Reforestation of Degraded Lands in Sierra Leone

Audit Analysis

This Sierra Leone reforestation project (VCS-2401) has a VVB-verified additionality test and a 17% buffer pool, but is undermined by reported reversal losses of 50.88 ha, four material findings requiring corrective action (including an 89% reduction in sample plots and volume-equation changes), and a project-specific baseline with no documented reassessment. The registry status remains 'verification approval requested,' meaning credits have not yet been issued, and several key MRV parameters (FNRB, usage monitoring) are absent from the extracted record.

Project Description

Red Flags

• ⚠Reversal losses of 50.88 ha reported during the 2020–2022 monitoring period (2024 verification report)
• ⚠Material finding: sample plots reduced from 1,588 to 181 (an 89% reduction) with plot area changed from 300 m² to 500 m², raising measurement-representativeness concerns
• ⚠Volume equation for Eucalyptus pellita changed and a new equation added for Gmelina arborea, potentially altering carbon stock calculations
• ⚠Four corrective actions (Findings 3–6) remain required per the 2024 verification report
• ⚠Leakage deduction is 0% despite the project type (reforestation on degraded grassland) where displacement is plausible; justification is labelled 'quantified' but no quantified figure is provided in the extracted record

Credit Vintages