📄ICR Definitions v3.1

Summary

ICR serves as a framework for climate projects of any size, promoting environmental integrity through accelerating credible action and ensuring credibility, consistency, and transparency in quantification, monitoring, reporting, validation, and verification

Introduction

This document provides definitions of terms used in the ICR program. Definitions from ISO 14064-2, ISO 14064-3, ISO 14068-1, ISO 14065, ICAO and UNFCCC are also applicable for the ICR program. If there is a discrepancy between the ICR definitions and those provided in ISO standards, the ICR definitions will take precedence.

Abbreviations

Definitions

Account holder means an organization (or an individual) that has beneficial ownership of the right to the instruments held with the account.

Account or registry account means a registry account where users or account holders hold their instruments.

Accreditation body means authoritative body that performs accreditation. The authority of an accreditation body is generally derived from governments.

Accreditation means third-party attestation related to a conformity assessment body conveying formal demonstration of its competence to carry out specific conformity assessment tasks.

Active FCUs mean FCUs that have been verified that impacts are real and can be used for offsetting emissions or for other environmental claims.

Additionality means that a climate project must deliver environmental benefits beyond what would have occurred in a baseline scenario. It requires demonstrating, through additionality tests or criteria, that the GHG emission mitigation is additional to statutory requirements, common practices, or financial constraints, ensuring the project results in real, measurable GHG emission mitigations that wouldn't have happened without the intervention.

Adjustment accounts mean accounts on the ICR registry in which project proponents deposit part of issued ICCs to meet possible non-performance, non-permanence or non-corresponding adjustments events according to the ICR requirement document, the ICR process requirements and any other applicable scheme requirements.

Adjustment ICCs mean non-tradeable credits held in pooled adjustment accounts on the ICR registry in which project proponents deposit part of issued ICCs to meet possible non-performance, non-permanence or non-corresponding adjustments events.

Admin means a user on the registry that has an overall control of an organizational account or projects with the privileges of requesting review of projects, issuance of instruments, transfer, retirements, cancellations

Affected GHG SSR mean GHG source, GHG sink and GHG reservoir influenced by a GHG project, through changes in market demand or supply for associated products or services, or through physical displacement. (see also Leakage)

Applicable law means any applicable local, state, national, or international law, statute, regulation, ordinance, or other means of establishing legal rights and obligations.

Approved GHG program means Clean Development Mechanism.

Approved VVB means a VVB that is accredited under an ICR approved GHG program and/or accredited under ISO 17029 and 14065 by an accreditation body that is a member of the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) and has signed an agreement with ICR for conducting validation and verification of GHG statements under the ICR program.

Article 6.2 ICC means ICCs representing ITMOs that are eligible for international transfer.

Auditor user means a user that has access to all information about a project on the registry but can’t modify information. He can upload ValR, VerR and VVR to the registry and request review.

Authorization for international transfer means approval or authorization issued by a host country towards project GHG emission mitigation outcomes for use as ITMO and subject to corresponding adjustment.

Authorized representative means an entity authorized to represent and act on behalf of a project.

Baseline scenario means a hypothetical reference case that best represents the conditions most likely to occur in the absence of a proposed GHG project.

Beneficial ownership means any contractual or other rights to direct benefit or control the sale or other disposition of, cancellation, or retirement of an instrument.

Blockchain means a decentralized, distributed digital ledger technology that records transactions across multiple computers in a secure and transparent manner. Each block in the chain contains a unique cryptographic hash of the previous block, ensuring the integrity and immutability of the data.

Bundled project means a set of project activities combining into one comprehensive project.

Business day means any day except a Saturday, Sunday, or national holiday in Iceland. A Business Day shall open at 9:00 a.m. and close at 5:00 p.m. GMT.

Cancellation means permanent removal of instruments, e.g. ICCs from circulation in the ICR registry for purposes other than retirement.

Carbon credit means a tradable, transferrable instrument issued electronically representing one (1) metric tonne of CO2 equivalent (t CO2-e) originating from GHG emission mitigation, which can be used for contributing towards climate actions, compensating for, or offsetting emissions.

Carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2-e) means a unit for comparing the radiative forcing of a GHG to that of carbon dioxide.

