The VELUX Group and WWF embark on historic forest project estimated to contribute a saving of around one million tonnes of CO(2) towards Uganda's Paris Agreement pledge

COPENHAGEN, Denmark, Sept. 9, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- WWF and the VELUX Group announce the official launch of an innovative forest regeneration project that will serve as Uganda's largest ever contribution to its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). The approximately 34,000-hectare project is expected to provide a saving of around one million tonnes of CO₂. All carbon emissions reductions or removals generated from the project funded by the VELUX Group, will serve as a contribution to the government of Uganda and help enhance the conditional NDCs.

The Natural Forest Regeneration for Enhanced Carbon Stocks (FRECAR) project is located in the Albertine Rift in Uganda, an area of exceptional faunal and moderate floral endemism which spans five nations. The forest regeneration project is the first of five such projects included in the 21-year long partnership between WWF and the VELUX Group launched in 2020.

The official launch of the Uganda FRECAR project took place at a virtual inception meeting, due to the on-going country-wide lock down in Uganda. The successful meeting had participation from a large group of stakeholders including the National Forestry Authority of Uganda, representatives from the local communities, the carbon development consultancy, Face the Future, WWF Denmark, and WWF Uganda.

Led by WWF-Uganda, in partnership with Uganda's National Forestry Authority (NFA), the FRECAR project will entail regenerating the Murchison-Semuliki landscape (Kagombe and Bugoma CFRs) in the Albertine Rift. A biodiversity hotspot, this region boasts 6,568 plant species and 1,833 terrestrial vertebrates in its tropical moist forests. However, the Murchison-Semuliki landscape has suffered a 66% decline in forest cover in the last two decades alone, one of the highest deforestation rates in Uganda. Despite most of Uganda's protected areas being concentrated here, pressure from agricultural land use, illegal timber logging and human settlement has led to significant forest degradation. Unsustainable agricultural use alone has led to an 88% reduction of the forest area in the Kagombe region, while more than half has been lost in Bugoma.

David Briggs, CEO of the VELUX Group has noted that: "I am pleased that our forest conservation partner WWF has achieved this approval. Now its planned activities in Uganda can move ahead to help reverse forest cover loss. This is a first important step to deliver on our historical carbon capture. The FRECAR project is part of our wider 21-year partnership with WWF that will see us capture our historical CO₂. This will enable us to become Lifetime Carbon Neutral and go beyond our 2030 company carbon neutrality goal and value chain reductions."

Commenting on the official endorsement and launch of the FRECAR project, Tom Okello, Executive Director of National Forestry Authority in Uganda, stated that he was excited about the project that is meant to reverse the forest cover loss in the project area. In fact, more than 60% of the forests in this region have been lost between 2005 and 2015^v.

Following the formal kick-off meeting and specialised technical meetings held in July, it is expected that the tree planting will commence in Fall 2021.The validation process of the amount of carbon to be delivered by the Uganda forest project is expected to be completed in the first half of 2022.

The monumental FRECAR restoration and conservation project will serve as a cornerstone of Uganda's Vision 2040 and National Development Plan III. By focusing on preserving forest corridors, it will play a significant role in supporting the Ugandan government's efforts to return its natural landscapes back to 1990 levels.

To be delivered over the next 20 years, the FRECAR project is currently in the implementation phase. Future phases of the project will include a plan for planting of trees to facilitate natural forest restoration. This will be implemented alongside REDD approaches – focused on addressing the drivers of deforestation and degradation of the existing natural forests. This in close collaboration with local communities and other stakeholders in the landscape. WWF-Uganda will undertake a decade of monitoring in the Kagombe-Bugoma landscape. This will focus on determining the impacts of the project on carbon, biodiversity, communities, and individual households living in the area. 

The WWF and VELUX partnership - working together to capture VELUX historical CO₂
WWF International and the VELUX Group have launched one of the most ambitious corporate climate and nature actions seen, taking responsibility for both past and future carbon emissions. This commitment forms part of a historic 21-year global partnership between WWF International and the VELUX Group which will deliver a significant part of the company's commitment to become Lifetime Carbon Neutral by 2041.

