![3%20questions.gif](https://arbonics-strapi-media.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/3_20questions_6f93415ed0.gif)
#### 1. Are you interested in protecting the planet and benefitting nature?

First and foremost, participating in the new forest economy – whether through afforestation or impact forestry or in the future, biodiversity – requires the willingness to be a part of positive change. Changing your land management practices might require effort from you - this could include things like planting a new forest or changing your forest rotation cycle. 

For example, Tom* (name changed), a landowner we spoke to soon after our launch, put it like this: “I’m a relatively small landowner (less than 50 hectares in total), but if I knew that my land can be a part of the solution, I’d be willing to put in the work. However, I’m worried about greenwashing, so I want to know that the impact is real.” We did an initial land analysis for Tom and found that his land could store over 2523 tonnes of CO2. That is equivalent to taking 548 passenger cars off the road for a year! This impact was significant enough that Tom is proceeding with an afforestation project.

To decide whether a carbon project - such as afforestation - is right for you, consider whether the impact you can have means you’re willing to undertake the changes needed.

![Map from a study published in Science: “The global tree restoration potential”](https://arbonics-strapi-media.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/Untitled_2_d9c2d83b48.png)
_Across the world, global tree cover could increase by 900mil hectares, which could help offset as much as 2/3 of human emissions. Map from a study published in Science: “The global tree restoration potential”. [Link](https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.aax0848?adobe_mc=MCORGID%3D242B6472541199F70A4C98A6%2540AdobeOrg%7CTS%3D1676040229&_ga=2.19563835.208326774.1676040229-191027597.1676040229)_

#### 2. Do you own your land outright and/or have the ability to make decisions regarding it?

In order to participate in carbon projects, all of the owners of the land need to be aware of and agree to join. 

Why is this important? Because participating in a carbon project involves making active land management decisions that have a long-term impact - such as choosing what kind of trees to plant. 

This means that if your land is jointly owned, the other co-owners should also learn about the carbon project you’re considering and would eventually need to sign the same contract you will sign. If they are in doubt or don’t really understand what it’s all about, feel free to refer them to us at Arbonics – we’d be happy to give them more context.

#### 3. Is your land free from any legal requirements to manage it in a certain way?

_(e.g. conservation rules like Natura 2000; high-value farmland that is legally protected; previously forested land that requires replanting)_

For carbon credits to be real and proven, they need to have additionality. This essentially means that the activity that generated the credits (such as planting a new forest) would not have otherwise happened. If, for example, the land is under a legal obligation to replant, afforestation there would not be additional.  Hence for your land to be suitable for a carbon project, the activity that generates the credits (e.g. planting for afforestation or harvest cycle change for impact forestry) needs to be freely allowed, but not required, under current law.

This means that areas which have a legal requirement to replant, for example, are not eligible for afforestation because they are already expected to be managed as forestland. 

If you’re not sure if your land is suitable or not, get in touch - our data-based carbon opportunity assessment can provide a quick answer and highlight areas that are best suited for afforestation.

### All this sounds good - what next?

If the answer to all three of the above questions is *********yes*********, you might be well-suited to participating in the new forest economy and earning extra income from carbon storage on your land. 

To understand roughly how much you could earn from planting new forests (afforestation) **[try our carbon estimator](https://www.arbonics.com/carbon-calculator)**. You can also read more about [how to earn carbon credits through afforestation and what activities are required here](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/afforestation) and about [monitoring afforestation projects here](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/monitoring-afforestation-projects). 

When you’re ready for more information and a detailed analysis of your land, get in touch with us [here](https://arbonics.pro.typeform.com/landowners?columnl=&typeform-source=www.arbonics.com).



------------------------
Arbonics is a tech-based carbon and ecosystem platform for forest-and landowners in Europe – bridging the analogue world of forestry with the world of tech to fight climate change. We partner with landowners to access new revenue streams by helping them quantify, monitor and sell the environmental benefits of sustainable land management.

Are you a landowner? Introduce yourself [here](https://arbonics.typeform.com/landowners?content) and we will get in touch to discuss opportunities with your land. 

Subscribe to our newsletter [here](https://arbonics.substack.com/subscribe) and follow us on [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/ArbonicsHQ/), [LinkedIn](http://linkedin.com/company/arbonics/) and [Twitter](https://twitter.com/ArbonicsHQ) for latest news.

By now you may have heard about the potential for carbon and biodiversity to change the way you manage your land and generate extra income. But is the new forest economy for all landowners? How do you know if it’s a fit for you? To help you decide, we’ve put together the three main questions to ask yourself.

3%20questions.gif

I’m a landowner – how do I know if the new forest economy is relevant for me?

