Verra has opened a public consultation on the draft Tool for Quantifying Organic Carbon Stocks Using Digital Soil Mapping: Calibration, Validation, and Uncertainty Estimation in the Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) Program. The consultation will run from February 20 through April 4, 2025.
The tool is intended to be used along with VM0042 Methodology for Improved Agricultural Land Management, as well as other methodologies in the VCS Program that quantify soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks in agricultural lands.
The proposed tool provides guidance for the calibration and validation of data-driven modeling methods to estimate SOC stocks in a spatially explicit manner, including model uncertainty estimations and deductions. The tool allows for using a wide range of remote sensing technologies, geospatial data, and statistical methods that have been demonstrated through peer review to predict organic carbon content in the soil.
SOC quantification using digital soil mapping technology, which leverages soil sampling, remote sensing, and other environmental data sources to map SOC at high resolution, is critical to reducing the costs associated with the implementation and scaling up of agricultural land management (ALM) projects. Compared with traditional soil sampling methods, digital soil mapping allows for broader spatial coverage and improved spatial resolution and precision, among other benefits. Through the development of this tool, Verra aims to put forward an innovative, robust approach to quantifying SOC stock changes.
Perennial Climate Inc. (external) has led on the development of this draft tool.* To support the development process, Perennial convened a working group to assess the tool’s scientific credibility, practical applications, and technological readiness for implementation in the VCS Program. The working group consisted of project proponents, validation/verification bodies (VVBs), academics, and digital monitoring, reporting, and verification (DMRV) providers.
*Note: Perennial and Verra opted to develop a tool for this purpose—rather than a module, as originally planned—as tools can be used with multiple VCS methodologies (whereas a module can only be used with one methodology).
Feedback
Please see the public consultation document (PDF) for the full background and details about the proposed updates.
Verra is accepting feedback through its new digital public consultation platform, which is hosted on the Verra Project Hub. Stakeholders will need to use the link provided to enter their personal details, confirm their email address, and access the online consultation form. For additional guidance, please review the user guide (PDF).
Comments may be submitted electronically via the online form by 11:59 pm Anywhere on Earth (UTC-12) on April 4, 2025. If you experience issues using the digital public consultation platform or have feedback on it, please contact hubsupport@verra.org.
Webinar
On Thursday, March 6, at 10:00 am ET, Verra and Perennial will host a webinar to provide an overview of the tool.