Forest Protocol Updates

Forest Project Protocols Update

The Forest Protocol workgroup has been re-convened to explore expanding the guidance in the existing forest protocols in order to promote greater participation and make improvements to the protocols’ clarity, accuracy, conservatism, environmental integrity, and cost-effectiveness. The process was initiated in November 2007 with the goal of updating the protocols by November 2008.

Information regarding the current forest protocols:
  • The California Registry's forest protocols represent a sound rigorous approach to quantifying the benefits of voluntary forestry projects.
  • The protocols are available now for project developers to the public to develop forest conservation, forest management, and reforestation projects in California.
  • Voluntary projects that are registered under the current protocols will continue to be verified under the protocol in place at the time the project was registered for the life of the project for the purposes of generating voluntary credits for the voluntary market.
  • Projects will be accepted for registration under the current protocols for a period of up to three months after an updated protocol is adopted by the California Registry's Board of Directors.

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    Objectives of Forest Protocol Workgroup:
    The Forest Protocol Workgroup will update the California Registry’s voluntary forest protocols to:

  • Allow greater landowner participation, particularly publicly-owned lands and industrial working forests.
  • Make improvements that improve the protocols’ clarity, accuracy, conservatism, environmental integrity, and cost-effectiveness (where doing so does not infringe on other principles).


    • Because there are common accounting and framework elements to all land ownership types, the update process is viewing the specific requirements for individual projects types as modules under a broader, consistent umbrella that recognizes the unique circumstances of varying ownership and property types.

    It is likely that efforts to include additional forest types, such as publicly-owned lands or other private forests, will trigger updates to other elements of the current forest protocols, such as leakage, baseline, and permanence.

    As the protocols are being reviewed, updates to incorporate latest science information and estimation techniques, international best practices and standards, and other potential improvements will also be considered.

    Please note that the comments submitted to the Air Resources Board during the public comment period for the adoption of the Forest Protocols are being considered within the workgroup.

    The update process may result in the development of several viable methods to address any one of the various accounting themes used in calculating emissions. All approaches will ensure the resulting emissions calculations meet high standards. The PDF below demonstrates how the updated protocols may result in options for the project developer to choose.

     

    Summary of Hypothetical Options for Forest Project Accounting (pdf)

     

    Timeline

    This timeline for considering updates will address thematic elements of the protocol as shown below:

     

    Quantification Ongoing until September 2008
    Entity Reporting Requirement
    		 December 2007-2008
    Baseline February - March 2008
    Permanence March - April 2008
    Co-Benefits May- June 2008
    Leakage July 2008
    Verification August 2008
    Updates September 2008
    Public Comment/Expert Review
    		 October 2008
    Presentation to the Board
    		 November 2008



    Workgroup Meetings

     

    August 14, 2008
    Agenda


     

    July 24, 2008
    Agenda

     

    July 1, 2008
    Agenda

    June 10, 2008
    Agenda
    Minutes

    May 23, 2008
    Agenda
    Minutes

    April 29, 2008
    Agenda 
    Minutes 

     

    April 10, 2008
    Agenda
    Minutes

    March 26, 2008
    Agenda
    Minutes

    March 6, 2008
    Agenda
    Minutes

    February 13, 2008
    Agenda
    Minutes


    January 22, 2008
    Agenda
    Meeting Minutes


    December 12, 2007
    Agenda
    Meeting Minutes


    November 16, 2007
    Agenda
    Slides


    Workgroup Participants

     Name Affiliation  Substitute 
    This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it   Beaty and Associates  None Identified 
    This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it   US Forest Service   
    This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it   California State Parks  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it  
    This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it   California Forestry Association  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it  
    This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it   CalFire Representative  None Identified 
    This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it   Sierra Pacific Industries  None Identified 
    Ann Chan  Pacific Forest Trust  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it  
    This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it   Environmental Defense Fund  None Identified 
    This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it   World Resources Institute  None Identified 
    This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it   Green Diamond Resources  None Identified 
    This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it   Board of Forestry Representative None Identified 
    This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it University of California  None Identified 
    This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it   Air Resources Board Representative  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it  
    This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it   California Climate Action Registry  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it  
    This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it   Winrock International  Nick Martin 
    This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it   U.S. Environmental Protection Agency  None Identified 
    This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it   US Forest Service  None Identified 
    This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it   The Nature Conservancy  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
    This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it   Scientific Certification Systems  Sterling Griffin 
    This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it   Winrock International  None Identified 
    This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it   Cal Fire Representative  None Identified 

     

     



    Protocols and Resources


    The following is a list of GHG accounting protocols and resources that the CA Registry considers to represent or conform to internationally accepted accounting principles. All of the resources listed here were developed in transparent processes that allowed for stakeholder input. They will represent points of reference for the Registry's workgroup as it engages in the process of revising and expanding the Forest Project Protocols. Workgroup member should attempt to familiarize themselves with these resources.

     

    General GHG Accounting  
    The Greenhouse Gas Protocol: A Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard , Revised Edition World Business Council for Sustainable Development/World Resources Institute
    ISO 14064-1: Greenhouse gases -- Part 1 International Organization for Standardization
    General Reporting Protocol , Version 2.2 California Climate Action Registry
    General GHG Project Accounting  
    The Greenhouse Gas Protocol for Project Accounting World Business Council for Sustainable Development/World Resources Institute
    ISO 14064-2: Greenhouse gases -- Part 2 International Organization for Standardization
    Forest GHG Accounting  
    Forest Sector Protocol, Version 2.1 California Climate Action Registry
    Forest Project Protocol, Version 2.1 California Climate Action Registry
    Afforestation/Reforestation Approved Methodologies 0001-0010 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
    Harnessing Farms and Forests in the Low-Carbon Economy: How to Create and Verify Greenhouse Gas
    Offsets    		 Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions
    Guidance for Agriculture, Forestry and Other Land Use Projects Voluntary Carbon Standard
    The Land Use, Land-Use Change, and Forestry Guidance for GHG Project Accounting World Resources Institute
    Carbon Protection and Fire Risk Reduction: Toward A Full Accounting of Forest Carbon Offsets Hurteau, Hungate and Koch