Carbon dioxide removal (CDR) means the process, including natural processes, of removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and storing it for decades, centuries, or millennia.

Carbon footprint means sum of the direct GHG emissions, indirect GHG emissions and GHG removals, if applicable, within the boundary of an organization, quantified in accordance with ISO 14064-1 expressed as t CO2-e.

Claim means a public declaration by an entity for offsetting or compensation for GHG emissions.

Climate project, GHG project or Project[1] means an activity or activities that alter the conditions of a GHG baseline, and which result in GHG emission mitigations.

Common practice means the typical or standard activities or technologies that are widely implemented in a specific sector and region without the influence of VCM incentives.

Compensation means supporting climate projects by purchasing carbon credits to mitigate impacts of carbon footprint of an organization. Compensation is distinct from offsetting.

Conformity assessment activity means an activity conducted by a conformity assessment body when assessing conformity. In the context of the ICR program activities covered by accreditation limits to validation and verification.

Conformity assessment body means a body that performs conformity assessment activities and that can be the object of accreditation

Controlled GHG SSR[2] means GHG source, GHG sink and GHG reservoir where the operation is under the direction and influence of the GHG project proponent through financial, policy, management, or other instruments.

Conversion means conversion of issued ex-ante ICCs or FCUs, based on verification of real GHG emission mitigations to ex-post ICCs. Ex-post ICCs or FCUs can be retired and used for the purpose of offsetting emissions.

Corrective action means realizing and defining a problem, containing the non-conformity, determining its cause, and taking appropriate action to prevent it from happening again.

Corresponding adjustment means adjustment effected through a subtraction for GHG emission mitigation, e.g., ITMOs, transferred and addition for GHG emission mitigation e.g., ITMOs acquired in national GHG accounting towards NDCs.

Crediting period means the period in which a project attributable to a GHG emission mitigation activity can result in the issuance of ICCs.

Criteria means policy, procedure or requirement used as a reference against which a GHG statement is compared. In terms of the ICR program, criteria mean ISO 14064-2, ICR requirement document, where relevant approved methodology and other criteria specifically identified.

Double claiming means when the same GHG emission mitigation outcome is claimed by two different parties towards achieving its targets, e.g., once by the country in which the mitigation outcome occurs, and once by the party using a carbon credit.

Double counting means when GHG emission mitigation outcome is counted more than once. Double counting can occur through double issuance, double use, and/or double claiming.

Double issuance means when more than one carbon credit is issued for the same GHG emission mitigation outcome, e.g., when the same GHG emission mitigation activity is registered under two different GHG programs.

Double use means when the same instrument is counted twice towards achieving a GHG claim, e.g., if a party uses the same instrument to meet two different GHG claims.

Durability means the period that GHGs are effectively removed from the atmosphere and securely stored in a reservoir preventing re-release.

Editor user means a user that has the authority to modify information about a project but not the authority to request review of projects.

Energy flow means input to or output from a unit process or product system, quantified in energy units. Energy flow that is an input can be called an energy input; energy flow that is an output can be called an energy output.

Environmental benefits mean benefits to the environment other than GHG emission mitigations.

Ex-ante ICCs mean instruments that have been issued in the ICR registry from a registered project that an approved VVB has validated. Ex-ante ICCs can’t be retired.

Ex-ante refers to future events that are based on forecasts or predictions rather than concrete results, translated from Latin it means before the event.

Ex-post ICCs mean ICCs that have been verified that GHG emission mitigations are real and can be used for offsetting emissions or for other environmental claims.

Ex-post is the opposite of ex-ante. Translated from Latin it means after the event and compares expectations versus actuals once the ex-ante analysis's event passes based on historical knowledge.

External risk advisor means a 3rd party organisation that is expert in conducting risk management and mitigation assessments and which holds an investment grade credit rating and accreditation by a suitable regulatory or governance body. The role of an external risk advisor is to support ICR in proactively identifying, managing, mitigating and reporting on risks that might impact upon ICR and its stakeholders.

Forest carbon code means a set of requirements for voluntary carbon sequestration projects that incorporate core principles of good carbon management as part of sustainable forest management in Iceland developed, issued, and managed by the Icelandic Forestry Service.

