SILVACONSULT ® Forest Carbon Standard
An ISO 14064-2 certified standard for the development of climate protection projects in European temperate forests.
The methodology
FOREST & CLIMATE CHANGE
Climate protection through forests
Forests are one of the largest carbon reservoirs on earth, without forests we would have a much higher CO₂ load in the atmosphere. Forest growth is therefore important for the global carbon cycle; more biomass in the forest leads to a reduction in greenhouse gas effects. Climate protection projects that are implemented with the SILVACONSULT ® Forest Carbon Standard optimise the climate protection potential of our forests.
EXPLANATION
The methodology at a glance
The aim of the SILVACONSULT® Forest Carbon Standard is to optimise the carbon stock of a forest area for a specified point in time in the future. This is achieved by determining a target stock for the end of a 30-year agreement period from the existing wood stock, the expected growth and regional growth models. This stock is defined in such a way that compliance with the agreed carbon storage targets is guaranteed and sustainable forest management is possible at the same time.
ISO certification
Strong foundation
The SILVACONSULT® Forest Carbon Standard is certified in accordance with ISO standard 14064-2. This certification confirms the accuracy and reliability of the methodology for recording and reporting greenhouse gases. With this certification, we guarantee transparent and comparable data on carbon storage, which is crucial for effective climate protection. We are currently working on updating the methodology in accordance with ISO 14068.
SILVACONSULT ® Quality Criteria
Additionality
Additionality is achieved through a reduction in wood utilisation and longer rotation periods in the forest, which increases the wood stock in the long term. Forest owners can either commit to maintaining a certain stock (carbon conservation) or to building up a target stock (carbon removal), as stipulated in the Paris Agreement.
Permanence & risk buffer
The permanence of the projects is ensured by a term of 30 - 50 years. In order to counter risks such as windthrow, pest infestation or drought, 10% of the CO₂ credits are stored in a cross-project risk pool. This pool is used to compensate for damage caused by unforeseeable events.
Avoidance of leakage
The SILVACONSULT ® methodology avoids internal leakage by considering the entire forest of an owner. External leakage is avoided by verifying whether the national utilisation amount of the country where the project takes place is lower than the utilisation potential. If this is the case, it is assumed that there is no leakage. Otherwise, a leakage of 10 % is deducted.
Environment
Projects are carried out with environmental responsibility in mind and generate positive environmental impacts to promote the sustainability, stability and resilience of the forest ecosystem.
Social affairs
Projects act socially responsible, promote social well-being, and involve the local population. They secure jobs, conduct educational activities in forests, and enhance the societal benefit of forests in a sustainable manner.
Certification
Climate protection projects that are implemented using the SILVACONSULT ® methodology are certified by TÜV and are regularly reviewed on the basis of publicly accessible investment and action plans.mrv-platform
Project registry
Transparency platform
Climate protection projects are managed transparently and tamper-proof in the project register. Each transaction is unique and publicly visible. This guarantees transparent climate protection with real impact.
> 50
Climate protection projects
4
Project developers who use the methodology
About SILVACONSULT ®
milestones
History
Dr Hubertus Schmidtke founded SILVACONSULT ® in 1999 as a consultancy and technical office in the forestry sector. SILVACONSULT ® has been active in forest climate protection for over two decades and has already implemented over 30 successful climate protection projects using its methodology. Since 2023, SILVACONSULT ® has been focussing on the further development of the methodology together with the project developer Tree.ly.
the founder
Dr. Hubertus Schmidtke
Hubertus Schmidtke, who holds a doctorate in forestry engineering (Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg) and is the founder of SILVACONSULT ®, has more than 30 years of extensive experience in the fields of remote sensing, forest ecology and forest management. His expertise and in-depth knowledge make him the ideal choice for the continuous development of the SILVACONSULT ® methodology.
Partners
The SILVACONSULT ® methodology is being successfully applied by several European project developers. Projects and feasibility studies have already been carried out in Germany, Austria, Italy, the Czech Republic and Hungary.
