Carbon Registry
A platform that tracks the issuance, ownership, and retirement of carbon credits.
What is a Carbon Registry?
A carbon registry is an online database or platform that records the issuance, ownership, transfer, and retirement of carbon credits. It acts as a transparent ledger, ensuring that each carbon credit is unique, traceable, and accounted for, preventing double-counting and maintaining the integrity of carbon markets.
Why is a Carbon Registry important?
A carbon registry is vitally important for the transparency, integrity, and trust of any carbon market, whether voluntary or compliance. It provides a centralized, publicly accessible system that prevents double-counting of credits, ensures traceability from issuance to retirement, and confirms that carbon reduction or removal claims are unique and legitimate.
Related terms
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Frequently asked questions
Carbon registries are typically operated by standard-setting bodies (e.g., Verra, Gold Standard, American Carbon Registry), national governments, or specialized independent organizations.
A registry records details about the project (e.g., type, location, methodology), the quantity of credits issued, the unique serial number of each credit, the current owner, and the date when a credit is retired (used to offset emissions).
Each credit on a registry has a unique serial number. Once a credit is retired (used), it is permanently removed from circulation and cannot be used again, preventing multiple entities from claiming the same emission reduction or removal.