Quintana Roo Updates Carbon Credit Registry to Protect Forests

Chetumal, Mexico — After acknowledging that Quintana Roo faces adverse effects from climate change, Luis Antonio Mora Tembre, head of the Mitigation and Adaptation Department of the Climate Change Directorate at the Secretariat of Environment (SEMA), announced that the state government has acquired a Parametric Insurance policy to protect 1,176 kilometers of coastline against damage caused by high-category hurricanes, providing coverage for beaches and reefs that benefit more than 1.8 million people.

He asserted that the effectiveness of this mechanism was demonstrated after Hurricane Beryl, as an eight-million-peso payment was secured for the restoration of coastal ecosystems in the Playa del Carmen and Cozumel region.

“Our state is not only one of the richest in biodiversity but also faces the adverse effects of Climate Change, which is why, in addition, the regulatory framework has been strengthened with the publication of the Regulation of the Climate Change Action Law and the reform of the Sustainable Forest Development Law,” he said. “This has allowed for the incorporation of the Registry of Carbon Credit Projects, a key financial instrument to give value to our forests and benefit the communities that protect them.”

He stated that during this five-year period, the State Inventory of Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Compounds for 2010–2023 was successfully updated, enabling the measurement and management of carbon footprints with scientific data.

Additionally, the energy intensity of the state’s economy has been reduced by 11 percent, and central offices have been transformed to operate 100 percent on photovoltaic energy.

To conclude, Mora Tembre said that in coordination with Campeche and Yucatán, the State Climate Change Action Program was updated under an Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) approach and with a public-private investment in the new Comprehensive Sanitation and Circular Economy Center (CISEC). “We will take advantage of sargassum to generate between 5,000 and 9,000 m³ of biogas per day, turning an environmental liability into a sustainable energy asset.”