The Role of Independent Crediting Programs to Support Article 6 Implementation

The Role of Independent Carbon Standards to Support Article 6 Implementation

The role of independent crediting programs in international carbon markets has been evolving since operationalization of Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. Independent crediting programs play an important role in providing an established pipeline of mitigation activities with crediting periods covering 2021 and the subsequent years under these mechanisms represent a potential pool of activities that could contribute to Article 6 implementation, subject to host Party authorization and other applicable requirements. Examining these programs provides insight into the scale, regional and sectoral distribution of this potential pipeline and how existing carbon-market infrastructure may support the development of international carbon markets under the Paris Agreement.

Activities Under Independent Crediting Programs with Crediting Periods Covering 2021 and Beyond

Independent crediting programs continue to represent a significant part of the global carbon-crediting landscape, with 8,948 activities established across a broad range of regions. The independent crediting programs landscape is strongly dominated by VCS and GS, accounting for 41% and 38% of activities, respectively.

Their combined share of more than four-fifths demonstrates the central position of these two standards in the global independent crediting market. This concentration also means that projects developed under VCS and GS represent the largest potential pool of activities that could be considered for Article 6 cooperation, subject to host-country requirements and authorization

Number of Activities by Region Under ICPs

The distribution of ICP activities varies considerably across regions, with Western Europe, North America, and Other States recording the largest number of activities followed by South Asia, East and Southern Africa, East Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean. However, the leading standards vary considerably across regions. VCS has the strongest presence in East Asia (77%) and the Pacific (74%), while GS dominate East and Southern Africa (77%) and West and Central Africa (63%). ACR has its strongest presence in Western Europe, North America, and Other States, accounting for 43% of activities. In contrast, the Global Carbon Council (GCC) has a notable share in South Asia (7%), the Middle East and North Africa (13%), Central Asia (13%), and Eastern Europe (10%), while the remaining programs generally account for relatively small shares.

Activity Types under ICPs

Activities under Independent Crediting Programs (ICPs) are concentrated in building and construction, forestry and land use, and energy generation. Building and construction is particularly dominated by GS (81%), while forestry and land use is led by VCS (59%), indicating different areas of specialization among the major standards. Energy generation is also largely concentrated under GS (45%) and VCS (36%), while industrial processes show a strong presence of ACR (69%). GCC has a more diversified but comparatively smaller presence across several activities, including energy, waste, and forestry, while Puro.earth is mainly visible in waste management and industrial processes.

Activities within the Building and Construction Under ICP

Building and construction is much more concentrated, with household energy efficiency accounting for 89% of activities and service-sector energy efficiency making up the remaining 11%. Within household energy efficiency, cookstove programs constitute the main type of activity, highlighting the dominant role of clean and energy-efficient cooking interventions in this sector.

Activities within the Forestry and Land Use under ICPs

Forestry and land use is relatively diversified, with improved forest management (39%) and afforestation/reforestation (20%) as the largest activity types, alongside a substantial share of REDD+ (17%), indicating a strong focus on both forest conservation and carbon sequestration.

Activities within the Energy Generation Under ICPs

The 1,700 energy-generation activities under ICPs are predominantly focused on renewable-energy sources, with solar accounting for the largest share at 37%, followed by wind at 33%. Together, these two technologies represent 70% of all energy-generation activities, highlighting the strong emphasis of ICPs on solar and wind deployment. Hydropower accounts for a further 17%, while biomass energy represents 9%, indicating a smaller but still significant contribution from other established renewable technologies. This reflects the broader predominance of renewable-energy technologies within independent crediting programs.

Article 6 Authorized Activities Under Independent Crediting Programs

Through host-Party authorization, activities can generate ITMOs that may be transferred internationally for different purposes, including use toward NDCs and Other International Mitigation Purposes (OIMPs), such as CORSIA and other purposes. While still at an early stage, host Parties are increasingly providing authorization to projects under ICPs, reflecting growing interest to leverage activities registered with ICPs as part of Article 6 implementation.

