Project Development Process
Implementing your Project
- 1.Identifying a Methodology and Credit Class
Approved methodologies and Credit Classes can be found on Regen Registry’s Methodology Library. Look there to determine if there is a methodology that fits the production system and ecosystem of interest, i.e. grazing systems in western plains of the United States or mangrove reforestation in the Caribbean. Review associated Credit Classes to assess the standards and eligibility criteria.
If there is not a relevant approved methodology, you can review in-development methodologies on Built on Regen to see if there will be an upcoming appropriate methodology. If not, please refer to the Methodology Overview and Development chapters to understand the process of creating a methodology. You can also connect to our network on our community platforms to socialize your methodology and credit idea.
2. Identifying Key Partners
Once a methodology and Credit Class have been identified, the next step is identifying the necessary partners, such as Monitoring Service Providers (MSP) and Project Developers. MSP are technologists on the ground and/or remotely monitoring data services. They can be self-selected or Regen Registry can help to connect you with a potential MSP. Project Developers work to implement the project plan or an Earth Steward acts as their own Project Developer. If a Project Developer is looking for potential projects to onboard, Regen Registry may be able to assist in making connections between Project Developers and interested Earth Stewards.
3. Project Registration
Once these MSP and Project Developers have been identified, the next steps include developing project documentation including:
A. Project Plan
B. Monitoring Reports
C. Contracts
D. Project Page
A. Project Plan
The Project Plan is a document that states details about the Project Development including, project area and project activities based on the methodology being employed. The Project Proponent - either the Earth Steward (land owner/permit holder) or the Project Developer agrees to implement practices stated in the Project Plan and Methodology and signs contracts with Regen Registry. The Project Plan indicates the fields that are necessary to include in your Project Plan, such as approved methodology and Credit Class. Here is a Project Plan Template and a Project Plan Example. Project Proponents may request to designate portions of the Project Plan or project documentation as Personal / Commercially Sensitive Information. This information must be available for review by Regen Registry and the approved Verifier (with non-disclosure agreements (NDA's), as necessary), but will not be posted publicly as part of the project documentation on Regen Registry. To promote transparency, Regen Registry shall presume by default all project information to be available for public scrutiny, unless requested otherwise by the Project Proponent and identified with an NDA.
B. Project Monitoring Reports
Project Monitoring Reports shall be completed for each monitoring period following the template for Project Monitoring Report. The Monitor shall submit the report to Regen Registry including any corrections/revisions identified by the verifier (if applicable). The Monitoring Report shall describe the current status of project operation, and include the data monitored, the monitoring plan, the calculated emission reductions and ecological indicators for the reporting period stated in the Credit Class and following the guidelines in the Approved Methodology.
C. Contracts
All entities involved in a Regen Registry Project are required to sign Terms of Service that outlines the terms and conditions of working with Regen Registry. Specific contracts will also be necessary between Land Owners, Project Proponents, MSP and Regen Registry. These contracts will be signed using Docusign and are required before baseline data collection. Check back for updates and specification on required documents.
D. Project Page
Projects enrolled in Regen Registry will have a Project Page on the Regen Registry website. The Project Page displays dynamic information about the project, including:
Project Name
Project Size (in hectares)
Location - this can be a look up
Project Admin Name
Project Description/story
Media - up to four photos and one video
Metadata - a jsonld document
See an example with Wilmot Cattle Co.’s Project Page. The Project Proponent will work with the Regen Registry Team on the contents of the Project page.
4. Project Lifecycle
Project Credits
The Project Proponent stipulates the ownership of credits issued to the project. Regen Registry supports fractional ownership of the credits allocated to a project in a given issuance event, therefore credits can be split between Earth Stewards, land owners, Project Developers, and buyers. The Crediting Term officially begins on the Project Registration Date, the date when the project has been approved by Regen Registry. If an adoption date (date when new practices were implemented) precedes the project registration date, the crediting term will commence at the Project Initial Monitoring Date (or baseline) as defined by the approved Credit Class.
