Climate Action Reserve Public Workshop - Forest Project Protocol White Papers

The Climate Action Reserve will host a public workshop to discuss and solicit further input from the public on four recently issued white papers which address the following topics: accounting for carbon in soils affected by forest carbon projects, accounting for carbon in lying dead wood, effects on forest carbon of even-aged management and alternative silvicultural activities, and evaluation of sustainable forestry certification programs and criteria. The white papers are available for review and comment on the Reserve Forest Protocol White Papers webpage. Guests may register to attend the free workshop in person, or by participating in a free webinar. 

Forest White Papers Background

When Version 3.0 of the Climate Action Reserve's Forest Project Protocol (FPP) was adopted by the Reserve's Board of Directors on September 1, 2009, the Board instructed Reserve staff to continue to explore a series of issues related to forest carbon accounting and forest management practices. To this end, the Reserve has commissioned a series of white papers to examine these issues in more depth. The white papers cover the following topics:

1.      Accounting for carbon in soils affected by forest carbon projects

2.      Accounting for carbon in lying dead wood 

3.      Effects on forest carbon of even-aged management and alternative silvicultural activities

4.      Evaluation of sustainable forestry certification programs and criteria 

5.      Assessment of forest project eligibility on federal lands

The first four of these papers are now completed and available on the Reserve's website.   

 
The objective in developing these white papers is to provide a basis for further engagement and discussion with stakeholders to determine whether changes are necessary to the FPP's accounting and eligibility requirements. The Reserve initiated a 45-day public comment period during which it is asking for written comments on the four completed white papers. The workshop at Duke University is one of two public comment opportunities.  Comments may also be submitted in writing through March 25, 2011.

Following the public comment period, the Reserve will respond to all comments received in writing and propose further steps as necessary to amend the FPP based on its findings. For further information and to submit comments, please visit the Climate Action Reserve website.

The Climate Action Reserve

The Climate Action Reserve is the premier carbon offset registry for the North American carbon market. It establishes high quality standards for quantifying and verifying greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction projects, oversees independent third-party verification bodies, issues carbon credits generated from such projects and tracks the transaction of credits over time in a transparent, publicly-accessible system. By ensuring that GHG reduction projects provide true environmental benefit and earn high quality offsets, the Climate Action Reserve is creating a trusted and valuable commodity and bringing credibility and efficiency to the carbon market. For more information, please visit www.climateactionreserve.org.