South Pole ends ties with Zimbabwe forest conservation project

International climate change consultancy South Pole has announced that it ended its contract with Carbon Green Investments (CGI), the owner and developer of Kariba REDD+, a project in Zimbabwe that has worked to prevent deforestation around Lake Kariba.

The Kariba REDD+ project has created millions of carbon credits from its efforts against deforestation. Though South Pole highlighted that Kariba REDD+ is a valuable effort in protecting forests and biodiversity, the firm also expressed its doubt about the project is able to successfully deliver on its ambitions.

“We are not confident that the Kariba REDD+ project meets the high standards we expect from our partners all over the world. It is with great sadness that we have come to this conclusion, since we also believe that the Kariba REDD+ project sought to bring benefits both to the communities it supports and the forest and biodiversity it protects,” said a South Pole spokesperson.

The global award-winning consulting firm expressed that it is proud to have helped the Kariba REDD+ project grow, though also noted expectations from the project owner that were not met.

“All activities related to carbon certification and carbon credits from the Kariba REDD+ project will now be the responsibility of CGI, and South Pole’s role as the carbon asset developer has ended,” South Pole said in a statement.

Carbon offsetting is a system wherein carbon credits can be bought and sold on what is known as the voluntary carbon market, is a way that sustainability projects can thrive. Companies that exceed legally permitted levels of greenhouse gas emissions can buy credits from other organizations that have reduced their carbon footprint significantly enough to sell that cutback in the form of an institutionally recognized credit.

Though South Pole said that the Kariba REDD+ project met all requirements from Verra, a top carbon credit offset issuer, there seemed to be some reservations from Verra itself. Verra put a pause on issuing credits from the project while it carried out an investigation.

Zimbabwe is home to some of the world’s most important biodiversity hotspots. The country hosts over 5,930 plant species and more than 1,360 animal species. Although approximately 45% of the country’s land area is currently forested, the urgent problem of deforestation is causing these vital forested areas to vanish at an alarming pace.

The Kariba REDD+ Project aims to connects three National Parks and eight wildlife reserves to forma giant biodiversity corridor in Northern Zimbabwe.