Round Table on Responsible Soy Association

July, 2012

The 2nd Technical Working Group (TWG) meeting of the RTRS Broad Scale Maps and HCV Guidance for Soy Expansion project was held in São Paulo, Brazil, on the 10th and11th of July. All participants of the TWG were present (a total of 15 participants, including the project coordinator, a member of the RTRS-staff and an assistant / student of consultants). There was also an observer from Profest present during the two days.

The objective of this TWG meeting was to develop and approve (by consensus) the first version of the RTRS mapping methodology and the initial guidelines for assessing local HCVA.

Daniel Meyer of RTRS, coordinating the HCVA technical group meeting

During the first part of the meeting a seminar session was held in order to share expertise, knowledge and information on a number of topics relevant to the development of the methodology that will guide the assessment for high conservation value areas (HCVA). The following subjects and presentations were made:

-High Conservation Value Areas (HCVA); IMAFLORA presented their experiences of the Brazilian forest sector (presented by David Escaquete, forest engineer and Head of IMAFLORA)

-Landscape indicators for High Conservation Value Areas (HCVA) (Professor Milton Cezar Ribeiro - Department of Ecology - UNESP Rio Claro)

-GIS for agricultural territory planning: Prospects for agricultural production with environmental sustainability (Professor Britaldo Soares-Filho - Coordinator of the Center for Remote Sensing - UFMG)

-Maps and priority areas for conservation defined by the Government of Brazil (Dr. Arnaldo Carneiro Filho - Director of Territorial Management from the Secretariat for Strategic Affairs of the Brazilian Government- SAE)

David Escaquete, engineer and certification coordinator from IMAFLORA

Prof. Milton Cezar Ribeiro, UNESP Rio Claro 

The seminar session ended with a 30-minute roundtable debate between the participants and the TWG members about how to develop this project and implement the methodology in order to produce the maps. The conclusions of the roundtable debate where used in the rest of the TWG discussions which were exclusively aimed at developing the methodology for the maps and the initial guidelines for assessment & mapping system HCVA. A consensual approach was used at this technical session, with emphasis on topics discussion and equitable representation. Furthermore, at the end of each technical session, participants resumed the outcomes and challenges and suggested solutions to the challenges, in order to make progress in the development of the methodology. The first version of the RTRS mapping methodology and the initial guidelines for assessing local HCVA was approved by consensus by the TWG during the afternoon at the second meeting day.

The key decisions made were:

- mapping areas of Amazonia, Cerrado and agricultural frontier and hotspot for production.

-four categories, its criteria and indicators; and initial adaptation of the Proforest HCVA guide

- Good practice guidelines for High Conservation Value assessments.

-A practical guide for practitioners and auditors - to the Brazilian reality.

Giovana Baggio of TCN

After the approval, an evaluation was done by each RTRS member about the risks and opportunities of the first version of the RTRS mapping methodology and the initial guidelines for assessing local HCVA.

The next meeting will take place in Brasilia 4-5th of September 2012 and that the first National Stakeholder Meeting would take place, also in Brasilia  on the 27th of September 2012.

Daniel Meyer

Project Manager