Forests for Carbon

This briefing introduces forest carbon offsets in the southern United States, explaining the process of carbon sequestration, the types of offset projects available, and the quality criteria required for market credibility. It notes that while offset income may not currently outcompete real estate development, it can help cover incremental costs of forest sustainability.

• Forest carbon offsets are defined as one metric ton of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) that is either newly sequestered or avoided, which emitters purchase to compensate for emissions elsewhere. There are four primary types of projects: reforestation, afforestation, improved forest management, and forest conservation/avoided conversion.
• To be credible and financially feasible for woodland owners, offset projects must satisfy specific quality criteria: permanence, verifiability, additionality/surplus, enforcement, and assurance that the offset is real, which includes addressing negative leakage.
• For many woodland owners in the southern United States, income from forest carbon offsets is likely not enough to compete with real estate development, though it may cover incremental costs such as sustainable forest management certification or property taxes.

APA

World Resources Institute (n.d.). Forests for Carbon. https://www.wri.org/research/forests-carbon

Chicago

World Resources Institute. Forests for Carbon. n.d. https://www.wri.org/research/forests-carbon.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=Forests for Carbon |url=https://www.wri.org/research/forests-carbon |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitutendforests, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{Forests for Carbon}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, url = {https://www.wri.org/research/forests-carbon}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }