Forestry Commission
The Woodland Carbon Guarantee (WCaG) is a 50 million scheme that aims to help accelerate woodland planting rates and develop the domestic market for woodland carbon for the permanent removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. It is an objective in the 25 Year Environment Plan and was announced in the autumn 2018 Budget.
The next WCaG auction will run from 23 to 29 September. The application deadline to participate in the auction is 11.59pm on Friday 6 September 2024.
The WCaG provides you with the option to sell your captured carbon in the form of verified carbon credits, called Woodland Carbon Units (WCUs), to the government for a guaranteed price every 5 or 10 years up to 2055-56. This provides an additional long-term income from your woodland. If you prefer, you can still choose to sell the credits on the open market rather than to the government. WCUs are generated through verification checks carried out under the Woodland Carbon Code (WCC), which assess how the woodland has grown and therefore how much carbon dioxide has been captured.
What is on offer?
Unlike most existing woodland creation support mechanisms the WCaG is not a grant or a fund and it does not contribute towards the cost of planning, establishment or early maintenance.
Woodland creation projects accepted into the WCaG have the option to sell WCUs to the government every 5 or 10 years up to 2055-56. The government will buy the WCUs for an agreed guaranteed price that is index-linked for the life of the contract. You can still choose to sell the carbon credits on the open market at any time.
Find out more about the funding on offer in our and in the more in-depth guide to .
Projects without grant support
A new category projects without grant support is available for the eighth auction for project developers who choose not to receive any grant funding from government to plant and maintain their new woodland.
These projects will have a higher, but undisclosed, reserve price at auction compared to projects that will receive grant support. The higher reserve price reflects that the upfront costs of planting are borne by the project developer and are not recovered through grants such as the England Woodland Creation Offer.
Projects can still receive Woodland Creation Planning Grant to support the design process and remain eligible for this new category.
Alongside the category for projects without grant support, the eighth auction will continue to accept applications for projects that intend to use government grant schemes. This needs to be declared on the application form, these projects will be subject to the lower reserve price of 30 per WCU.
Find out if you are eligible
The WCaG is open to land managers who are owner occupiers, tenants, landlords and licensors, as long as they have control of the land and all the activities needed to meet the obligations of the WCaG for the full duration of the contract.
The WCaG application cannot include land:
- which is covered by a statutory requirement to establish or restock woodland
- which is not entirely within England
- where the applicant does not have management control for the length of the agreement and is unable to have an application countersigned by the landowner
- which is owned by public bodies
In order to apply for the WCaG, woodland creation projects will need to be registered with and managed under the WCC.
For further information see the guide to .
How to apply
WCaG is open for applications. To take part in the auction you must submit your application by 11.59pm Friday 6 September 2024.
The next auction will run from 23 to 29 September 2024.
In order to apply you must first register your project with the WCC. Read the guide to to understand the eligibility requirements.
If you have registered and meet the other eligibility requirements, please complete the WCaG application form and return it to:
wcag@forestrycommission.gov.uk
Woodland Carbon Guarantee
Forestry Commission
620 Bristol Business Park
Coldharbour Lane
Bristol BS16 1EJ
Get further advice on theWCaGor help completing the application form, email us:wcag@forestrycommission.gov.uk.
How it works
There are 5 stages to the Woodland Carbon Guarantee process. Please see for further information.
1. Pre-application
Before applying for the WCaG your project will need to be registered with the WCC. The WCC provides tools for calculating how much carbon will be sequestered by your woodland. You can download the Carbon Calculation Spreadsheet and Guidance from the Woodland Carbon Code website.
2. Application
Once you have calculated how much carbon your woodland will produce and registered it with the WCC, you can submit a Woodland Carbon Guarantee application form.
3. Auction
The eighth auction will take place in September 2024. Furth