The VELUX Group has joined the Science Based Targets initiative, committing to the Paris Agreement's most ambitious 1.5^C reduction pathway and by 2030 become a carbon neutral company and have halved the CO₂ across its value chain. This commitment will see the VELUX Group's historical carbon footprint – 5.6 million tonnes of CO2 including a 25% buffer (scope 1 and 2) emitted since it was founded in 1941 – captured in five forest conservation projects developed and run by WWF. In this long-term partnership, WWF and VELUX Group will drive conservation results based on our shared interest in protecting and restoring forests globally.

For more information on Lifetime Carbon Neutral and the forest conservation projects at the heart of the partnership with WWF, please visit Velux | WWF (panda.org).

NOTES TO EDITORS
i – No standard methodology exists today for how to calculate a historical carbon footprint. For example, valid emission factors and energy consumption data for long ago do often not exist. Therefore, the VELUX Group developed a method to calculate its lifetime carbon emissions. This method is based on the recognised Greenhouse Gas Protocol Corporate Standard and applied to historical data. This unique methodology, including the underlying assumptions, are independently verified by Carbon Trust and reviewed by experts at WWF.
ii – definition of scopes 1 and 2. Scope 1 (direct emissions from owned or controlled sources, e.g. company facilities, company cars). Scope 2 (indirect emissions from the generation of purchased electricity, steam, heating and cooling consumed by the reporting company).
iii – definition of scope 3 includes all other indirect emissions that occur in a company's value chain (e.g. purchased goods and services, waste generation and transportation)
iv – The Science Based Targets initiative mobilises companies to set science-based targets and boost their competitive advantage in the transition to the low-carbon economy. It is a collaboration between CDP, the United Nations Global Compact, World Resources Institute (WRI) and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and one of the We Mean Business Coalition commitments. The initiative defines and promotes best practice in science-based target setting, offers resources and guidance to reduce barriers to adoption, and independently assesses and approves companies' targets.
v - https://www.mwe.go.ug/sites/default/files/State%20of%20Uganda%27s%20Forestry-2015.pdf
vi - Nationally determined contributions (NDCs) embody efforts by each country to reduce national emissions and adapt to the impacts of climate change. The Paris Agreement (Article 4, paragraph 2) requires each Party to prepare, communicate and maintain successive nationally determined contributions (NDCs) that it intends to achieve. Parties shall pursue domestic mitigation measures, with the aim of achieving the objectives of such contributions. See, https://unfccc.int/process-and-meetings/the-paris-agreement/nationally-determined-contributions-ndcs/nationally-determined-contributions-ndcs

About the VELUX Group
For almost 80 years, the VELUX Group has created better living environments for people around the world; making the most of daylight and fresh air through the roof. Our product programme includes roof windows and modular skylights, decorative blinds, sunscreening products and roller shutters, as well as installation and smart home solutions. These products help to ensure a healthy and sustainable indoor climate, for work and learning, for play and pleasure. We work globally – with sales and manufacturing operations in more than 40 countries and around 11,500 employees worldwide. The VELUX Group is owned by VKR Holding A/S, a limited company wholly owned by non-profit, charitable foundations (THE VELUX FOUNDATIONS) and family. In 2019, VKR Holding had total revenue of EUR 2.9 billion and THE VELUX FOUNDATIONS donated EUR 178 million in charitable grants. For more, information, visit www.velux.com. Follow us on Twitter @VELUX

About WWF
WWF is an independent conservation organisation, with over 30 million followers and a global network active in nearly 100 countries. Our mission is to stop the degradation of the planet's natural environment and to build a future in which people live in harmony with nature, by conserving the world's biological diversity, ensuring that the use of renewable natural resources is sustainable, and promoting the reduction of pollution and wasteful consumption. Visit panda.org/news for the latest news and media resources; follow us on Twitter @WWF_media

SOURCE VELUX Group