Testing time for new woodland carbon assurance scheme

The Forestry Commission is about to test a new quality assurance scheme for tree planting projects designed to sequester carbon.

The market for such projects is increasing but, until now, there have been no standards to measure their claims against, or to ensure that real benefits will accrue.

The new Woodland Carbon Code will encourage a consistent approach to  projects and provide clarity and transparency to potential customers and investors about what their contributions should achieve.

The Commission developed the code in conjunction with a wide range of interests and it was subject to consultation earlier this year before being finalised.
  
To comply with the code projects must: be responsibly and sustainably managed to national standards; use standard methods for estimating the carbon that will be sequestered or locked up; be independently verified; and must meet transparent criteria and standards to ensure that real carbon benefits are made.

Project providers must register with the Forestry Commission, stating the exact location and long-term objectives of their project. Once approved, projects will then appear in a national online register.

Forestry Commission Director General, Tim Rollinson said:

“Increasingly, people and companies are realising the valuable potential that tree planting schemes have to soak up CO₂ from the atmosphere. There are now many commercial schemes that encourage individuals and businesses to contribute to tree planting to help compensate for their carbon footprint. But before investing in projects people want to know that schemes will actually deliver what they claim. The Woodland Carbon Code will provide that reassurance and will encourage more investment in tree planting in the UK.”

The six-month pilot phase will test the scheme with around a dozen pilot projects throughout the UK. This experience will help to refine the code and its associated guidance before it is launched early in 2011.

Visit www.forestry.gov.uk/carboncode for more details.

Notes to Editors

1.  'Forest carbon projects' typically involve planting new areas of forest and woodland to help counteract the greenhouse gas emissions caused by burning fossil fuels such as oil, coal and gas. One of the main greenhouse gases that are causing global warming and climate change is carbon dioxide (CO₂). As trees grow they capture CO₂ from the atmosphere and turn the carbon into wood and organic matter, whilst also releasing oxygen back into the atmosphere.

2. The new Woodland Carbon Code sets out good practice requirements, in terms of sustainable forest management (based on the requirements of the UK Forestry Standard) and carbon finance (where key requirements include additionality and permanence). It uses rigorous and consistent forest carbon measurement protocols to measure carbon uptake in woodlands. “Carbon lookup tables” and a carbon assessment protocol have been developed by the Forestry Commission’s Forest Research agency. The code also establishes a system of independent carbon certification by organisations accredited for this purpose by the UK Accreditation Service (UKAS). The requirement to register projects will prevent project double counting.  Schemes that meet requirements will be able to use a Woodland Carbon Code label.

3. The UK Low Carbon Transition Plan suggests that 10,000 hectares of new planting per year over 15 years could remove 50 million tonnes of CO₂ between now and 2050. If the wood produced was also used for construction, and as biomass energy in place of fossil-fuels, a further 37 million tonnes of CO₂ could be saved. The independent Read Report concluded that woodland creation provided, ‘a highly cost effective and achievable abatement of greenhouse gas emissions’ - calculating that mixed woodland delivered reductions of carbon dioxide at £20 to £40 per tonne.

4. The Code of Good Practice for Forest Carbon Projects makes a distinction between 'carbon offsets' that can be traded on international carbon markets and 'carbon reduction actions' taking place in the UK. This is because, in common with most Annex 1 (developed) countries, accounting rules and the complexities of 'Kyoto rules' prevent tradable carbon offsets from being generated in the UK.

5. The pilot phase is linked to the work of the Woodland Carbon Task Force brought together by the Forestry Commission with leading roles for business, landowners and civil society organisations.  This is working to establish the conditions for a step change in woodland creation and woodland management. You can find out more, including how to get involved, at www.forestry.gov.uk/england-wctf  

Media contact: Colin Morton 0131 314 6249