Methodology
The approved rulebook a project must follow to quantify its emissions reductions or removals. Each verification standard maintains its own methodologies, covering baseline setting, monitoring, and how credits are calculated.
Why the methodology behind a credit matters for carbon credit buyers
Two projects doing similar work can produce very different credit volumes purely because they applied different methodologies. The methodology dictates the baseline approach, the monitoring requirements, the deductions for leakage and uncertainty, and the buffer contribution, so it is the largest driver of credit quality after the project itself. Methodologies are revised over time, and older versions have in several cases been found to over-credit, which is why the version and approval date matter as much as the name. The ICVCM assesses methodologies rather than individual projects when awarding the CCP label, which gives buyers a useful screening shortcut.