1. Reforestation Projects: The priority zones for the execution of reforestation projects are established as areas without forest in sites that present a high productive potential for the development of forest plantations.
- a)For reforestation projects with species contained in the decrees of closed seasons and threatened or endangered species (Decree No. 25663-MINAE of October 8, 1996 and Decree No. 25700-MINAE) of November 15, 1996, the entire country is established as a priority.
- b)For reforestation projects established in protection areas according to article 33 of the Forestry Law No. 7575, the entire country shall be considered a priority.
- c)Sites where there is a high potential for plantation blocks, giving special priority to projects that use improved genetic material and to projects that use seed certified by the National Seed Office (ONS).
- d)Areas where reforestation projects financed through incentives or environmental services that have complied with both the approved management plans and their period of validity may be included.
- e)Reforestation projects with forest-industry integration.
2. Forest Protection Projects: The following areas that meet the criteria established below are established as a priority for contracting forest protection projects and whose qualification will be carried out by applying the following Evaluation Matrix.
| No. of criterion | Prioritization criteria | Points to qualify | | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | Forests on farms located in areas defined within Conservation Gaps Forests within the Indigenous Territories of the country. | 85 | | 21 1 (1) The score for each criterion will be mutually exclusive in these priorities. | Forests on farms located within officially established Biological Corridors. Forests that protect the water resource (with a note from ASADA, A y A, municipalities, FONAFIFO or MINAET, stating the importance of protecting the forest | 80 | | 3 | Forests on farms located within Protected Wild Areas and that have not yet been purchased or expropriated by the State. | 75 | | 4 | Forests outside of any of the previous priorities | 55 | | I | Forests for forest protection that comply with the provisions of the previous points, where contracts for payment of environmental services have been signed in previous years, provided they meet the other requirements established in the Procedures Manual for the Payment for Environmental Services and their period of validity concludes in the same year in which the new application is submitted. The validity of the new contracts will begin the day after the located in districts with a Social Development Index (SDI) less than 40% according to the determination made by MIDEPLAN (2007). | 10 additional points | | III | Forests in any of the above priorities, with an application for entry to the PPSA in areas less than 50 hectares. These points only apply if the farm area is equal to or less than 50 hectares. | 25 additional points | FONAFIFO will contract the farms with the highest qualification, that meet the established requirements and up to executing the approved budget.
In case of equal qualifications, processing will be done according to the order of presentation of the pre-applications.
3. Projects for the establishment of forest trees in Agroforestry Systems (SAF): Areas without forest with the following criteria are established as priorities for contracting tree establishment projects in SAF:
- a)Lands with land-use capacity I, II, III, IV, V, VI, according to the provisions of the Methodology for the Determination of Land Use Capacity in Costa Rica, (Executive Decree No. 23214-MAG-MIRENEM, published in La Gaceta No. 107 of June 6, 1994).
- b)Areas for the establishment of trees in specific agreements with FONAFIFO.
- c)Priority will be given to projects processed by organizations that have a current agreement with FONAFIFO.
4. Natural Regeneration Projects: The following areas without forest are established as priorities for the contracting of natural regeneration projects:
- a)Natural regeneration projects in pastures and grasslands, according to the provisions of subsections b and c, in areas defined as Kyoto lands or others where an additional payment is recognized for the carbon credits that FONAFIFO can commercialize and that were deforested before December 31, 1989.
- b)Natural regeneration projects in pastures and grasslands that can be carried out outside areas defined as Kyoto lands, with at least one year of abandonment and free of grazing.
- c)Natural regeneration projects with productive potential in sites with at least one year of abandonment and free of grazing.
- d)For natural regeneration in the protection areas according to article 33 of the Forestry Law No. 7575, the entire country shall be considered a priority.
5. Forest Management Projects: The following areas are established as priorities for contracting forest management projects with the following criterion:
- a)Properties that have management plans approved by the State Forestry Administration and in which harvesting was carried out in accordance with the Sustainability Standards for Natural Forest Management: Principles, Criteria and Indicators, Code of Practices and Procedures Manual, Executive Decrees No. 27388-MINAE published on November 2, 1998, Decree No. 30763-MINAE published on October 9, 2002 effective until June 16, 2008, and Executive Decree No. 34559-MINAE published in La Gaceta No. 115 of June 16, 2008. SINAC or the forestry regent shall certify compliance with the provisions of the Management Plan.
In each of the Subregional Offices of SINAC and in the Regional Offices of FONAFIFO, an updated map will be maintained in physical and digital "shape file" format, with the priority areas for locating the farms that apply to the Program for Payment of Environmental Services in the Forest Protection modality.
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