Verra has taken a notable step in the evolution of voluntary carbon markets by issuing its first forest carbon credits aligned with the Core Carbon Principles (CCP). The credits were generated under VM0045, Verra’s latest Improved Forest Management (IFM) methodology, following its approval by the Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market (ICVCM). The development reflects growing momentum around higher-integrity frameworks for land-based carbon accounting.
VM0045—short for Improved Forest Management Using Dynamic Matched Baselines from National Forest Inventories—introduces a fundamentally different way of assessing forest carbon performance. Instead of relying on long-term projections or fixed assumptions, the methodology draws on continuously updated national forest inventory data. This enables baselines to evolve over time, aligning carbon crediting more closely with real-world forest dynamics.
Mandy Rambharos, CEO, Verra, said: ‘This is a powerful example of how innovation and integrity can work hand-in-hand to unlock new opportunities for forest stewardship. VM0045 not only meets the highest standards of climate rigour but also empowers rural landowners to participate in climate action in innovative and impactful ways. We’re proud to see CCP-labelled credits being generated by a project that puts family forest owners at the centre of the solution.’
A defining feature of VM0045 is its matched-baseline design. Forest plots within a project area are compared against statistically similar plots selected from national inventories outside the project boundary. Because both sets of plots are monitored over time, the methodology reflects the influence of factors such as changing weather conditions, pest pressures, market shifts, and natural disturbances. This approach strengthens confidence in reported outcomes and reduces reliance on hypothetical scenarios.
Rather than estimating total forest carbon stocks, VM0045 focuses on measuring changes in carbon over time. Permanent sample plots record increases or decreases directly, improving the accuracy of reported emission reductions and removals.
The methodology supports a broad range of IFM practices, provided they are new and additional. Eligible activities include enrichment planting, management to encourage natural regeneration, extending or delaying harvest cycles, lowering harvest intensity, creating forest reserves, and reducing fire risk through fuel management. Importantly, developers are not required to use forest growth-and-yield models, as accounting is based on repeated field measurements.
The first CCP-labelled credits under VM0045 v1.2 were issued to the Family Forest Carbon Program, Central Appalachia, developed by the American Forest Foundation with support from The Nature Conservancy. The project received 18,326 Verified Carbon Units and transitioned voluntarily from an earlier version of the methodology.
While VM0045 currently uses data from the U.S. Forest Service’s Forest Inventory and Analysis program, it was designed for global applicability. As more countries expand national forest inventories, the methodology could enable wider participation in IFM projects, including by smaller landowners previously constrained by cost and complexity.