Having been executed since the early 2020, Dasos Habitat Fund is a specific private equity instrument in the field of Natural Capital focusing on forest conservation. The conservation areas are managed for biodiversity and carbon farming. Being based on a unique concept allowing for market-based privately financed conservation, the first operational year of the fund indicates for remarkable success in terms of biodiversity enhancement.

The concept of the fund facilitates increasing the size of a single conservation area and habitat which is an essential determinant for a long-term viability of a biological population. During the first year of  the operation of the fund, the average size of a forest area conserved was 40 x larger than average size of FSC certification protection area in private forests in Finland. Also, a single conserved average area was 8 x larger than an average protection plot under the METSO programme in Finland, a government financed conservation scheme focusing on private forestry. Furthermore, the conserved forests are diverse in site types and species with a focus on older forests. The share of mature forests in the fund’s portfolio is 2.1 x larger than the share for such forests in the age class distribution of all forests in Finland. The mature forests correspond to 80% of total timber volume in the portfolio. Hence, the forest portfolio also represents a significant carbon storage and forms a sizable annual carbon dioxide sink as an additional positive externality besides the notable biodiversity facilitation.

For further information please contact Tapani Pahkasalo, tapani.pahkasalo@dasos.fi