Latest Microsoft Carbon Credit Purchase Supports Grasslands, Ranchers
Habitat Banking: A Innovative Approach to Conservation
Habitat banking is a market-based conservation approach that allows landowners to generate revenue by restoring and preserving habitats for endangered species…..
Environmental Building Rules 'A Challenge'
Enforcing environmental laws forcing developers to improve wildlife habitats will be a “challenge”, ecologists have warned. Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) means sites have to be assessed and developers must commit to delivering an improvement in biodiversity that lasts over a 30-year period.
Habitat banking is a market-based conservation approach that allows landowners to generate revenue by restoring and preserving habitats for endangered species. This innovative strategy has gained popularity worldwide, offering a win-win solution for both the environment and landowners.
Carbon Credits Benefit Ranchers Using Regenerative Agriculture
Grassroots Carbon partners with ranchers that have grazing cattle, more than 500 acres of land, and are practicing or considering regenerative agriculture.
Partners are paid 80% of the overall carbon credit sale, determined based on the number of carbon credits generated while under contract, allowing participants to improve their land while generating additional income. So far, Grassroots Carbon has disbursed about $2 million to ranchers throughout the U.S.
One key regenerative agricultural practice for grasslands is rotational grazing, a technique that involves dividing land into paddocks and moving livestock through the different areas, leaving other parts of the land open. Rotational grazing allows grasses to rest and regrow to grazing height, overall improving soil structure, biodiversity, and carbon sequestration potential.
A number of new technologies have also been developed to help farmers map soils, including Grassroots Carbon’s tool, PastureMap. These applications may further improve regenerative agricultural practices as an increasing number of farmers work to benefit from carbon markets.
“Supporting high-quality soil carbon credit solutions is part of Microsoft’s carbon removal strategy,“ said Phil Goodman, director of Microsoft’s carbon removal portfolio. “This project with Grassroots Carbon utilizes PastureMap, a measurement, reporting, and verification (MRV) software that improves grassland management in the US by incentivizing ranchers’ transition to rotational grazing. Microsoft is excited to work with Grassroots Carbon to advance the soil carbon market through MRV innovations and the production of large data sets of soil carbon and ecological data.”