Seas the opportunity: multi-criteria decision analysis to identify and prioritise blue carbon wetland restoration sites

作者：Alice H. Howie, Vera Rullens, Anita Thomas, Stella Kondylas, Sophie K. Russell, Simon Reeves, Judith M. Ament, Miguel Castro, Sharie Detmar · 发表于：Frontiers in Environmental Science · 年份：2024 · DOI：10.3389/fenvs.2024.1431027 · 被引用次数：7 · 研究领域：Coastal wetland ecosystem dynamics、Coastal and Marine Management、Land Use and Ecosystem Services

Introduction The emergence of voluntary carbon markets is creating new opportunities to sustainably finance Natural Climate Solution (NCS) projects. In Australia, the federal government recently enacted the Tidal Restoration of Blue Carbon Ecosystems Methodology Determination 2022 (Tidal Reconnection Method), whereby restoration activities that reintroduce tidal flows to allow the re-establishment of coastal wetland (blue carbon) ecosystems, through the removal or modification of a tidal restriction, can be used to gain and sell Australian carbon credit units. Australia has the highest net blue carbon wealth in the world, with 5%–11% of global carbon stocks, yet there is currently a lack of large-scale feasibility assessments and supporting methodologies to identify and prioritise sites with the greatest potential for NCS project implementation to help inform investment decisions. Methods In this study, we applied a spatial Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) to identify, map, and prioritise potential sites for blue carbon coastal wetland restoration in South Australia that meet criteria outlined in the Tidal Reconnection Method. This study compared information on 1) predicted flooding extent following tidal reconnection and under sea level rise (SLR; present-day, 2050 and 2,100); 2) project implementation complexity (e.g. who possesses land tenure); and 3) carbon sequestration potential through predicted area of vegetation change under the above SLR scenarios. Results Ou...