Project Credible opens public consultation on its report on “Unlocking data for MRV: Data sharing for effective Carbon Farming”

Accurate Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) systems rely on high-quality soil carbon (meta)data and associated farm activity data at parcel level, which are crucial for calibrating, validating and running models. However, when discussing data sharing, several key challenges emerge from both the public and private sectors, which were collected by Project Credible’s latest report on “Unlocking data for MRV: Data sharing for effective carbon farming”. The document, built on insights from one of Credible’s Focus Groups, was developed by Hui Xu and Tommy D’Hose (ILVO), among other authors, and is available here.

The report, now open for public consultation, expanded the initial scope of long-term monitoring (LTM) data to include both public and private datasets, according to the discussions held at the second European Carbon Farming Summit. In addition to an assessment of the current scientific and market context, the document delves into the main issues and barriers regarding data, providing as well a set of recommendations to overcome them.

In this sense, the “collect once, use many times” principle can reduce the reporting burden on farmers and streamline compliance with multiple purposes. In addition, user-friendly digital tools and data-sharing platforms are also necessary to balance privacy, competition, and openness. It is also crucial to enhance trust in data sharing along the value chain, prioritizing transparency, accountability, and mutual benefits. As the study shows, generally farmers are willing to share data when it delivers clear benefits, such as agronomic advice, direct remuneration, or benchmarking insights.

Overall, the report aims to find pathways to build trust and foster data exchange, focusing on transparency, accountability, and mutual benefits, and provides specific ideas and examples to achieve these goals. Don’t miss the opportunity to have your say in this public consultation, which is funded by the European Union and monitored closely by the Expert Group on Carbon Removals that supports the Commission in its efforts to develop the Carbon Removals and Carbon Farming (CRCF) Regulation.