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GRI 102: Climate Change · 2025

Disclosure GRI 102-10

Carbon Credits

Practical guidance for preparing this disclosure. Use this card to identify datapoints, verify claims and organise supporting evidence. For exact requirements, always refer to the official GRI source.

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Reviewed by Dr Ross Kurinko · GRI Certified Trainer LRA educational guidance · Not issued or endorsed by GRI

To prepare this disclosure

22datapoints↓ 6claims to verify↓ 5evidence areas↓ 1report examples↓

Disclosure focus

This disclosure asks an organisation to explain whether it uses carbon credits, and if so, to report the relevant information in a clear and consistent way. The practical point is to show how credits are being used in relation to the organisation’s reported emissions, rather than leaving readers to guess whether they are part of the picture.

The focus is on transparency across the organisation’s reporting boundary: users should be able to see whether carbon credits are being applied broadly across operations or only in certain parts of the business, such as specific sites or activities. The aim is to make the treatment of credits easy to understand and comparable, not to present them as a substitute for explaining the underlying emissions performance.

This LRA educational guidance supports disclosure preparation. For the exact requirements, always refer to the official GRI source.

Before you start

A quick mental checklist before you prepare this disclosure — tick each as you settle it.

Have you decided which cancelled credits sit inside the reporting period and which ones stay out? For the total, are you using the same cut-off date and unit basis across every record? Can each figure be traced back to a source record or registry entry without gaps? For every project with cancellations, have you gathered the project name, ID, type, and registry details? Have you settled how you will describe the project safeguards and checks: extraity, baseline, durability, spillover control, one-time use, monitoring, independent review, and programme oversight? Have you agreed the stated reason for cancelling the credits, plus any people, community, nature, and trade-off impacts linked to those projects?

Preparation

Key datapoints to prepare

Datapoint What to capture Evidence hint Owner

Credits cancelled total The total quantity of carbon credits cancelled in the reporting period, expressed in tonnes of CO2 equivalent and tied to the same cancellation records used elsewhere in the disclosure. Cancellation register, registry export, and the period-end total used for reporting. Sustainability reporting / carbon accounting

Project-level cancellation details For each project with cancelled credits, capture the project-specific information needed to identify the project and its cancelled credits. Project files, registry records, and the disclosure working paper listing each project. Carbon project management / sustainability reporting

Project identity The project’s name and its identifier exactly as recorded in the source project or registry record. Project documentation and registry extract showing the project name and ID. Carbon project management

Project type The project’s type or category as recorded in the source documentation, using the same classification consistently across the disclosure. Project registration documents, registry entry, or project summary sheet. Carbon project management / sustainability reporting

Cancellation record details The cancellation serial number, the date the credit was cancelled, and the vintage year or period for the credit. Registry cancellation record and supporting transaction log. Carbon accounting / registry administration

Project location and registry The country where the project is hosted and the registry that issued or recorded the credit cancellation. Registry extract and project registration documents. Carbon project management

Project quality explanation A plain-language explanation, for each reported project, of how the project meets the quality checks used in the disclosure. Project design documents, validation reports, monitoring reports, and governance notes. Carbon project management / sustainability reporting

Extraity case How the project shows it would not have happened in the same way without the carbon-credit mechanism. Project business case, validation statement, and supporting assumptions used for the project. Carbon project development / sustainability reporting

Reference scenario The counterfactual or reference case used for the project, and why it is a reasonable basis for judging the project’s impact. Baseline methodology, project documentation, and validation or verification materials. Carbon project development / methodology lead

Long-term durability How the project addresses the risk that the credited benefit could be reversed or lost over time. Permanence risk assessment, buffer or reversal arrangements, and monitoring reports. Carbon project management / risk management

Leakage controls How the project avoids shifting emissions or impacts outside the project area or activity boundary. Leakage assessment, project design documents, and monitoring evidence. Carbon project development / environmental management

Single claim control How the project prevents the same credit from being issued, cancelled, or claimed more than once. Registry records, retirement/cancellation evidence, and internal controls over credit ownership and claims. Carbon accounting / legal / sustainability reporting

Ongoing monitoring The routine checks and measurements used to track project performance over time. Monitoring plan, periodic monitoring reports, and field or system logs. Carbon project management

Third-party review Whether an independent party validated the project design and verified the reported results, and the outcome of that review. Validation and verification statements, assurance reports, and reviewer correspondence. Carbon project management / assurance liaison

Programme oversight The governance arrangements of the greenhouse-gas programme that issued or governed the credits, including who oversees it and how decisions are made. Programme rules, governance charter, registry governance pages, and oversight committee materials. Carbon project management / legal / sustainability reporting

