A riparian forest buffer outcomes fund for the Chesapeake Bay

EPIC, in conjunction with stakeholders including the US Forest Service, the EPA, and the Chesapeake Bay Trust, have developed a theoretical plan to help the Chesapeake Bay reach their riparian forest buffer goals using a Pay for Success outcomes fund.

A business plan, buyer’s guide, and other key communications documents are linked below. If interested in learning more, please reach out to Phoebe Higgins, Director of Markets.

BUSINESS PLAN

This business plan is the result of a project to assess why Bay states are not meeting their riparian forest buffer goals and to identify an innovative financing strategy to incentivize greater riparian forest buffer planting to help Bay states meet the Riparian Forest Buffer Outcome goal in the Chesapeake Agreement.

The business plan centers on an outcomes purchase fund that is a pay for success contracting (PFS) model in which the successful outcomes of environmental work would be paid for by the fund after they are realized, rather than funding on-the-ground project work up-front as is more typically the case.

BUYER’S GUIDE

This Buyer’s Guide provides the conceptual overview and relevant components to potential buyers of the fund.

It’s important to note that a recommendation is made for a prototyping phase to further refine design details within each step of the fund process. The entity that will implement the fund will be an important partner in sorting through options for fund design and iterating on the prototype to adapt the final design.

ADDITIONAL COMMUNICATIONS

In addition to the materials above, we have created a template presentation and summary handout outlining the key aspects of the fund.