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Press release

Integrity Council approves Adipic Acid and further clean cookstove methodology versions

Written by ICVCM

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Carbon crediting program ERS also announced as CCP-Eligible in latest batch of assessment decisions.

The Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market today announced that the following methodologies and methodology versions meet its high-integrity Core Carbon Principles (CCPs), provided that certain conditions are met:

  • Gold Standard – Reduced Emissions from Cooking and Heating – Technologies and Practices to Displace Decentralized Thermal Energy Consumption (TPDDTEC) version 2-3.1 (with conditions that require alignment with version 4)
  • Climate Action Reserve – U.S Adipic Acid Production Protocol (with a condition on leakage)
  • Climate Action Reserve – China Adipic Acid Production Protocol (no conditions required)

The Integrity Council also announced that the carbon crediting program Ecosystem Restoration Standard (ERS) has become CCP-Eligible after passing the Integrity Council’s program-level assessment.

Approval of clean cookstove methodologies

Clean cookstove projects replace traditional, inefficient cooking methods with cleaner, more efficient stoves. This can be achieved through improved cookstoves that burn biomass fuel more efficiently or by switching to cleaner fuels. These projects offer multiple benefits, including reduced emissions, improved air quality, and reduced time spent collecting firewood, particularly for women and children.

The approval of TPDDTEC versions 2-3.1 inclusive follows an earlier approval of version 4 of the same methodology, along with two other clean cookstove methodologies in March 2025, and means that the Integrity Council has now completed its assessment of current cookstove methodologies.

Approximately 62 million credits have been issued under the approved TPDDTEC methodology versions to date. However, for credits to be approved to have the CCP label, a number of additional conditions must be met to ensure conservative carbon accounting. For credits issued under the versions approved today, the following conditions must be met in addition to the conditions set out in ICVCM’s approval of version 4 of the same methodology:

  • A reassessment of baseline emissions has been conducted at least once within the five years immediately preceding the start of an issued monitoring period
  • No emission reductions are claimed from cookstoves that are aged beyond their technical life – unless replaced or retrofitted with a performance guarantee
  • Project emissions from transport of fuels is either proven to be negligible (<5%), or accounted for in emission reduction calculations
  • Emission reductions are excluded or discounted where the project is found to displace or operate alongside another mitigation activity

It is the Integrity Council’s understanding that no issued credits have met all of these conditions and therefore no currently issued credits will become CCP labelled. However a large pipeline of projects (at least 600 projects) are using the TPDDTEC CCP-Approved methodology versions. These projects can now choose to update their carbon accounting calculations to meet the conditions for CCP labelling. Future credits issued under these updated projects could be tagged with the CCP label.

Amy Merrill, CEO of the Integrity Council, said: “The clean cooking sector is important because of the significant potential for positive social and health impacts as well as environmental ones. Now that the Integrity Council has completed our assessment of cookstove methodologies, we hope to see the market transition to CCP-Approved methodologies so that investors and buyers are able to invest in these important emission reduction projects with confidence and at scale.”

Approval of Adipic Acid methodologies

Adipic acid is a white crystalline powder used in the production of nylon, foams, safety airbags, coatings, adhesives, and food additives. The production of adipic acid is a significant concern for climate change because it releases nitrous oxide (N ₂O) – a greenhouse gas with a warming potential 298 times that of carbon dioxide. Besides being a potent greenhouse gas, nitrous oxide is also the leading driver of the depletion of the ozone layer.

The current annual production of adipic acid is estimated at 2.5 million metric tonnes, with China and the United States representing the two largest sources of production.

Nitrous oxide abatement technologies in adipic acid production convert nitrous oxide into nitrogen and oxygen through catalytic destruction, thermal destruction and/or recycling, helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, protect the ozone layer and improve air quality.

The approved methodologies incentivize adipic acid manufacturing facilities to implement nitrous oxide abatement technologies by enabling them to issue carbon credits and receive payments in exchange for avoided emissions. Approximately 14.5 million credits have been issued under these methodologies.

