Asia governors endorse U.N. forest carbon scheme

By David Fogarty, Climate Change Correspondent, Asia

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Six provincial governors from Indonesia, Laos and the Philippines on Thursday backed an expanded U.N. scheme aimed at protecting and conserving forests in return for carbon credits.

In a joint statement after a meeting on the sidelines of an annual gathering of Asia-Pacific leaders, the governors said the scheme, called REDD+, held the promise of boosting livelihoods for local communities, a key step in curbing deforestation.

But fair distribution of wealth was key.

"People in the cities have better education, they are richer but actually they produce carbon poison," said Abang Tambul Hussin, regent of Kapuas Hulu in Indonesia's West Kalimantan province.

"The communities in the forest area have to be more prosperous," he told the meeting, convened by the Asian Development Bank and ecosystems service firm Carbon Conservation.

Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD) aims to reward developing countries for saving their forests in return for carbon offsets that they can sell to rich nations.

The United Nations hopes REDD will be part of a broader global climate pact from 2013, ushering in a potentially multi-billion dollar boost to the global carbon market.

REDD+ expands the idea to protection, restoration and sustainable management of forests.