Both the growth and the credibility of the voluntary carbon market (or VCM) hinge on high-integrity carbon credit projects. These projects are crucial for buyers and investors because they ensure genuine and measurable climate benefits and provide a higher level of assurance that projects consider their holistic impacts on communities, biodiversity, and climate.
Ultimately, without verifiable projects, buyers could grow skeptical of carbon credit projects and slow down the climate impacts we can achieve.
The good news is that the carbon markets have a growing ecosystem of accountability. At the heart of this ecosystem is MRV: Measurement*, Reporting, and Verification.
Essentially, MRV is the quality control system of the carbon markets. It’s how players in the space ensure carbon credits are backed by a real, measurable, and independently verifiable impact. It takes time, coordination, and investment — but it’s what proves to buyers that your high-quality project is delivering intended environmental impacts.
Yet, MRV is a daunting concept because of how inherently complex it is. It’s a process that is far from one-size-fits-all, with a growing number of providers, methodologies, and even a new generation of tools emerging under the banner of digital MRV (or dMRV).
That’s why we’ve created this blog to provide a primer on all things MRV.
In this blog, we will explore the following:
✅The role of MRV in the carbon markets
✅How MRV varies by project type
✅Challenges project developers face with traditional MRV
✅What is dMRV, and how is it solving those traditional challenges
✅Some notable MRV and dMRV players in the space
What is MRV and why does it matter?
As mentioned earlier, MRV stands for Measurement, Reporting, and Verification — a critical process that underpins the credibility of every carbon credit issued in the voluntary carbon market. Every credit that has been issued on a recognized registry is guaranteed to have gone through this process.
Before a credit can be officially issued and accounted for by the corporate buyer, it has to go through this process. Here's how it works:
- Measurement: It kicks off with the carbon project developer choosing and following an approved methodology that aligns with a recognized standard across registries (ex: Verra, Puro.earth, Isometric). This methodology provides a blueprint for exactly what data to collect, how to collect it, and how to analyze it.
Choosing the right methodology — and accurately calculating the baseline level of emissions for your project’s performance to be measured against — is crucial to a project’s success. A misstep here can introduce major complications down the line, delay the ability to issue credits, and even potentially disrupt project cash flow.
- Reporting: Once the measurement phase is complete, the carbon project developer takes that data and submits a comprehensive report to a third-party verifier. This entity must already be pre-approved by the standard-setting body or registry they’re working with.
Once a project enters this period, all the data will be cross-checked with the initial measurements provided. This process can take several months as it involves a robust assessment to ensure emissions are truly reduced or removed.
- Verification: The third party reviews the data and its adherence to the methodology. This review is what determines whether the impact claims the project developers are making are credible. Carbon credits can be issued only after this step.
While this simple framework might seem straightforward, it’s what shields the market from its biggest risks: overcrediting, lack of additionality, and buyer skepticism.
It also gets more complex when different project types come into play. For example, soil carbon projects can be difficult to measure at times because of how variable soil is across a project's area, so they require an array of sophisticated approaches to measure the carbon that's being captured underneath the surface. Meanwhile, forestry projects can scale with just satellite data but require long monitoring periods. Each project type has its own technical nuances, timelines, and potential bottlenecks.
How MRV Varies Across Carbon Project Types
MRV significantly varies based on the project types. However, all MRV approaches aim to increase project integrity and reduce risk in the VCM, which is imperative for the market’s success and growth.
We’ve broken down how MRV plays out across some of the most common carbon project types below:
Biochar projects
Biochar projects burn biomass to sequester carbon and enrich soil. This project type has the potential to remove 6% of global carbon emissions annually, making it a popular investment choice among corporate buyers.
Since this project type is so popular, biochar projects with rigorous MRV are going to be the ones to stand out.
Some of the most critical data to capture for biochar projects across a wide variety of methodologies are:
- Pyrolysis temperature
- Biochar output weight
- Biomass moisture
A critical factor of biochar MRV is the need to closely monitor the burning of the feedstocks and track all the relevant data (like the ones mentioned above) for the process. dMRV solutions like apps with IoT hardware can help buyers have confidence in these reports since they can automate data collection. Temperature and weight sensors integrated into production machinery can also help in delivering real-time data on project performance.
Carbon mineralization projects
Carbon mineralization projects speed up the naturally occurring chemical reactions between carbon dioxide and certain minerals to create stable carbonates that store carbon away permanently. For example, in concrete mineralization projects, project developers are creating calcium carbonate that is getting stored away in concrete.
Common types of projects that fall under this umbrella are enhanced rock weathering and concrete mineralization.
These projects are championed for the high level of permanence that they provide, but they come with some unique challenges, especially for subsurface mineralization projects. Measuring these types of projects is difficult due to numerous outside variables that can influence results. Also, collecting subsurface mineralization samples for data can get costly (although there is some interesting research coming out around how to incorporate cation exchange monitoring to address this problem).
