August 2015: The International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) has published its quarterly newsletter, titled ‘Tropical Forest Update,’ which looks at the development of fire management in tropical forests since the 1980s, including through some of ITTO’s fire-related initiatives. The newsletter also presents a new guide for measuring and making use of the carbon benefits generated in forestry projects.

The newsletter includes a series of articles, which review ITTO’s approach to fire management and present integrated fire management approaches in Benin, Brazil, Ghana, Guatemala, Indonesia and Panama. Johann Goldammer, Global Fire Monitoring Center, summarizes the history of ITTO’s involvement in fire management in tropical forests. He notes that, since the 1980s, ITTO has supported its producer member countries in wildfire monitoring, assessments, post-fire rehabilitation measures, community involvement in integrated fire management, and policy development, notably through the 1997 ITTO Forest Guidelines on Fire Management Tropical Forests.

Carmenza Robledo, Swiss Department of Environmental Systems Science, describes the various components of a new guide commissioned by ITTO for measuring and making use of the carbon benefits generated in forestry projects. Published in early 2015, the ‘Technical Guide on the Quantification of Carbon Benefits in ITTO Projects’ considers and builds on existing methods with the aim of simplifying decisions on the use of climate change mitigation mechanisms within the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), other regulated carbon markets and voluntary carbon markets.

The guide targets forest managers who wish to: calculate the potential carbon benefits generated by their forests; determine which existing mechanism to use; and learn about the specific requirements and challenges of the various mechanisms and methodologies. It offers a comparison of existing mechanisms and methodologies, and can be used as a tool to help understand the options available and enable forest managers to select the best option for their circumstances. The guide proposes a step-wise approach to considering carbon benefits at the forest management unit level, including: definition of boundaries; identification of institutional framework; definition of management priorities; identification of potential risks; screening of potential carbon benefits; selection of mitigation framework and adjustment of design; and monitoring of carbon benefits in ITTO projects.

The guide addresses three questions at each of the steps: why is the step necessary; how is the step undertaken; and what happens if there is a significant change in circumstances and over time. [Publication: Tropical Forest Update 24 no. 2: Putting a Brake on Wildfire] [Publication: Technical Guide on the Quantification of Carbon Benefits in ITTO Projects]