Blue Carbon: Terms Explained

The principle that a carbon project's emission reductions or removals would not have happened without the carbon finance it receives. If a mangrove forest would have been protected anyway (through law, economics, or existing community practice), carbon credits from it are not considered additional. Demonstrating additionality requires showing that deforestation or degradation was a credible threat in the absence of the project, and that carbon finance is what makes protection viable.

Kaboni Yetu's additionality case rests on documented deforestation pressure in the MBREMP landscape, historical land-use change data, and a without-project baseline scenario demonstrating ongoing threats to mangrove cover.

Carbon that is captured and stored by ocean and coastal ecosystems, primarily mangroves, seagrasses, and saltmarshes. These "blue" ecosystems sequester carbon at rates far higher than terrestrial forests, and they store much of it in sediment for centuries or millennia. When blue carbon ecosystems are degraded or destroyed, they release large quantities of stored carbon dioxide, making their protection a high-impact climate intervention.

The MBREMP mangroves represent a significant blue carbon store. The programme's carbon accounting covers both the carbon sequestered annually through forest growth and the avoided emissions from protecting existing carbon stocks.

A reserve of carbon credits held back from sale by a registry or standard to cover potential losses if a project fails to deliver its promised carbon outcomes, for example through fire, storm damage, or community conflict. Buffer pools are a mechanism for managing permanence risk. The percentage of credits withheld varies by project risk rating; higher-risk projects contribute more to the buffer.

Plan Vivo and NCMC both require buffer pool contributions. The specific percentage for the Mnazi Bay programme will be determined during the certification process, based on assessed ecological and social risks.

A tradeable certificate representing one tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO₂e) either removed from the atmosphere or prevented from being emitted. Carbon credits are generated by verified projects and can be purchased by companies or individuals who wish to compensate for their own emissions. A credit is "retired" once a buyer claims it, after which it cannot be traded or used again. The term "offset" is increasingly contested; "carbon credit" is preferred by most registries and standards.

A legal and ethical standard requiring that communities (particularly indigenous peoples and local communities) give their voluntary, advance, and fully informed agreement before any project or intervention that affects their land, resources, or livelihoods proceeds. FPIC is a requirement of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), Plan Vivo, and the Verra CCB Standards. It is not a one-time consultation. It must be an ongoing process throughout a project's lifetime.

Kaboni Yetu's programme begins with FPIC meetings in all 15 villages before any carbon or restoration activity commences. Governance Compacts are the documented evidence of this consent process.

A set of design principles developed by ORRAA (Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance) and partners to define what makes a blue carbon project genuinely high-integrity. The principles cover: ecological integrity (science-backed MRV), community equity (FPIC, benefit-sharing), financial sustainability, permanence, and additionality. The Lloyd's insurance market and leading blue carbon investors use HQBC alignment as a screening criterion.

Leakage occurs when a conservation project reduces deforestation or degradation in one area but causes it to increase elsewhere. For example, if protecting a mangrove pushes charcoal harvesters to cut trees in an adjacent unprotected forest, the carbon benefit of the project is partially "leaked" to another location. Carbon accounting methodologies require projects to estimate and deduct leakage from their claimed emission reductions. Livelihood diversification programmes (like the ones Kaboni Yetu is piloting) are a primary tool for reducing leakage risk.

The system by which a carbon project measures its actual emission reductions or removals, reports them against a standard's methodology, and has them independently verified by a third-party auditor (called a Validation/Verification Body, or VVB). Robust MRV is the foundation of carbon credit integrity. Without it, there is no reliable way to know whether a project has delivered the tonnes it claims. Community-run MRV, as practised by Kaboni Yetu, produces primary field data that reduces verification costs and builds local accountability.

Tanzania's national carbon registry and MRV authority, established under GN 636 (2022). The NCMC registers carbon projects, certifies emission reductions, and maintains the national carbon registry. NCMC certification is required for any carbon project operating in Tanzania that wishes to sell credits on international markets, providing the host country recognition necessary under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement for internationally transferred mitigation outcomes (ITMOs).

The requirement that carbon stored or sequestered by a project is kept out of the atmosphere over the long term, typically 20 to 100 years. Permanence is a key integrity challenge for land-based carbon projects because forests can be destroyed by fire, disease, political change, or loss of community support. Standards address permanence risk through buffer pools, legal protections, and monitoring obligations. Hydrology-informed restoration and embedded co-management governance are Kaboni Yetu's primary permanence safeguards.

An international certification standard specifically designed for community-based carbon and ecosystem service projects in low- and middle-income countries. Founded in 1994, Plan Vivo is one of the oldest and most community-focused standards in the voluntary carbon market. It requires robust FPIC processes, transparent benefit-sharing, and demonstrated ecological integrity. Projects certified under Plan Vivo are listed on the Plan Vivo registry at planvivo.org. Kaboni Yetu is designed to meet Plan Vivo certification requirements; registration is targeted for 2026–27.

The market through which companies and individuals voluntarily purchase carbon credits to compensate for emissions they have not yet eliminated. Unlike compliance markets (such as the EU Emissions Trading System), participation in the VCM is not legally mandated. However, increasing regulatory scrutiny, corporate net-zero commitments, and investor pressure have raised quality standards considerably since 2021. The VCM is governed by standards bodies (Plan Vivo, Verra, Gold Standard) and integrity frameworks (ICVCM Core Carbon Principles, VCMI Claims Code of Practice).

Carbon projects move through defined stages before credits are available for purchase. Understanding where a project sits in this lifecycle is essential for buyers and investors:

• In Development / Readiness Phase: Project design underway. No registry entry yet. Kaboni Yetu's current stage.
• Validated: Project design reviewed and approved by an independent VVB against the standard's requirements.
• Registered: Listed on a registry (Plan Vivo, NCMC) after successful validation.
• Verified: Actual emission reductions confirmed by a VVB for a specific monitoring period.
• Issued: Credits minted by the registry and available for purchase or transfer.
• Retired: Credit permanently cancelled after a buyer claims it. It cannot be resold.

An independent, accredited auditing organisation that reviews a carbon project's design (validation) and its claimed emission reductions (verification) against the requirements of the applicable standard. VVBs must be accredited by the relevant standard body (e.g., Plan Vivo or Verra) and cannot be affiliated with the project developer. The identity of the assigned VVB is a key transparency signal for buyers. Kaboni Yetu will publish this information once a VVB has been assigned during the certification process.