Articles
Generation and trading on the voluntary market of carbon credits from olive growing
Article number
1457_51
Pages
405 – 412
Language
English
Abstract
The “OLIVER” (OLIve tree for Verified Emission Reduction generation) project is co-funded by the European Union through the LIFE program; it started in 2023 and will end in 2027. This project has the ambition to make a substantial impact on the greenhouse gas (GHG) balance of the Mediterranean olive crop.
Considering that this crop covers about 4.6 million hectares in the EU (the EU’s largest tree crop), an improvement in its GHG balance would have a significant overall impact.
The project aims to: 1) calculate the avoided emissions and the increase in GHG sequestration achieved through the application of sustainable agronomic practices in olive tree cultivation; 2) calculate the related carbon credits achievable as a result of the previous aim; 3) sell these credits on the voluntary market, providing the farms with a positive economic return and image; 4) constitute a practical application case suitable for the other tree crops.
To achieve these objectives, the project will establish a regulatory framework and certification protocol for the agricultural sector to access the voluntary carbon-credit market, involving a test project with around 100 olive farms located in Italy, Spain, and Greece, totaling around 900 ha.
It is expected that the concrete applicability defined in the project will encourage many other olive and other tree crop farms to follow the same path, greatly increasing the project’s impact.
Considering that this crop covers about 4.6 million hectares in the EU (the EU’s largest tree crop), an improvement in its GHG balance would have a significant overall impact.
The project aims to: 1) calculate the avoided emissions and the increase in GHG sequestration achieved through the application of sustainable agronomic practices in olive tree cultivation; 2) calculate the related carbon credits achievable as a result of the previous aim; 3) sell these credits on the voluntary market, providing the farms with a positive economic return and image; 4) constitute a practical application case suitable for the other tree crops.
To achieve these objectives, the project will establish a regulatory framework and certification protocol for the agricultural sector to access the voluntary carbon-credit market, involving a test project with around 100 olive farms located in Italy, Spain, and Greece, totaling around 900 ha.
It is expected that the concrete applicability defined in the project will encourage many other olive and other tree crop farms to follow the same path, greatly increasing the project’s impact.
Publication
Authors
L. Regni, R. Calisti, A. Cesarini, S. Calisti, P. Proietti
Keywords
Olea europaea L., greenhouse gas balance, voluntary carbon-credit market
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