- 1.Retiring Credits: Traditionally in carbon markets, credit retirement involves allowances from regulated emission trading schemes as a method for offsetting carbon emissions. Regen Registry is not a regulated emission trading scheme, but instead provides buyers a way to voluntarily offset their carbon footprint. Credits can only be retired once. Once a credit has been retired, it cannot be transferred or sold anymore. Regen Registry provides the ability for buyers to trade their credits, i.e. sell them to other buyers on a secondary market. In the future, a secondary marketplace functionality will be added. Credit buyers will have access to the Project Proponent’s information, the project location, monitoring reports, and other pertinent data which is made publicly available on Regen Registry. Buyers must indicate the owner of the beneficial interest in the GHG mitigation claim for each credit they retire.
- 2.Tradability: Credit buyers will have the option to sell their credits so long as they have not yet been retired. Credits are treated as commodities, not as securities. Regen Registry is committed to comply with all relevant regulatory frameworks, both in the US and internationally. In the future, additional functionality to support secondary market trading will be added. Aggregate Projects Project Proponents may be able to create efficiencies around reporting and verification by strategically combining a group of project areas participating in an
- 3.Aggregate Projects: To that end, project areas should be grouped so their defining characteristics are as homogeneous as possible. Verifiers may select randomly which project areas will receive on-site visits, or apply a risk analysis to identify project areas with the strongest influence over an Aggregate Project’s outcomes. Verifiers can use their own discretion to determine the data sampling approach, yet all sites require at least a desk-based review. Sites must have similar soil types and be located within the same pre-defined geographic region, following the ecosystem types as outlined in the Taxonomy Document. At the end of the Crediting Term, the Project Proponent will engage in a final project verification. The report will be made public on Regen Registry. The Project Proponent has the choice to renew the project (renewal duration stipulated in Credit Class).
- 4.Project Renewal: Submitting an updated Project Plan in compliance with up-to-date Credit Class and Approved Methodology. The final project monitoring and verification round of carbon stock and/or other ecological indicator estimates will be automatically used as the renewal up-to-date baseline. Project Proponents may renew a project multiple times. Regen Registry does not limit the number of periods of renewal that are allowed for a given project.
- 5.Project Compliance: Project compliance stipulations are outlined in the approved Credit Class. The following cases apply to any relevant Credit Class in Regen Registry:
- Project Proponents that choose to put their land under permanence convenance are required to inform prospective buyers of any permanence obligations associated with the land when selling their property.
- Previous Rejection by Other Registry
- Regen Registry may consider a project rejected by other registries, due to procedural or eligibility requirements, if the project complies with the Credit Class and approved Methodology. The Project Proponent for such a project shall include a statement in the Project Plan that lists all other programs to which the Project Proponent has applied for registration and was rejected, the reason(s) for the rejection, and pertinent documentation.
- A project may be placed on hold under the following circumstances:
- Project Proponent fails to comply with the reporting requirements stated in Credit Class and the approved Methodology.
- A Verification Report is submitted with a Rejection rating.
- In the case of a GHG removal credit, an intentional reversal of carbon stock is identified.
- Other violations of requirements outlined in approved Methodology and Credit Class
- Projects that are non-compliant include the following cases:
- Regen Registry may consider a project rejected by other registries, due to procedural or eligibility requirements, if the project complies with the Credit Class and Approved Methodology. The Project Proponent for such a project shall include a statement in the Project Plan that lists all other programs to which the Project Proponent has applied for registration and was rejected, the reason(s) for the rejection, and pertinent documentation.
- These cases will be seen as a breach of contract, subject to dispute resolution as stipulated in the legal contracts. If the dispute is not resolved, the project will be canceled from the Regen Registry and all issued credits remaining in the Project Proponent’s account along with the project credits allocated to Buffer Pool and Permanence Reversal Buffer (if applicable) will be canceled.
- Non-compliant projects will be delisted from Regen Registry and, depending on the case, at RND discretion, the Project Proponent might be restricted from listing any future projects on Regen Registry.