WELLINGTON, May 11 (Reuters) - New Zealand state-owned farming enterprise Pamu says it plans to convert 600 hectares (1,483 acres) of farmland into native forest to generate high-quality nature credits, following a government move on Monday to support a voluntary nature credits market.
New Zealand's Emissions Trading Scheme favours fast-growing pine forestry over native forests, whose slower growth makes them less attractive for carbon returns. But large-scale pine planting has sparked debate over erosion, pest management and land-use change.
The government said new nativereforesting projects will be able to opt into a pathway assessed by an independent assurer in the coming months, and it will recognise schemes accredited by reputable international bodies.The aim is to channel funding into projects that restore ecosystems or remove greenhouse gases.
Following the announcement, Pamu signed an agreement with not-for-profit True Nature to explore native forest restoration on less productive or vulnerable land across its 365,000-hectare farm network. The restoration could then generate credits under the proposed framework.
"For a long time, farmers generally have talked about ineffective hectares, and Pamu has a belief that they're not ineffective hectares… so this is about realising value from those areas," said Pamu Nature Investment Officer Annabel Davies.
True Nature will use nature credits to ramp up work started by non-profitTrees that Count, which has been undertaking high-integrity native reforestation projects funded by philanthropy, the company said. The credits would meet criteria set by the Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market and be sold to domestic and international buyers.
"To date, New Zealand hasn't had anyone restoring land and generating those credits from New Zealand-based projects, so companies were forced to go offshore," True Nature Chief Executive Robyn Haugh said.
We're "solving a need for the private sector, for large companies wanting to offset emissions and make their (carbon reduction) targets, and then you're solving a need for landholders who want to restore the land but lack the capital and the funding to do so," Haugh said.
True Nature said it would use a grouped project model under an international voluntary carbon market standard, allowing sites of different sizes to be aggregated into one project.
That could reduce technical, legal and administrative costs for landholders. The work would focus largely on marginal or unproductive land, including riparian areas, steep slopes, erosion-prone land and areas where native bush is already regenerating.
"Our aim is that native reforestation can work alongside traditional farming operations. It sits alongside them, it doesn't necessarily take over," Haugh said.
(Reporting by Lucy Craymer in Wellington; Editing by Lincoln Feast.)