However, there is technology being developed that can improve the level of accuracy and confidence in carbon mineralization datasets, like real-time tracking solutions. Take, for example, CO2-injected concrete. They can use sensors on all injection hardware that can automatically send real-time data to these project developers.
Soil-based carbon sequestration projects
Soil-based carbon sequestration projects take advantage of the soil’s natural ability to sequester carbon dioxide by incorporating sustainable farming practices that can help the soil store even more carbon. This can look like planting deep-rooted species to boost carbon storage in the soil, for example.
MRV for soil-based carbon sequestration sometimes requires out-of-the-box thinking. Measurement often involves getting below the surface of the soil where the carbon emissions are being stored, and it might take some dedicated calculations to determine just where that might be because the depth at which the carbon is stored can be highly variable based on the tillage practices on the land and the local climate.
However, developments like AI and remote sensing can help build LLMs that can calculate the soil carbon levels of land by using indicators like the color of the soil. However, because of its inability to get beneath the soil's surface, it still requires manual interventions afterward to confirm results.
A manual tool that can be used in an MRV process for a soil carbon sequestration project could be something like a spectroscopy probe, a hand-held probe that can measure soil carbon at the source.
Forestry projects
Whether it was afforestation, reforestation, or revegetation (ARR) carbon projects or improved forest management (IFM) projects, forestry projects have long been foundational to the VCM. Forestry projects used to rely heavily on field measurements and in-person site sampling, which often meant trekking across vast acres of land.
Now, forestry projects have more developed tools at play to strengthen their datasets. They can use technology that leverages deep research into historical land use and continuous LiDAR scans to meet the public’s need for increasingly stringent baseline emissions predictions and monitoring requirements.
Regardless of methodology, long-term monitoring is crucial for forestry projects to prove permanence and mitigate the risk of issues like leakage.
Blue Carbon projects
Blue Carbon projects are focused on bolstering carbon sequestration in coastal and marine environments. As many of these projects are done on a large scale or out in marine ecosystems that are hard to measure using traditional field-based measurements, a lot of cutting-edge technology can be utilized for MRV for Blue Carbon projects.
For example, geospatial technology tied with remote sensing provides the imagery necessary to map the ecosystem coverage and biomass of coastal ecosystems like mangroves, seagrass, or salt marshes. LiDAR can capture similar images and their associated data on above-ground biomass in Blue Carbon environments.
When attempting to capture submerged biomass data, the use of sensors becomes increasingly important. Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) and Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs), fashioned with sensors, can allow us to collect this data on submerged biomass in these hard-to-reach environments.
Challenges Project Developers Face with MRV
While MRV is essential to the success and integrity of the VCM, it comes with its challenges. We’ve outlined some of the largest ones below.
1. The Cost Barrier
For many project developers, the biggest challenge is rather straightforward: MRV is expensive. This is especially a problem for early-stage project developers who don’t have a steady cash flow just yet.
MRV often involves a lot of data-crunching, on-site visits, and dedicated equipment. Add all those together, and the bills start to pile up.
However, many project developers have developed avenues to overcome this challenge. Partnerships with investors and grants have historically been a way for project developers to get over this hurdle.
Digital MRV (or dMRV) is another solution to this challenge. By incorporating technology into this process, project developers can speed up the process, improve data quality, and cut out the costs of unnecessary legacy resources.
2. The Expertise Barrier
All the funding in the world does not matter if your project isn’t backed by the right expertise and the best setup for resource allocation.
Without experts who have a background in your intended sector, your projects risk falling behind on industry best practices and not standing out in the market. These are key players who have to identify errors in data collection before it gets to verifying bodies and the public, where any public missteps can degrade public trust in your project.
These team members can also create a culture where they lead and teach data best practices to the rest of the team. If an early-stage project is missing this, it can struggle later on.
That’s why, even as an early-stage project developer, you should develop the right screening processes and set aside room in your budget to have these experts on your side, as it will help differentiate your project as you scale.
3. There’s No Universal Template
Different projects require different measurement methodologies.
Some projects, like DAC projects, are straightforward to measure. They operate in an enclosed environment that makes it easier to measure the amount of carbon dioxide removed compared to other projects that operate in more open environments.
For example, measuring the amount of carbon sequestered by submerged biomasses like seaweed is going to have to involve some innovative modeling because it has more variable ecosystems and less empirical data. Experts have to account for environmental factors like bottom depth gradients and species type like calcifying algae, which can release carbon, rather than sequester it. This can be demanding on their team.
Developers working on more innovative methodologies also struggle with waiting for standards bodies to approve these new methodologies or even finding MRV providers with expertise in their niche field of work. This means they often end up developing their own MRV solution that they can even commercialize later on for other developers to use.
What is dMRV and how is it solving some of those challenges
dMRV stands for digital MRV. These are technologies and software that are meant to streamline the MRV process and allow for credit issuances to happen more efficiently.
Traditional MRV lacked the technology we have today. Project developers had to rely on tools like field measurements and satellite imagery, where it’d be hard to get precise and objective measurements. Not to mention, it was all rather costly.
