carbon offset

Based at a landfill site in the Fujian Province, this project has two environmental benefits. Firstly, it reduces the potent greenhouse gas methane from being released into the atmosphere. Secondly, this captured gas is then used to generate clean energy, helping to displace fossil fuel generated electricity.

Fifty wells have been installed at the project's site which capture and pipe the landfill gas. Processing and combusting the gas converts it into clean electricity which is then sold to the local grid.

In addition to the environmental benefits, the project improves the quality of life for the local population. If landfills are improperly managed they can cause air pollution and explosions from gas pressure, which are hazardous to the surrounding communities.

The project also brings sustainable development benefits to the area by boosting the local economy with the creation of jobs. It is the first landfill gas-to-electricity project in the Province and one of the first in China. Using state of the art technology, the project facilitates technology transfer for replication throughout the country.

The Garcia River Forest project is located in the coastal mountain range of Southwestern Mendocino County, California. The project was initiated in early 2004 with the goal of returning a 24,000 acre, under-stocked tract of coastal forest to an ecologically and economically viable state through conservation-based forest management. The Garcia River Forest project will absorb and store carbon emissions by ensuring high forest growth rates and the development of a larger, denser composition of redwood and douglas fir.

Like many forests in the region, Garcia River has a history of logging, gravel mining and grazing, causing soil erosion and clogging the rivers with sediment. As a result, the deteriorating water quality led to declining numbers of Garcia River's Coho and Steelhead salmon. Coupled with this eroding habitat, the forests could only generate a modest income from timber, exposing it to the risk of being sold off or divided into smaller holdings.

With competing land use interests, conservationists are struggling to finance forestland acquisitions to protect the most sensitive natural areas. The Garcia River Forest is one of the first forests recognised by CAR as a verified source of carbon credits supporting such conservation activities. Conservation-based forest management involves the long-term management of the forests which helps rebuild inventory and store carbon, whilst protecting water quality and restoring wildlife habitat for terrestrial and aquatic species. To maximise the climate and environmental co-benefits, these forests have been secured under a perpetual easement clause within CAR that requires the project land area to be permanently used for forest purposes.

Thailand is the world's largest exporter of tapioca starch which is manufactured from treated and dried cassava root and used by the food and toothpaste industries. Drying tapioca starch uses large volumes of water which in turn creates vast quantities of wastewater with high organic content. Before the implementation of this project, the 2400m of wastewater produced each day at this factory was discharged into 13 open lagoons. Cholburi has a tropical climate, with an average temperature of 29° Celcius. In this environment, the organic matter in the lagoons was breaking down, creating biogas which was being released directly into the atmosphere.

This project introduces Anaerobic Fixed Film Reactor (AFFR) technology to the factory; a closed loop system co-developed by the King Mongkut's University of Technology in Thonburi and the National Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology. The AFFR technology collects and supplies biogas to a boiler where it is combusted to generate heat and electricity. This energy is used onsite to power the factory, replacing energy that was previously supplied by fossil fuel fi red power stations. Any excess power generated at the plant is delivered to the regional grid.

Alongside the emissions reductions, the project reduces air pollution as the odours from decomposing organic matter are now contained. The factory has adopted sustainable water management practices by reusing the treated wastewater in the manufacturing process, reducing the volume of new water required. Additionally, eight new jobs have been created - four permanent and four temporary - to plan and operate the project.