. Beyond the seven million people who live in the region, Moscow is home to dozens of mammal species, more than 170 species of birds and a handful of aquatic and amphibian species.

In 2010, the massive forest fire burned more than 100 000 hectares in Moscow Region, destroying wildlife habitat and popular recreation sites for the densely populated region. The damage has had a drastic effect on the local ecosystem, wiping out wildl ife habitat, causing increased erosion and decreased water quality, and putting massive amounts of stored carbon back into the atmosphere.

Mistsevo

Plotava

It is now considered even more certain (> 95%) that human influence has

been the dominant cause of the observed warming since the mid-20th century.”

Project boundary

Climate Change 2013: the Physical Science Basis, IPCC, Stockholm, Sweden.

“The main aim of the Business to Forest project is to unite society, business and government for restoration of degraded forests and climate change mitigation.

The reforestation is helping the eco-system recover from this wildfire, while also providing the long-term benefits of carbon sequestration and air quality improvement to Russia’s second most-populous region. In addit ion, the plantings and subsequent care and monitoring are providing jobs for the local community, while also providing protect ion for non-t imber forest products - including wild mushrooms, berries, cones and more — to grow and mature for added economic benefits.

Social Benefits

Loca l Emp loyment . The p ro ject establishes alternative sources of income and employment opportunities for local people.

Recreational Benefits. The reforested land will provide passive recreational opportunities gathering forest produce in cultural and well-being terms, such as camping, hiking and bird watching. Recreational potential prognosis will be made using MGUL developed methods.

Non timber forest products (NTFP). Local communities will get the opportunity of gathering forest produce in cultural and well-being terms including wild mushrooms, berries, tree boughs, cones, moss, syrup, honey and medic inal products. NTFP potential prognosis was made using MGUL developed methods.

Support of c l imate sc ience. The research on environmental benefits of the project will be made in a partnership with leading Russian forestry university -MGUL.

Environmental Education. Rising social awareness of climate change, explaining the environmental role that boreal forests play in ecosystem. Special workshops were held among project participants and volunteers at tree planting events.

Environmental Benefits

Climate Change Mitigation. Reforestation combats cl imate change by carbon sequestration. The amount of sequestered carbon will be measured according to international standards.

Air Quality Improvement. All forests of Moscow region have official status-«Protect ive forests of Moscow». Improvements in air quality generated by reforestation extend beyond the sequestration of CO2: growing trees wi l l remove air pol lutants such as nitrogen oxides, ammonia and sulfur dioxide from cars and factories.

Wildlife Habitat Re-establishment.Reforestation of forest land destroyed by fire will create valuable wildlife habitat. In turn, wildlife habitat generates forest litter, which is an important part of the food cha in and enr iches the so i l . Providing habitat for endangered and threatened species is another potential benefit.

Erosion Control and Water Treatment.Tree roots stabilize land soil, which is susceptible to erosion. By stabilizing the soil, trees prevent sediment and nutrients from washing into nearby streams and rivers. Erosion control and water quality potential prognosis will be made using MGUL developed methods.

The project is designed according to international principles:

Accuracy: The quantified greenhouse gas or carbon reductions will represent actual emission reductions. These reductions are based on approved methodologies used by CDM and Gold Standard, yearly monitoring and reporting. Moscow State Forest University (MGUL) is the scientific partner of the project. Permanence: Permanence is commonly referred to as the useful life of a project in reducing carbon emissions. The forest-lands being restored through this project have been declared as «Protected Forests of Moscow» by the Federal Forestry Agency where no economic activity can be done.

Leakage: Leakage is the positive or negative impacts of a project on the surrounding area outside the project’s boundary. We had assessed the negative impact and tried to minimize those inevitable effects.

ABOUT THE PROJECT BUSINESS TO FOREST

This year we planted 40 000 pines on the territory of 10 hectares. These trees are to capture more than 3 643 tons of CO2. Two main tree planting events were held in May and September.On May 15 more than 200 volunteers made their contribution to sustainable

BUSINESS TO FOREST - 2013

under its «Lets help the nature together» federal reforestation program. The program itself lasts for two years showing a great example of successful CSR practice established in Russia.

The autumn event was supported by Alcoa Foundation as a part of its global Ten Million Tress Program. Volunteers, students of MGIMO University, bloggers and NGOs took part in the event. While listening to some nice reggae music we planted more than 13 000 pines.

The event ended up with an interactive eco performance and a workshop on sustainable forestry as part of FSC Friday celebration.

On May the event was supported by «Rodniki Rossii»

The autumn event was supported by Alcoa Foundation

future. Among them you could have seen students from Moscow universities and local schools, NGOs, regional and federal authorit ies, celebr it ies, media and business representatives. The event was supported by «Rodniki Rossii» (Mineralwater brand, part of Pepsico Holdings)

Business to forest. 2013 report 5

6 Business to forest. 2013 report

Each business participant received carbon offset certificate with the amount of CO2

offset and GPS coordinates, photo and videos reports. Monitoring reports will be sent to participants yearly. On special request Russian Carbon Fund made an evaluation report on «Rodniki Rossii» federal program «Lets help the nature together 2012-2013». The following indicators were included in the report: сarbon sequestration, oxygen separation, erosion control and water quality potential prognosis, recreational potential prognosis, non-timber forest products prognosis.

We are going to use the experience of «Business to Forest 2013» project in an effort to establish a nationwide Federal program of climate reforestation and improved forest management projects in a partnership with Federal Forestry Agency of Russian Federation and other participants.

PROJECT RESULTS

«As the years go by, humanity is facing more and more global challenges that cannot be put aside. It is now the time for the leaders who will lead the way to more sustainable future. Our team is thankful to all participants of «Business to forest 2013» project. We hope that our joint efforts towards restoration of degraded forests and climate change mitigation will engage even more followers and sustainable companies the next year.» Alexey Shadrin CEO Russian Carbon Fund

Supported by:

Federal Forestry Agency of the Russian Federation

Department of natural resources and environmental management of Moscow Government

Forestry Committee of the Government of Moscow Region

Project participants:

Project partners:

Media partners:

MoscowNovember 2013

Our mission is to unite society, business and government for environmental conservation and sustainable development of the Russian Federation.

We develop and implement turnkey solutions that cover all aspects of sustainable development. We believe that by cooperation and common effort we will mitigate effects that are harmful to nature and society for the benefit of present and future generations.

Ecological Projects Development and Support Fund «Russian Carbon».41 Kirpichnaya Str.,105187,Moscow, Russia

Project team:Alexey ShadrinEkaterina ReshetnikovaIvan YakubovElizaveta RomanovaSergey ChumachenkoRoman NeretinNino TyaevaNatalya Shadrina

Report authors: Prof. Sergey chumachenkoDoctor of biological sciencesAlexey ShadrinElizaveta RomanovaNino Tyaeva