The carbon market world can sometimes get confusing with all the terms and acronyms used. Here's a dictionary to help you navigate it. 
| Term | Definition |
| --------- | ------------- |
| Additionality | Additionality is the measure whether activity happened as a result of an incentive. In the context of carbon projects, additionality is an important measure to ensure that activities of the project result in emission reductions or removals that are above what would have happened in the absence of the project (under “business as usual” scenario). |
| Afforestation (AFF) | Afforestation is a process of planting trees on land that has not been recently forested. [More about Arbonics’ approach to afforestation.](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/afforestation) | Afforestation, reforestation and revegetation (ARR) | Verra’s methodology for [afforestation, reforestation and revegetation projects](https://verra.org/methodology/methodology-for-afforestation-reforestation-and-revegetation-projects/), which sets the guidelines to verify greenhouse gas removal from the atmosphere through these activities. Arbonics afforestation projects use this methodology for verification. |
| Continuous cover forestry (CCF) | Continuous cover forestry is a forest management style in which a continuous cover of the forest is maintained by selectively harvesting only individual trees. This approach is different to even-aged stand management (achieved by cutting similar-aged trees during a harvest period) and will create an uneven-aged stand of trees in the management area. |
| Carbon credit | Carbon credit is a term to describe a tradable certificate or permit, which either gives the right to emit or offset the a set amount of CO2 or the equivalent greenhouse gas CO2e. Usually the set amount is equal to 1 tonne of CO2e. You can read more about carbon credits and what makes them high quality [here](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/what-are-carbon-credits-and-what-makes-a-carbon-credit-high-quality). |
| Carbon dioxide removal (CDR) | The process of removing carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere. Includes many types of methods such as tech-based (e.g. direct air capture) and nature-based (e.g. forestry) | 
| Compliance carbon markets | Compliance (or mandatory) carbon markets are regulated carbon trading systems that have nationally, regionally or internationally determined rules, and participants from heavy polluting industries (think steelworks or car manufacturers) The European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) is an example of a compliance market. In terms of volume, compliance markets are bigger than [the voluntary market](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/voluntary-carbon-market). | 
| Direct air capture (DAC) | Direct air capture is a process of capturing CO2 directly from the air with an aim to reduce the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere. The captured CO2 is either safely and permanently stored or utilised so that reduction of CO2 in the atmosphere occurs and can be measured. | 
| European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) | The European Union Emissions Trading System is an example of a compliance carbon market that operates a “cap and trade” system by which a limit is placed on the amount of emissions the participants can emit over a period by issuing emission rights (permits). The participating companies can trade emission permits in circulation and given the number of emissions are capped, have an incentive to reduce their emissions to avoid the cost of buying the permits. |
 | Greenhouse gas (GHG) | A greenhouse gas is a gas in the Earth’s atmosphere that absorbs infrared radiation from the Sun in the form of heat. The process of that heat getting trapped in the Earth’s atmosphere, thanks to greenhouse gases, is called the greenhouse effect. Main greenhouse gases are water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, ozone and nitrous oxide. |
| Impact Forestry (IF) | Impact Forestry is a solution for existing forests being developed by Arbonics. Impact Forestry aims to maximise the carbon return of forested land by adjusting harvesting plans, changing rotation lengths and using conservation if needed. It’s a custom-made plan developed in collaboration with the landowner to ensure that forested land continues to earn at least the same as it would have under usual management plan, while driving significant carbon and biodiversity benefits. |
| Monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) | In the context of carbon credits — monitoring, reporting and verification are used to prove that the claimed benefit of emission avoidance or removal has occurred in order to issue a carbon credit based on the measured benefit. Read more about monitoring afforestation projects [here](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/monitoring-afforestation-projects). 
| Nature-based solutions / natural climate solutions (NBS / NCS) | Nature-based solutions are actions that help to restore natural ecosystems and address and adapt society to environmental challenges such as climate change. These solutions are developed in collaboration with natural systems as oppose to technological one. For example encouraging the growth of trees (nature-based) for carbon capture as opposed to direct air capture plant (technological). | 
 | Permanence | Permanence represents how long carbon is stored or tied up for and what its risk of reversal is. Read about permanence in forest carbon projects [here](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/abc-what-is-permanence-and-why-is-it-relevant-to-forest-carbon-projects). | 
 | Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) | A standard for carbon credits developed and managed by verification organisation and standard Verra. Carbon credits known as VCUs (Verified Carbon Units) are issued as part of the program. [More about carbon verifiers and standards.](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/abc-verra-and-gold-standard) | 
 | Voluntary carbon market (VCM) | Voluntary carbon market gives individuals or organisations an opportunity to offset their emissions by purchasing carbon credits. The activity on the VCM is voluntary as oppose to mandatory in the case of compliance carbon markets. [More about voluntary carbon market.](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/voluntary-carbon-market) | 
 | Verified Carbon Unit (VCU) | VCUs (Verified Carbon Units) are one type of carbon credit and one VCU represents a reduction or removal of one tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) achieved by a Verra project as part of their Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) program. | 




------------------------
Arbonics is a tech-based carbon and ecosystem platform for forest-and landowners in Europe – bridging the analogue world of forestry with the world of tech to fight climate change. We partner with landowners to access new revenue streams by helping them quantify, monitor and sell the environmental benefits of sustainable land management.

Are you a landowner? Introduce yourself [here](https://arbonics.typeform.com/landowners?content) and we will get in touch to discuss opportunities with your land. 

Subscribe to our newsletter [here](https://arbonics.substack.com/subscribe) and follow us on [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/ArbonicsHQ/), [LinkedIn](http://linkedin.com/company/arbonics/) and [Twitter](https://twitter.com/ArbonicsHQ) for latest news.

Overview of frequently used carbon market terms and acronyms 

title of the article "Carbon Market Dictionary"

large_Carbon Market Dictionary-2.jpg

medium_Carbon Market Dictionary-2.jpg

small_Carbon Market Dictionary-2.jpg

thumbnail_Carbon Market Dictionary-2.jpg

Carbon Market Dictionary-2.jpg

Carbon Market Dictionary

![image-2.png](https://arbonics-strapi-media.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/image_2_174c5c1e8b.png)

Working in the climate sector, it can be really easy to get lost in jargon and sector-specific terms. But sometimes, it’s important to go back to the basics. So let’s go through what carbon credits actually are, explained in a variety of ways.

#### As a basic definition, a single carbon credit means **1 tonne** (1000kg) of **CO2** (or equivalent) **emissions** which have been either stored (sequestered) or avoided. 



### Explain like I am 5: What are carbon credits?

_Thank you ChatGPT for helping us finetune this answer!_

Carbon credits are a way to help the Earth by _reducing_ the amount of harmful gases in the air. These gases are called _greenhouse gases_, and they can make the Earth too hot.

Sometimes, we do things that create greenhouse gases, like driving our cars or flying in planes. Carbon credits help us _offset_ these greenhouse gases by allowing us to pay for projects that reduce or remove greenhouse gases from the air.

For example, we could buy carbon credits from an afforestation project, which is a place where people plant trees to create new forests. Trees absorb carbon dioxide from the air as they grow, so by _planting trees_ we can help _reduce_ greenhouse gases.

#### By buying carbon credits, we are helping to reduce greenhouse gases and make the Earth a healthier place for everyone.

### What makes a high-quality carbon credit?

There are 5 key features that define the quality (or lack thereof) of a carbon credit.

1. **Additionality:** A carbon credit should represent a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions that would not have happened without the project generating the credit. This means that the project is "additional" to what would have occurred in the absence of the project.
2. [Permanence](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/abc-what-is-permanence-and-why-is-it-relevant-to-forest-carbon-projects): This is how long carbon is tied up for, and what its risk of reversal (i.e. being re-released into the atmosphere) is. A high-quality credit should have high permanence (which means the carbon should be tied up for a long time.) [*Read more on permanence here.*](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/abc-what-is-permanence-and-why-is-it-relevant-to-forest-carbon-projects) 
3. [Verification:](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/abc-verra-and-gold-standard) A carbon credit should be independently verified by a third party to ensure that it represents a genuine reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. This helps to ensure the integrity and reliability of the credit. *[Read more about key verifiers like Verra here](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/abc-verra-and-gold-standard)*
4. Transparency: A carbon credit should be transparently tracked and accounted for to ensure that it is not double-counted or misused. This helps to ensure that the credit is used appropriately and that it represents a real reduction in emissions.
5. Positive impact: A high-quality carbon credit should also positively impact local communities and the environment. This might include things like preserving natural habitats or creating jobs for the local community. 

