Location: Acre, Brazil
Project type: Forest Conservation and Avoided Deforestation
Standard: Verified Carbon Standard and the Climate, Community and Biodiversity Alliance Standard Gold Level
Verification/Validation: Scientific Certification Systems   

Environmental Benefits

• Reduce carbon dioxide emissions
• Mitigate climate change
• Conserve habitat for endangered and threatened species
• Improve local water quality
• Retain top soil and control erosion

Community Benefits

• Establish alternative sources of income and employment opportunities
• Social projects and programs such as building a new school and health clinic

Project Description

In the world’s largest rainforest, the PURUS Forest Conservation Project involves numerous local and international partners that will protect nearly 90,000 acres from slash-and-burn forest clearing and prevent millions of tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions. This project will also provide essential ecosystem services such as erosion control, water cycling, filtration and storage, nutrient recycling, and habitat for thousands of native Amazonian animal and plant species. 

Avoided deforestation projects are critical because about 20 percent of global warming is attributed to deforestation, which reduces the Earth’s capacity to absorb carbon dioxide. Moreover, fallen trees decompose and release methane, a heat-trapping gas about 23 times more potent than CO2. 

This Project has been successfully validated to both the Verified Carbon Standard and the Gold Level of the Climate, Community and Biodiversity Standard (CCBS).  

The PURUS project was developed by CarbonCo LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Carbonfund.org Foundation, working to protect habitats, endangered species, and local communities through rainforest conservation projects.