Active 14 May 2025
Outcome Label
Eligibility
Removals
14. Agriculture, forestry, and other land use (AFOLU)
This methodology applies to afforestation, reforestation, and revegetation (ARR) activities that establish, increase, or restore vegetative cover in non-forest areas or enhance forest carbon stocks in areas with existing forest cover. The methodology quantifies carbon removals from these activities and provides two approaches for quantifying such carbon removals:
- Area-based approach: This approach applies to ARR projects that change land cover from non-forest to forest or enhance stocks in existing forests. Detectable changes in vegetative cover measured using remote sensing and plot-based sampling serve as the basis for quantifying carbon removals. This approach uses a dynamic performance benchmark (PB) to assess additionality and determine the crediting baseline at each verification. The PB is derived from ex-post observations that compare the change in the vegetative stocking index (SI) between remotely sensed project and matched control plots.
- Census-based approach: The census-based approach applies to ARR projects that do not occur in forests and do not result in land use changes. This approach enables the inclusion of ARR activities that would otherwise be difficult to cover under the area-based approach and where a full census of plantings is feasible. This approach best suits dispersed planting activities (e.g., urban forestry, agroforestry, shelterbelts, and revegetation activities that do not meet the forest definition). Under this approach, additionality is demonstrated using a project method and to determine the crediting baseline. Under the census-based approach, projects are exempt from applying leakage deduction because projects do not result in a change to existing land use.
VMD0054 Module for Estimating Leakage from ARR Activities must be applied in conjunction with projects that use the area-based approach to account for leakage related to the displacement of pre-project agricultural activities caused by the baseline agent or other actors.
Please note:
Grace Period for Transition to VM0047 v1.1
Verra recognizes that some projects have already been designed under the assumptions of VM0047 v1.0. To support a smooth transition, the following effective dates and grace periods apply:
- As of May 14, 2025, VM0047 v1.1 is effective and may be used for all projects.
- On May 14, 2025, Verra also released Corrections and clarifications to VM0047, v1.0 (PDF) which are effective immediately. Changes are also provided in a greenlined format for convenience: VM0047 Afforestation, Reforestation, and Revegetation, v1.0 – Greenlined (PDF),
- The following grace periods apply to all projects using VM0047, v1.0:
- Projects must request pipeline listing as Under Validation on the Verra Registry by December 31, 2025.
- Projects must request registration on the Verra Registry by December 31, 2026.
Grace period for projects using AR-ACM0003 or AR-AMS0007
Projects using AR-ACM0003 or AR-AMS0007 listed as Under Validation must complete validation no later than June 30, 2025, as per the announcement from November 1, 2024.
Market Labels
VM0047, v1.0 has been approved by the Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market (ICVCM) as meeting the requirements of the Core Carbon Principles (CCPs) Assessment Framework, see the ICVCM decision (external). A guidance document outlining Verra’s process for CCP labeling, the ICVCM CCP Label Guidance (PDF), is available on the VCS Rules and Requirements page.
All projects using VM0047, v1.0 that intend to request CCP labels at issuance must have a completed CCP Eligibility Verification Report Checklist Template (.docx), attached as an appendix to the project’s verification report. Where VCUs have been issued from projects using multiple methodologies, only VCUs from projects solely using CCP-approved methodologies are eligible for CCP labels.
Verra is in the process of submitting VM0047, v1.1 to the ICVCM for assessment against the CCP Assessment Framework.
Development History
VM0047 Methodology for Afforestation, Reforestation, and Revegetation, v1.1
Status: Active since May 14, 2025
Mitigation Outcome Label Eligibility: Removals
Summary of Changes:
- Project activities are now allowed on forested lands, provided the area has not been managed for wood products.
- The methodology clarifies that the census-based approach applies to projects not expected to cause land-use change, with the threshold for land-use change set at more than 50 planting units per hectare and no restrictions on the size of project instances.
- Projects may now use remote sensing to estimate pre-existing woody biomass at the start date, under specific conditions.
- Projects using the census-based approach may use GPS coordinates or physical markers to identify trees.
- Projects may now remove pre-existing woody biomass offsite in area-based approaches, provided it is measured (via physical or remote sensing methods) and fully accounted for as part of project emissions.
- The methodology has been updated throughout to improve clarity, consistency, and ease of interpretation.
Developer(s): Verra. Per section 2.1.2 of the MDRP, Verra applied an alternative process and authored this revision.
Dates of Public Consultation: May 23, 2024, to June 24, 2024
Draft Shared During Public Consultation: VM0047 v1.1 – Draft Methodology_Greenlined (PDF)
Summary of Public Consultation: VM0047, v1.1 – Summary of Public Consultation (PDF)
VVB Assessment Report(s): N/A – minor revision
Announcement(s): Consultation Announcement: Revisions to ARR Methodology, Verra Publishes Minor Revision of ARR Methodology (VM0047)
VM0047 Methodology for Afforestation, Reforestation, and Revegetation, v1.0 (PDF)
Status: Active from September 28, 2023 – May 13, 2025
Grace Period:
- For all projects applying VM0047 v1.0, the corrections and clarifications are effective immediately.
- All projects using VM0047 v1.0 must request:
- Pipeline listing ‘under validation’ on the Verra Registry by 31 December 2025.
- Registration on the Verra Registry by 31 December 2026.
Mitigation Outcome Label Eligibility: Removals
Developer(s): Verra, TerraCarbon (external), and Silvestrum Climate Associates (external)
Dates of Public Consultation: December 17, 2021 to January 28, 2022
Summary of Public Consultation: Summary of Public Consultation for VM0047, v1.0 (PDF)
VVB Assessment Report(s): VVB Assessment Report for VM0047, v1.0 (PDF)
Correction and/or Clarification: Corrections and clarifications to VM0047, v1.0 (PDF), VM0047 Afforestation, Reforestation, and Revegetation, v1.0 – Greenlined (PDF)
Announcement(s): Verra Releases New Afforestation, Reforestation, and Revegetation Methodology, Updated Deadline to Transition from CDM ARR Methodologies