All of these factors are key for ensuring a credit reflects real, actual carbon sequestration (or avoidance), as is not simply an exercise in greenwashing. 

### How are carbon credits created?

Carbon credits can be created by storing carbon, or by avoiding emitting more CO2 (this second type is more controversial and some experts argue that *****avoidance*****-type credits should not be allowed to be used for offsetting). 

There are a number of ways we take CO2 from the atmosphere, convert it to carbon, and store it (i.e. generate ***removal-type carbon credits***): 

1. **Nature-based carbon sequestration** - this refers to storing carbon in forests, soils, and coastal/marine ecosystems. It can be achieved by activities such as afforestation (planting new forests), growing kelp; or changing farming practices. 
2. ****************************Technology-based carbon sequestration**************************** - this refers to activities such as *****direct air capture (DAC),***** which uses solid or liquid absorbents (materials that essentially attract CO2 and tie it up on contact)

******Avoidance-type carbon credits****** can be generated through a variety of projects that reduce emissions, such as: 

1. Building new renewable energy plants
2. Increasing the efficiency of buildings
3. Reducing emissions from waste through reuse, recycling or better waste handling
4. Avoiding deforestation and land degradation 
5. and many more

For these positive actions to actually generate carbon credits, they have to be validated and certified by a 3rd-party carbon credit standard, such as [Verra or Gold Standard.](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/abc-verra-and-gold-standard) 

### What is a carbon credit worth?

Like any item you can buy or sell, the price of a carbon credit is defined by the market - as a function of supply and demand (similar to other financial instruments, such as stocks!). What makes carbon credits a little harder to price vs. something like Google stock is that carbon markets are fragmented - i.e. there are lots of different marketplaces where carbon credits are traded.

Additionally, different types of credits (e.g. avoidance credits vs. removal credits) are valued differently by potential buyers. Removal-type credits are generally higher-priced, because it is clear that they are actually taking CO2 out of the atmosphere. Furthermore, depending on the 5 quality factors we outlined previously, even similar credits (such as afforestation credits) might have different prices. For a more in-depth look at carbon credit pricing, [see here](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/where-does-the-carbon-price-come-from). 

### Are there any other names / terms used for carbon credits?

In the voluntary carbon market, carbon credits are sometimes also referred to as: 

- **offsets** - a term that refers to one of the traditional uses of carbon credits, compensating (or “offsetting”) emissions
- **VCUs** - this is a Verra-specific acronym, which stands for “verified carbon unit” and just means 1 Verra-certified carbon credit (i.e. still equivalent to 1 tonne of CO2e)
- **carbon allowance** - this refers to a unit of greenhouse gas (CO2 or other) emissions that is allowed under a cap-and-trade system, such as the European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS). Companies that exceed their allowance must purchase additional allowances or carbon credits to offset their excess emissions.
- **carbon reduction certificates** - usually refers to a certificate that verifies that a company or individual has reduced their carbon emissions or purchased carbon credits to offset their emissions

### Where can I learn more about carbon credits?

We have created a few other explanatory articles to help you explore the world of voluntary carbon markets:

- [What is the voluntary carbon market?](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/voluntary-carbon-market)
- [What influences the price of carbon credits?](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/where-does-the-carbon-price-come-from)
- [How to earn carbon credits with afforestation](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/afforestation)
- [An overview of key carbon credit registries: Who are Verra and Gold Standard?](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/abc-verra-and-gold-standard)

Other sources that we think are great for better understanding carbon credits include: 

- This [basic overview from the Corporate Finance Institute](https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/esg/carbon-credit/)
- McKinsey’s report on [Scaling Voluntary Carbon Market](https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/sustainability/our-insights/a-blueprint-for-scaling-voluntary-carbon-markets-to-meet-the-climate-challenge)s from January 2021


------------------------
Arbonics is a tech-based carbon and ecosystem platform for forest-and landowners in Europe – bridging the analogue world of forestry with the world of tech to fight climate change. We partner with landowners to access new revenue streams by helping them quantify, monitor and sell the environmental benefits of sustainable land management.

Are you a landowner? Introduce yourself [here](https://arbonics.typeform.com/landowners?content) and we will get in touch to discuss opportunities with your land. 

Subscribe to our newsletter [here](https://arbonics.substack.com/subscribe) and follow us on [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/ArbonicsHQ/), [LinkedIn](http://linkedin.com/company/arbonics/) and [Twitter](https://twitter.com/ArbonicsHQ) for latest news.

Back to basics - what carbon credits really are and how to know if they are high quality. 

1 carbon credit equals 1 tonne of CO2 stored

large_image-2.png

medium_image-2.png

small_image-2.png

thumbnail_image-2.png

1 carbon credit.png

What are carbon credits and what makes a carbon credit high quality?

#### What is it & why does it matter?
Recently, a new term has been making waves within the climate tech world: nature tech (or naturetech as one word). Greenbiz reports that the global market for "nature tech" is poised to triple to $6Bn by 2030. 

![Screenshot 2022-12-13 at 18.08.58.png](https://arbonics-strapi-media.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/Screenshot_2022_12_13_at_18_08_58_7980599e2d.png)
[Link to tweet](https://twitter.com/SolarFred/status/1596166967509282816?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.notion.so%2Farbonics%2FWhat-is-nature-tech-dd30ef9a7f634cf6a1c5825a5649a22e)

Many people think of the climate crisis as primarily a CO2 problem - or more broadly, an issue with greenhouse gasses (GHGs) in general.
However, another, connected and partially overlapping issue is facing our planet: ecosystem destruction and loss of biodiversity. For example, a recent piece of research published by WWF showed that [we have lost 69% of wildlife populations](https://earth.org/wildlife-population-decline/) in the last 50 years. Over the decade since 2010, on average [4.7M net hectares of forestland have been lost every year.](https://ourworldindata.org/deforestation) Our oceans are acidifying. And our natural world is filling up with rubbish.

This all sounds like pretty bad news (and it is!). It’s perhaps natural to feel overwhelmed and hopeless about all this.

