Top Projects from Voluntary Carbon Market Registries in 2021
With the year 2021 having come to an end, we take a look back at the most successful projects from each of the registries we track data on. To measure ‘success’, we are looking at the number of credits retired in 2021, which allows us to rank the projects. Overall, 2021 was a year of growth for the voluntary carbon market, with a total of 161,125,775 credits retired — a 70% increase on 2020.
The registry which has contributed the most to this number is Verra, retiring about 80% of the year’s total:
Read on to discover which projects have retired the most credits in 2021!
Verra
Rimba Raya Biodiversity Reserve Project
Location: Indonesia
Type: Forestry and Land Use, VM0004
Estimated annual emission reductions: 3,527,171
Credits retired in 2021: 8,232,421
Estimated value of retired credits: $118m
Percentage increase vs 2020: 688% increase
Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation in Keo Seima Wildlife Sanctuary
Location: Cambodia
Type: Forestry and Land Use, VM0015
Estimated annual emissions reductions: 1,426,648
Credits retired in 2021: 7,225,023
Estimated value of retired credits: $128m
Percentage increase vs 2020: 2006% increase
Cordillera Azul National Park REDD Project
Location: Peru
Type: Forestry and Land Use, VM0007
Estimated annual emissions reductions: 1,575,268
Credits retired in 2021: 5,370,453
Estimated value of retired credits: $45m
Percentage increase vs 2020: 374% increase
Gold Standard
Landfill Gas Extraction and Electricity Generation Project
Location: Istanbul, Turkey
Type: Other, ACM0001 Flaring or use of landfill gas
Estimated annual emissions reductions: 818,841
Credits retired in 2021: 2,237,893
Estimated value of retired credits: $26m
Percentage increase vs 2020: 455% increase
Improved Cookstoves for Social Impact in Uganda Communities
Location: Uganda
Type: Household Devices, GS Methodology for improved cook stoves and Kitchen Regimes v2.
Estimated annual emissions reductions: 74,083
Credits retired in 2021: 840,181
Estimated value of retired credits: $4.3m
Percentage increase vs 2020: 126% increase
Biogas Program for the Animal Husbandry Sector of Vietnam
Location: Vietnam
Type: Renewable Energy
Estimated annual emissions reductions: 589,125
Credits retired in 2021: 736,775
Estimated value of retired credits: $4.3m
Percentage increase vs 2020: 208% increase
American Carbon Registry
UPM Blandin Native American Hardwoods Conservation & Carbon Sequestration Project
Location: United States
Type: Forestry and Land Use
Estimated annual emissions reductions: 1,710,013
Credits retired in 2021: 369,528
Estimated value of retired credits: $2.4m
Percentage increase vs 2020: 162% increase
Green Trees ACRE (Advanced Carbon Restored Ecosystem)
Location: United States
Type: Forestry and Land Use
Methodology: Null
Estimated annual emissions reductions: 6,270,750
Credits retired in 2021: 346,341
Estimated value of retired credits: $2.2m
Percentage decrease vs 2020: 70% decrease
Winston Creek Forest Carbon Project
Location: United States
Type: Forestry and Land Use
Estimated annual emissions reductions: 866,900
Credits retired in 2021: 239,795
Estimated value of retired credits: $1.5m
Percentage increase vs 2020: 271% increase
Climate Action Reserve
El Dorado Nitrogen, LP — Nitrous Oxide Abatement Project
Location: United States
Type: Chemical Processes/ Industrial Manufacturing
Estimated annual emissions reductions: 7,789,548
Credits retired in 2021: 891,725
Estimated value of retired credits: $4.9m
Percentage increase vs 2020: 220% increase
Coffeyville NAP2
Location: United States
Type: Chemical Processes/ Industrial Manufacturing
Estimated annual emissions reductions: 746,970
Credits retired in 2021: 351,953
Estimated value of retired credits: $1.9m
Percentage increase vs 2020: 219% increase
Terra Verdigris
Location: United States
Type: Chemical Processes/ Industrial Manufacturing
Estimated annual emissions reductions: 3,090,965
Credits retired in 2021: 234,611
Estimated value of retired credits: $1.3m
Percentage decrease vs 2020: 57% decrease
Nori
Garrett Land & Cattle
Location: United States
Type: Agriculture, US Croplands 1.1
Credits retired in 2021: 13,197
Estimated value of retired credits: $200k
Percentage increase vs 2020: 220% increase
Adam Ullrich
Location: United States
Type: Agriculture, US Croplands 1.1
Credits retired in 2021: 8,560
Estimated value of retired credits: $128k
R & J Wahlgren Farms
Location: United States
Type: Agriculture
Credits retired in 2021: 4,130
Estimated value of retired credits: $62k
For more data on the voluntary carbon markets, check out our dashboard here or reach out to carbon@alliedcrowds.com.
