California Code of Regulations › Title 17 - Public Health › Division 3 - Air Resources › Chapter 1 - Air Resources Board › Subchapter 10 - Climate Change › Article 5 - California Cap on Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Market-Based Compliance Mechanisms › Subarticle 13 - ARB Offset Credits and Registry Offset Credits › Section 95973 - Requirements for Offset Projects Using ARB Compliance Offset Protocols

Current through Register 2024 Notice Reg. No. 28, July 12, 2024
(a) General
						Requirements for Offset Projects. To qualify under the provisions set forth in
						this article, an Offset Project Operator or Authorized Project Designee must
						ensure that an offset project:
(1) Meets all
						of the requirements in a Compliance Offset Protocol approved by the Board
						pursuant to section
						95971;
(2) Meets the following additionality
						requirements, as well as any additionality requirements in the applicable
						Compliance Offset Protocol, as of the date of Offset Project Commencement:
(A) The activities that result in GHG
						reductions and GHG removal enhancements are not required by law, regulation, or
						any legally binding mandate applicable in the offset project's jurisdiction,
						and would not otherwise occur in a conservative business-as-usual
						scenario;
(B) The Offset Project
						Commencement date occurs after December 31, 2006, unless otherwise specified in
						the applicable Compliance Offset Protocol, except as provided in section
						95973(c);
						and
(C) The GHG reductions and GHG
						removal enhancements resulting from the offset project exceed the project
						baseline calculated by the applicable version of the Compliance Offset Protocol
						under which the offset project has been listed pursuant to section
						95975 or under which the offset
						project has been transitioned to pursuant to section
						95973(a)(2)(D)
						for that offset project type as set forth in the following:
1. Compliance Offset Protocol Ozone Depleting
						Substances Projects, October 20, 2011, and Compliance Offset Protocol Ozone
						Depeleting Substances Projects, November 14, 2014, which are hereby
						incorporated by reference;
2.
						Compliance Offset Protocol Livestock Projects, October 20, 2011 and Compliance
						Offset Protocol Livestock Projects, November 14, 2014, which are hereby
						incorporated by reference;
3.
						Compliance Offset Protocol Urban Forest Projects, October 20, 2011, which is
						hereby incorporated by reference;
4. Compliance Offset Protocol U.S. Forest
						Projects, October 20, 2011, Compliance Offset Protocol U.S. Forest Projects,
						November 14, 2014, and Compliance Offset Protocol U.S. Forest Projects, June
						25, 2015, which are hereby incorporated by reference;
5. Compliance Offset Protocol Mine Methane
						Capture Projects, April 25, 2014, which is hereby incorporated by reference;
						and
6. Compliance Offset Protocol
						Rice Cultivation Projects, June 25, 2015, which is hereby incorporated by
						reference.
(D) The Offset
						Project Operator or Authorized Project Designee may transition an offset
						project to the most recently incorporated version of the Compliance Offset
						Protocol by updating the listing information in an Offset Project Data Report
						pursuant to section
						95976. Projects transitioning to
						the most recent version of the Compliance Offset Protocol may only do so with
						an Offset Project Data Report submitted to ARB or the Offset Project Registry
						prior to the site visit, pursuant to section
						95977.1(b)(3)(D).
						To properly transition to the most recent version of the Compliance Offset
						Protocol, the Offset Project Data Report for the transitioning project must
						specify the most recent protocol version as the version under which the project
						is reporting, pursuant to section
						95976(d)(10).
						Projects may only transition to the latest version of the Compliance Offset
						Protocol during a reporting period that is subject to a full offset
						verification. For projects using a protocol specified in section
						95973(a)(2)(C)4.,
						the first verification after transitioning to a new version of the Compliance
						Offset Protocol must meet all the requirements of section
						95977.1(b)(3)(D)1.
						A project will be considered to have completed the transition to the most
						recent version of the Compliance Offset Protocol at the time a Positive or
						Qualified Positive Offset Verification Statement for the applicable reporting
						period has been approved by ARB. An offset project that transitions to a new
						version of the Compliance Offset Protocol during a crediting period will
						continue in the same crediting period and not start a new crediting
						period.
(E) The offset project must
						meet all the requirements in this Regulation for the applicable version of the
						Compliance Offset Protocol under which the offset project has been listed
						pursuant to 95975 or under which the offset project has been transitioned to
						pursuant to section
						95973(a)(2)(D).
(F) The applicable version of the Compliance
						Offset Protocol is the version under which the offset project has been listed
						pursuant to section
						95975 or transitioned to pursuant
						to section
						95973(a)(2)(D).
(G) If any law, regulation, or legally
						binding mandate requiring GHG emission reductions or GHG removal enhancements
						comes into effect in California, in a linked jurisdiction pursuant to section
						95943, or in a jurisdiction
						outside California, affecting the offset project, during an offset project's
						crediting period, then the offset project is eligible to continue to receive
						ARB offset credits for those GHG emission reductions and GHG removal
						enhancements for the remainder of the offset project's crediting period, but
						the offset project may not renew that crediting period. If an offset project
						has not been listed prior to the law, regulation, or legally binding mandate
						going into effect, or the law, regulation, or legally binding mandate goes into
						effect before the offset project's crediting period renews, then only emission
						reductions or removal enhancements that are in excess of what is required to
						comply with those laws, regulations, and/or legally binding mandates are
						eligible for ARB offset credits.
(3) Is located in the United States or United
						States Territories.