But the good news is that there is a growing group of entrepreneurs and scientists laser-focused on solutions. This work has led to the emergence of a new category of startups, which can broadly be generalised as *naturetech.*

<aside>

> In short, naturetech is about **the technologies and tools that are helping us protect and restore our natural environment.**

</aside>

Naturetech is often working at the crossroads - of biology and software, or botany and genomics, or forestry and data science. Its promise is in bringing together previously disparate disciplines to drive new discoveries. At times, this leads to complexity and conflict - coming from the world of software, where bit- and byte-based problems can often be solved simply by throwing more logical firepower at them, the natural world is made out of atoms and subject to the limits of physics and the complicated interplay of living creatures. The more we learn about nature, the clearer it becomes that there is a lot we don’t know.

For example, today we can distantly monitor the growth of a sapling into a young tree through the use of sensors and satellite imagery.

We can then use that data to model this one tree’s impact on the surrounding trees and the resulting forest type. 

But we cannot yet measure or know the intricacies behind how trees communicate with each other, or how they might use their symbiotic relationships to weather-changing climatic conditions.

While there is still a lot to discover, the rapid expansion of naturetech will undoubtedly help us get closer to many of these answers.

#### What types of companies fall under the #naturetech umbrella?
Naturetech is addressing many different areas of nature restoration, protection and enhancement - from reducing the amounts of GHG released during farming to increasing carbon storage in our oceans. Naturetech companies are mainly looking for solutions in four main areas of the environment.

![4%20types%20of%20naturetech.png](https://arbonics-strapi-media.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/4_20types_20of_20naturetech_8390ebf1de.png)

#### Some great examples of naturetech companies we love

- **[Living Carbon](https://www.livingcarbon.com)** - founded by Maddie Hall, they are genetically modifying trees to grow faster and store more carbon 
![Screenshot 2022-12-14 at 11.06.15.png](https://arbonics-strapi-media.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/Screenshot_2022_12_14_at_11_06_15_45760e8857.png)
[Link to tweet](https://twitter.com/living_carbon/status/1572610731844968449?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.notion.so%2Farbonics%2F6b0975597d474d289cf3b04867b8a4e5%3Fv%3D639d883a61d6498eb8879886553b01c4%26p%3Ddd30ef9a7f634cf6a1c5825a5649a22e%26pm%3Ds)
- [Rhizocore](https://www.rhizocore.com) produces locally-adapted mycorrhizal fungi to enhance tree planting success. These helpful fungi live on and around tree roots, and their presence can make the difference between a tree thriving or failing. Trees replanted as saplings often lack this critical biological infrastructure.
- [**Pivotal**](https://www.pivotal.earth) - measuring biodiversity change using a variety of data points gathered through real-world samplings - such as the frequency and diversity of birdsong.

At [**Arbonics**](https://www.arbonics.com), we follow the same pattern - we are bringing together data scientists, geoinformatics scientists and forestry experts to work together on identifying new, scalable solutions for more carbon- & biodiversity-friendly forest management.

In the process, we are working with many experienced foresters and landowners who benefit from generations of received wisdom. Some of our favourite conversations feature forest owners like Martin*, who learned forestry from his grandfather and father and is now continuing the family traditions while introducing innovative new climate-friendly practices. 

If you are curious and want to see learn more about how we’re building the new forest economy, follow Arbonics on [Substack](https://arbonics.substack.com).


------------------------
Arbonics is a tech-based carbon and ecosystem platform for forest-and landowners in Europe – bridging the analogue world of forestry with the world of tech to fight climate change. We partner with landowners to access new revenue streams by helping them quantify, monitor and sell the environmental benefits of sustainable land management.

Are you a landowner? Introduce yourself [here](https://arbonics.typeform.com/landowners?content) and we will get in touch to discuss opportunities with your land. 

Subscribe to our newsletter [here](https://arbonics.substack.com/subscribe) and follow us on [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/ArbonicsHQ/), [LinkedIn](http://linkedin.com/company/arbonics/) and [Twitter](https://twitter.com/ArbonicsHQ) for latest news.

What is it, why does it matter, and what companies are considered nature tech.

animated text "What on Earth is #naturetech?"

naturetech.gif

What is nature tech?

The two most common terms used in relation to carbon projects are additionality and permanence. Often mentioned in the same breath as carbon credit quality – or thrown about when talking about how to avoid greenwashing – they are key terms to understand for any landowner or credit buyer involved in [the voluntary carbon markets](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/voluntary-carbon-market). So let’s break it down, starting with permanence.

### What is permanence?

In short, permanence is a concept encapsulating how long carbon is tied up for, and what its risk of reversal (i.e. being re-released into the atmosphere) is. Reversal can occur in many ways. In forestry-related carbon projects, the most likely causes for reversal are fire, decomposition, and harvest followed by timber use in short-lifecycle products (such as paper). 

Let’s use the example of an average tree to explore permanence. If you plant a small Norwegian Pine sapling this spring, it will (if all goes well) continue to grow for many decades, pulling CO2 out of the air to convert into biomass. It will store carbon in its trunk, branches, needles, and roots. 

Some of that storage is long-term – such as the trunk, which will last throughout the tree’s lifecycle (50+ years) and even beyond, if the timber gets made into furniture or built into a house. 

Some is short-term – pine needles may fall to the ground and decompose within less than a year of growing, re-releasing CO2 back into the atmosphere. 

So what is the overall permanence of carbon storage in the pine tree? Hard to tell, but as a simple rule of thumb, methodologies used by [verifiers like Verra](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/abc-verra-and-gold-standard) often assume that about half the tree’s total biomass is stored for the full duration of its growth cycle and then harvested. So if our hypothetical pine goes on to grow for 80 years and store a total of 1.5 tonnes of CO2, we could count this as 0.75 tCO2e with permanence of 80 years. 

### How does permanence vary between different types of carbon projects?

In general, afforestation projects have an estimated permanence of 30-80 years. This permanence is calculated mostly based on contract length rather than the potential lifetime of the trees - because for most newly planted forests, the biggest impact on their longevity relates to harvest cycles, rather than a tree’s natural life cycle. Therefore afforestation projects enforce permanence through contracts which require the landowner to keep their forest growing for some specific period. 

Zooming out to look at a broader list of carbon credit types, we see that permanence varies widely between different projects. Projects involving mineralisation (turning CO2 into carbonate and similar minerals) have some of the longest storage durations – in fact, the carbon tied up in this way may well be tied up for ever. 

At the other end of the scale, soil carbon projects are generally estimated to have lower permanence, as the risk of reversal is very high. 