Forest carbon unit means carbon credit issued according to the Forest carbon code.

GHG baseline means a quantitative reference(s) of GHG emissions and/or GHG removals that would have occurred in the absence of a GHG project and provides the baseline scenario for comparison with project GHG emissions and/or GHG removals.

GHG claim or claim means a public declaration made by an individual or an organization regarding GHG emissions and actions taken to manage, reduce, compensate and offset those emissions.

GHG emission factor means a coefficient relating GHG activity data with the GHG emission mitigations.

GHG emission mitigation means human intervention to reduce GHG emissions or enhance GHG removals or both.

GHG emission mitigation outcomes mean the impacts resulting from project activities on climate change measured in t CO2-e.

GHG emission reduction means a quantified decrease in GHG emissions between a baseline scenario and the GHG project.

GHG emissions mean a release of a GHGs into the atmosphere.

GHG program means a voluntary or mandatory international, national, or subnational system or scheme that registers, accounts or manages GHG emissions mitigation activities or climate projects.

GHG removal enhancement means a quantified increase in GHG removals between a baseline scenario and the GHG project.

GHG removal factor means a coefficient relating GHG activity data with the GHG removal.

GHG removal means withdrawal of a GHG from the atmosphere by GHG sinks. See also Carbon dioxide removal (CDR).

GHG report[3] means a standalone document intended to communicate a GHG project’s GHG-related information to its intended users, e.g. PDD, MR supporting a GHG statement.

GHG reservoir means a component, other than the atmosphere, that has the capacity to accumulate GHGs and to store and release them.

GHG sink means a process that removes a GHG from the atmosphere.

GHG source means a process that releases a GHG into the atmosphere.

GHG statement[4] means factual and objective declaration that provides the subject matter for the verification or validation.

GHG storage means a process for retaining captured GHGs so that they do not reach the atmosphere.

Global warming potential (GWP)[5] means an index, based on radiative properties of GHGs, measuring the radiative forcing following a pulse emission of a unit mass of a given GHG in the present-day atmosphere integrated over a chosen time horizon, relative to that of carbon dioxide (CO2).

Good practice guidance means guidance originating from a recognized origin, such as industry practices and associations, similar projects, benchmarking, GHG program methodologies, tools or modules or others that are fit for purpose.

Greenhouse gas or GHG means gaseous constituent of the atmosphere, both natural and anthropogenic, that absorbs and emits radiation at specific wavelengths within the spectrum of infrared radiation emitted by the Earth’s surface, the atmosphere, and clouds.[6]

Grouped project means a project where additional instances of project activities, which meet pre-established eligibility criteria, may be added subsequent to project validation.

Host country means a country that hosts activities or projects in which GHG emission mitigations are generated.

ICC means international carbon credit.

ICR escrow account means an account on the ICR registry where ICR may hold ICCs for settlement of transactions with ICCs between third parties ensuring delivery of ICCs upon fulfilment of contractual terms.

ICR forums means VVB forum, project proponent and developer forum and stakeholder forum.

ICR means International Carbon Registry.

ICR methodology means a methodology developed under the ICR methodology approval process conforming to the ICR methodology requirements.

ICR program means the GHG program operated by ICR which establishes rules and requirements that operationalize the ICR requirements to enable the validation of GHG projects, and the verification of GHG emission mitigations.

ICR registry or registry means the registry technology which houses, records ownership, originates, cancels, and facilitates the issuance, transfer, retirement, and data retention of various environmental credits.

ICR requirements mean requirements adopted by ICR and outlined in the ICR requirement document and ICR process requirements and the ICR program managed by ICR, and any other standard produced and administered by ICR from time to time.

ICR site or website means www.carbonregistry.com

Impartiality[7] means the presence of objectivity.

Inactive FCUs mean FCUs that have been issued in the ICR registry from a registered project that an approved VVB has validated. Inactive FCUs can’t be retired.

