The European Union has taken a major step towards achieving climate neutrality by 2050 approval a voluntary Union certification framework for permanent carbon removal, carbon agriculture and carbon storage in products, known as CRCF (Carbon Removals and Carbon Farming). This system, established by Regulation (EU) 2024/3012, brings uniform rules to ensure high integrity of activities removing CO2 from the atmosphere and to prevent environmentally misleading claims (so-called greenwashing).

Three pillars of certification

The CRCF framework is designed to cover a wide range of activities divided into three main categories:

1. Permanent carbon removal: It includes technologies such as direct air capture (DACCS), biogenic capture with storage (BioCCS) and biochar carbon removal (BCR). These activities must ensure the safe storage of carbon for several centuries.
2. Carbon Farming: It focuses on agricultural and forestry practices that increase soil carbon sequestration, including agroforestry, peatland restoration and better forest management.
3. Carbon storage in products: It certifies the carbon bound in materials, especially in wooden building elements, in the long term.

Strict quality criteria: QU.ALITY

Each activity must meet four key quality criteria before certified units are issued:

• Quantification: The net benefit of removal after deducting all emissions associated with the implementation of the project must be demonstrated.
• Additionality: The activity must go beyond normal legal practice and require certification as a financial incentive.
• Long-term storage: Monitoring of stored carbon and accountability for its possible premature release are required.
• Sustainability: Projects must not harm other environmental objectives and, in the case of biochar, must bring co-benefits for biodiversity or soil regeneration.

Biochar: A Key Technology of Today

Biochar is classified as a permanent carbon removal activity under the CRCF. The EU methodology requires it to be produced by pyrolysis of sustainable biomass at temperatures above 350°C and showed high stability (H/Corg ratio lower than 0.7), which guarantees carbon storage for a minimum 200 years.

In addition to carbon sequestration itself, biochar brings significant environmental benefits:

• Improving soil structure: It acts as a „soil sponge,“ increasing water infiltration and retaining nutrients.
• Fighting erosion: Global studies confirm that biochar reduces surface runoff by 25 % and soil erosion by an average of 16 %, in arid areas by up to 65 %.
• Versatile use: Certified biochar can be applied to agricultural soils or mixed into construction materials such as concrete and asphalt.

Certification process and the future of the market

Those interested in certification must submit an action plan to a recognized certification scheme and undergo an independent audit by an accredited body. Recertification is mandatory at least every five years.

Although the CRCF framework is voluntary, its importance is underlined by the planned establishment of Union central registry by 2028, which will track all issued units. It is expected that after 2030, these high-quality certificates could be integrated into the Emissions Trading System (EU ETS), paving the way for massive scaling of carbon removal projects across Europe. JRi&CO2AI