From waste to value: biochar for climate action

Germany, Bavaria

ClimatePartner ID: 1655

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In the field

Project impact

Project facts

Quality criteria

BiocharGet to know the project

When forest, wood, or food waste decomposes, it releases greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming. To avoid emitting these gases, waste biomass is converted into biochar using a method that involves high temperatures and the exclusion of oxygen. This results in the permanent sequestration of carbon in the biomass. The climate project in Rieden, Bavaria, uses wood waste from PEFC-certified forests as the raw material for biochar production. The biochar is then sold to farms in several EU countries, where it is used as fertiliser, animal litter, or animal feed. In addition to reducing emissions, the use of biochar improves soil fertility and reduces the need for energy-intensive synthetic fertilisers. On average, one tonne of biochar sequesters 3,110 tonnes of carbon, making a significant contribution to climate action.

Project Standard

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

How does biochar contribute to climate action?

Charred biomass - biochar - has a long list of benefits that make it a valuable resource for climate action. Not only is biochar a permanent carbon sink, but it can also be used for a variety of applications such as water filtration, medicine, and even as a sustainable building material. As a soil enhancer, it improves the water and nutrient storage capacity of the soil, among other things, resulting in healthier plants and higher yields for farmers. Biochar neutralizes acidic soils where plants would otherwise grow poorly - a problem that is particularly prevalent in sub-Saharan Africa. Its structure also prevents fertilizers from leaking into groundwater, and since it can restore fertility to degraded soils, it reduces the need for fertilizers in the long term, enabling sustainable, environmentally friendly agriculture. Biochar is produced by heating biomass in the absence of oxygen to get rid of all volatiles. The remaining material - biochar - is an almost pure carbon structure. Biochar can be made from any organic material, such as field waste, making it a sustainable waste management mechanism. Biochar 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

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).

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.

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.

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.

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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.

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.

* For certified projects only: the project-related information on this page is based on the documents in the register.

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