Instrument means a unit issued by and held in the ICR registry representing the right of an account holder in whose account the unit is recorded to claim the achievement represented by the instrument. Such achievement may include, but is not limited to, i) a GHG emission mitigation in an amount of one (1) metric tonne of CO2 equivalent that has been verified and/or validated in accordance with the applicable ICR requirements and any operational documents, ii) guarantee of the nature and origin of energy is produced from a renewable natural resource in an amount of one (1) megawatt-hour (MWh). Recordation of an instrument in the holder's account at the ICR registry is evidence of that account holder's entitlement to that instrument.

Insurance eligibility criteria mean the criteria of insurance policies that are eligible to be used for projects as defined in Appendix II of the ICR requirement document.

Insurance policy means a document detailing the terms and conditions of a legally binding contract with an insurance provider.

Insurance provider means a licensed insurance company providing insurance to cover non-permanence, non-performance or non-corresponding adjustment events.

Intended user[8] means an individual or organization identified by those reporting GHG-related information as being the one who relies on that information to make decisions.

Interested party see Stakeholder.

International transfer means transfer of an ITMO authorized for use towards NDCs pursuant to article 6, paragraph 3 of the Paris Agreement, under CORSIA pursuant to CORSIA eligibility criteria or voluntary means,

International transferred mitigation outcomes means an engagement on a voluntary basis in cooperative approaches that may be used towards nations meeting their NDCs, subject to the application of a corresponding adjustment in the host country as defined in 1/CMA.3

ISO 14064-1 means ISO 14064-1:2018 Greenhouse gases — Part 1: Specification with guidance at the organization level for quantification and reporting of greenhouse gas emissions and removals.

ISO 14064-2 means ISO 14064-2:2019 Greenhouse gases — Part 2: Specification with guidance at the project level for quantification, monitoring and reporting of greenhouse gas emission reductions or removal enhancements.

ISO 14064-3 means ISO 14064-3:2020 Greenhouse gases — Part 3: Specification with guidance for the verification and validation of greenhouse gas statements.

ISO 14065 means ISO 14065:2020 General principles and requirements for bodies validating and verifying environmental information.

ISO 14066 means ISO 14066:2023 Greenhouse gases — Competence requirements for greenhouse gas validation teams and verification teams.

ISO 14068-1 means ISO 14068-1:2023 Climate change management — Transition to net zero — Part 1: Carbon neutrality.

ISO 17029 means ISO 17029:2019 Conformity assessment — General principles and requirements for validation and verification bodies

Issue or issuance means the creation of serialized instruments as verified GHG emissions mitigations (ex-post ICCs) or validated GHG emission mitigations (ex-ante ICCs) for a project over a specified period of time OR the creation of serialized instruments as verified GO, equivalent to the number of verified productions of energy by renewable source over a specified period of time. Issued instruments are delivered to the beneficial owners account for transfer, activation, retirement, or cancelation.

Leakage means GHG emission mitigations offset by affected GHG SSRs.

Legal title means the official and recognized ownership of an asset, as documented through legal instruments and acknowledged by the relevant legal authority. It grants the holder the rights to use, control, and transfer the asset and is enforceable in a court of law.

Level of assurance[9] means the degree of confidence in the GHG statement (3.2.1)

Limited assurance means level of assurance where the nature and extent of the verification activities have been designed to provide a reduced level of assurance on historical data and information.

Market participant means an account holder in the ICR registry who does so in the capacity as a broker, agent, or representative of any kind on behalf of a third party for the purposes of utilizing the ICR services.

Material flow means movements of a material or group of materials between various quantity centres within an organization or along a supply chain.

Material means information capable of influencing the decisions of intended users.

Material misstatement means individual misstatement or the aggregate of actual misstatements in the GHG statement that could affect the decisions of the intended users.

Materiality[10] means a concept that individual misstatements or the aggregation of misstatements could influence the intended users’ decisions.

Methodology description means the written document describing in detail and specifying criteria and procedures for specific project activities, identification of the project boundary, determination of the baseline scenario, demonstration of additionality, quantification of net GHG emission mitigations, and specification of monitoring procedures in line with the requirements of ICR requirement document and ISO 14064-2.

Methodology developer means a project proponent, stakeholder, or other entity developing a methodology, module, or tools.