![Permanence graphic.png](https://arbonics-strapi-media.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/Permanence_graphic_bcdc1f6968.png)

### Why does permanence matter?

At its core, permanence is important because of the duration of CO2 in Earth’s atmosphere. Once additional CO2 is released through any means, the clock starts: [some 60-80% of the released CO2 is absorbed (mostly into oceans) in the first 200 years](https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2012/jan/16/greenhouse-gases-remain-air). The remaining 20-40%, however, will stick around for a long time - from [300 years to upwards of a 1000 years](https://climate.nasa.gov/news/2915/the-atmosphere-getting-a-handle-on-carbon-dioxide/). Note that this doesn’t mean that an individual CO2 molecule stays around that long (they have an average life of 5 years), but rather that the extra CO2 released creates, essentially, a surplus, which takes a while to be absorbed through the carbon cycle. 

Think about it a bit like flooding in city streets after heavy rain: an individual molecule of H20 is easily absorbed by drains, but if a lot of them are released at once, it will take a while for the extra water to drain away through normal means (and if the rain is particularly heavy or the area low, we might need to use pumps to get rid of surplus water). 

This is why we need to consider permanence if we want to sequester CO2 for the purpose of offsetting our overall emissions. If our methods have on average low permanence (<50 years), we are not adequately offsetting the CO2 released, because at the end of the sequestration period, we will have nearly double the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere – whatever we sequestered and released, plus most of the initial CO2 that we were offsetting in the first place and which has yet to be absorbed. 

### Doesn’t that mean we should focus only on very long-term storage, 1000+ years?

Yes and no. In an ideal world, all carbon offsetting would be done via very long-term storage solutions, such as direct air capture (DAC) with geological storage, or enhanced weathering (also known as mineralisation). However, the total global annual capacity for these options is currently in the low five digits of tonnes of CO2. As of 2021, [all the global DAC plants in operation jointly sequestered less than 10 000 tonnes of CO2](https://climatechampions.unfccc.int/companies-are-sucking-carbon-from-the-atmosphere-using-direct-air-capture-how-does-it-work/) annually, and they did so at an average cost of about €500-1000/tCO2e. 

In contrast, to tackle our current and historical emissions, we will need to [remove around 10 gigatonnes](https://nap.nationalacademies.org/read/25259/chapter/1) (that’s 1 billion, or 1 000 000 000, tonnes) of CO2, annually, by around mid-21st century. It’s clear that DAC and mineralisation alone will not be enough. 

Nature-based solutions (of which forest-based carbon is one) can fill the gap. While they have lower permanence, they a[re scalable, more affordable, and provide a host of co-benefits](https://www.naturebasedsolutionsinitiative.org/news/ipcc-climate-change-mitigation-report/) such as habitat protection, water purification, timber and other goods, etc. When paired with sufficient safe-guards to ensure permanence is maximised (e.g. via contracts disincentivising the premature harvesting of newly planted forests), forest carbon projects can be an effective way to reduce atmospheric carbon while protecting nature.

------------------------
Arbonics is a tech-based carbon and ecosystem platform for forest-and landowners in Europe – bridging the analogue world of forestry with the world of tech to fight climate change. We partner with landowners to access new revenue streams by helping them quantify, monitor and sell the environmental benefits of sustainable land management.

Are you a landowner? Introduce yourself [here](https://arbonics.typeform.com/landowners?content) and we will get in touch to discuss opportunities with your land. 

Subscribe to our newsletter [here](https://arbonics.substack.com/subscribe) and follow us on [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/ArbonicsHQ/), [LinkedIn](http://linkedin.com/company/arbonics/) and [Twitter](https://twitter.com/ArbonicsHQ) for latest news.

Permanence in forest carbon projects and how it varies between different types of carbon projects.

large_!_header_1.jpg

medium_!_header_1.jpg

small_!_header_1.jpg

thumbnail_!_header_1.jpg

!_header_1.jpg

ABC: what is permanence and why is it relevant to forest carbon projects?

As you dig a little deeper into the world of carbon credits, one of the first obstacles you run into is the difficulty in understanding fair and prevailing market prices. For most commodities like timber, you can easily look up futures prices at large marketplaces such as the Chicago Commodity Exchange, and may also have access to local price indices. For carbon credits, this info is much more difficult to access and can be highly inconsistent. In this piece, we will unpack the key factors influencing carbon pricing, key sources for pricing data, and predictions on future price movements. 

### But first, what price should we be tracking?

The very first thing we should note that “carbon credit price” is a very unclear term. Often it is used interchangeably for both voluntary market credits and for compliance market tonnes. However, as we covered in [our article on the voluntary carbon market](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/voluntary-carbon-market), compliance markets are fundamentally different from voluntary markets, and cannot be used as a proxy for each other. 

So if you’ve heard or seen articles with headlines like “Carbon prices reach new highs”, keep in mind that they might be talking about compliance markets. For example, at the time of writing this in August 2022, the price of a tonne of carbon on the EU compliance carbon markets is hovering around €83/tCO2e (tonne of CO2 equivalent), while a very broad category called “Voluntary Market Nature Based Offsets” is priced at $7.34/tCO2 (you can view these prices live on [CarbonCredits.com](https://carboncredits.com/carbon-prices-today/)) and market players like Pachama and TIST sell forestry credits for prices ranging from €17 to €49/tCO2e. 

However, the prices quoted above may not be a good indication of the expected price of your offsets if undertaking afforestation projects in Europe, for reasons that we cover below.

### Okay, so where can I find the latest prices?

The good news is that as carbon becomes increasingly tradeable, there are emerging marketplaces and aggregators that provide some insight into average price. The bad news is that these players are still highly fragmented, and hence have access to only a small selection of prices. The result is large differences between the prices shown. 

But nonetheless, here are a few sources you can explore: 

- [CarbonCredits.com](http://CarbonCredits.com) - this uses the Verra registry to combine prices for “Nature Based Carbon” (defined as any project that falls under Agriculture, Forestry or Other Land Use), as well as “Aviation Industry” and “Tech Industry” offsets.
- [QCintel.com](http://QCintel.com) (behind a paywall) - shows spot prices by standard/registry type (e.g. VCS), high-level methodology (e.g. cookstoves, forestry) and vintage group (e.g. credits issued since 2016)
- [S&P Global Platts](https://www.spglobal.com/commodityinsights/en/our-methodology/price-assessments/energy-transition/carbon-credit-price-assessments) (behind a subscription paywall) - sometimes referenced in articles, e.g. in the [Financial Times in January 2022](https://www.ft.com/content/29565f44-ba71-4a44-8e84-d1e421ddb958), referencing $14/tCO2e

And… that’s basically it. 

Other price data comes through word of mouth - from buyers and brokers. 

