Print

Carbon Removals and Emissions Reductions from Climate-friendly Soil Management

Defining key terms

Publication
Citation

McDonald, Hugh 2024: Carbon removals and emissions reductions from climate-friendly soil management: defining key terms. Policy Brief. Berlin: Ecologic Institute. 

Climate-friendly soil management measures generate climate impact through both temporary carbon removals and emissions reductions, posing a challenge for defining key terms such as "carbon removals", "emissions reductions," "avoided emissions," and "negative emissions". This brief reviews scientific definitions of these key terms to create a mini-glossary and discuss key definitional issues in the soil carbon context. We consider definitions established by the IPCC for national inventory reporting and common usage in the voluntary carbon market, as well as the wider scientific literature. 

A key conclusion is that different policy contexts require definitions to be adapted. IPCC definitions for national inventory reporting correspond to annual flows of emissions and removals. These definitions should be adjusted in the context of policies that aim to mitigate climate change, such as the EU Certification Framework for Permanent Carbon Removals, Carbon Farming and Carbon Storage in Products. For example, the definition of net-negative emissions in the voluntary carbon market should consider a broader geographic and temporal scope than the IPCC definitions in order to manage risks of carbon leakage and of non-permanence.

Background to the document

The Policy Brief was commissioned by the German Environment Agency as part of the project Nature-based Solutions for Climate Protection – Financing climate-friendly soil management. This project investigates how transfer-based instruments and other forms of financial incentives can promote measures to enhance the carbon sink function of soils, whilst considering the environmental and social risks and challenges.

Climate-friendly soil management measures generate climate impact through both temporary carbon removals and emissions reductions, posing challenges for accounting for mitigation. Appropriate definitions are essential.

More content from this project

Language
English
Authorship
Funding
Published by
Year
Dimension
13 pp.
Project
Project ID
Keywords
Carbon removal, carbon sequestration, negative emissions, climate-friendly soil management, greenhouse gas reduction, carbon storage, agricultural sustainability, EU certification framework, carbon farming, soil carbon, emission reduction, organic soils, peat rewetting, agroforestry, permanent grassland, mulching, buffer zones, nitrate reduction, IPCC definitions, soil compaction, sustainable agricultural policy, UNFCCC, Paris Agreement, IPCC, FAO
Germany, Europe, Austria, France, Greifswald, Cambridge
Peatland rewetting, agroforestry, permanent grassland management, buffer strips, organic fertilization, monitoring and assessment, IPCC inventory compilation, national greenhouse gas inventories, assessment of carbon storage times, monitoring of soil compaction and soil carbon losses, CRCF, EU certification framework for carbon removals, voluntary carbon market, “net negative emissions” assessment, IPCC definitions of emission reductions, crop rotation, mulching, reduced soil compaction, mixed cropping systems, emission reduction baselines, leakage effects, induced emissions

Source URL: https://www.ecologic.eu/19883