Targets and Indicators
Target 2.4, 2.4.1. Proportion of agriculture area under productive and sustainable agriculture.
HolmStone carbon projects intend to build soils and revegetate fallow lands, which provides an array of benefits for the surrounding area. Such as more vegetation, resulting in more rainfall at a micro-climatic scale. Building soils, through regenerative agriculture, not only diversifying soil life, but allow micro-nutrients to become bio-available to plants for uptake, and resulting in higher vitamin and micronutrient densities to commercial, or current common agricultural techniques, without decreasing yields. There is an array of area and crop specific interventions that HolmStone is applying along with their Farming clients to make use of the biota of all areas on a farm, boosting productivity and decreasing inputs.
2.5, 2.5.1. Number of (a) plant and (b) animal genetic resources for food and agriculture secured in either medium- or long- term conservation facilities.
Carbon projects developed by HolmStone with multiple research institutions of the RSA are developing novel land agreements in conjunction with framing methodologies. These are however not new, but rather a contemporary application of age-old techniques and understanding of biotic fluxes. With some of the reforestation projects, intercropping of nuts and soft citrus species, there are multiple aspects of revegetation and removal of alien invasives.
2.b, 2.b.1. Agricultural export subsidies.
With the EU and the USA having trade embargos on countries with lower NDCs, South African agricultural commodity exporters are now faced with another hurdle to get their product to market within the global north. With developing low-carbon projects with HolmStone, it provides the holistic management and low GHG intensive input into the agricultural land. Allowing for paper trails of product, to be allowed entry once again into those markets.
Targets and Indicators
Target 6.3, 6.3.2. Proportion of bodies of water with good ambient water quality.
With carbon low projects, the reduction of water waste and the treatment of water waste into clean cycling comes as a non-negotiable. With reductions of Nitrogen fertiliser application and runoff, reduces the risk of Algal blooms, water pollutants and multi-faceted down-stream effects that such a system has on wetlands, river streams and the ocean.
6.6, 6.6.1. Change the extent of water-related ecosystem over time.
HolmStone collaborative efforst with the PHNC (Knysna), SANParks, the Overberg Renosterveld Conservation Trust as well as their own incentives to farmers, are revegetating lawrge areas of land, including revegetation of native ecosystems as indicated in Target 6.6.
Targets and Indicators
Target 8.6, 8.6.1. Proportion of youth (aged 15-24 years) not in education, employment or training.
HolmStone is involved in activities all along the value chain within the agricultural sector. With providing novel and innovative work, with primary concentration of upskilling in the electrician, auditing, conservation and cultivation sectors.
Targets and Indicators
Target 15.1, 15.1.1. Forest area as proportion of total land area.
With HolmStones Novel approach to Forest land restoration and revegetation of degraded land around agricultural settings, the net area of conserved and reforested land increases per total land area in the RSA. This along with, land specific agroforestry systems applicable to the RSA setting and nuance.
15.1.2. Proportion of important sites for terrestrial and freshwater biodiversity that are covered by protected areas, by ecosystem type.
HolmStone revegetation activities in their carbon low land-management plans, in collaboration with the Overberg Renosterveld Conservation Trust (ORCT), the land allows for productive output while conserving and rehabilitating and mimicking successional ecological patterns as reported by scientific reports of the RSA scientific community. This critically endangered vegetation unit is in turn incentivised by HolmStone to the farmer in the area to conserve the ecosystem, which recognising the multi-faceted benefits of the rehabilitation activities.
15.3, 15.3.1. Porportion of land that is degraded over total land area.
Within the revegetation and regenerative agricultural practices employed by HolmStone projects, the degraded land is rehabilitated, reducing the proportion of degraded land to ecologically functional land. Many of the HolmStone projects aim and participate into creating ecological corridors across areas that are currently or used to be “green deserts”.
15.8, 15.8.1. Proportion of countries adopting relevant national legislation and adequately resourcing the prevention or control of invasive alien species.
The RSA has excellent legislation, amongst the best in the world regarding its environmental law (National Environmental Management Act, 2004, and the SEMA’s under the NEMA), however the RSA lacks the capacity to enforce such incredible laws. Here HolmStone stand in, allowing farmers/landholders access to expert advice, tools and remedies to alien invasives on their land. With work ranging from SANParks to different Universities of the RSA. HolmStone is allowing for action and ease of action regarding the dense and diverse invasive aliens in the RSA, employing circular economic practices to find alternative user cases to these unwanted flora.
15.a, 15.a.1. Official development assistance on conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity; and (b) revenue generated and finance mobilised from the biodiversity-relavant economic instruments.
With HolmStone employing the Carbon markets as a financial instrument to combat habitat degradation, poor resource use, and diversity in land use, helping markets develop into GHG low economies across the agricultural sector from farm to industry, to table.
Targets and Indicators
Targets 17.3, 17.3.1: Additional financial resources mobilised for developing countries from multiple sources.
Since HolmStone is setting up their Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) fund, a crowdfunding system, HolmStone is accessing international funding for local development within the RSA. This allows local partners to collaborate wit hHolmStone and for investments to reach the LDCs where the private funding is needed for projects, and adaptation strategies to GHG low economies.