Cancellation purpose The reason the credits were cancelled, stated in business terms that explain the intended use or claim. Cancellation request, internal approval, and registry retirement purpose field if available. Sustainability reporting / carbon accounting

Project impacts summary A summary of the people and environmental effects linked to the projects from which the cancelled credits came. Impact assessments, stakeholder feedback, environmental monitoring, and project reports. Sustainability reporting / ESG / carbon project management

Consulted stakeholder groups The groups of stakeholders involved in project implementation consultations, described by category rather than by individual names. Consultation logs, meeting minutes, and stakeholder engagement records. Carbon project management / community engagement

Human rights safeguards How the project approach supports respect for human rights in practice. Human rights assessment, due diligence records, grievance logs, and mitigation actions. ESG / human rights / sustainability reporting

Local benefit delivery The benefits delivered to nearby communities and Indigenous Peoples through the project, as actually evidenced in project records. Community benefit agreements, consultation records, impact reports, and benefit delivery tracking. Community engagement / ESG / carbon project management

Nature protection How the project protects or supports biodiversity, based on project-specific evidence. Biodiversity assessments, habitat monitoring, ecological surveys, and mitigation plans. Environmental management / carbon project management

Benefit trade-off review Any balancing of positive and negative effects linked to the project, including how the organisation assessed competing outcomes. Impact assessment, risk register, consultation outputs, and decision papers. ESG / sustainability reporting / project management

＋ Show GRI 102-10 sub-elements (LRA working checklist)

How to prepare it

1Set the reporting boundary first: decide which cancelled credits and which projects belong in the disclosure, so the same scope is used for the total and for the project-by-project detail.

2Define the data fields you will treat as in scope for each project record: the project identifier and name, project category, cancellation reference, cancellation date, vintage, host country, and the registry that issued it.

3Gather source evidence for the quantity and the project records, then check that the total cancelled volume is supported by the underlying records and can be shown in the stated unit.

4For each project, prepare a short explanation of how the project was assessed on the quality and integrity points required by the disclosure: extraity, baseline approach, durability, spillover control, single-use and retirement, ongoing tracking, external assurance, and programme oversight.

5Add the wider context for each project: why the credits were cancelled, what effects the project had on people and the natural environment, which stakeholder groups were involved, how human rights were handled, what local or Indigenous benefits were provided, whether biodiversity was protected, and how any trade-offs were weighed.

6Before finalising, review the draft against the official source to confirm nothing is missing, any exclusions or changes are explained, and the figures and narrative still match the evidence file.

Request the data

Request the carbon credit cancellation records

Translate the disclosure into an internal business question — then adapt it to your organisation's own language.

What carbon credits were cancelled in the reporting period, and what project-level details and supporting context do we need to explain them clearly?

Use your organisation’s own terms first, then map them to the reporting disclosure. For example, if your team says ‘retired’, ‘used’, ‘written off’ or ‘offset units’, keep that internal language in the request and only translate it when preparing the disclosure pack. Check the source guidance before sign-off.

Weak request

Please provide the GRI 102-10 carbon credits disclosure data.

Why it fails: This uses framework language only, so the owner may not know which internal records to pull, which system to use, or how to separate cancelled units by project. It also does not ask for the supporting evidence needed to explain the figures and project context.

Better request

Please send the cancelled carbon credit records for [period] in [boundary], from [source system/register]. Include the total cancelled amount and one line per project with the project name/code, project type, cancellation reference, date, vintage, host country, registry, the reason for cancellation, and the supporting notes or documents on project quality, governance, and any people or environment impacts. Use your team’s normal terms, and we will map them for the reporting pack.

Formal email template

Subject: Request for carbon credit cancellation data for [reporting period]

Hi [name/team],

We are preparing the sustainability reporting pack and need the records for any carbon credits that were cancelled during [reporting period] within [boundary].

Please send a table covering each cancelled project and the supporting evidence, using your normal internal terms where helpful. We will map the wording for reporting after review.

Please include:
- the total cancelled amount for the period
- one line per project or project batch
- the project reference and project type
- the cancellation reference, date, and vintage
- the host country and registry used
- a short note on how the project was checked for quality and governance, including the points below where available:
  - whether the project was considered additional
  - whether the baseline used was credible
  - whether the storage or reduction is expected to last
  - whether any shifting of emissions or impacts was considered
  - whether the same unit was issued and claimed only once
  - whether monitoring was carried out regularly
  - whether an independent check or verification was completed
  - how the programme was governed
- the reason the credits were cancelled
- any known effects on people or the environment
- who was consulted during implementation
- any notes on human rights, local community or Indigenous Peoples benefits, biodiversity, and trade-offs

Please attach the source evidence or links to the source system. If any item is not available, note that clearly and explain why.

