The ‘carbon pirates’ preying on Amazon’s Indigenous communities

A number of Indigenous communities in the Amazon say that “carbon pirates” have become a threat to their way of life as western companies seek to secure deals in their territories for offsetting projects.

Across the world’s largest rainforest, Indigenous leaders say they are being approached by carbon offsetting firms promising significant financial benefits from the sale of carbon credits if they establish new projects on their lands, as the $2bn (£1.6bn) market booms with net zero commitments from companies in Europe and North America.

A huge global expansion of protected areas during this decade was agreed by governments at last month’s Cop15 biodiversity summit with a target to protect 30% of land and sea by 2030. The agreement puts respect for Indigenous rights and territories at its heart amid fears of land grabs.

Proponents of carbon markets, especially those that aim to protect rainforests, say that carbon credits are a good way to fund the new areas and pay Indigenous communities for the stewardship of their lands, as they have been shown to be the best protectors of forest and vital ecosystems. The resulting credits could then be used for climate commitments by western companies.

Many believe that although carbon credits are not perfect, they can provide the vital finance these projects need. Johan Rockström, chief scientist at Conservation International, which manages a number of carbon offsetting projects, recently told the Guardian: “On the one hand, carbon offsetting is necessary, and has positive potentials of providing incentives and thereby generating much needed investments, for example in nature climate solutions [such as forests].” On the other, he says, are the risks that people will not then make the necessary reductions in their own emissions.

The Guardian interviewed Indigenous leaders from across Latin America as part of its investigation into forest-based carbon offsetting, speaking to representatives at Cop27, Cop15, a summit of Amazon Indigenous leaders in September and during visitis to communities in Peru.

While some leaders recognised the potential benefits from well designed carbon markets, they warn that Indigenous communities are being taken advantage of in the unregulated sector, with opaque deals for carbon rights that can last up to a century, lengthy contracts written in English, and communities being pushed out of their lands for projects.

Examples include Peru’s largest ever carbon deal involving an unnamed extractive firm, where the Kichwa community claim they have been forced from their land in Cordillera Azul national park and received nothing from the $87m agreement. The park authorities say everything has been done in “strict compliance with current legal regulations and with special respect for the rights of Indigenous peoples”.

Several Indigenous communities spoke of training themselves in carbon market regulation and organising global exchanges to help others avoid falling victim to “carbon pirates”.

Fany Kuiru Castro, an Indigenous Uitoto leader from the Colombian Amazon, says the issue is affecting nearly every community across the Amazon river basin.

“When I visit other territories, nearly all of them are in contact with a business related to carbon. Normally they arrive with a promise of big money if the community agrees to set up a project. Sometimes they don’t let communities have access to their lands as part of the agreement but we live from hunting and fishing. For me, it’s dangerous,” she says. “The most cruel thing is they arrive in communities with long legal documents in English and don’t explain what’s in them. Many Indigenous communities don’t read or have low literacy, so they don’t understand what they’re agreeing to.”

Wilfredo Tsamash, from the Awajun community in northern Peru, says organisations are teaching themselves to understand the mechanics of carbon markets so they do not get ripped off in deals, and says he does not think extractive companies should be able to buy credits due to their role in global heating.

“They are trying to divide us. Carbon pirates enter communities but we often do not know where they come from, how they work or who they are,” he says. “It’s a big issue. Some of these NGOs are ghosts, working in the background. I do not think we should sell the credits to oil companies or mining firms. They are the ones doing the damage.”

Levi Sucre Romero, a Costa Rican leader from the Bribri community, said in a recent interview with Yale e360 that he thought the expansion of protected areas agreed at Cop15 could be a big opportunity for Indigenous communities. But, he tells the Guardian, respect for Indigenous territories and a share of the benefits from carbon deals must be part of any market.

“We are organising ourselves at a global level, from the Congo to the Amazon. The first thing that needs to be recognised is a right to land, our right to be consulted, not just centrally but locally. We also need political representation that we are the ones that look after the forest. Where there are forests, there are Indigenous communities,” he says.

Indigenous communities make up about 5% of the world’s population but look after 80% of its biodiversity. However, the communities are frequently subject to rights violations and attacks, often from illegal miners, loggers and drug traffickers.

Julio Cusurichi, a Shipibo Indigenous leader from the Madre de Dios region of Peru who won the Goldman prize in 2007, says money from carbon credits could help pay for improved education and health facilities with careful planning, but all too often, that does not happen.

“It’s important to strengthen the structures of Indigenous communities [as part of these offsetting projects]. This issue of carbon pirates is happening across the Amazon. They can be 30-, 40-, 100-year projects. Who has the money, has the power,” he says.

Find more age of extinction coverage here, and follow biodiversity reporters Phoebe Weston and Patrick Greenfield on Twitter for all the latest news and features