### Why are the prices I’m seeing so widely spread?

Often, different types of nature-based credits are lumped together - from afforestation to avoided deforestation to carbon-friendly farming techniques to biochar. In reality, these different approaches have very varied cost bases, and as a result, different tonne prices. An avoidance credit (such as “avoided deforestation”) attempts to quantify the amount of emissions that are avoided (i.e. CO2 that would have otherwise been released) - in effect, people are paid to not cut down trees or not to burn wood. Avoidance-type credits often have a hard time proving additionality - as a result, buyers are willing to pay much less for these. 

In contrast, “removal”- type credits (e.g. growing trees) actually take CO2 out of the atmosphere. In general, these are priced higher than “avoidance”-type credits, because their effect is more clearly quantifiable and trackable. 

In addition to these factors, pricing info is often incomplete because many carbon credit purchases today are done through direct deals between credit developers and credit buyers, and these deal terms are not shared publicly. This is especially true of higher-priced, higher-quality credits where buyers want direct insight into the project. In contrast, many “buy-with-one-click”-type online marketplaces sell primarily cheaper credits (around €2-5 per tonne of CO2), as the buyers buying small amounts of credits tend to be less selective about the provenance and methodology underlying them. 

### So which factors drive prices up?

Firstly, carbon credit prices are strongly influenced by the two main things buyers care about: *additionality* and *[permanence](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/abc-what-is-permanence-and-why-is-it-relevant-to-forest-carbon-projects)*. We already address additionality when talking about price spread - so let’s tackle permanence here.

In short, *permanence* is a concept encapsulating how long carbon is tied up for, and what its risk of reversal (i.e. being re-released into the atmosphere) is. Permanence can range from 2-5 years (most farming-related soil carbon projects) to 1000+ years (direct air capture) - for forestry-related projects, it can be anywhere from 30 to 60 years with harvesting, or 100+ years for protected forests. 

In simple terms, higher additionality and permanence = higher price. A good example here is technology-based direct air capture credits, which have clear additionality and near-infinite permanence (counted in the thousands of years) and which often sell for upwards of €500/tCO2e. 

Besides additionality and permanence, another key value driver for projects is co-benefits (such as biodiversity improvements or community impact). Buyers are increasingly willing to pay more for projects that have additional benefits or which abide by more stringent rules aimed at, say, increasing the biodiversity in their forests. 

Finally, carbon projects do also follow some cost-based logic - buyers are willing to pay more for projects where they understand that the price is in relation to the effort expanded. This is why active land restoration projects such as afforestation can command higher per tonne prices than something like avoided deforestation. As a rule of thumb, the more complicated and labour-intensive the process, the higher the price of resulting credits. 

### How are prices likely to evolve?

Ultimately, prices are defined by the buyers’ priorities. Historically, buyers were looking for scale at a low price; however, this attitude is changing. Many corporate buyers now expect a higher level of additionality and permanence, and are willing to pay for co-benefits that align with their goals, such as ecosystem protection and biodiversity. Additionally, some buyers are focusing more on the provenance of credits, preferring to buy from projects that have a direct impact in their local geography.

Looking forward, we expect prices to converge by project type, but retain the different price scales depending on additionality, permanence, locality and high-co-benefit vs low-co-benefit projects. Beyond this convergence, we expect overall prices to increase as demand grows - for example, [EY’s Net Zero Centre analysis](https://assets.ey.com/content/dam/ey-sites/ey-com/en_au/topics/sustainability/ey-net-zero-centre-carbon-offset-publication-20220530.pdf) expects prices to be in the range of $80-150 per tCO2e by 2030.

![EYreport.png](https://arbonics-strapi-media.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/E_Yreport_6febd45acb.png)

--------------------------
Arbonics is a tech-based carbon and ecosystem platform for forest-and landowners in Europe – bridging the analogue world of forestry with the world of tech to fight climate change. We partner with landowners to access new revenue streams by helping them quantify, monitor and sell the environmental benefits of sustainable land management.

Are you a landowner? Introduce yourself [here](https://arbonics.typeform.com/landowners?content) and we will get in touch to discuss opportunities with your land. 

Subscribe to our newsletter [here](https://arbonics.substack.com/subscribe) and follow us on [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/ArbonicsHQ/), [LinkedIn](http://linkedin.com/company/arbonics/) and [Twitter](https://twitter.com/ArbonicsHQ) for latest news.

Overview of how the price of carbon is set and what factors influence it

large_carbon-tonne-price.jpg

medium_carbon-tonne-price.jpg

small_carbon-tonne-price.jpg

thumbnail_carbon-tonne-price.jpg

carbon-tonne-price.jpg

ABC: where does the carbon credit price come from?

“Kids, I got bad news” started the father of my friend. “I need to cut and sell half of our forests to cover the house renovation costs. We will plant new trees, but you will not see any money for that. The trees will be cut when you are gone, your kids will get it.”

Well, my friend and her brother are fully grown adults and can take care of themselves. But still, the story resonated, enough for her to share this and for me to get thinking.

Timber is the only revenue for the landowner. While forests provide so much more than just timber, the landowners are not being rewarded for that. If a new endangered species are being discovered in a forest all the owner will get is restrictions. At the same time, they provide great value to the planet. Also, trees sequester carbon every month while they grow. Any revenue for that? Not at the moment.

Well, this does not sound fair.

So we decided to change that and founded Arbonics. To bring income to the landowners for the great value they provide for our planet. We call this the New Forest Economy - we need to rethink how we manage forests.

How does this work?

Here is Petteri from Estonia. He has 14 hectares of land. How can he enter the new world of forestry?

As you can see below, some of that is empty. Our software shows to Petteri that 7.7 hectares of that area is suitable for afforestation. 

![tool_1.png](https://arbonics-strapi-media.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/medium_tool_1_b9f992b5a7.png)

He can plant trees there and the additional carbon and biodiversity that is being added can bring him 23 700 euros of additional income over the 50-year contract period. That is also the time it takes the trees to grow and does not limit the timber income after that time. 

![tool_2.png](https://arbonics-strapi-media.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/medium_tool_2_8adf72f975.png)

Secondly, as can be seen on the map, marked as a red area, 5.5 hectares of Petteri’s land is covered in forest.

Although this 30-year-old forest can soon be cut as well, we can provide Petteri with another option. Instead of clear-cut he can cut in smaller batches (10% after 10 years) and keep the forest alive for a long time. 

