[COLOMBO] Lack of reliable data on forest resources could
prevent Sri Lanka from immediately accessing UN funds pledged to
help the island nation reduce carbon emissions from
deforestation and forest degradation, a new study said. Sri
Lanka was last month (25 March) promised initial funding worth
US$ 4 million from the UN-managed, multi-partner trust fund to
reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation
(REDD+). Under REDD, developing nations are offered financial
incentives to combat forest degradation and deforestation.
Potential annual revenues for Sri Lanka from REDD+ could reach
US$ 400 million, according to the study published on 21 February
in the Journal of Environmental Management. The study, by the
University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka, University of Gothenburg,
Chalmers University of Technology and Linköping University,
Sweden, showed that though the country had large forest reserves
it lacked reliable data on its forest resources, or rates of
forest loss to establish benchmark levels fo