Blue Carbon Assessments

ESA staff assesses and quantifies blue carbon stored in coastal habitats as a way to quantify its environmental benefits and to support coastal management planning.

The term “coastal blue carbon” refers to the carbon captured and stored by coastal ecosystems. ESA has developed a methodology for assessing the benefits of tidal wetland and seagrass restoration that lead to greenhouse gas offsets. This methodology has been used for multiple projects across the country.

The addition of climate mitigation benefits is expected to broaden the pool of potential funds for estuarine restoration, which could directly benefit ecosystem restoration efforts. Where carbon finance is not appropriate, recognition of their climate values could help prioritize actions which improve and conserve these habitats in the context of climate adaptation.

Related specialties and services:

• Carbon management and mitigation
• Carbon offset and sequestration program design and documentation
• Greenhouse gas inventories and reporting
• Habitat evolution modeling
• Sea-level rise planning