Since the publication of our December 2022 report:
Recommendations on minimum requirements for high-integrity soil carbon markets in the UK, The British Standards Institute has been tasked with developing a new, consensus-based, UK-wide standards' framework.
As a starting point, the BSI is looking to establish
an overarching standard, setting out the principles for high-integrity nature markets. This standard will be applicable across nature markets and establish common principles that provide a benchmark for existing and emerging schemes to be recognised as sufficiently robust and credible.
This work is currently undergoing a discovery phase, which will conclude with the publication of a roadmap identifying a set of formal standards to be developed to establish the framework and address other key gaps in the current landscape.
The SSA and other members of the Advisory Board are feeding into this process through participation in BSI hosted workshops which consider the parameters of carbon markets (including soil) and the application of principles (permanence, additionality etc), as well as technical challenges around the Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV) of Farm Soil Carbon projects.
In parallel, the SSA Farm Soil Carbon Advisory Board members continue to meet regularly to discuss and publish materials relating to critical barriers to the establishment of robust, viable farm soil carbon markets, including:
- How to align public and private investment in farm soil carbon
- The potential and limitations of existing models and measurement technologies
- The research evidence gap that needs filling for projects to scale up in the UK
- How to address widespread misinformation about the environmental and economic scope of farm soil carbon markets
If you would like to contribute to the debate around these subjects, or just learn more, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
