This NAMA promotes the establishment of state funding mechanisms and the replication of successful pilot project mitigation actions of planned grazing and forest regeneration to contribute to the mitigation and adaptation goals of the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) of Mexico under the Paris Agreement. 

Planned grazing: This component of the NAMA involves the establishment of subnational mitigation actions for the implementation of planned grazing and other best practices on grazing lands in 12 states and results in increased capture of CO2 and water in soils. This is an excellent tool for the mitigation of the effects of climate change that results in increased growth of grasses and livestock productivity for participating ranches. The implementation of this NAMA component was successfully begun as pilot projects and early action activities  on approximately 224,455 hectares in the states of Querétaro, San Luis Potosí, Guanajuato, Nuevo León, Chihuahua and Sonora and is being promoted for replication in additional states. Planned grazing is a conditional measure of Mexico’s NDC with a theoretical annual mitigation potential of 5.6 MtCO2e by 2030 according to the National Institute of Ecology and Climate Change (INECC). This component of the NAMA is projected to regenerate approximately 1.1 million hectares and reach an annual mitigation of 2.9 MtCO2e in the year 2030, which represents 52% of the theoretical potential for planned grazing identified by INECC and 41% of the mitigation goal for Mexico’s agricultural sector.  Cumulative mitigation from 2016-2040 is estimated at 57.8 MtCO2e. Indicators of sustainable development and transformational change impacts are also being monitored.                                     

Forest restoration: This component of the NAMA involves the establishment of subnational mitigation actions for the regeneration of natural forests in 12 states with the incentives of payments for ecosystem services and results in increased inventories of CO2 through the regeneration of forests as they are liberated from degradation factors such as extensive grazing of cattle, induced fires, and logging. Most importantly, this activity starts the processes of regeneration of the forest understory and forest structure.                                                               

This project activity has been implemented for several years in oak forests of the Sierra Gorda Biosphere Reserve of Querétaro as the “Biodiversity Carbon” project implemented by GESG in coordination with Bosque Sustentable A.C. This project formed the basis for the establishment of the Querétaro state mechanism for carbon offsets and the application of matching funds of the National Forestry Commission (CONAFOR). As part of the NAMA, this successful mitigation action will be expanded to new areas and other forest types in the Sierra Gorda and replicated in other states. The payments for ecosystem services are complemented by activities for the formation of ecological citizenship, including the training of all key actors, ranging from public officials to landowners, in regenerative management of soils and forests, activities of restoration and conservation, as well as the strengthening of community tourism microenterprises. The  forest restoration component of the NAMA is projected to reach 240,000 hectares per year and reach an annual mitigation of 694,000 tCO2e, which represents 5% of the emission goal of -14 MtCO2e for Mexico’s Land Use, Land-Use Change and Forestry sector for the year 2030. It is projected to achieve a cumulative mitigation of 7.8 MtCO2e from 2015-2030. Indicators of sustainable development and transformational change impacts are also being monitored. 
                                                       
State climtae change funds: Participating states will establish special climate change or environmental funds to finance their subnational actions for planned grazing and the regeneration of forests. This policy activity will build upon the successful state carbón compensation mechanism of the state of Querétaro, in which the government assigns a portion of the fees for annual license plate renewal to a special fund that supports projects that reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the state and increase carbon capture in its forests. As part of the NAMA, similar state funding mechanisms will be developed in other states. As an alternative, states may finance their subnational actions through their regular budgetary process or from other sources. State funding will also be enhanced by matching fund programs of CONAFOR and other federal agencies.                                                                                     
Initiative for Climate Action Transparency: The NAMA was selected by the Initiative for Climate Action Transparency (ICAT) to pilot the application of ICAT guidance documents for the assessment of GHG and transformational change impacts. The assessment report for transformational change concluded that the extent of transformation expected by the NAMA is major and the outcome is likely to be sustained over time. The GHG and transformational change assessment reports were subjected to a process of independent technical review and are available for public review.