GS7591 VPA 32 Zambian Central Province Safe Water

Audit Analysis

A Gold Standard safe-water project in Zambia (borehole handpumps displacing charcoal/wood for water heating) with VVB-verified additionality and no reversal events, but undermined by an extensive list of corrective actions, water-quality failures (pass rate dropped to 77%), multiple cross-document contradictions in key parameters (fNRB, leakage, usage rate), and the absence of a buffer pool. The project is operational and monitored, but data reliability and operational quality concerns limit confidence in the claimed emissions reductions.

Project Description

Red Flags

• ⚠Water quality pass rate dropped to 77% (from 95% in the prior monitoring period); 13 boreholes failed turbidity testing and 54 of 996 water quality tests failed overall (verification report, Oct 2025).
• ⚠fNRB value contradicts between documents: 0.86 in the October 2025 verification report versus 0.74 in the December 2025 validation report — a 16% swing that materially affects the claimed reductions.
• ⚠Leakage treatment is inconsistent: the verification report records a 0% deduction with a 'quantified' justification, the monitoring report calls it 'deemed negligible', and the December 2025 validation report applies a 5% deduction.
• ⚠No buffer pool is in place to cover potential reversals, despite the project relying on physical infrastructure (boreholes, handpumps) that can degrade or be vandalised.
• ⚠Over 30 corrective actions and clarifications were raised across the verification, validation, and PDD documents, indicating systemic documentation and data-quality weaknesses.

Credit Vintages