Thanks,
[preparer name]
[team]

Short Teams / Slack version

Hi [name] — could you send the cancelled carbon credit records for [period] in [boundary]? Please include the project details, cancellation refs/dates/vintages, registry and country, plus the supporting notes/evidence on project quality, purpose, and any people/environment impacts. Use your team’s usual terms if easier — we’ll map them for reporting. Thanks.

Industry examples

Utilities / Energy

Context. The business cancels credits linked to a customer green tariff and a residual emissions claim for the group.

Adapted request. Please share the cancelled credit log for [period] covering [boundary]. We need the total cancelled amount and the project-level details from the registry export, plus the internal note on why each batch was cancelled and any checks completed on project quality, governance, and local impacts.

Example response. Attached is the registry export and a summary table. Total cancelled: 12,450 tCO2e. Projects: three wind projects and one cookstove project. Each line includes project code, registry ID, cancellation date, vintage, country, and the internal review note. Supporting files include registry screenshots and approval emails.

Consumer goods / Manufacturing

Context. The business uses cancelled credits for a product carbon claim and a year-end residual emissions position.

Adapted request. Could you pull the cancelled unit records for [period] from the carbon register and finance tracker? Please include the project references, cancellation dates, vintages, registry details, and the internal rationale for cancellation, plus any evidence on monitoring, independent checks, and community or biodiversity considerations.

Example response. We have provided a spreadsheet with four cancelled batches. Total cancelled: 8,100 tCO2e. The table includes project name, project ID, type, serial number, date, vintage, host country, registry, purpose, and notes on monitoring, verification, stakeholder consultation, and environmental/social considerations. Source documents are linked in the final column.

Draft your disclosure

Notes that turn data into a disclosure

LRA training templates — adapt them to your organisation, and check the official source before sign-off.

Method note

State how you counted cancelled credits, what you treated as a project, which identifiers and dates you used, and how you assessed and described the project-quality checks for each listed project.

Context note

Explain what the total cancelled volume means in practice, how the project mix, locations and registries shape the picture, and why the listed project-quality checks matter for understanding the reliability of the cancellations.

Fluctuation statement

If the total or project mix changed materially, link the movement to changes in the number of projects, their sizes, vintages, locations or registries, and note any shifts in the project-quality checks you were able to describe.

Content index entry

GRI 102-10 Carbon Credits — [location / page] / [notes]

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Preparation tools & forms

Professional preparation tools for GRI 102-10 — free with an LRA Community membership. Register once (it's free) and every download unlocks, together with the Disclosure Library, templates and the LRA AI-assistant.

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01XLSPrep & Assurance workbookDatapoints, risks, evidence to check, owner and evidence pack.Get it free ↧ 02XLSData-request packRequest email, message template, response fields and sign-off structure.Get it free ↧ 03PDFLibrary CardPrintable one-page summary of this disclosure card.Get it free ↧

Go deeper · GRI 102-10

Learn to prepare this disclosure end-to-end

This guide covers one disclosure. The GRI Standards Certified Training — taken as a bundle with an ESRS course — walks the full workflow: datapoints, evidence, drafting and assurance, with exercises on your own data.

Available as Guided Flex, Live Cohort, 1:1 Expert Mentorship or Corporate Programme.

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Assurance readiness

For each claim, check the evidence

ClaimRiskEvidence to check

We prepared the coverage figure from the cancellation records we held at the reporting cut-off, and we checked that the total only includes credits we could trace to completed cancellations.The total may include items that were not actually cancelled, were counted twice, or sit outside the reporting period or entity boundary used for the figure.Cancellation ledger or registry extracts, reconciliation to the source system, period-end cut-off review, and a working paper showing how the total was built up and checked.

For each project in the table, we used the same inclusion rule and only listed projects for which we had complete supporting records.A project may be missing, duplicated, or included without enough evidence to support its inclusion in the disclosed set.Project master list, inclusion/exclusion log, source documents for each listed project, and a completeness check against the full population of cancelled credits.

We kept a project identifier and name for every line item so each entry could be traced back to the underlying project file.The project label may not match the underlying records, making traceability and cross-checking difficult.Project register, project file index, registry screenshots or extracts, and a traceability check from the disclosure back to source records.

We classified each project using the project type recorded in the source documentation and reviewed the labels before publication.The project type may be misclassified or applied inconsistently across projects.Project documentation, classification guidance or mapping note, reviewer sign-off, and a sample check of project type against source evidence.

We retained the cancellation reference, date and vintage for each project and checked that these fields matched the registry or other primary records.The cancellation details may be incomplete, inconsistent, or copied from the wrong source record.Registry extracts, cancellation certificates or equivalent records, data-entry checks, and a field-by-field reconciliation for a sample of projects.