Methodology development fund means a fund operated by the ICR where methodology fees are deposited. The fund is intended to support financing of new methodologies and methodology review and revision according to the ICR methodology approval process.

Methodology means a set of requirements and procedures which apply to specific project activities for identifying the project boundary, determining the baseline scenario, demonstrating additionality, quantifying net GHG emission mitigations, and specifying the monitoring procedures.

Misstatement means errors, omissions, misreporting or misrepresentations in the GHG statement.

Monitoring means a continuous or periodic assessment of GHG emissions mitigations or other GHG related data.

Monitoring report means a report summarizing results from a continuous or periodic assessment of GHG emission mitigations to support a GHG statement.

Multiple project activities mean several project activities, representing a bundled or grouped project.

Nationally Determined Contribution means efforts by each country to the Paris agreement to reduce national emissions and adapt to the impacts of climate change and is updated every five years.

Non-conformity means a non-fulfilment of a requirement.

Non-performance event means an event where the project has failed to deliver GHG emission mitigation outcomes over a monitoring period compared to the validated GHG emission mitigations.

Non-performance event report means a document describing and reporting a non-performance event using the ICR non-performance report template

Non-performance means a failure by a project to deliver GHG emission mitigations compared to validated GHG emission mitigations where ex-ante ICCs have been issued.

Non-permanence event means any event resulting in a loss of more than five percent of previously verified GHG emission mitigations due to losses in carbon stocks in sinks or reservoir included in the project boundary.

Non-permanence event report means a document describing a non-permanence or reversal event using the ICR non-permanence event template

Non-permanence or Reversal means where net GHG emission mitigations in any monitoring period is negative. The amount of a reversal is calculated as the difference between the current total to-date net GHG emission mitigations of the project, compared to the total to-date net GHG emission mitigations of the project at the latest verification.

Offsetting means counterbalancing a carbon footprint by retiring a carbon credit in a public registry.

Organization means an entity responsible for emitting GHGs into the atmosphere as a result of its activities or operations and intends reduce GHG emissions through internal and external activities and to compensate or offset for GHG emissions.

Pre-registration means listing a project, on the ICR registry that is in development but not implemented yet or completed validation.

Privacy policy means the ICR GDPR privacy policy available on the ICR website as amended from time to time.

Program advisory panel (PAP) means a group of experts providing advice for developing the ICR program.

Project activity means a specific set of technologies, measures and/or outcomes that alter the conditions identified in the baseline scenario and which result in GHG emission mitigations.

Project agreement means an agreement between the ICR and the project proponent for the registration of a project and issuance of ICCs.

Project design description means a document describing the project’s GHG emission mitigation activities using the ICR project design description template or the project design description template specified by the relevant GHG program.

Project developer means an entity responsible for identifying, developing, and implementing a GHG project.

Project proponent means an entity holding statutory, property, or contractual right over plant, equipment, or process, land, vegetation, or conservation or management process that generates GHG emission mitigations and has overall control and responsibility for a GHG project.

Project type means either CDR, RAD, or hybrid (both).

Reasonable assurance means level of assurance where the nature and extent of the verification activities have been designed to provide a high but not absolute level of assurance on historical data and information.

Registration means a full registration of a project which has been validated.

Registry user-ID or user-ID means the login user-ID appointed to the user to access a registry account.

Related GHG SSR[11] means a GHG source, GHG sink and GHG reservoir that has material or energy flows into, out of, or within the GHG project.

Representation deed means a deed between the project proponent and an entity and/or individual(s) for whom the project proponent has assigned all, or partially its rights to the representation of the project.

Retirement means permanent removal of instruments, e.g. ex-post ICCs from circulation. The term retirement applies to the use of an ex-post ICCs by an organization or individuals to meet voluntary commitments or compliance obligations. The term is distinct from cancellations.

Risk adjusted contribution means the level of adjustment account contributions per project, following a risk assessment conducted by ICR.

Scheme controller means an entity administering a national or subnational emission trading or offsetting scheme including but not limited to the FCC and as amended from time to time.

Scheme instrument means a credit issued by a scheme controller for a GHG emission mitigations of one metric ton of carbon dioxide equivalent, pursuant to the scheme requirements, including but not limited to the FCC.

