Biodiversity instruments
Conservation programmes
Protected areas Protection of terrestrial and inland water areas Protection of coastal and marine areas National Landcare Program Reef 2050 long-term sustainability plan
Recovery plans for threatened species and ecosystems
Economic instruments
Conservation covenants
Biodiversity offsets
Environmental Stewardship Program
Paying for ecosystem services, a successful approach to reducing deforestation in Mexico by Stefano Pagiola on 03.04.2019. Mexico has the largest PES program in the region, with over 2 million hectares of forest receiving conservation payments. The program, which is administered by the National Forest Commission (CONAFOR), pays forest communities $10-$40 per hectare per year to conserve forests, depending on the type of forest and the risk of deforestation. An impact evaluation conducted by a team of researchers from Oregon State University and Amherst College, found that Mexico’s PES program has indeed reduced deforestation. Although the effect is not statistically significant in areas at low risk of deforestation, it is quite significant in areas at high risk of deforestation, where participants cut down 29% less forest than they otherwise would have. For those who have been in the program the longest, the effect is even larger: they cut down 38% less forest than they otherwise would have. Without targeting, most PES payments might be made in areas at low risk of deforestation, where the program’s impact is minimal. PES is not a magic formula that, when invoked, solves all problems. One must take great care in designing the program — setting eligibility rules, targeting high priority areas, establishing payment levels —to obtain the results desired.
Fishery fees, grants and quotas
National park fees
Subsidies harmful to biodiversity
References
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