Silver bullet or fools' gold: A global review of markets for forest environmental services and their impact on the poor

Abstract

Market-based approaches to environmental management are increasingly common in all sectors of the economy. Forestry is no exception. Governments around the world have opened the door to private sector participation in all aspects of forestry, typically involving the use of market-based instruments to guide private investment. Of the many tools available to policymakers, by far the most ambitious is the development of markets for previously non-traded forest environmental services, such as recreation, carbon sequestration, biodiversity conservation and watershed protection. However, little guidance is available on the mechanics of developing and managing markets, or on how to ensure that new markets are equitable as well as efficient. This report sheds new light on the issues through a global review of emerging markets based on 287 cases from both developed and developing countries.