The total carbon stored will increase and this will also be a huge win for biodiversity. Although he will lose some timber revenue, he can earn close to 30 000 euros over the next 25 years for the value he provides for the planet. Also, Petteri can earn extra income if the wood cut will be used in wooden products. That way we will be still storing the carbon.

![tool_3.png](https://arbonics-strapi-media.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/medium_tool_3_2c975f3845.png)

This seems rather simple, doesn’t it? And it should be as simple as that for the landowner. There’s a lot of very complex stuff that needs to happen in the background – from data to verification to making the product suitable for credit buyers. We are taking care of all that. But the tools for the landowner should be as simple as that. 

If we succeed, landowners can make the most of the opportunities in the new forest economy. And there will be more forests for us all.

------------------------
Arbonics is a tech-based carbon and ecosystem platform for forest-and landowners in Europe – bridging the analogue world of forestry with the world of tech to fight climate change. We partner with landowners to access new revenue streams by helping them quantify, monitor and sell the environmental benefits of sustainable land management.

Are you a landowner? Introduce yourself [here](https://arbonics.typeform.com/landowners?content) and we will get in touch to discuss opportunities with your land.

Subscribe to our newsletter [here](https://arbonics.substack.com/subscribe) and follow us on [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/ArbonicsHQ/), [LinkedIn](http://linkedin.com/company/arbonics/) and [Twitter](https://twitter.com/ArbonicsHQ) for latest news.

How landowners can realise the true value of their forests

large_TFE.jpg

medium_TFE.jpg

small_TFE.jpg

thumbnail_TFE.jpg

TFE.jpg

What is the new forest economy? 

### What are carbon markets?

Before we dive into voluntary carbon markets, it’s important to note that there are two types of carbon markets:

1. Voluntary carbon markets 
2. Mandatory (or compliance) carbon markets

Voluntary carbon market gives individuals or organisations an opportunity to offset their emissions by purchasing carbon credits. Compliance markets are regulated carbon trading systems that have nationally, regionally or internationally determined rules, and participants from heavy polluting industries (think steelworks or car manufacturers) The European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) is an example of a compliance market. In terms of volume, compliance markets are bigger than voluntary markets. 

>The total value of compliance markets adds up to [around 760 billion EUR](https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/global-carbon-markets-value-surged-record-851-bln-last-year-refinitiv-2022-01-31/), compared to [2 billion EUR](https://climatetrade.com/voluntary-carbon-market-value-tops-us2b/) for voluntary markets.

This article will focus on the voluntary carbon market, which operates independently of compliance markets and is more easily accessible to land and forest owners. It is growing rapidly, with demand of credits expected to [increase by a factor of 15 or more, with total market value expected to reach upwards of 50 billion EUR by 2030](https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/sustainability/our-insights/a-blueprint-for-scaling-voluntary-carbon-markets-to-meet-the-climate-challenge). 

### What is traded on the voluntary carbon market?

The voluntary carbon market is a trading system for exchanging carbon credits - units of reduction, avoidance or removal of greenhouse gas emissions. Sellers and buyers exchange credits on the market, and the carbon price is determined based on supply and demand dynamics. One credit (also referred to as an offset in some cases) usually represents one metric tonne of CO2 or equivalent greenhouse gas emissions (tCO2). 

![All carbon credits issued across the top 4 registries, by type: forestry & land use 41.4%, Renewable energy 32.7%; Waste management 6.2%](https://arbonics-strapi-media.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/Issued_carbon_credits_by_type_2_8aeb4b0d63.png)

### Why does this market matter for landowners and foresters?

Trees turn CO2 into solid carbon as they grow and act as a carbon store. This makes forests a highly effective nature-based tool for carbon removal. This carbon removal and storage can be measured, verified and turned into carbon credits by working with standard and verification organisations such as Verra and Gold Standard. 

Forestry projects with the aim of generating carbon credits can take different forms including:

- afforestation - planting trees on a land previously not forested
- changing management practices to optimise for carbon storage
- turning forests into protected areas

The demand for these projects has been increasing as the need for nature-based solutions for carbon removal (and therefore carbon credits) increases. This demand is driven by corporations, who aren’t part of compliance markets, looking to reduce and offset the emissions they are responsible for. Motivated by various factors but mainly by [consumer pressure for low carbon products and a wish to position their brand in the low-carbon space.](https://www.southpole.com/the-push-and-pull-of-net-zero)

This demand for credits on the voluntary carbon market has allowed the price for carbon credits to increase, creating a strong monetary incentive to establish the sorts of projects mentioned above - such as afforestation. 

Participating in the voluntary carbon market is a great opportunity for landowners, who can work with carbon project developers to unlock additional and more frequent revenue streams. 

------------------------
Arbonics is a tech-based carbon and ecosystem platform for forest-and landowners in Europe – bridging the analogue world of forestry with the world of tech to fight climate change. We partner with landowners to access new revenue streams by helping them quantify, monitor and sell the environmental benefits of sustainable land management.

Are you a landowner? Introduce yourself [here](https://arbonics.typeform.com/landowners?content) and we will get in touch to discuss opportunities with your land. 

Subscribe to our newsletter [here](https://arbonics.substack.com/subscribe) and follow us on [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/ArbonicsHQ/), [LinkedIn](http://linkedin.com/company/arbonics/) and [Twitter](https://twitter.com/ArbonicsHQ) for latest news.

An overview of the what, where and how of carbon credit trading

large_voluntarycarcon.jpg

medium_voluntarycarcon.jpg

small_voluntarycarcon.jpg

thumbnail_voluntarycarcon.jpg

voluntarycarcon.jpg

ABC: what is the voluntary carbon market?

If you’ve started to explore [the voluntary carbon market (VCM)](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/voluntary-carbon-market) world, you might have heard of verifiers like Verra.  Or Gold Standard. Or maybe even the American Carbon Registry. 
If you know all about who/what these organisations are and what they do, feel free to skip the rest of this. But if not, here’s a quick primer.

![Issued credits by standard-2.png](https://arbonics-strapi-media.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/Issued_credits_by_standard_2_c1ab664ac6.png)

### But first, why do we need standards and verifiers?

The VCM is growing rapidly – as per McKinsey, “demand for carbon credits could increase by a factor of 15 or more by 2030 and by a factor of up to 100 by 2050. Overall, the market for carbon credits could be worth upward of $50 billion in 2030.”

This is a lot of money that could be misused or misspent. And historically, the VCM has had issues with misrepresentation and straight-up harm ([like companies generating extra tons of an extremely harmful refrigerant in order to earn profit from destroying it](https://www.demos.org/blog/when-markets-misfire-carbon-credits-and-case-hfc-23)). Therefore, it seems that this is a market in desperate need of some policing. 