We recorded the country and registry for each project from the underlying evidence and checked that the same registry name was used consistently.The location or registry may be wrong, outdated, or presented in a way that is not consistent with the source evidence.Registry records, project documentation, country mapping support, and a consistency review across the disclosed projects.

Evidence pack to prepare

The governing policy or written commitment behind this disclosureA methodology / definition note setting out how the disclosure was scoped and preparedSource-system exports the figures or facts were drawn fromThe internal approval / sign-off record for the disclosure before publicationMinutes or records evidencing the relevant engagement or consultation

Common reporting gaps

Figures are stated without the supporting narrative, or narrative without figures.Scope is inconsistent between the text and the numbers.The reporting boundary is left undefined.Material changes since the previous period are not disclosed.Estimates and measured values are not distinguished.Source records for the figures are not identified.

Common gaps

Mistakes to avoid when collecting the data

Wrong owner asked

The request goes to the sustainability team alone, even though the project records, registry extracts, and cancellation logs sit with finance, procurement, or the carbon programme lead.

Framework language used too early

People ask for the data using disclosure labels instead of the organisation’s own project, registry, and retirement terms, so the right records are not recognised.

Scope not pinned down

The team never agrees which cancelled credits are in scope, so project files from outside the reporting boundary are mixed in with the intended population.

＋ Show 6 more

Where judgement is often needed

Set the cut-off date for cancellations

Choose one reporting date for all cancelled units in the period, explain any late registry updates or back-dated entries, and keep the same cut-off logic across the table and narrative.

Decide how to treat bought or sold businesses

State whether credits linked to acquired or disposed operations are included only from the date control changes, and explain any restatements or exclusions so the total stays traceable.

Handle mixed-country project labels consistently

Where the same project is described differently in local records or registry systems, map those labels to one internal naming approach and disclose the mapping rule used.

＋ Show 5 more

Examples

Illustrative examples

Synthetic, written by LRA — not from a company report, not text from any standard.

Illustrative (synthetic) example — Manufacturing

We have cancelled 120,000 tCO2e of carbon credits in the year, all from two projects. For each project, we show the project details, the cancellation record, and a short note on how we checked the project design and controls around extraity, baseline setting, durability, leakage, no double use, ongoing checks, and outside review.

Synthetic illustration only. The figures and project details are invented for training purposes and are internally consistent.

Illustrative (synthetic) example — Retail

We cancelled 48,000 tCO2e of credits across three projects. For each one, we give the project identifier, type, cancellation reference, timing and vintage, where it was issued, and a brief explanation of the checks we relied on for extraity, baseline quality, permanence, leakage, exclusive use, monitoring, and independent review.

Synthetic illustration only. The figures and project details are invented for training purposes and are internally consistent.

Company reportsReal published reports

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How companies report GRI 102-10 in practice

Real reports where this topic is disclosed. These are report practice, not exact disclosure templates to copy.

TECO Electric & Machinery Co., Ltd.

Electrical Equipment and Machinery · Taiwan · 2024

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TECO Electric & Machinery Co., Ltd.'s 2024 Sustainability Report provides detailed emissions data, including total tCO2e values with coverage percentages around 75-86% on page 56, and references to Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions coverage above 75% on page 17. The report also includes narrative disclosures on indirect economic impacts and environmental monitoring results, such as overload hazard risk assessments on pages 17 and 65. However, several narrative items related to indirect impacts, detailed stakeholder engagement, and specific diversity metrics are not found or unclear in the report.

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Scenarios to work through

Your team retired 12,400 tCO2e of credits this year from two offset projects. One project file is complete, but the other only shows the total retired and the registry statement; it does not yet list the project ID, vintage, or cancellation date.

QCan you sign off the disclosure with only the combined total, or do you need a project-by-project breakdown before publication?

Reveal model answer →

One of your projects was cancelled to support a net-zero claim, while another was retired to meet a customer contract. Both sit in the same reporting pack, and the narrative currently says only that the credits were “used for climate action.”

QHow should you handle the reason for cancellation in the disclosure?

Reveal model answer →

A forestry project in Country A has been monitored quarterly, independently checked, and registered with a recognised programme. The project manager says the report can simply note that it is “well managed” and leave out how the project was assessed against issues like durability, leakage, and double counting.

QWhat level of explanation should you include for the project’s quality and integrity features?

Reveal model answer →

A cookstove project was cancelled to support a product claim. Community meetings were held, but the draft report only mentions that “stakeholders were engaged” and says nothing about local people, Indigenous Peoples, human rights, biodiversity, or any trade-offs from the project.

QWhat should you add before the disclosure is ready for review?

Reveal model answer →

Framework references