Validation & Verification Bodies

Under the Plan Vivo system, projects are independently validated by third party experts before a project is registered. Verifications of registered Plan Vivo projects then take place at least every 5 years, in accordance with requirements outlined in PV Climate.

The purpose of project verification is to ensure periodic, thorough, independent assessments of project design and implementation against PV Climate. Through these assessments, approved Validation and Verification Bodies (VVBs) confirm that project activities are described as stated in Project Design Documents (PDDs), that project partners have sufficient capacity to implement the project's objectives successfully, and that the ecosystem service benefits, e.g. emissions reductions, are being achieved as envisaged. Where a project is not meeting any particular requirement(s) under the Plan Vivo Carbon Standard (PV Climate), corrective actions (CARs) with defined timescales will be imposed and progress against these monitored.  

The cost and fees of verification will vary based on project size, scope and many other variables. It is recommended to start planning for verifications several months (6 months is advised) in advance of the desired verification visit. Projects may also contact the Foundation to request approval of additional VVBs, which will be assessed on an individual basis by the Secretariat.  

 

Approval of Validation and Verification Bodies 

The Plan Vivo Foundation (PVF) requires that Validation and Verification Bodies (VVBs) be accredited prior to the commencement of any validation or verification activities under the PV Climate. Accreditations provide criteria for assessing and recognizing the competence of VVBs, thereby allowing for a consistent and comparable scheme across GHG programs. Accreditation reduces the risk to GHG programmes by providing assurance that VVBs are competent, and it helps establish trust within the Voluntary Carbon Market by ensuring impartiality in the validation and verification processes.   

Plan Vivo accepts the following accreditation for VVBs:  

  • Approval as a Designated Operational Entity (DOE) under UNFCCC-CDM (Scope 14 and 15)  

  • Accreditation by an International Accreditation Forum (IAF) member body for ISO14065 with a scope that includes AFOLU projects.  

VVBs must be approved by PVF prior to the start of any validation or verification activities under PV Climate. VVBs may apply at any time for approval to conduct validation and verification activities.   

All relevant information to support an application to become an approved VVB can be found below. This includes the VVB application form, which should be be submitted along with all required supporting documentation to [email protected].  

 

VVB Application Form >

 Terms of Reference >

Validation Report Template >

 

Required supporting documentation:   

  1. Evidence of accreditation; 

  1. Curriculum Vitae of all lead Auditors and essential team members, including training and skills; or Qualification Reports from the Qualification Committee for the technical area of AFOLU and the internal procedure of the VVB to evaluate the validators/verifier competence. 

  1. Evidence of professional service liability insurance. 

 

Approved Validation and Verification Bodies 

The Plan Vivo Foundation currently authorises the following VVB organisations to conduct project validations and verifications: 

Organisation Information

4KES is a company started in 2018 to cater to the compliance assurance services for various areas in the Energy, Environment, Climate and Water sectors globally. With a deep knowledge and know how in the green business areas, we are a consortium of professionals with more than 2 decades of experience in project execution, compliance measurement, validation and verification services for renewable energy, community oriented, forestry, agriculture and socio-economic projects.

Head Office: Madrid
    

The Spanish Association for Standardisation and Certification, AENOR (Asociación Española de Normalización y Certificación) is a non-profit private association.

Website: www.aenor.es
Head Office: Madrid
 

ANCE is a leader in the development of standards,
regulations, and conformity assessment.
Their certification and verification services on environmental issues promote the culture of conservation of natural resources.
Office: Mexico City

Aster Global (recently acquiring Environmental Services Inc.) is a progressive leader in the development and provision of services within the international greenhouse gas (GHG) ecosystem services, carbon sequestration, and GHG validation and verification markets. From the small, forest service management company to the largest timber growers in the world, and from entrepreneurs forging new technologies in carbon sequestration to City, County, State, and Country governments, Aster Global provides services to a wide array of commercial, governmental, and social organizations seeking to create creditable projects and products.

