Reforestation grouped project Norteak Nicaragua

Audit Analysis

The Norteak Nicaragua reforestation project has a confirmed additionality test and a 15% buffer pool, but is burdened by an extensive list of material findings (10 CARs, 9 CLs, 1 open FAR) including protected-area overlap, incomplete legal tenure, ERR calculation errors, and a non-conservative root-to-shoot ratio. Multiple contradictions between two verification reports issued weeks apart (December 2024) on ERR figures, lifetime estimates, and leakage treatment undermine confidence in the reported numbers. The project's claim safety is further weakened by the protected-area overlap creating a potential double-claiming risk and the unresolved tenure documentation.

Project Description

Red Flags

• ⚠Project area overlaps Protected Areas and Municipal Protection Forest Areas (CAR 01), creating a double-claiming risk that has not been fully resolved
• ⚠Incomplete legal tenure documentation for some farms (CAR 01) undermines the validity of carbon rights claims
• ⚠Root-to-shoot ratio was not conservative in the original ERR calculation, indicating potential over-crediting
• ⚠Two verification reports issued 17 days apart (Dec 3 and Dec 20, 2024) report materially different ERR figures (34,610 vs 29,419) and lifetime estimates (190,721 vs 152,643), a ~20% discrepancy
• ⚠Leakage justification is contradictory: the appendix (July 2024) describes leakage as 'quantified' while the later verification report (Dec 2024) states it was 'deemed negligible' with a 0% deduction

Credit Vintages