With the introduction of dMRV, that can all change. Now, our satellite imagery can be powered by AI analysis. Now we have LiDAR to continuously scan forests. This digital transformation is expected to not only be more scalable due to its ability to handle larger areas but also more accurate, as it can log data in real-time.
These dMRV technologies also allow information to be collected in a more timely manner and eliminate room for human error, making it much easier to scale projects.
At the end of the day, more scalable and precise methodologies are what we need to maximize our environmental impact, so dMRV can be a helpful tool for project developers to leverage in their operations.
MRV and dMRV players in the space
There are various MRV and dMRV providers doing important work for the VCM, but we wanted to highlight a sample of the players that you might run into. Whether you're selecting a partner for a new project or benchmarking your current approach, getting familiar with these names can help you navigate the landscape more confidently.
Pachama
Project types: Nature-based carbon projects
Pachama built a dMRV platform for nature-based project developers looking to take their projects to the next level while still moving quickly. They claim to deliver relevant critical insights like ecological conservation value and baseline criteria to project developers in minutes.
They also have real-time remote sensing data that can alert you of risks before they happen, instead of afterwards. All risks are instantly surfaced on a simple, easy-to-read dashboard.
Used by market leaders like the Boston Consulting Group, Shopify, and Salesforce, you can trust that it’s been tried and tested.
Earthood
Project types: All carbon offset projects
Earthood is a validation and verification body (VVB) that is equipped with MRV tech that has enabled it to work on over 4,000 carbon offsetting projects. They provide project developers the ability to get real-time insights into their verification status as well as the software that’s even used by auditors to streamline the process from start to finish.
On top of its digital capabilities, it’s also partnered with many registries to allow project developers to build a seamless tech stack for their sales operations.
Fun fact: They were the first VVB to hop on the digital reporting and verification bandwagon.
Open Forest Protocol
Project types: Nature-based solutions
Open Forest Protocol is looking to be a major part of the dMRV system for nature-based solutions. And they’re going about it boldly.
They claim that their process “is a complete digital overhaul for the verification and issuance of carbon credits.” They’re going about this by tackling some of the most common challenges to MRV that we discussed earlier by creating a system that is:
- No upfront cost
- Open source
- Network based
This innovative approach to MRV demonstrates that they understand the struggles of project developers and are willing to reinvent the wheel to further build integrity in this market.
Kanop
Project types: Nature-based solutions
Kanop is a dMRV provider for nature-based solutions that leverages its AI, satellite intelligence, and high-resolution LiDAR scans to deliver the data that project developers need to verify their impact quickly. They claim that, with their technology, project developers can monitor “monitor millions of hectares in days rather than months.”
They provide developers with information that can help them design their projects with a project screening tool, and ongoing design and monitoring that tracks the following:
- Carbon stock monitoring reports
- Dynamic baseline shifts
- Flora biodiversity changes
- Potential disturbance events
Kanop is also built to support VM0047, a critical methodology for nature-based project developers.
Perennial
Project types: Nature-based solutions
Perennial prides itself on its advanced digital soil mapping model that can not only be 95% more accurate than traditional models, but can work with 10x fewer samples too. Used by industry giants like Microsoft, USDA, and Bloomberg, they claim that they’ve saved over 60% of sampling cuts and cut 35% of overall costs for their customers.
For project developers struggling with their budget or wanting a tool that’ll be easy to scale, this tool might just fit the bill.
Thanks to a mix of machine learning, an in-house archive of variable soil samples, advanced remote measurement sensing, and on-the-ground observations, Perennial delivers on soil carbon emissions measurements – a measure that’s historically hard to nail down.
Chloris Geospatial
Project types: Forestry
Chloris Geospatial measures and provides datasets for above-ground biomass that many forestry project developers rely on.
They track above-ground biomass change, stock, and forest cover dating all the way back to 2000, using LiDAR and field measurements. This allows project developers to receive annual and subannual updates for their forestry projects.
They also don’t just provide data, but they pride themselves on providing expert consultation on model development and data calibration, too.
Cula Technologies
Project types: Carbon removal
Cula Technologies is a dMRV platform that’s newer to the scene. Their goal is to capture data in real time across the supply chain for carbon removal projects.
Utilizing their machine and sensory data, they not only automatically capture all relevant data for carbon removal projects, but they’re also making a point of having it be publicly available. This is a clear nod to their overall mission of raising the integrity in the VCM.
CarbonPilot
Project types: Biochar, ERW, Agroforestry initiatives
CarbonPilot is a dMRV platform for food suppliers to launch projects tailored to their specific environment. Their dMRV tools (IoT devices and mobile apps) help speed up the MRV process for project developers and are built to scale.
However, they provide more than just technology. They help set project developers up with the right equipment, even negotiating with vendors on their behalf. They also provide training programs for farmers and other operators who might be involved in your projects.
They’re doing this work across five different continents following the requirements of ICROA-approved registries.
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