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The new GHG Protocol standard, Land Sector and Removals Standard, provides companies with clear guidance on how to monitor and report their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, CO2 removals, and other metrics related to agricultural activity or, more broadly, land use.

This standard builds on and complements other GHG Protocol standards, particularly the Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard and the Corporate Value Chain (Scope 3) Accounting and Reporting Standard, which form the foundation for compiling a corporate GHG inventory across all sectors. It was designed to address a significant gap: until now, many activities affecting carbon stocks and flows have not been captured in GHG inventories. From its implementation, scheduled on 1 January 2027, companies operating in the agricultural sector, or those seeking to include CO₂ removals via agricultural practices, geological capture and storage, or within their products in their GHG inventory, will be required to follow this standard to ensure consistency in both calculation and emissions reporting.

The standard is intended for all companies and at all levels of the value chain. It is important to note, however, that this initial version does not cover the forestry sector, as it does not specify requirements for companies managing forest land or participating in the forest products supply chain. Nevertheless, even though forestry is not included, the standard still offers valuable guidance for managers of agroforestry and silvopastoral systems, helping them track changes in soil carbon and emissions arising from the conversion of natural forests into plantations or from forest land management activities.

The standard is divided into four main sections, each providing specific guidance on managing different aspects of emissions. The most substantial and innovative part is the second, which focuses on defining requirements and recommendations for corporate GHG reporting. In particular, chapters seven to eleven outline the requirements for calculating GHG emissions from land-use change, agricultural management, and biogenic products. For companies opting to include CO₂ removals in their inventories, chapters twelve, thirteen, and fourteen provide guidance on calculating net CO₂ removals from soil carbon accumulation and geological storage. Finally, chapter fifteen addresses companies wishing to report carbon storage in products.

Requirements for companies in the agricultural sector

For the agricultural sector, the new standard introduces a range of metrics to accurately assess the impact of corporate activities on atmospheric GHG concentrations. One of the principal categories of emissions is “Land use change” (LUC), that is, changes in land use, which is crucial for monitoring the expansion of agricultural land.

The standard stipulates that whenever land use is altered, whether within a company’s operations or along its value chain, any GHG emissions resulting from that change must be recorded. This principle also applies to land carbon leakage, which occurs when organisations adopt practices that relocate agricultural production, such as using agricultural raw materials for non-food purposes or reducing output due to changes in land-use management. In such cases, the expansion of agriculture into areas not directly controlled by the company leads to increased emissions. Consequently, companies implementing these practices are required to include the associated land-use change emissions in their GHG inventory.

The standard also calls for the quantification of emissions arising from agricultural land management, including activities such as soil preparation, pruning, and harvesting. These operations can alter soil carbon stocks and must be accounted for as “Land management net biogenic CO2 emissions”.

Beyond CO2, the agricultural sector is a significant source of other greenhouse gases, including methane and nitrous oxide, which arise from practices such as enteric fermentation, manure management, and fertiliser use. The category “Land management production emissions” is designed specifically to report these GHGs, listed separately from biogenic CO₂ emissions.

Another key aspect of an agricultural company’s GHG inventory concerns emissions from biogenic products, which the new standard requires to be reported in two distinct categories: “Biogenic product CO₂ emissions” (CO₂ only) and “Biogenic product emissions” (all other GHGs). These emissions occur when agricultural products oxidise during their life cycle and must be reported separately from other GHG emissions and CO₂ removals, providing an accurate overview of carbon flows throughout the life cycle of agricultural products.

Requirements for reporting CO₂ removals

CO₂ removals represent the net transfer of greenhouse gases from the atmosphere to a non-atmospheric carbon reservoir. Reporting CO₂ removals is optional; however, if companies choose to include them in their inventory, they must do so separately from emissions. CO₂ removals are categorised according to the process that transfers carbon from the atmosphere (sink) to the reservoir (pool) in which it is stored.

The standard recognises two types of sinks for atmospheric CO₂ removal: biological (such as photosynthesis in plants) and technological (such as direct air capture). Similarly, it identifies two types of pools: land-based (carbon stored in terrestrial reservoirs, such as vegetation or soil) and geological (underground storage).

For land-based pools, according to the standard, net increases in carbon stored in reservoirs, such as plant biomass or soil carbon, can be accounted for as CO₂ removals. For geological pools, net increases in stored carbon, achieved either through direct air carbon capture and storage (DACCS) or biomass carbon capture and storage (BECCS), may also be counted as CO₂ removals.

In all cases, however, in order to report removals, companies must ensure complete reporting also of emissions resulting from the process and management of pools. Companies are therefore required to monitor ongoing carbon storage over time and report any losses. If a carbon pool leaves the boundaries of the organisation’s GHG inventory, these losses must be recorded as “reversals”, meaning the return of CO₂ to the atmosphere.

Another key aspect of a GHG inventory concerns carbon stored in products during their use phase. Carbon derived from CO₂ removals that contributes to an annual increase in product carbon pools can be reported under the “Product carbon storage” category. This is particularly relevant for products based on technological CO₂ removal (TCDR). For accurate reporting, companies must report all emissions across the product life cycle separately.

Also read: Northern Kenya Rangelands Carbon Project, a soil carbon market

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