# Eligibility and scope

### Eligible technologies \[biomass]

Eligible biomasses are those that:

* could not have been used as main material products,
* were not grown for the purpose of CDR[^1] or bioenergy production.

For simplification, all feedstocks that meet the above requirements will be referred to hereafter as waste. Biomass feedstocks are categorized accordingly:

<table><thead><tr><th width="202">Biomass type</th><th width="315">Description</th><th>Source</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Forest waste from secondary forest</td><td>Natural but not primary old-growth forest, may still be managed for timber</td><td>Default if no other forest type can be proven</td></tr><tr><td>Forest waste from managed forest</td><td>Managed mixed-use forests that may include agroforestry, plantations or rotational logging</td><td>Must provide proof</td></tr><tr><td>Necessary tree removal from any forest</td><td>Damaged trees, or trees removed for planned forest management such as preventing disease spread or fires</td><td>Must provide proof</td></tr><tr><td>Agricultural residues with value</td><td>Residues left on soil or reapplied to soils for nutrient recycling (e.g. mulching, composting, spreading fast-decaying cellulose-based residues with decay within 5 years)</td><td>Default if prior use could not be determined</td></tr><tr><td>Agricultural residues with no value</td><td>Plowed into soil, burnt in the field, no substantial return of nutrients to soil</td><td>Must provide proof</td></tr><tr><td>Other waste or residue</td><td>To be evaluated on a case by case basis according to criteria outlined in the present document</td><td>Must provide proof</td></tr></tbody></table>

<details>

<summary>🇪🇺 CRCF Requirements: Biomass feedstock</summary>

</details>

### Eligible technologies \[biochar]

Industrial biochar projects must meet all of the following requirements:

<table data-view="cards"><thead><tr><th></th><th></th><th></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><strong>Feedstock</strong></td><td><ul><li>Use waste and residual biomass as feedstock, according to the <a href="/pages/V0dXfN5yPUaU1ws1h7sV">Biomass feedstock</a> module.</li></ul></td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td><strong>Processing</strong></td><td><ul><li>Heat biomass to at least <strong>350°C</strong> during production.</li><li>Capture or cleanly burn pyrolysis gasses, as outlined in the <a href="/pages/BTxxPIM3a4Nai1Wkwu2Y#environmental-and-social-do-no-harm">Processing and Energy Use</a> module</li><li>Report methane emissions from pyrolysis, using the <a href="/pages/BTxxPIM3a4Nai1Wkwu2Y#environmental-and-social-do-no-harm">Processing and Energy Use</a> module</li></ul></td></tr><tr><td></td><td><strong>Biochar Quality and Use</strong></td><td><ul><li>Produce high-quality biochar with a molar <span class="math">H/C_{\text{org}}</span> below <strong>0.7</strong>.</li><li>Apply biochar to agricultural, forest, or urban soils, ensuring permanent sequestration of its organic carbon content.</li></ul></td></tr></tbody></table>

Projects may be designed to prioritize bio-oil or bioenergy production, where biochar is the co-product. Such projects may still be eligible for removal Rainbow Carbon Credits under this module, if they meet all criteria outlined herein.

This module allows for issuance of **removal RCCs on the basis of biochar end use/delivery**, i.e. application to soils and permanent storage, not on the basis of biochar production.

**Eligible end uses of biochar** include application directly to soils or incorporation into soil-related products, such as soil additives, horticultural substrates, potting soils, fertilizer mixes, or compost.

This module also allows for issuance of **avoidance RCCs on the basis of avoided horticultural products** from the use of biochar (with strict proof of replacement, see the [Baseline Scope](#baseline-scope) section).

The Project Developer and entity eligible for receiving carbon finance may be either:

* the operator of the biochar production site, or
* land owners or managers who purchase biochar and apply it to their soil.

Pyrolysis and gasification equipment manufacturers are not eligible Project Developers.

### Certification requirements

**Crediting period duration:** the maximum duration of the crediting period for projects certified under this methodology is 5 years. Upon reaching the maximum duration, a project's crediting period may be renewed, according to the [Crediting Period Renewal](https://docs.rainbowstandard.io/rainbow-standard-documents/procedures-manual/project-certification-procedure#crediting-period-renewal) procedure.

**Monitoring period duration:** The default monitoring period duration is one year, but may be shorter at the Project Developer's request. Project Developers shall submit a Monitoring Report at least once per 24 months. Failure to do so shall result in the project being [deregistered](https://docs.rainbowstandard.io/rainbow-standard-documents/procedures-manual/project-certification-procedure).

**Site audits:** validation site audits for projects under this methodology may be performed **either remotely or in-person**, depending on the project size. Projects that issue more than 5,000 RCCs per year must undergo an in-person site audit. Projects that issue less than 5,000 RCCs per year may choose between an in-person or remote audit. The Rainbow team may require an in-person site audit for any project, regardless of the size.

**Versioning and project compliance:** When this methodology is revised, projects are required to comply with the latest version for subsequent verifications of RCCs.

### Project scope

One project is defined as:

* the operation of one or more pyrolysis units, across one or more sites,
* within a single country,
* using similar types of pyrolysis units,
* using the same carbon removal measurement approach and durability claims, and
* operated at sites that are under the oversight or data access of a single Project Developer, regardless of whether the developer directly owns or manages each site.

