Payment for Environmental Services: Sustainable Development of Water Resources in Rwanda

Rwanda aims to become an environmentally sustainable middle-income country. The problem is how the country will implement projects that alleviate poverty without increasing environmental degradation, or alternately, implement projects that protect the environment without hindering economic development. One policy approach that has been found to be effective in financing sustainability policy is Payment for Environmental Services (PES). PES is a financial policy intended to value ecosystem services, such as the regulation of water for hydroelectric and domestic use, as positive environmental externalities. This is achieved by structuring payments to land managers in return for their effective management of a specific natural resource. To ensure financial sustainability, Rwanda’s PES should follow a model where PES is a transaction between provider and buyer, with the national government in the middle creating the rules, regulations, and framework. Based on the political will it has demonstrated in implementing innovating environmental policy measures and supporting pilot projects and studies, Rwanda can and should implement PES at a national level to incentivize sustainable water provision

Payment for Environmental Services: Sustainable Development of Water Resources in Rwanda

Rwanda aims to become an environmentally sustainable middle-income country. The problem is how the country will implement projects that alleviate poverty without increasing environmental degradation, or alternately, implement projects that protect the environment without hindering economic development. One policy approach that has been found to be effective in financing sustainability policy is Payment for Environmental Services (PES). PES is a financial policy intended to value ecosystem services, such as the regulation of water for hydroelectric and domestic use, as positive environmental externalities. This is achieved by structuring payments to land managers in return for their effective management of a specific natural resource. To ensure financial sustainability, Rwanda’s PES should follow a model where PES is a transaction between provider and buyer, with the national government in the middle creating the rules, regulations, and framework. Based on the political will it has demonstrated in implementing innovating environmental policy measures and supporting pilot projects and studies, Rwanda can and should implement PES at a national level to incentivize sustainable water provision

Protected area downgrading, downsizing, and degazettement as a threat to iconic protected areas

Abstract: Protected areas (PAs) are expected to conserve nature and provide ecosystem services in perpetuity, yet widespread protected area downgrading, downsizing, and degazettement (PADDD) may compromise these objectives. Even iconic protected areas are vulnerable to PADDD, although these PADDD events are often unrecognized. We identified 23 enacted and proposed PADDD events within World Natural Heritage Sites and examined the history, context, and consequences of PADDD events in 4 iconic PAs (Yosemite National Park, Arabian Oryx Sanctuary, Yasun´ı National Park, and Virunga National Park). Based on insights from published research and international workshops, these 4 cases revealed the diverse pressures brought on by competing interests to develop or exploit natural landscapes and the variety of mechanisms that enables PADDD. Knowledge gaps exist in understanding of the conditions through which development pressures translate to PADDD events and their impacts, partially due to a lack of comprehensive PADDD records. Future research priorities should include comprehensive regional and country-level profiles and analysis of risks, impacts, and contextual factors related to PADDD. Policy options to better govern PADDD include improving tracking and reporting of PADDD events, establishing transparent PADDD policy processes, coordinating among legal frameworks, and mitigating negative impacts of PADDD. To support PADDD research and policy reforms, enhanced human and financial capacities are needed to train local researchers and to host publicly accessible data. As the conservation community considers the achievements of Aichi Target 11 and moves toward new biodiversity targets beyond 2020, researchers, practitioners, and policymakers need to work together to better track, assess, and govern PADDD globally