Potential options to reduce GHG emissions in Venezuela

This paper presents a summary of the technologies and practices that could be implemented in Venezuela in order to contribute to both climate change mitigation and national development efforts. The mitigation analysis concentrates on options to reduce CO₂ emissions generated from the energy sector and land-use change.

From the mitigation options analyzed for the energy sector it was determined that the most effective are those in the transportation sector (switching to larger capacity vehicles, reduced private vehicle share, and switching fuels for public transportation from gasoline to natural gas), both in terms of contribution to emissions reduction and costs. Regarding the options for industry, boilers conversion from liquids to natural gas shows negative cost, but to a considerably lower extent that for the transportation sector. Efficiency improvements of natural gas boilers, which presents close to zero cost, is more effective in reducing emissions than boiler conversion. Increase in hydro power generation is the alternative with the highest total cost but it is very effective in reducing emissions.

From the mitigation options analyzed for land-use change, it was established that the forest sector has a considerable potential for reducing CO₂ emissions through the adoption of sustainable forest practices, especially by slowing the rate of forest loss and degradation. Maintenance of already existing biomass in natural forests should be the first priority of forest measures to reduce the amount of carbon released to the atmosphere. Forest protection and management of native forest represent the two options with the highest carbon conservation potential and the lowest carbon unit cost. Expansion of the forest cover through the development of intensive forest plantations also presents a high potential to offset carbon emissions in Venezuela.

An analysis of the barriers to mitigation options implementation shows that in the energy sector, low energy prices represent the main barrier to any mitigation program. Another important limitation to mitigation strategies implementation is the lack of institutional capacity and legal instruments for developing the mitigation measures. In the forest sector the primary causes of forest clearing in the country are not related to forest activities, so the definition of feasible mitigation options will depend upon a good understanding of other economic sectors and how they account for land-use change. Land tenure, rural poverty, political interests, and weak implementation of land-use planning instruments and environmental laws are considered to be the key limitations to any effort dealing with forest conservation. Land tenure, economic factors, and lack of incentives represent some of the most important barriers to the development of forest plantations and agroforestry systems in the country.