Nairobi — Farmers can now know and benefit from their contribution to climate change thanks to a formula that can be used to calculate the amount of carbon stored in fruit trees.

In a project dubbed Fruit Trees for Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation in East Africa, the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT), in collaboration with ICRAF developed a mathematical formula that can enable farmers to calculate and determine the amount of carbon that is stored by their fruit trees.

The formula involves using allometric equations, whereby a farmer inputs the tree’s diameter to get its biomass, which is then used to determine the amount of carbon in the tree. This project is intended to encourage farmers to plant more fruit trees to promote climate change mitigation.

The formula primarily targets avocado and mango trees, which are the most common type of fruit trees grown by farmers practicing agroforestry in Kenya.

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Traditionally, trees have had to be cut down to determine the amount of carbon in them. Now a farmer can assess the amount of carbon stored in a tree by simply taking measurements and doing a small calculation instead of cutting it down.

With this knowledge, farmers are therefore able to stay informed about their contribution to climate change while maintaining their livelihood–it will also help them properly negotiate for carbon credits in the rapidly growing carbon trade market.

Farmlands Necessary for Climate Change Control

According to Shem Kuyah, the researcher behind the formula, carbon sequestration is primarily done by forests, but increased human population led to human activities that continuously cause the destruction and dwindling of forests. As a result, there was an urgent need for other alternatives for carbon absorption, and farmlands were considered as a conservation alternative through agroforestry.

Kuyah is a lecturer at JKUAT, in the department of agroforestry.

“One of the main goals of the project is to train and make farmers aware of the importance of planting trees for climate control,” said Kuyah.

Previously, the contribution to carbon sequestration and climate change mitigation was primarily associated with forests.

“However, with the increase in human population, forest reserves began to dwindle, despite the need for more trees to fight climate change. Farmlands were, therefore, considered to provide space for planting more trees through agroforestry,” Kuyah told IPS.

Farmers depend on their land and crops for income, so the project had to promote agroforestry by considering the most economically beneficial trees.

“We found out that the farmers preferred planting fruit trees and that mangoes and avocados were the most common tree species,” he said.

Benefiting from Carbon Trade Means Planting More Fruit Trees

Given the importance of fruit trees to a farmer’s livelihood, this project not only gave them a reason to grow fruit trees for climate change control, but it also provided them an additional financial incentive–tapping into the carbon credit trade.

Carbon credits are tradable certificates where one carbon credit represents one metric ton of CO₂ (or equivalent greenhouse gas) reduced or removed from the atmosphere.

They allow high-polluting companies and governments to offset their greenhouse gas emissions by funding projects that reduce or remove pollution, such as reforestation or renewable energy initiatives. Beyond their climate impacts, these projects often deliver additional co-benefits, like empowering communities, protecting biodiversity, or improving public health.

“We have two formulas that are used to determine the amount of carbon in trees. The general formula, which can be applied to any type of tree, and the species-specific formula, developed to meet the needs of farmers, determine the carbon amount in fruit trees. The latter is more accurate in carbon quantification, as it only allows for marginal error (about 5 percent) as compared to the general formula (up to 40 percent error), Kuyah explained.

Since farmers can determine the carbon quantity without cutting down their trees, the formula encourages them to plant more fruit trees, which benefits their livelihood through the carbon credit trade and contributes to climate change mitigation.

COP30 Agreements

Plants being a primary source of livelihood for farmers makes this project an important asset in climate change mitigation, especially now, a time when nations seem to differ on climate control measures.

Ten years have passed since the 2015 Paris Agreement, which aimed to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius, with 2 degrees as the absolute maximum, achieve net zero carbon emissions by mid-century, and provide economic support to countries vulnerable to climate change. However, funding this effort has remained a challenge.

Many countries have missed their targets, and carbon emissions will be at a record high in 2024, according to the World Meteorological Society. World leaders are yet to reach an amicable agreement on the way forward in terms of measures and have put considerable emphasis on finding ways to finance mitigation.

At COP30, the full operationalization of the Paris Agreement Crediting Mechanism (PACM) that governs carbon markets was announced, and the Coalition to Grow Carbon Markets, launched in September by co-chairs from Singapore, the UK, and Kenya, received endorsements from 11 countries and support from others.

The coalition’s stated aims are to harmonize, integrate, and standardize them to mobilize increased funding for more rapid climate action and provide a consistent set of principles and safeguards required by business.

How Will the Fruit Tree Farmers Benefit

Kuya’s project not only addresses climate change measures but also fosters public participation and education by training farmers.

Since Kenya joined the carbon credit trade in 2023, a number of farmers and landowners have complained about being swindled or not being properly compensated for their contribution to carbon reduction.

In a recent documentary, Carbon Contract, by a local media outlet in Kenya, locals from northeastern Kenya complained of only receiving 20 percent of the total carbon sale from their lands in an agreement that was to see a carbon offset project use their land for up to 30 years. The residents complained that there was a lack of transparency in the project.

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