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United States

2,248 ha

Chestnut Mountain

Improved Forest Management

Demonstrating climate-conscious forest management in Tennessee

Overview

Chestnut Mountain

United States

2,248 ha

Developer: The Nature Conservancy

Improved Forest Management

The Chestnut Mountain Improved Forest Management project is located in central Tennessee atop a plateau overlooking industrial forestland and agricultural fields. The land was donated to The Nature Conservancy by Bridgestone Americas, Inc in June 2018. The surrounding region’s hardwood forests have been heavily cut for decades, and there is a recent trend of converting those woodlands to loblolly pine plantations for industrial use. The Nature Conservancy plans to use Chestnut Mountain as a showcase of climate-conscious forest management with harvests far more conservative than the regional common practice that focus on forest health, shortleaf pine restoration, carbon sequestration, and wildlife habitat.

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Registry

Registry ID: 441

Methodology

Improved Forest Management Methodology for Quantifying GHG Removals and Emission Reductions through Increased Forest Carbon Sequestration on Non-Federal U.S. Forestlands version 1.3 (April 2018)

The surrounding region’s hardwood forests have been heavily cut for decades, the project protects a key ecosystem

Pachama's project evaluation criteriaPachama rigorously evaluates every project listed on our marketplace to ensure that we're surfacing only the highest quality projects. Our Evaluation Criteria includes a series of checks that every project must pass as well as a number of informative insights on project quality. You can see a preview of these checks below.

Additional

Does the project have a net additional climate benefit?

Net additional climate benefit
Emissions reductions are calculated based on the difference between baseline, project, and leakage emissions. Pachama analyzes emissions claims to confirm that the project has a net additional climate benefit, and each credit represents at least one metric ton of carbon.

Conservative

Is the climate benefit based on sound and conservative claims?

Baseline claims
Pachama analyzes baseline emissions accounting to confirm that the reported baseline emissions are less than what Pachama observes with remote sensing.
Project claims
Pachama assesses the project boundary, project emissions accounting, carbon inventory, and financial and legal additionality.
Leakage claims
Pachama summarizes the project's reported leakage emissions accounting.

Durable

Is the climate benefit long-lasting?

Ongoing monitoring
Pachama quantifies emissions since the last verification to ensure the project continues to deliver a climate benefit.
Project risks
Pachama characterizes fire and other natural risks and summarizes buffer pool contributions.

Beyond Carbon

Does the project deliver benefits beyond carbon?

Social impacts
If a project occurs on community-owned land, Pachama confirms the community is fully informed of the project activity and impact, consent is given without coercion, and a grievance and redress mechanism is in place.
Ecological impacts
For ARR projects, Pachama analyzes native species planting, species diversity, regional suitability, and reforestation practices.
Certifications
Pachama provides a summary of the project's awarded certifications.

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Impacts beyond carbon

Recreation access, cultural sites, and important water sources

This project aims to advance three of The Nature Conservancy's Shared Conservation Agenda Priorities: tackle climate change, protect land and water, and connect people and nature through a direct reduction of harvesting.

Sustainable cities and communities

The State of Tennessee’s Department of Environment and Conservation and other stakeholders are engaged in a recreation access planning process. Chestnut Mountain serves as a critical linkage between multiple State-owned recreation areas, and trail corridor connectors. Acceptable recreation uses include low-impact, non-motorized activities such as hiking, access to scenic overlooks, and primitive campsites.

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Climate action

Historically the land was owned by the Cherokee people, and Native American historical and cultural sites can be found throughout the property. Though these sites are not officially registered, there is evidence of artifacts from prehistoric cave dwellings along with rock piles, stonewalls, chimneys, root cellars, and Yucca plants associated with Native Americans and European settlers. These sites will be protected in accordance with the project's forest management plan.

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Clean water and sanitation

Billy Branch Lake, found in the northern region of Chestnut Mountain, is the main drinking water source for local communities. Before the maintenance of this lake, the communities on the surrounding plateau only had access to well water, which dries up during droughts. Water quality health is upheld by maintaining a healthy forest.

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biodiversity

A vital platform to promote forest health and climate-smart forestry

There is a diversity of topographic features such as waterfalls, bluffs, and scenic overlooks along the southern and western boundaries of the property that illustrate the scale of the landscape thanks to decades of conservation land acquisition. The project supports rare forest types by repopulating species that were once dominant such as the shortleaf pine and hemlock. Hemlocks live 500-800 years, and are known in the region as the Redwoods of the East; hemlocks are native to Chestnut Mountain. Additionally, over 25 wildlife cameras provide a glimpse into the rich ecosystem of coyotes, bobcats, deer, turkeys, and endangered rattlesnakes.

Public registry documentsApplicable calculation methods are referenced in the reports below. Note that registries do not publicly provide all pertinent data required to reproduce emissions calculations. However, Independent Validation and Verification Bodies have access to the data needed to reproduce and verify emissions calculations.

Second Verification Report

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Project Description

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First Verification Report

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