The Coastal Wetland Blue Carbon Policy Research in Aotearoa report was funded by The Nature Conservancy Aotearoa New Zealand and Ministry for the Environment and was commissioned to look at the barriers and opportunities for enabling blue carbon projects in New Zealand to participate in blue carbon markets.
The revenue from blue carbon credits could support landholders of restoration projects, turning conservation into sustainable and profitable livelihoods for local communities. Enabling blue carbon projects to participate in international markets will help communities, landowners and mana whenua build resilience to climate change.
Policy and regulatory barriers can be overcome with effective engagement with local and central government using existing settings; however, there are complexities that could be addressed with further research and potential legislative change in the future.
Legal barriers can be overcome by effective engagement with all stakeholders and parties, as well as legal agreements between all parties for carbon rights, land ownership and equitable benefit-sharing. However, this is a complex area that may require further work to enable scaling of blue carbon projects.
Ongoing and new pilot programmes/projects will showcase the use of existing international blue carbon markets and how some of the policy and regulatory barriers identified in the report can be overcome.
The report was authored by Jacobs, Environmental Accounting Services, Anderson Lloyd and Conservation International.
Related Work
The Nature Conservancy Aotearoa New Zealand is running a blue carbon programme in partnership with central and local government, iwi and coastal communities to demonstrate the potential for blue carbon project development. Its current feasibility assessment involves collecting data and evidence of blue carbon sequestration and informing what the revenue potential of coastal wetland restoration could provide through blue carbon market development. TNC NZ is collaborating with its iwi partners and developing resources for capacity building.
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Advancing Blue Carbon in New Zealand's Coastal Wetlands
The Nature Conservancy in New Zealand is investigating the potential of wetland restoration that could generate carbon and climate resilience credits.
Coastal Wetland Blue Carbon in Aotearoa New Zealand
Researchers, practitioners, resource managers & mana whenua participated in a series of hui in 2023 to share knowledge about current coastal wetland blue carbon projects & aspirations for the future.
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Sustainable development is key to solving New Zealand’s environmental challenges while ensuring the long-term strength of its economy and the preservation of its unique culture.