2023 CODE OF GEORGIA › Title 12 - CONSERVATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES (§§ 12-1-1 — 12-17-6) › Chapter 6 - FOREST RESOURCES AND OTHER PLANT LIFE (§§ 12-6-1 — 12-6-257) › Article 5 - GEORGIA CARBON SEQUESTRATION REGISTRY ACT (§§ 12-6-220 — 12-6-232) › Section 12-6-221 - Definitions

As used in this article, the term:
(1)
"Building embodied carbon" means the global warming potential results from a whole-building life cycle assessment covering all life cycle stages, such as extraction, transportation, manufacturing, construction, and end-of-life, except operational, as further explained in International Standards Organization 21930: 2017: Sustainability in buildings and civil engineering works- Core rules for environmental product declarations of construction products and services as in existence on January 1, 2021.
(2)
"Carbon sequestration results" means the participant's applicable data on the removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere by sinks resulting from:
(A)
Direct human induced land use change or forestry activities in this state;
(B)
Additional human induced activities in this state related to removal by sinks in land use change and forestry categories;
(C)
Additional human induced activities in this state related to removal by sinks in agricultural soils;
(D)
Additional human induced activities in this state related to removals by sinks in products in use from harvested timber or agricultural crops;
(E)
Other human induced activities in this state related to removals by sinks; and
(F)
Construction of buildings in this state that store additional carbon dioxide in building products relative to the building baseline established by the Sustainable Building Material Technical Advisory Committee pursuant to Code Section
12-6-224.1
.
(3)
"Certification" means the determination of whether a given participant's carbon sequestration result or embodied carbon result has met a minimum quality standard and complied with an appropriate set of approved procedures and protocols for submitting carbon sequestration or embodied carbon information.
(4)
"Commission" means the State Forestry Commission.
(5)
"Director" means the director of the State Forestry Commission.
(6)
"Embodied carbon results" means the participant's applicable data on the reduction in building embodied carbon emissions resulting from the construction of buildings in this state that have less with lower building embodied carbon relative to the building baseline established by the Sustainable Building Material Technical Advisory Committee pursuant to Code Section
12-6-224.1
.
(7)
"Forest" means lands that support, or can support, at least 10 percent tree canopy cover and that allow for management of one or more forest resources including but not limited to timber, fish and wildlife, biodiversity, water quality, air quality, soil conservation, recreation, aesthetics, or other benefits.
(8)
"Global warming potential" means a factor describing the radiative forcing impact of one mass-based unit of a given greenhouse gas relative to an equivalent unit of carbon dioxide over a given period of time, as described in International Standards Organization 14064-1:2006 Greenhouse gases- Part 1: Specification with guidance at the organization level for quantification and reporting of greenhouse gas emissions and removals in effect on January 1, 2021.
(9)
"Greenhouse gases" means carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, sulfur hexafluoride, and nitrogen trifluoride.
(10)
"Native forest" means a forest type, natural or artificially regenerated, composed of any one or more tree species identified as native to this state in G. Norman Bishop,
Native Trees of Georgia
(State Forestry Commission 2000 revised edition), including without limitation improved stock of such tree species developed through breeding programs.
(11)
"Participant" or "registry participant" means a registrant of carbon sequestration results with the registry.
(12)
"Registry" means the Georgia Carbon Sequestration Registry provided for by this article.
(13)
"Sink" means an ecosystem or crop or product, including building materials, that absorbs or has absorbed carbon, thereby removing it from the atmosphere and offsetting emissions of carbon dioxide.
(14)
"Whole building life cycle assessment" means life cycle assessment, compliant with International Standards Organization (ISO) 14040-14044 series methodology in effect on January 1, 2021, for a building or part of a building, including the foundation and structural skeleton, building envelope, including insulation, external walls, glazing, and roof. The purpose is to assess the environmental impacts of building-related materials and processes within an appropriate functional unit, scope, and boundary.
Amended by 2021 Ga. Laws 257,§ 1, eff. 7/1/2021.
Added by 2004 Ga. Laws 471, § 1, eff. upon the effective date of a specific appropriation of funds as expressed in a line item of an appropriations Act enacted by the General Assembly.