IUCN WCPA releases report on integrating climate mitigation into protected area management
Protected and Conserved Areas (PCAs) are widely recognised as a cornerstone of biodiversity conservation. They safeguard nature and cultural resources, improve livelihoods and drive sustainable development. While their role in combating climate change and reducing greenhouse gas emissions is gaining recognition, there is still a lack of tools to integrate it into PCA decision-making. A new report by the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) intends to fill this gap by outlining how climate change mitigation can be incorporated into PCA management and planning.
Developed to embed climate change mitigation into both terrestrial and marine PCA management, the report “Enhancing climate change mitigation in protected areas” provides practitioners and decision-makers with the evidence and tools necessary to incorporate climate change mitigation into the management of existing PCAs. The report also identifies the most promising ecosystems for new protected areas that can help to both stabilise the climate and conserve biodiversity.
“Protected and Conserved Areas play a critical role in addressing biodiversity loss, simultaneously offering natural solutions to climate change mitigation and adaptation. This publication provides well-timed and critically important guidance to help ensure that climate change mitigation is effectively integrated into the planning and management of protected and conserve areas and PCAs are viewed as important for climate change mitigation,” said Madhu Rao, Chair of the IUCN WCPA.
PCAs protect the ability of ecosystems to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, prevent stored carbon from being released, and over time may be important for the large-scale permanent removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, depending on the type of PCA. It is estimated that protecting 30% of land in strategic locations could lock-in 500 billion tonnes (Gt) of the carbon stored in vegetation and soils. Safeguarding marine ecosystems is also key in tackling climate change – estimates indicate that protecting 30% of the oceans could deliver 20% of the carbon emission reduction needed to achieve the Paris Agreement target.
“Protected and Conserved Areas have a central role to play in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Undisturbed, forests, peatlands, grasslands, mangroves, salt marshes and seagrass beds lock up carbon for long periods – hundreds to thousands of years – and continue to sequester carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. It’s critical to use all the tools available to address climate change and protected and conserved areas are one of the most effective natural climate solutions we have,” said Dr Risa Smith, lead report author and Co-chair of the Protected Areas Climate Change Specialist Group of WCPA.
To successfully integrate climate mitigation into PCA management, the report identifies both coastal marine and terrestrial ecosystems that are most promising for enhancing carbon sequestration and protecting carbon reservoirs. The report also outlines the methodologies used to quantify carbon removal and storage in particular protected areas and the places and ecosystems where biodiversity hotspots and important areas for climate change mitigation overlap.
The publication also provides tools for planning restoration projects that can enhance climate change mitigation in protected areas and identifies resources associated with climate change that can be leveraged to fund new and existing PCAs.
Integrating climate change mitigation into PCA management and decision-making can facilitate the inclusion of nature-based climate solutions into Nationally Determined Contributions to the Paris Agreement.
The report is part of the WCPA Technical Report Series. It was produced in collaboration with the Korea National Park Service and the Asia Protected Areas Partnership and can be accessed here.