Number of Article 6 Authorized Activities Under the ICPs

The 99 Article 6 authorized activities identified under the ICPs are distributed across three independent crediting mechanisms. GS accounts for 62% of the activities, representing approximately 61 activities, while VCS accounts for 37%, representing approximately 37 activities. ART represents the remaining 1%, corresponding to approximately one activity.

Authorized Purposes under ICPs

Of all the 99 authorized activities across the three ICPs, 58 include authorization for use towards NDC and 99 use towards OIMPs. This distribution highlights the diverse intended uses of Article 6 authorized activities ITMOs, with international mitigation purposes and voluntary purposes featuring prominently across both GS and VCS.

Number of Article 6 Authorized Activities by Region Under ICPs

Regionally, Article 6-authorized activities under ICPs are highly concentrated in Africa, with East and Southern Africa (51 activities) and West and Central Africa (41 activities). This concentration indicates that African countries are currently at the forefront of integrating activities developed under independent carbon standards into Article 6 cooperation. Southeast Asia accounts for a small number of projects, while the Middle East and North Africa, Central Asia and the Pacific have the fewest.

Article 6 Authorized Activity Types Under the ICPs

Article 6-authorized activities are highly concentrated in cookstove activities which account for 84 of the 99 authorized activities, representing approximately 84% of the total. Clean water activities constitute the next largest category, with 12 activities. The remaining authorized activities are distributed across solar-centralized, solar distributed, leak detection and repair in gas systems and jurisdictional REDD+, with one activity in each category. The limited representation of other activities indicates that the transition to Article 6 authorization remains selective and has yet to extend broadly across the wider range of activities supported by ICPs.

Article 6 Authorized Credits

Article 6-authorized credits under the ICPs are highly concentrated among a small number of host Parties, with a total of 48.20 million tCO₂e of authorized credits being recorded. Guyana has the highest volume, with 24.96 million tCO₂e, accounting for approximately 52% of the total authorized credits due to the scale of its jurisdictional REDD+ program. Rwanda follows with 7.34 million tCO₂e, while Cambodia, Madagascar and Nigeria account for 3.37 million, 2.82 million and 2.50 million tCO₂e, respectively. Together, these five host Parties account for approximately 85% of the total authorized credits.

The growing authorization of activities under independent crediting mechanisms demonstrates their emerging contribution to Article 6 implementation. While authorizations remain limited, the trend indicates increasing interest from host Parties in leveraging existing ICPs for international cooperation. This could provide an important pathway for expanding Article 6 participation when aligned with national priorities and integrity requirements.

End Notes and Remarks

The data presented in this section follow sectoral classifications derived from the Article 6 common nomenclature established by the UNFCCC, while regional designations are based on A6IP regional categories. Project data used across both chapters have been harmonized and consolidated into the A6IP Internal Database, which incorporates information from multiple data sources to ensure consistency and comparability across the analysis.

For clarity and to provide a more detailed representation of the data, the Building and Construction category on energy efficiency (services) and energy efficiency (households) has been further disaggregated to show the main activities covered under this category. This additional breakdown allows readers to better understand the composition of activities classified under Building and Construction.

Each PoA and PA is referred to and counted as one activity in the analysis, regardless of the number of underlying individual activities that may be included within the PoA or PA. This approach ensures consistency in the counting and presentation of activities across the analysis. Emission reductions and removals are expressed in tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO₂e).

Data Sources

ACR (American Carbon Registry)

https://acrcarbon.org/acr-registry/

ART/TREES (Architecture for REDD+ Transactions)

https://www.artredd.org/art-registry/

Article 6.2 Corresponding Adjustments Reporting Tool (GS and Verra)

https://www.goldstandard.org/publications/article-6.2-corresponding-adjustments-reporting-tool?

CAR (Climate Action Reserve)

https://thereserve2.apx.com/myModule/rpt/myrpt.asp?r=111

CAD Trust

https://data.climateactiondata.org/

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