Advance registration now required for obtaining carbon credits

An important change has come to Alberta’s Carbon Offset System. Farmers must be registered with an aggregation company prior to May 1 or they will not be able to claim credits for the 2018 year for the Conservation Cropping protocol, the main offset that farmers currently use.

This is a change from previous years, when farmers could choose an aggregator and supply records to them later in the year.

This year, farmers will need to report the land locations they are planning to manage as no till in advance. If changes in tillage occur during the year, these areas can be deducted at a later date.

Alberta Environment and Parks sets the rules for the offset system and are changing to greater preplanning in the entire Alberta carbon system. For more details, see the Standard for Greenhouse Gas Emission Offset document on the Alberta Agriculture website (view PDF).

Offset projects must comply with the most recent offset credit system protocols and program requirements published by Environment and Parks.

There are four accredited carbon offset aggregation companies. A list of those companies and contact info can be found on Alberta Agriculture’s website (view PDF). For assistance, call the Ag-Info Centre at 310-FARM (3276).