The project scope is cradle-to-grave and includes all processes that result from biochar production and application. This includes but is not limited to the following: all removals from biochar production, and all induced emissions related to biomass sourcing, leakage, upstream and downstream transport, embodied emissions from infrastructure and machinery, and onsite process emissions from biomass and biochar processing and energy use.

Any processes that would have occurred regardless of the biochar production and application activities may be excluded from the project scope.

### Baseline scope \[biomass] <a href="#project-scope" id="project-scope"></a>

The baseline shall include **any permanent carbon removal that would have occurred in the absence of the project**. For biomass use, this includes permanent carbon storage from the alternate fate of the biomass feedstock used for pyrolysis.

Project Developers shall justify the alternate fate of business-as-usual biomass feedstock use.

* If biomass would have been left on agricultural fields, or otherwise applied to soil to decompose, a default **0.5% of the carbon in the biomass feedstock** is assumed to be permanently stored.
* For any other alternate fate of biomass, it is assumed that no carbon is permanently stored, and no baseline is considered for this module.

It shall be assumed by default that no biomass feedstock would have been used for dedicated carbon removal projects in the absence of the project (i.e. there is no share of the project activity in the baseline scenario).

More conservative baseline scenarios may be applied on a case-by-base basis. They must be representative and transparently justified.

See the [GHG quantification ](#id-4l7lx2ihb6hj-2)section for more details on how baseline removals are calculated.

### Baseline scope \[biochar]

Several baselines may be applied depending on the type of credit issued:

**Removal RCCs from biochar carbon removal**:

* the baseline shall include any permanent carbon removal that would have occurred in the absence of the project.
* This includes but is not limited to permanent carbon storage from the alternate fate of the biomass feedstock used for pyrolysis.
* It shall be assumed by default that no biomass feedstock would have been used to produce biochar in the absence of the project (i.e. there is no share of the project activity in the baseline scenario).

**Avoidance RCCs from energy co-products**:

* the baseline shall include the equivalent amount of energy produced and exported by the project.
* The type of energy selected for the baseline shall be representative of the energy produced by the project, and shall be specific and conservative.
* All life cycle emissions from the baseline energy source shall be accounted for, including but not limited to raw material extraction, processing, upgrading, distribution, and if relevant, combustion.

**Avoidance RCCs from horticultural products**:

* the baseline shall include the equivalent amount of horticultural products (e.g. peat, fertilizer...) produced and sold by the project.
* The specific amount and type of avoided products must be **provided by the Project Developer with project-specific documentation**. It must show that the user of the biochar **actually uses less of the horticultural product than they did previously**, as a result of their use of biochar. This must be proven using, for example, operations tracking or invoices from the biochar user. In other words, it is not sufficient to prove that biochar could *technically* substitute products, because there is high uncertainty in which products biochar would *actually* substitute.
* All emissions from the baseline horticultural product life cycle that differ from the biochar life cycle shall be accounted for, including but not limited to raw material extraction and processing. If processes are equivalent between the biochar and horticultural product, such as transport delivery or packaging, they may be excluded from both the project and baseline scope for the purpose of quantifying avoidance RCCs from horticultural products.
* By default, it shall be **assumed that biochar application to soils does not replace any measurable, verifiable product**.

The baseline scenario **structure** remains valid for the entire crediting period but may be significantly revised earlier if:

* The Project Developer notifies Rainbow of a substantial change in project operations or baseline conditions, and/or
* The methodology is revised, affecting the baseline scenario.

The **specific values** within the baseline scenario will be updated during each crediting period, using project data to accurately reflect the equivalent of the project’s operations.

## Production batches <a href="#id-2xck12gc2auz" id="id-2xck12gc2auz"></a>

A production batch is the **biochar produced under the same conditions regarding production temperature and feedstock mix**. It is assumed that all biochar from the same production batch has similar characteristics (i.e. $$H/C\_{\text{org}}$$, moisture content…).

Specifically, the definition of a production batch follows the [European Biochar Certificate Guidelines](#user-content-fn-2)[^2] definition, where pyrolysis temperature and biomass feedstock composition must not change by more than 20%.

Measurements and reporting are performed at the **production batch level**. Verification and credit issuance may be done per production batch, or annually on the cumulative production batches from that year.

{% hint style="info" %}
For example, if the declared pyrolysis temperature is 600 °C, temporary fluctuations between 480 °C and 720 °C are acceptable.

If a mixture of 50% tree clippings and 50% nut shells is pyrolyzed, the proportions can vary between 40% and 60% (±10% of the original 50%)
{% endhint %}

A production batch has a **maximum validity of 365 days**, after which biochar shall be considered part of a different production batch even if conditions are unchanged. In other words, the production batch ID number resets and a new production batch is created, and new monitoring requirements applied, after 365 days, regardless of if feedstock or pyrolysis conditions change or not.

[^1]: Carbon dioxide removal

[^2]: *EBC (2012-2023) 'European Biochar Certificate - Guidelines for a Sustainable Production of Biochar.' Carbon Standards International (CSI), Frick, Switzerland. (<http://european-biochar.org>). Version 10.3 from 5th Apr 2022.*


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