Forest scheme rings warning bells

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UN's program to cut carbon emissions by paying poor countries to preserve their forests – called REDD – is open to wide abuse, Interpol environment crimes specialist warns.

International police, politicians and conservationists warn that the UN scheme that the climate negotiations are about to set up to transfer around 30 billion dollars a year from rich countries to owners of endangered forests may be impossible to monitor and may lead to fraud.

The UN agrees there is a "high risk" of abuse in the scheme called Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD).

Peter Younger, Interpol environment crimes specialist and author of a new report for the World Bank on illegal forestry, says to the Guardian:

"Alarm bells are ringing. It is simply too big to monitor. The potential for criminality is vast and has not been taken into account by the people who set it up…Organized crime syndicates are eyeing the nascent forest carbon market. I will report to the bank that REDD schemes are open to wide abuse," he says and adds:

"Carbon trading transcends borders. I do not see any input from any law enforcement agency in planning REDD."

Hans Brattskar, director of the forest and climate programme in Norway that financially backs the program, says: "It will be extremely difficult to make it work. Law enforcement is vital because the corruption issues are very real. But we have to put in safeguards and we have to try. REDD can save up to 20 percent of all the world's emissions."

One of the countries most in favor of REDD, Papua New Guinea, last month suspended the climate change minister after allegations that fake carbon credits had been handed out to communities to persuade them to sign up to forest protection schemes.

Tina Vahanen, a senior officer at UN-REDD Programme, agrees the scheme is open to abuse:

"Where countries are corrupt the potential for REDD corruption is dangerous. [In Papua New Guinea], people have tried to take advantage of the market in an unacceptable way and carbon cowboys are trying to get the benefits. We can expect more of this as REDD develops," she says.