For credits issued under US Adipic Acid Production Protocol version 1 to receive the CCP label, the following condition must be met:

  • Adipic acid production levels must not exceed the Title V permit production level (Title V is a former US law that required an operating permit for source emissions above 100KtCO2e).

This condition ensures that where market leakage cannot be demonstrated in line with the methodology requirements, a CCP Tag cannot be awarded for any crediting that goes beyond a business-as-usual scenario previously established by law.

While there had previously been leakage concerns with older CDM methodologies, the assessment found that the approved methodologies and the Integrity Council’s additional condition successfully address these concerns and minimise any risk of leakage.

Approval of Ecosystem Restoration Standard (ERS)

The Integrity Council is pleased to announce that Ecosystem Restoration Standard (ERS) has become CCP-Eligible after passing its program level assessment. CCP-Eligible status means that programs have demonstrated that they meet the rigorous CCP criteria for effective governance, transparency, tracking and robust independent third-party validation and verification. They have also met the CCPs’ program-related rules on robust quantification of emission reductions and removals, no double counting and sustainable development benefits and safeguards.

Headquartered in Paris, ERS was founded in 2020. It focuses on certifying ecosystem restoration projects under its Afforestation, Reforestation, and Revegetation (ARR) methodology. Following ERS’ approval at the program level, this methodology will now enter the Integrity Council’s methodology assessment pipeline.

ERS made a number of revisions to its standard during the assessment process to ensure compliance with ICVCM’s assessment framework. For example:

  • Substantial revisions were made to ERS’ General Project Requirements, including expanded guidance on uncertainty, leakage monitoring, and baseline establishment in the context of existing policies.
  • ERS’ Programme Safeguards were significantly strengthened to address sustainable development safeguards and benefits: the minimisation of negative biodiversity impacts, protection of Indigenous Peoples (IPs) and Local Communities (LCs), customary rights, and explicit requirements for Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC).
  • Improvements were also made to ERS’ stakeholder engagement processes, public commenting, and SDG contribution reporting.

Thibault Sorret, CEO of ERS, said: “We are deeply proud of this recognition from the ICVCM, which reaffirms the rigour of the ERS Programme and the real, lasting impact of the projects we certify, for climate, nature, and local communities. We developed our standards and methodologies from the ground up with alignment to the Core Carbon Principles in mind, and we’re proud to see that effort validated.”

Annette Nazareth, Chair of the Integrity Council Governing Board, said: “We congratulate ERS on meeting our rigorous criteria and becoming the seventh carbon crediting program to be approved as CCP-Eligible.

We are pleased to see how ERS, along with other carbon-crediting programs and the market more broadly continues to respond to our assessment decisions, with demand for CCP-labelled credits at a premium; new methodologies and projects being developed in line with our framework and projects transitioning to CCP-Approved methodologies. We look forward to seeing the impact that this new generation of high integrity credits will have on confidence, investment and climate action.”

Ends.

Notes for editors

For more information and to arrange interviews please contact:

Issuance and project data

Issuance and project data obtained from the Gold Standard Registry on 21 May 2025.

Unlike version 4, TPDDTEC v2-3.1 allows crediting of different technology types, including safe water supply and biodigesters as well as cookstoves. The issuance and project data cited above include all technology types, however ICVCM’s approval of TPDDTEC v2-3.1 is limited to cookstoves only.

Explanation of leakage concerns

Carbon leakage occurs when a project designed to reduce emissions in one location results in increased emissions elsewhere, potentially negating the intended benefits. This may have occurred under CDM Adipic Acid methodologies as some companies shifted production away from plants with established abatement technology to CDM plants in order to issue more credits.

About the Integrity Council

The Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market (Integrity Council) is an independent, non-profit governance body for the voluntary carbon market, which aims to ensure the voluntary carbon market accelerates a just transition to 1.5°C.

The Integrity Council aims to set and maintain a voluntary global threshold standard for quality in the voluntary carbon market. The threshold standard is based on the Integrity Council’s Core Carbon Principles (CCPs) and is implemented through an Assessment Framework that sets out what high quality means by reference to those principles. The result is a threshold standard and label that provide a credible, rigorous, and readily accessible means of identifying high-quality carbon credits.