Dr. Howard Nelson Biodiversity Specialist Ministry of Planning, Housing and the Environment Trinidad and Tobago.

Dr. Howard NelsonBiodiversity SpecialistMinistry of Planning, Housing and the EnvironmentTrinidad and Tobago

Development of Adaptation Strategies based on Climate Change Induced Dengue Outbreaks;

Pilot - Solar water-heating and lighting for State institutions and government –funded housing;

CNG Pilot for Public Transportation;

Policy and legislative reform analysis for transition to renewable energy and alternative fuels;

Vulnerability, adaptation and impact of climate change on nesting marine turtles;

Biofuels and waste management;

Assessment of the impact of climate change on coral reef carbonate budgets;

Monitoring of rare terrestrial ecosystems threatened by climate change;

Mapping, designation and management of critical wildlife corridors in agricultural and urban landscapes;

Gap-analysis of priorities for marine protected area designation;

Current status - draft project document

GEF Focal Area – Climate Change

Proposed GEF Agency – UNEP

Major outcomes (Global Environmental Benefits & National Sustainable Development Benefits)

Development of regionally applicable models for dengue epidemic forecasting under climate change scenarios;

Provide a means to forecast climate-change mediated dengue outbreak risk;

Provide a tool for government to predict and manage outbreak events;

Main Project activities and link to national strategies

Identification of 8 study communities Pre- and post- education intervention

surveys Establishment of microclimate monitoring

systems in 4 study communities GIS modeling of dengue forecasting at

study sites

GEF Costs, cofinancing, etc Not determined



Proposed GEF Agency – UNDP


Development of a national cost-benefit analysis for use of Best Available Technology for solar lighting and heating;

Increased awareness and buy-in by State agencies for the transition to renewable energy;

Increased public awareness and acceptance of renewable energy in lighting and heating;

Reduction of national carbon-emissions;


Identification of new State buildings for deployment of technologies;

Establishment of a monitoring systems to determine renewable energy system performance;

Cost-benefit analysis; Development of national policy on use of

renewables based on project evaluation;

GEF Costs, co-financing, etc Not determined





Increased awareness and buy-in by State agencies for the transition to renewable energy;

Increased public awareness and acceptance of use of CNG in transportation;

Reduction of national transportation based carbon-emissions;


Identification of State fleet vehicles for deployment of technologies;

Establishment of a monitoring systems to determine renewable energy system performance;

Cost-benefit analysis; Development of national policy on use of

renewables based on project evaluation






Increased awareness and buy-in by State agencies for the transition to renewable energy and alternative fuels;

Identification and development of policy instruments for mainstreaming renewable energy and alternative fuels in the energy, transport and agricultural sectors;

Reduction of national carbon-emissions by transformation of policy and legislative framework for renewable and alternative fuels use in Trinidad and Tobago;


Comprehensive analysis of existing policy and legislative framework to determine challenges to renewable and alternative fuels nationally;

Development of recommendations to modify existing national policies to increase the attractiveness of renewables and alternative fuels;

Draft new national policy on the use of renewables and alternative fuels



GEF Focal Area – Climate Change/Biodiversity/Cross-cutting



Clearer understanding of the threat posed by climate change to nesting habitat of these globally threatened species;

Identification of potential habitat management interventions to ensure protection of marine turtle nesting habitat;

Reduction of reduction of extinction risk to marine through climate change by reduction of impact on nesting beaches;


Analysis of known nesting beaches and their potential for erosion through wave action;

Modeling of climate change impact on rates of nesting habitat erosion;

Identification of potential mitigation activities to protect these habitats;






Transformation of a waste-stream of used oils to a biodiesel fuel stream;

Reduction of waste oils contamination of surface waters;

Reduction of reduction of carbon emissions through reuse of waste oils and use of biodiesel;


Analysis of potential sources and volumes of waste edible oils nationally;

Cost-benefit analysis of the collection processing and use of edible oils for biodiesel ;

Development of collection and processing mechanisms for waste edible oils;






Development of an understanding of climate change and ocean acidification on coral skeletons;

Provision of a model for rates of coral loss through ocean acidification;


Establishment of 2 coral research sites in Tobago and Jamaica;

Assessment of the contribution of ocean acidification to suite of stresses facing coral systems

Modeling long-term impact on reef extent and implications for sustainable livelihoods



GEF Focal Area – Climate Change/biodiversity/ cross-cutting



Identification of key elements of monitoring system for threatened ecosystems;

Develop model of rate of habitat loss;

Provide a means for assessing the risk to habitats for species of global importance


Use of local NGOs and CBOs to establish permanent monitoring sites in cloud and montane forest;

Training of forestry department, NGO and CBO partners in identification of target species;

Development of spatially-explicit model for rates of response of forest communities to projected climate change,



GEF Focal Area –biodiversity

Proposed GEF Agency – FAO


Identification of potential wildlife corridors which can make significant contribution to maintaining biodiversity in habitat fragments in urban/agricultural;

Development of policy and administrative mechanisms to protect important wildlife corridors;

Provision of means to reduce ecosystem decay and demographic stochasticity for globally threatened species in habitat fragments


Identification through remote sensing and GIS modeling critical wildlife corridors;

Development of administrative and policy mechanisms to ensure protection of corridors identified as important on the landscape;

Development of training tools for use by Forestry Department, NGOs and CBOs



GEF Focal Area –biodiversity /IW



Identification of a priority list of marine areas within Trinidad and Tobago’s national jurisdiction for designation as protected areas;

Development of an estimate of ideal spatial extent of the marine protected areas system;

Develop a national consensus on the identification and designation of MPAs


Identification of candidate sites for MPA status through remote sensing and GIS modeling;

Conduct focus group consultations to determine degree of support for designation of candidate MPAs;

Capacity building within management agencies;


Dr. Howard Nelson Biodiversity Specialist Ministry of Planning, Housing and the Environment Trinidad and Tobago.

Documents

tobago slide

impact of climate change

climate change mapping

climate change scenarios

public transportation

national costbenefit

acceptance of renewable

project evaluation gef