Forests are vital carbon sinks. Although forestry projects dominate the voluntary carbon markets, they still occupy a marginal position on the larger, compliance markets. This is mainly due to their ineligibility for the European Union EmissionsTrading Scheme. New opportunities are emerging, however their impact may appear limited compared with the scale of the climate challenge.
With the entry into force of the European carbon farming certification framework (CRCF), the European Union now has a first-of-its-kind tool to certify climate-friendly agricultural and forestry practices.
An Improved Forest Management (IFM) methodology has been initiated under the Carbon Removals and Carbon Farming regulation (CRCF), alongside a near-finalised afforestation methodology. As concerns grow over the declining capacity of Europe’s forests, determining which forest management practices should be incentivised through carbon certification is far from straightforward.
In France, after the French “Low Carbon Label” (le Label bas carbone, LBC) certification scheme, there remains a systemic lack of funding for agricultural projects. Among the reasons mentioned by the agri-food industries is the fear of “double claiming”.