You can think about the early days of the stock market as a similar parallel. Before the great crash of 1929, there was very limited oversight, leading to abundant frauds and scams. However, over time the market gained more oversight and structure through public bodies such as the SEC in the US, and private ratings agencies like Standard and Poor’s and Moody’s, leading to a decrease in fraud and inconsistencies between investments.  

In the VCM, this is a role played today by Verra and its peers, of whom more in a moment. 

### What do carbon standards actually do?

At the core, standards and verifiers set the rules of the game of carbon credits - they define such key concepts as *additionality, permanence, leakage* etc.

They do this in two ways: 

- establishing a _standard_ – these are the base rules set that define how projects are structured, verified and validated
    - a standard usually incorporates a variety of _methodologies_, which are specific rules for a particular type of credit or project
- maintaining a _registry_ – this helps track all the projects operating under a given standard, how many credits they’ve been issued, who bought and retired them etc.

By deciding what limitations projects need to abide by, carbon standards/registries theoretically help ensure that only high-quality projects reach buyers. 
Which brings us to the next point. 

### Where do carbon standards get their “license to operate”? (i.e. who put them in charge?)

In short – they get it from buyers. Key carbon credit purchasers (such as large companies) want a guarantee that what they are buying is in fact beneficial to the planet. Since it would be immensely time-consuming for them to do background research on each individual project (checking for additionality and permanence, as well as more mundane things like whether the landowners have legal right to do their projects), they essentially outsource this work to the likes of Verra. By buying a Verra- or Gold Standard-stamped credit, buyers can be reasonably sure that these projects have passed at least a minimum quality threshold  and are not pure scams. 

![Overview of the carbon credit ecosystem, showing carbon standards, project developers, credits etc](https://arbonics-strapi-media.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/Project_developers_in_VCM_2400_1400px_06c3a8dc8c.png)

### So… who exactly are these standard-setting verifiers you speak of?

There are _four_ main international standard bodies (in addition to local players like the Woodland Carbon Code in the UK). Here’s who you need to know if you plan to transact in this market:
#### Verra
First, we have [**Verra**](http://verra.org) – a US-headquartered non-profit organisation who is also the largest player in the market by transacted volumes. Verra’s standard is called the VCS (Verified Carbon Standard) and it issues credits known as VCUs (Verified Carbon Units). Last year, 52% of all VCUs issued came from projects classified as *Nature-based solutions* (this includes forestry). In addition, Verra runs a variety of other programs around other areas relevant to the broader sustainability market, but these are less relevant to VCUs specifically.


> In 2021, Verra issued [295M VCUs,](https://verra.org/datainsights/data-and-insights-january-2022/) representing **83%** of the total issued certified credit tons last year. Verra has 1800+ registered projects, which you can browse in [their public registry](https://registry.verra.org).

#### Gold Standard
Next in size is **[Gold Standard](https://www.goldstandard.org)**, another non-profit, but based in Switzerland. Their speciality is focusing on co-benefits and the social & community impacts of carbon projects. With 44M credits issued last year, they are a fraction of Verra’s size. However, Gold Standard was founded by WWF (now known as the World Wide Fund for Nature), giving it automatic credibility in the eyes of buyers. Unlike Verra, GS has proportionally fewer *Nature-based solutions* projects listed (only 4% of the credits they issued last year fall into that category). You can view Gold Standard’s registry [here.](https://registry.goldstandard.org/projects?q=&page=1) 
#### American Carbon Registry
Third in the list is [**American Carbon Registry**](https://americancarbonregistry.org) (commonly known as ACR) - the first private registry in the world for voluntary carbon markets. ACR is geographically focused on the Americas, including Canada and LATAM.  Operating since 1996, ACR has seen the market’s ups and downs - but in recent years, their growth has paled next to the more aggressive expansion experienced by Verra and GS, with only 9M credits issued in 2021. ACR’s public registry is available [here](https://acr2.apx.com/myModule/rpt/myrpt.asp?r=111).
#### Climate Action Reserve
Our quartet of carbon registries is rounded out by **[Climate Action Reserve](https://www.climateactionreserve.org)** (CAR), a primarily US-focused standard. CAR grew out of a database created by the state of California. CAR credits can also be transferred to VCS (remember, that’s the standard managed by Verra), so CAR-issued credits can be converted into VCUs. You can see CAR’s public registry [here](https://thereserve2.apx.com/myModule/rpt/myrpt.asp?r=111). 

### Looking to the future

Given the amount of investment and new players emerging in the voluntary carbon space, it’s hard to imagine that the carbon standard and registry world is unchanged 5 years from now. Where exactly will it go? This is hard to project, but here are a few potential scenarios: 

#### Fragmentation
New standards emerge to tackle specific types of credits, driving more volume through verifiers not listed above. Examples: [Puro.earth](http://Puro.earth) (focused on biochar, geological storage and built materials), [MoorFutures](https://www.moorfutures.de) (focused on peatland rewetting).
#### Digitalisation/automation through remote MRV (monitoring, reporting and verification
Digital verification methods evolve to be so advanced that 3rd-party verification becomes less relevant – for example, close to real-time tracking of afforestation projects, which allows buyers to see the status of the projects they invested in through webcams or frequently updated satellite imagery. (More about [monitoring afforestation projects here)](https://www.arbonics.com/knowledge-hub/monitoring-afforestation-projects)
#### Decentralisation through blockchain
As crypto-based solutions get exceedingly sophisticated, the need for centralised 3rd-party verifiers might decrease as verification moves to smart contracts. Players like Klima DAO, Flow Carbon and Celo are trying to tackle this, but so far, they are all still working in conjunction with the main four verifiers. However, the future of carbon credit certification might well be Regenerative Finance (better known as ReFi). More on that in the future!

--------------------------
Arbonics is a tech-based carbon and ecosystem platform for forest-and landowners in Europe – bridging the analogue world of forestry with the world of tech to fight climate change. We partner with landowners to access new revenue streams by helping them quantify, monitor and sell the environmental benefits of sustainable land management.

Are you a landowner? Introduce yourself [here](https://arbonics.typeform.com/landowners?content) and we will get in touch to discuss opportunities with your land.

Subscribe to our newsletter [here](https://arbonics.substack.com/subscribe) and follow us on [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/ArbonicsHQ/), [LinkedIn](http://linkedin.com/company/arbonics/) and [Twitter](https://twitter.com/ArbonicsHQ) for latest news.

Knowledge Hub