I am in complete agreement with proposals put forth at the 13th World Forestry Congress in Argentina that developing countries be paid to conserve their forests as a significant contribution to reducing emissions.

A Jamaican delegation is among those discussing a global framework for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD), which seeks to place a cash value on the environmental services provided by forests, including climate stabilisation.

Since “deforestation and forest degradation currently account for between 17 and 20 per cent of global carbon emissions”, as reported in the Sunday Observer of October 25, forest conservation can be a powerful force in slowing climate change.

In 2007, I represented the Jamaican environmental community at a civil society meeting hosted by the Commonwealth Foundation and Friedrich Ebert Stiftung in Guyana, with the aim of producing a position statement on climate change for the attention of finance ministers of the Commonwealth.

All of the participants strongly endorsed the protection of standing forests as essential for mitigating the impacts of climate change, as expressed in these excerpts from the statement:

“Recognising that the only long-term pro-development strategy requires deep cuts in global greenhouse gas emissions, developed countries… need to transition onto a low emissions development trajectory. This will enable all countries to meet their development objectives while also lowering their ecological footprints. We also recognise standing forests… as valuable resources that must be included in pro-development strategies. Commonwealth countries with vast forests [should] be given the opportunity to derive income from standing forests”. Immediate steps [should] be taken to provide tax incentives or funding for utilising energy-saving technologies and products; enhancing the quality of public transportation; and valuing and conserving natural resources, such as forests.”

Here in Jamaica, we appear to be on a mission to deforest the entire island, with seemingly no monetary value placed on the conservation of standing forests. We are losing our forests, and with them our soil, wildlife and water resources.

I urge our leaders, particularly Deputy Prime Minister Ken Baugh, as he leads the Jamaican delegation to Copenhagen for the United Nations climate change conference in December, to follow the example set by President Bharrat Jagdeo of Guyana and speak out in support of forest protection to combat climate change. More importantly, let us see some action on the ground to save our existing forests.

Wendy A Lee is the executive director of the Northern Jamaica Conservation Association, a environmental lobby group based in St Ann.