Contribution project

Healthy mangrove forest in the Indus Delta

Pakistan, Sindh

ClimatePartner ID: 1623

Project details

Blue carbon Get to know the project

Where the Indus flows into the Arabian Sea in south-eastern Pakistan, a complex web of river courses, streams and islands has emerged, providing a home to valuable mangrove forests with unique biodiversity. However, intensive agricultural use and soil salinisation have damaged the fragile ecosystem, preventing the mangrove forests from regenerating on their own. Therefore, this project will reforest a total of 224,997 hectares of mangrove forest and restore wetlands. The intact ecosystems will store about 2,407,620 tonnes of CO₂ per year.

The project provides even further benefits: The mangrove forests effectively protect against storm surges and the inhabitants of the 60 villages nearby are sensitised to a sustainable use of the ecosystem. The mangroves also provide spawning grounds for fish and other marine life. For the special impact in the areas of climate, community and biodiversity, the project was awarded the gold level of the Climate, Community and Biodiversity Standards (CCBS). _{(1st verified monitoring phase from 19.02.2015 to 31.10.2021)}

2,407,629 t CO₂Estimated annual emissions reductions

Project Standard

The project contributes to the the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals

How does blue carbon contribute to climate action?

Blue carbon refers to the CO₂ emissions stored by marine and coastal ecosystems. Among others, mangrove trees are significant carbon reservoirs because they remove more greenhouse gas emissions from the atmosphere than terrestrial forests. Their special root system, which has semi-earthy and semi-marine components, collects biomass from organic matter, such as dead leaves and branches, over the years and binds CO₂ emissions from the atmosphere. This particular root system stores far more CO₂ than other tree species.

Worldwide, mangrove forests have been destroyed for agriculture or aquaculture, or cleared for timber and firewood. By damaging these enormous CO₂ reservoirs, large amounts of CO₂ are released again into the atmosphere. To avoid this, blue carbon projects protect mangrove forests and preserve coastal habitats for a variety of wildlife species - both in water and on land. The dense roots of mangroves also serve as natural protection against erosion, flooding and storms in coastal regions. Blue carbon projects in the ClimatePartner portfolio are registered with international standards.

The project aims to contribute to these United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Project facts

Type
Removal

Climate projects generally fall into one of three groups: carbon reduction, carbon removal, or carbon avoidance. Carbon reduction projects reduce the amount of greenhouse gas emissions produced by a specific activity (e.g., improved cookstoves). Carbon removal projects remove carbon from the atmosphere by sequestering it in carbon sinks (e.g., reforestation). Carbon avoidance projects avoid greenhouse gas emissions entering the atmosphere (e.g., protecting forests from deforestation with REDD+ projects).

Location
Pakistan, Sindh

Standard
VCS, CCBS

All climate projects are based on international standards. They set processes and requirements which carbon projects must fulfill to be recognised as a proven method of reducing carbon emissions.

Technology
Blue carbon

Climate projects demonstrably reduce, remove, or avoid greenhouse gas emissions. This is achieved with various technologies, ranging from nature-based solutions to social impact projects and renewable energies.

Registry ID
2250

Most standards on the voluntary carbon market list their projects in public registries. The registries are used to store project data and track issuances and retirements of verified emission reductions. The registry ID can be used to identify projects in the standard registry.

Check out this project

Verified by
AENOR INTERNACIONAL S.A.U

Climate projects go through third-party validation and verification. Verification happens regularly after each monitoring period. A validation and verification body checks and assesses whether the values and project activities stated in the monitoring report are correct and verifies them. As with validation, visits to the project site are often part of the process.

Validated by
AENOR INTERNACIONAL S.A.U

Climate projects go through third-party validation and verification. Validation happens early in the project life cycle and ensures that the project design is in line with current processes and requirements. This phase often also involves field visits with on-site interviews and analyses. Auditors are accredited, impartial assessors who have to be approved as a validation and verification body (VVB) by the standards body.

Estimated annual emission reductions
2,407,629 t CO₂

This figure shows the estimated annual emission reductions calculated before the project started. The actual number of emissions saved in each monitoring period may differ. The background to this process is that in order to be registered as a climate project, the project operator must submit the calculation of the estimated emissions savings using the ex-ante methodology in a Project Design Document (PDD), which is similar to a business plan. This calculation is validated by an independent auditor. The values determined in the PDD are recalculated during regular monitoring periods based on actual project performance, documented in a monitoring report, and verified again by independent auditors at the end of the monitoring period to ensure a robust process. Independent verification thus provides ex-post verification of actual emission reductions. Verified emission reductions are not distributed until the savings have actually been made.

Four criteria for projects to meet quality thresholds

01. AdditionalityA project must lead to lower carbon emissions than would have occured without the project. Additionality also means that a project relies on financing from the sale of emission reductions, as the project would otherwise not be feasible and the upfront investment would be too high for project developers.

02. Exclusion of double countingThe carbon reduction may only be counted once and may not be counted again elsewhere, so a Verified Emission Reduction is retired once it has been used. This process is recorded in official registries.

03. PermanenceThe criterion of permanence ensures that carbon reductions or removals are ongoing and do not occur just once. This guarantees a long-term benefit for the climate. The minimum duration of a project depends on the underlying project technology.

04. Audit by independent third-partiesClimate projects must be audited regularly by independent auditors such as TÜV Nord. These auditors verify that the project is in compliance with the relevant standards. They also determine the volume of carbon emissions that have actually been avoided or removed.

The life cycle of a climate project

A climate project has a set life cycle consisting of various phases, from the feasibility assessment to the retirement of Verified Emission Reductions (VERs).

Project planning phase

The project developer reviews the general feasibility of the project, the project design, and the financing. Then, the Project Design Document (PDD) is prepared, which contains all the basic information about the project, such as the objective, location, timeline, and duration.

Validation

In this phase, independent auditors examine the PDD and the information it contains. This phase often also involves field visits with on-side interviews and analyses. Auditors are accredited, impartial assessors who have to be approved by the relevant standard as a validation and verification body (VVB). TÜV Nord/Süd, S&A Carbon LLC., and SCS Global Services are examples of VVBs."

Registration

Once validated, the project can be registered with a standard such as the Verified Carbon Standard or the Gold Standard. All high-quality climate projects are based on international standards. They provide the framework for project design, construction, carbon accounting, and monitoring. Recognised standards make the climate project system and the projects themselves resilient, traceable, and credible.

Monitoring

After the climate project has been registered, the monitoring begins. Here, the project developers monitor and document the data of the project activities and progress. The duration of the monitoring phase varies from project to project: it can cover two years, but documentation over five or seven years is also possible.

Verification

At the end of each monitoring phase, a VVB checks and assesses whether the values and project activities stated in the monitoring report are correct. As with validation, visits to the project site are often part of the verification process.

Issuance of Verified Emission Reductions

Once verified, the emission reductions that were confirmed in the verification phase can be issued as VERs. The steps of monitoring, verification, and issuance of VERs are repeated regularly and are therefore considered as a cycle.

Retirement of Verified Emission Reductions

Once a VER has been used, it must be retired. This process is also reflected in the registry. If the financing of a climate project is done through ClimatePartner, the VERs are bundled in a system certified by TÜV Austria and then retired on a regular basis. This ensures that each VER can no longer be sold and is only used once, preventing double counting.

* The information on this page was last updated 15 April 2024.* For certified projects only: the project-related information on this page is based on the documents in the register.

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