Purchasing carbon sink products to offset losses, exploring new ways to compensate for ecological and environmental damage in many places

　　Deforestation not only damages the forest itself, but also damages the carbon sequestration and regulation service function of the forest ecosystem, resulting in the loss of forest carbon sinks.

　　In the past, deforestation was usually punished with prison terms and fines.

According to a reporter from China Business News, many places are now exploring ways to voluntarily pay ecological restoration performance fees and forest carbon sink loss compensation to promote ecological restoration, stabilize and increase carbon sinks.

　　The Supreme People’s Court recently announced a typical case of judicially actively and steadily promoting carbon neutrality at peak carbon peaks, showing that Fujian, Sichuan and other places have carried out compensation for the loss of carbon sinks, damages to the ecological environment, and restoration of carbon sink products in Fujian and Sichuan provinces. Explorations such as losses caused by the loss of service functions during the completion period have achieved results.

　　At the press conference held by the Supreme People's Court on February 17, the relevant person in charge of the Environmental Protection Tribunal introduced that the "Supreme People's Court's Complete, Accurate and Comprehensive Implementation of the New Development Concept Provides Judicial Services for Actively and Steadily Promoting Carbon Peak Carbon Neutrality" Adhere to

the priority of

　　In December 2020, the defendant Chen Mouhua cut down all his fir trees without obtaining a forest felling license. After evaluation, the standing volume of the cut down fir trees was 31.6 cubic meters.

In January 2021, Chen Mouhua voluntarily surrendered to the public security organ.

In April 2022, the public prosecution agency filed a public prosecution against Chen Mouhua to the Xinluo District Court of Longyan City, Fujian Province for the crime of deforestation.

　　During the lawsuit, Chen Mouhua issued a "Voluntary Restoration and Compensation Commitment Letter" to the court, willing to undertake the repair and compensation responsibility for the damage caused by his actions.

The trial court communicated with the Forestry Bureau of Xinluo District, Longyan City, and the bureau appointed forestry professional technicians to formulate a restoration plan for "replanting and regreening" and issued a "Carbon Sink Value Loss Assessment Opinion Letter". It was estimated that the vegetation restoration cost involved in the case was 21,000 yuan, and it is calculated that the value loss of forest carbon sinks caused by Chen Mouhua's felling of fir trees is 1966.99 yuan.

　　Subsequently, Chen Mouhua signed the "Forest Ecological Restoration Compensation Agreement" with the Yanshi Forestry Station of the Xinluo District Forestry Bureau, paid the performance fee for the off-site ecological restoration determined by the restoration plan, and voluntarily assumed the compensation for the loss of forest carbon sinks.

Before the trial, Chen Mouhua paid the above amount in full, totaling 22,966.99 yuan.

　　The court of first instance held that Chen Mouhua had not obtained a forest felling permit, and hired others to cut down his own forests without authorization. The amount was relatively large, and his behavior constituted the crime of deforestation.

Chen Mouhua has surrendered himself, has a good attitude of pleading guilty, shows remorse, and voluntarily pays the performance fee for ecological restoration and the compensation for the loss of forest carbon sinks.

The court of first instance sentenced Chen Mouhua to eight months in prison, suspended for one year, and fined 3,000 yuan for the crime of deforestation.

After the verdict was pronounced, neither party appealed nor protested.

　　According to the typical case mentioned above, from May to September 2021, six people including A Luo from Baoxing County, Sichuan Province illegally felled maple trees and 60.68 cubic meters of maple trees were shipped to Leshan City for sale, making a profit of more than 200,000 yuan.

　　The Baoxing County Procuratorate prosecuted six people for the crime of illegal logging, and filed an attached civil public interest lawsuit, suing the six defendants to replant 70 spruces within the state-owned forest in Baoxing County according to the vegetation restoration plan, and the survival rate of the afforestation in the year No less than 90%, and the three-year retention rate is no less than 85%. The six defendants compensated for the corresponding economic losses and apologized.

During the lawsuit, the six defendants fulfilled their civil compensation obligations and voluntarily purchased carbon sinks from Sichuan United Environmental Exchange Co., Ltd. to restore the damaged ecological environment.

　　The Baoxing County Court sentenced the six defendants to corresponding penalties based on the criminal facts of the six defendants and the circumstances of surrender and confession, and purchased carbon sinks instead of bearing the loss of service functions during the period from damage to the ecological environment to the completion of restoration.

At the same time, the six defendants in the attached civil public interest litigation were judged to replant 70 spruces according to the ecological environment restoration plan. The media above the municipal level publicly apologized.

After the verdict was pronounced, neither party appealed nor protested.

　　Wang Naixiang, chairman of the Beijing Green Exchange, commented on the above typical cases, saying that

　　Xu Jintao, deputy dean and professor of the National School of Development, Peking University, also said in his comments that the adoption of "replanting and regreening" instead of repairing the damaged ecological environment is conducive to carbon sequestration and sinking. The advantage of lower cost has positive significance for mitigating and adapting to climate change.

　　A reporter from China Business News learned from the Department of Regulations and Standards of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment that

　　Statistics released by the Ministry of Ecology and Environment in August 2022 show that since the trial implementation of the ecological environment damage compensation system in the country in 2018.

As of the end of 2021, the country has accumulatively handled about 11,300 ecological and environmental damage compensation cases, involving more than 11.7 billion yuan in compensation, and promoted the restoration of more than 36,955,700 cubic meters of soil, 61,552,200 square meters of forest land, 2,138,800 square meters of farmland, and 36,900 surface water bodies. billion cubic meters, 1.6663 million cubic meters of groundwater, 200,000 square meters of wetland, and 89.8425 million tons of solid waste.