CNX and ClimeCo Preserve 34,422 Forest Acres
Partners generate carbon credits through the Appalachian Valley Improved Forest Management Project
September 26, 2024
With the partnership and guidance of ClimeCo as the project developer, CNX is able to bring forth high-quality carbon credits to the voluntary market. For information on purchasing credits from the Appalachian Valley IFM Project, contact Daniel Bitz at danielbitz@cnx.com and Dan Linsky at dlinsky@climeco.com.
By Dan Bitz, CNX Director of Surface Asset Strategy
It's easy to forget today, but the colonization and growth of America would likely have failed if it weren’t for the quality and volume of its trees. For centuries, timber was the lifeblood of a developing nation: a primary component for building homes and structures, ships, the fuel used to run various wood-fired machines and heating devices, and a crucial material for multiple early industries. Considering the rapid growth of America and the ingenuity humans applied to modern timber equipment, a heavy toll was paid by the nation’s forests. Some 400 years after colonists began to clear trees, we again look to trees to solve societal issues. This time around, the remedy isn’t going to be the products the trees can create but the CO2 sequestration they enable and ecosystem health they maintain with their continued growth.
In 2023, CNX partnered with global sustainability company ClimeCo to transition large portions of CNX-owned surface property from timber assets to a carbon credit asset. This change was made possible by buying out an existing, large acreage timber lease and enrolling the acreage into an Improved Forest Management (IFM) project, which employs forest management practices that increase carbon storage and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. IFM projects can involve a variety of changes to existing forest management practices. The CNX Appalachian Valley IFM Project focuses on reducing harvest volumes to decrease emissions and create credits for avoided emissions associated with harvesting and enhancing the rate of carbon storage in tree biomass. These activities also help to preserve and enhance the forest’s biodiversity.
How Do Trees Generate Carbon Credits?
The concept is simple: preserve forests that would otherwise have been harvested and let those forests continue their natural function of capturing CO2. The amount of CO2 preserved and the additional CO2 sequestered by continued growth is measured and calculated by the carbon project developer, reviewed and verified by a third-party auditor, and then reviewed a second time by a nonprofit carbon registry. Carbon registries act as regulatory bodies within the Voluntary Carbon Market to establish standards for various project types and to ensure that they are met. This process allows companies like CNX, which controls timber and land, to commit to a timeframe for protecting the resource and generating saleable assets called carbon credits.
Carbon registries are also responsible for issuing the credits generated by these verified carbon projects. One carbon credit represents one metric ton of CO2 equivalent in emissions avoided or removed from the atmosphere.
How Are Carbon Credits Used?
Companies and other emitters who are unable to reduce all their carbon emissions through changes in activities can purchase carbon credits as part of a broader sustainability strategy to address emissions that are otherwise difficult to reduce. Potential buyers of carbon credits must consider several critical criteria. IFM credits require assurance that:
- The forest would have been harvested unless otherwise acted upon
- It will be protected decades into the future
- The registry and associated protocol provide detailed documentation to be made public, establishing the location and quality of the project
IFM carbon projects are just one method for reducing CO2 emissions, but they have become an important tool due to their quality, which correlates to the additionality the project provides (defined as whether or not the emissions reductions and removals would have happened in the absence of the project), as well as any additional social and environmental benefits associated with the project. IFM carbon projects are able to make significant and meaningful impacts today when it comes to reducing CO2 emissions.
An Overview of CNX’s First Carbon Project
CNX has the benefit of owning and managing a significant amount of Appalachian surface property populated by forests. Utilizing the legacy timberlands on these properties, many of which were affected by past 3rd-party mining activity, the company is preserving over 34,000 acres of existing mature Appalachian hardwood forest for a minimum of 40 years. Utilizing the expertise and professional guidance of ClimeCo, the project has been listed with Verra's Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) and the Climate, Community & Biodiversity (CCB) Standard, a designation awarded to projects that provide exceptional benefits.
The primary location of the Appalachian Valley IFM Project is within Buchanan and Tazewell counties of northwest Virginia. The temperate forests within these counties hold a diverse array of hardwood species and their connectivity is important for ecosystem health in the Appalachian region, which has been heavily fragmented by natural resource extraction. Native biodiversity will benefit from the protection of the forests within the project area. The project area is home to four species of endangered bats, several species of endangered freshwater mussel, and will also provide additional habitat for a Rocky Mountain Elk reintroduction project.
Verra is the carbon registry that will certify the IFM project, indicating that the project activities have achieved measurable, high-integrity outcomes (www.Verra.org/about). As of August 20th, 2024, the Appalachian Valley IFM project successfully achieved listing on the Verra registry. Credits are expected to be issued in early 2025 following the third-party audit and registry review.
CNX recognizes the balance of developing natural resources while achieving net overall benefits for communities and ecosystems. We understand the importance of timber markets to the region and expect carbon and timber projects to achieve the proper balance. The project brings additional value to CNX by leveraging existing assets while enabling improved habitat and conservation practices within Appalachia.
Officially launched in 2021, CNX New Technologies develops proprietary technology and nature-based solutions for vertical and horizontal business growth, which are rooted in the company’s extensive legacy asset base, intellectual assets, and innovative tradition. The group is actively developing and marketing a plethora of nature-based projects, while creating low-carbon-intensity energy solutions.
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