On 8 July 2021, the revised RSPO Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Assessment Procedure was endorsed by the RSPO Standard Standing Committee. Version 4 of this procedure is effective immediately with a six (6) month grace period. All NPP submissions from 1 March 2022 shall follow the procedure outlined in the GHG assessment Procedure v4.

Key Changes to the document

The document has been aligned with the requirements of the RSPO Principles & Criteria (P&C) 2018 and New Planting Procedure (NPP) 2021. Specifically, revisions have been done in Section 3: Carbon stock assessment, to cover the new requirements introduced by indicator 7.7.1, 7.7.2 and 7.12.2b of the P&C 2018, which are:

  • Identification and conservation of peat soils following the ‘RSPO Generic organic and peat soil definition’ (or national definitions following the NI process). (Indicator 7.7.1 & &.7.7.2)
  • Classification of land cover and their respective carbon stock values of above ground biomass (AGB) is drawn from findings of standalone HCSA/integrated HCV-HCSA assessment. Calculation of below ground biomass (BGB) and soil carbon (for peat) remain unchanged. (Indicator 7.12.2b)
  • Added guidance throughout the document on the specific sections within standalone HCSA/integrated HCV-HCSA assessment reports where RSPO members can extract relevant information for the purpose of the RSPO GHG assessment procedure.
  • Update of maps, diagrams, and tables within the main procedure and examples within the document.

No changes have been made to the calculation of GHG emissions as required in Section 4: Assessment of GHG emissions for new development of the document.

The English version of the document is available for download in the link below. Translated versions (Bahasa Indonesia, French, Spanish) are currently in the process of translation and shall be available once completed.

For further information and/or clarification, please contact [email protected].

Related documents:

RSPO GHG Assessment Procedure for New Development, V4

New Development GHG Calculator

Get Involved

Whether you’re an individual or an organisation, you can help make sustainable palm oil the norm.

As an individual

Take a stand for sustainable palm oil with your weekly shopping. See how you can influence brands and businesses.

More on individual action

As a smallholder

Discover how RSPO Certification can introduce you to sustainable farming practices to increase your yield and the land and wildlife around your smallholding.

More on smallholder impact

As an organisation

You can make an impact on reducing the negative social and environmental impact of conventional oil palm cultivation through producing and sourcing certified sustainable palm oil.

More on organisation influence