Scheme requirements mean the requirements adopted by a scheme controller for a national or sub-national emissions trading or offsets scheme, including any protocols adopted by the scheme controller and which may be amended from time to time.

Sector or sectoral scope means a category of GHG source sectors that apply to a project, based on sectors and source categories set out in Annex A to the Kyoto Protocol.

Stakeholder or Interested party means a person or an organization that can affect, be affected by, or perceive itself to be affected by a decision or activity.

Statutory requirements mean any law, statute, or other regulatory framework, agreements, settlements, or other legally binding mandates.

Sustainable development goals mean 17 global goals established by the United Nations in 2015 as part of the 2030 agenda for sustainable development. They provide a shared blueprint for peace, prosperity, and sustainability, addressing challenges like poverty, inequality, climate change, and environmental degradation. The interconnected goals aim to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all.

Team leader means a person who manages the validation/verification team.

Technical expert means a person who provides specific knowledge or expertise to the validation/verification team.

Tool means a set of criteria and procedures used to support project proponents to demonstrate specific aspects of climate projects.

Transfer means transferring an instrument from one account to another, representing a transfer of beneficial ownership of GHG emission mitigation entitlements

Uncertainty[12] means a parameter associated with the result of quantification that characterizes the dispersion of the values that could be reasonably attributed to the quantified amount.

User guidelines mean all supporting documentation to the ICR requirement document, the ICR process requirements relating to using the ICR registry as amended from time to time.

User means an individual with administration and/or other access permissions to the account holder’s account.

User-account means a user instance in the ICR registry that may be connected to account holder's account holding information on projects, production sites, and/or instruments issued.

Validation and verification body (VVB) means a body performing validation and verification, holding an accreditation from a recognized accreditation program, i.e. ISO 17029/14065, CDM.

Validation means the process of evaluating the reasonableness of the assumptions, limitations, and methods that support a statement about the outcome of future activities.

Validation opinion means a formal written declaration to the intended user on the reasonableness of the assumptions, methods and limitations used to develop forecasts and projections contained in the GHG statement in the project proponents GHG report and confirms conformity with the criteria.

Validation report means a report summarizing the findings and results of a validation.

Validation/verification team[13] means one or more persons conducting validation/verification activities.

Verification means the process of evaluating a GHG statement based on historical data and information to determine if the GHG statement is materially correct and conforms to the criteria.

Verification opinion means a formal written declaration to intended users that provides confidence on the GHG statement in the project proponents GHG report and confirms conformity with the criteria.

Verification report means a report summarizing the findings and results of verification.

Viewer user means a user that has a read-only access to information about a project or an account

Vintage means the year in which the climate project GHG emission mitigation outcomes are generated based on validated estimation of GHG emission mitigation outcomes for ex-ante ICCs or as verified by a VVB for ex-post ICCs.

Appendix – Document History

Activity can include technologies used to alter the conditions of the GHG baseline ↑
A controlled GHG SSR is generally on the GHG project site ↑
GHG report can be a Project design description or a Monitoring report. ↑
The GHG statement is provided in a GHG report. ↑
A list of GHGs with their recognized GWPs is provided in the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Assessment Report[11] ↑
GHGs include carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs), sulphur hexafluoride (SF6). Other examples of GHGs are provided in the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Assessment Report. ↑
Objectivity means that conflict of interest do not exist, or are resolved so as not adversely influence activities. ↑
The intended user can be the ICR program, administrators, regulators, the financial community, or other affected interested parties, such as local communities, government departments, non-governmental organizations or organizations relying on instruments for their GHG claims. ↑
Assurance is provided on historical information. ↑
Materiality can be qualitative or quantitative. ↑
A related GHG SSR is generally upstream or downstream from the GHG project, and can be either on or off the GHG project site. A related GHG SSR also can include activities related to design, construction and decommissioning of a GHG project. ↑
Uncertainty information typically specifies quantitative estimates of the likely dispersion of values
and a qualitative description of the likely causes of the dispersion and can be included in a PDD or MR. ↑
One person of the validation/verification team is appointed as the team leader. The validation/verification team may be accompanied by trainees. ↑

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