Metrics quantify the environmental services that flow from various land management practices. Metrics provide the scientific foundation from which environmental credits can then be calculated.
1. OEM is assisting the USDA Climate Change Program Office in developing technical guidelines and science-based methods for estimating the greenhouse gas and carbon sequestration impacts of agricultural practices at the farm scale.
2. OEM is working with the University of Maryland to provide recommendations to inform a protocol for water quality metrics development.
3. OEM is working with the Willamette Partnership to review existing metrics for biodiversity and wildlife habitat in the U.S. and to assess the need for additional national guidance.
Registries are official recordkeeping databases which play numerous roles in environmental markets. Verification processes ensure the validity and quality of the environmental credits generated in a market-based system. OEM is working with other USDA agencies to provide guidance for the development of registries and verification processes based on USDA’s extensive program experience.
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