How the standing forest became a source of income for producers in Rondônia

How the carbon market works To understand the initiative, you need to know the carbon market. In this system, each credit represents a ton of carbon dioxide (CO?) equivalent that was no longer emitted or removed from the atmosphere. These credits can be purchased by companies to offset part of their emissions. In the case of RECA, Natura pays producers for preserving the forest. According to the company's Sustainability Director, Angela Pinhati, the calculation considers how much carbon would no longer be retained if the area were deforested. The difference between this scenario and the preservation of the forest generates credits, acquired by the company itself to offset part of its emissions. "In practice, we pay producers for the carbon not emitted, that is, for the deforestation that was avoided. We calculated how many emissions would be released if these areas followed the deforestation trend in the region, located in a critical area of ??environmental degradation", explains the expert. According to the expert, the initiative prevented the deforestation of around 1.5 thousand hectares and the emission of approximately 392 thousand tons of CO? equivalent. By 2030, the company intends for half of the carbon credits acquired to come from socio-biodiversity chains in the Amazon. Property owned by one of the members of RECA (Consortium and Consortium Economic Reforestation), in the district of Nova California, in Porto Velho (RO). Reproduction/Social Networks Beyond income: opportunities for families In addition to environmental preservation, the project started to directly reflect on the lives of the cooperative's families. The increase in income allowed investments in property, expanded access to education and improved the quality of life of cooperative members. A study carried out by the Brazilian Center for Analysis and Planning (CEBRAP), in partnership with Natura, shows that participants in the carbon credit project have an average income 37% higher than that of producers who do not participate in the initiative. The survey, carried out over six months and completed in 2025, also identified that 25% of the children of participating families attend higher education, while, in the comparison group, this percentage is just 4%. Furthermore, families had greater savings capacity and more access to leisure activities. In practice, the numbers reflect the reality experienced by cooperative members. In an interview with g1, the producer and commercial director of RECA, Giancarlo Souza de Lima, states that paying for carbon credits brought economic, social and environmental gains to families. "It's a huge appreciation because the producer preserves the forest, receives technical assistance and is paid for it. The feeling is that the effort to keep the forest standing has arrived", shares the producer. According to Giancarlo, the resource is not only used to expand production, but also to improve the family's living conditions and invest in their children's future. "We always say that producers in the Amazon also want to have a good house, a vehicle to get around and send their children to study. Today, a producer has part of the property preserved, generating income from carbon, and also the Agroforestry Systems (SAF) area, which produces food and raw materials. The entire property starts to generate income for the family, which encourages staying in the field and preserving the forest", says Giancarlo. Heritage of preserving Cupuaçu cultivated on the property of one of the members of RECA (Reforestation Economic Consortium and Density), in the district of Nova California, in Porto Velho (RO). Reproduction/Social networks For RECA producers, payment for carbon credits represents more than a new source of income. The project reinforced the idea that keeping the forest standing it can also be a good business, creating conditions for new generations to remain in the field without giving up environmental preservation. For Giancarlo, this is one of the main legacies of the initiative. Today, cooperative members know that conserving the forest can generate more economic benefits than replacing it with low-return activities and that compliance with environmental legislation also strengthens the commercialization of products. If the producer does not comply with environmental standards, he or she faces difficulties in selling both agricultural production and forest products. With the carbon project, it generates income and remains in compliance with legislation", he explains. Family succession is also part of the cooperative's strategy. RECA is made up of nine groups of producing families, each with a coordinator, a female leader and a young leader. Many of these positions are beginning to be occupied by the children of cooperative members, preparing the next generation to manage production and the cooperative itself. "RECA has more than 37 years of history and we know that we need to prepare succession, both in the properties and in the management of the cooperative. We want to train increasingly qualified professionals to maintain this work for many years", reveals the producer. In a region historically marked by the advance of deforestation, RECA's experience shows that the forest can no longer be seen just as an environmental asset. For the cooperative's families, it has also become a source of income, opportunities and an inheritance for the next generations.