Head Office: United States
 
carboncheck logo

Carbon Check (India) is a certification body with headquarters in New Delhi.  Carbon Check is accredited, certified, and recognized by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), VERRA - formerly known as Verified Carbon Standard (VCS), Gold Standard Foundation (GS), ISO 14065:2013, Global Carbon Council and Social Carbon for providing verification and validation services in each respective regime. Carbon Check is built on a philosophy of corporate responsibility, corporate accountability, technical excellence, and a commitment to consistent services. They are committed to enabling a future of continued growth and providing expert services to clients.

Head Office: Delhi, India
 
With its foundation in agriculture, Control Union Certifications has focused its efforts in developing services around the sustainability of the industry's supply chains which feed into the food, feed, forestry, biomass, bioenergy, social compliance and textiles markets. With 'boots on the ground' in more than 70 countries, Control Union Certifications is uniquely placed to manage challenges with today's global marketplace.
Head Office: Germany
 

Earthood offers Validations and Verifications of carbon offset credits across various programmes globally. The two co-founders Dr. Kaviraj Singh and Mr. Ashok Gautam have been involved in CDM validations and verifications since 2006. 

Head Office: India
 

ECOLANCE PRIVATE LIMITED (EPL) is a legal entity registered under Companies Act 2013 and Companies Incorporation Rules 2014, of Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Government of India with its registered office in Mumbai, India. We are a neutral, technically high-qualified, multidisciplinary third-party certification body for greenhouse gas mitigation measures and other relevant activities. We offer validation, verification, auditing services and other relevant certification of climate change mitigation and adaptation projects as well as GHG inventories in conformance with international standards. At Ecolance, we have an eclectic mix of qualified and experienced auditors who demonstrate a proactive and value-added service at all times during our intervention.

Head Office: India
 

EPIC Sustainability’s headquarters are located in India, a global award winning team of more than one hundred technical resources able to deliver quality services in all major languages across the globe.

Head Office: India
 

GHD is one of the world’s leading professional services companies operating in global market sectors of water, energy and resources, environment, property and buildings, and transportation. GHD has 200+ offices across a connected global network, operating across five continents.

Website: www.ghd.com
Contact: https://www.ghd.com/en/contact-us
Head Office: Canada
 
Based in Indonesia and serving the wider Asia region, PT Mutuagungn Lestari (MUTU International) is a conformity assessment body that has been accredited for ISO 14065, ISO 17021-1, ISO 17065, ISO 17025 and ISO 17020. MUTU International has been recognized by a third part entity for GHG programs Plan Vivo, Join Credit Mechanisms (JCM) and Social Carbon.

Head Office: Indonesia
 
Preferred by Nature is an international non-profit organization that, for more than 28 years, has been working to support better land management and business practices that benefit people, nature, and climate through a combination of sustainability assurance services, projects, and capacity building.
 
Website: www.preferredbynature.org/
Email:
Head Office: Denmark
 

SCS Global Services (SCS) is a global leader in third-party certification, auditing, testing services, and standards. Established as an independent third-party certification firm in 1984, our goal is to recognize the highest levels of performance in environmental protection and social responsibility in the private and public sectors, and to stimulate continuous improvement in sustainable development.

Head Office: United States
 
We are the UK’s leading certifier offering a huge range of organic, carbon and sustainable certification schemes in food, farming, forestry, beauty & wellbeing, fashion, textiles and catering.
Website: https://www.soilassociation.org/
Head Office: Edinburgh 
 

The Sustainable Future Group (SFG) was created to provide the missing link for private sector organisations in the Asia Pacific region with a verification, validation & assurance body that exists to enlighten, engage and empower organisations by ensuring that sustainability is placed at the forefront of their businesses.

SFG was one of the first in the region to be awarded ISO 14064 accreditation from the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) – the global governing body for accreditation of inspection, verification, testing and certification companies, through its local representative, the Sri Lanka Accreditation Board (SLAB). This enables SFG to provide verification and certification services for ISO 14064 - 1 & 2: Principles and Requirements at Organisation and Project Levels for Quantification and Reporting of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions and Removals.

We conduct validation and verification according to the latest versions released for all applicable standards/protocols/methodologies/guidelines, and pride ourselves on the impartiality of our services.

Website: https://www.sustainablefuturegroup.com
Email: [email protected]
Head Office: Sri Lanka

N.B. Rainforest Alliance discontinued their auditing services in September 2017.

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Author: Diana Wrangham

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