Forest Carbon

Forests are one of the largest and most efficient natural solutions for removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and mitigating the impacts of climate change. As responsible stewards of millions of acres of North American forests for more than 100 years, we are uniquely positioned to support the scaling of a trusted voluntary carbon market that can help companies and organizations achieve their net-zero commitments. At Weyerhaeuser, we are focused on developing forest carbon projects of the highest integrity and quality to ensure the climate benefits we provide through our working forests are additional, durable and verifiable.

Developing High-Integrity, High-Quality Projects

Not all forests are suitable for a carbon credit project. Our teams of forest management and carbon experts regularly evaluate our landholdings to identify potential project areas, taking into consideration the market for timber, forest productivity and our existing operations. We choose only those areas that meet our high standards for quality, integrity and the ability to provide real climate impact.

Our most immediate opportunity in forest carbon is in the development of Improved Forest Management (IFM) projects for the voluntary market. In 2023, we received approval for our first IFM project in Maine from ACR, and additional IFM projects are now being developed across our portfolio.

Weyerhaeuser's Forest Carbon Principles

We believe a credible carbon market, when guided by integrity, trust and transparency, provides the right incentives to support natural climate solutions that both reduce emissions and remove carbon from the atmosphere — helping us all achieve net-zero ambitions. The following principles represent the fundamentals of our carbon credit approach and ensure we deliver the highest-quality credits to the market.

Principle 1: Represent Real, Measurable Change

Baselines & Additionality

• Our carbon credits are generated only from changes made to remove and store additional carbon beyond normal, business-as-usual operations.
   
• Additionality is measured against project baselines (counterfactuals) that are conservatively developed and reflect what would have realistically occurred in the absence of a carbon project.

Carbon Accountability

• Weyerhaeuser’s carbon emission reductions and removals are robustly and clearly quantified and accessible in our Carbon Record.
   
• We will not double count between our Greenhouse Gas inventory and the carbon credits we issue.

Principle 2: Ensure Durable Climate Benefits

Durability & Leakage

• Our carbon projects are designed to store carbon removed from the atmosphere through the length of the project commitment, and often well beyond.
   
• We have measures in place to address and mitigate potential risk factors, including buffers to compensate for unintentional reversals.
   
• Our carbon projects also require measures to mitigate leakage risks — if carbon is removed in one geography, emissions cannot be displaced to another geography.

Do No Harm & Benefits

• Projects should have a positive impact on local communities.
   
• Projects will contribute to achieving net-zero GHG emissions by mid-century.
   
• Projects are strengthened by the development or improvement of co-benefits, such as supporting sustainable livelihoods and additional environmental benefits beyond carbon.

Principle 3: Be Transparent

Scientific Methodology

• Weyerhaeuser’s projects follow scientific methodologies that are available for public review, and our measurements are validated and verified by an independent third party.
   
• Weyerhaeuser’s Carbon Record scientific methodology is publicly available, and our emissions are assured by an independent third party.
   
• We are committed to continuous improvement in the overall transparency, consistency, credibility and value delivered through carbon accounting frameworks and carbon markets.

MRV & Governance

• Carbon credits issued by Weyerhaeuser are third-party validated by an independent registry to ensure adherence to the strongest monitoring, reporting and verification methodologies.
   
• Weyerhaeuser maintains comprehensive information on all credited reduction and removal activities and has effective program governance to ensure transparency, accountability, continuous improvement and the overall quality of carbon credits.

If you'd like to learn more about opportunities on our land related to forest carbon projects, please fill out this form and we'll contact you.