£20m available in eighth Woodland Carbon Guarantee auction

What is the grant available for?

Farmers, foresters and other land managers are today (Wednesday 10 April) encouraged to apply for the Woodland Carbon Guarantee scheme ahead of the eighth auction, which will take place online from 23-29 September.

Administered by the Forestry Commission, the Woodland Carbon Guarantee is a £50m scheme that aims to help accelerate woodland planting rates and remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and has already resulted in nearly 3,000 hectares of new woodland across the country.

£20m is now available as part of the eighth auction, for farmers and land managers to create new woodlands to help tackle the effects of climate change, providing new income in the form of long-term payments for the amount of carbon a new woodland will store. Woodland creation also provides a wealth of other benefits from helping to reverse biodiversity decline and increasing green jobs to aiding physical and mental health.

Following an online auction process, successful bidders will be offered the option to sell woodland carbon in the form of Woodland Carbon Units – a financial value given to each tonne of carbon stored – to the Government up to 2055 at a guaranteed price protected against inflation. The scheme reflects the Government’s confidence in the continued growth of markets for woodland carbon, as landowners will continue to benefit from a reliable revenue stream in selling carbon on the domestic market.

For the first time, the auction will be opened up to farmers, foresters and land mangers whose projects are not currently in receipt of Government funding to allow an even greater number of woodlands to benefit from the auction. These projects will have access to a higher, undisclosed reserve price per Woodland Carbon Unit. Projects can still receive the Woodland Creation Planning Grant to support the design process and remain eligible for this new category. 

Any eligibility criteria

Your application must be submitted to wcag@forestrycommission.gov.uk by 23:59 on Friday 6th September 2024.

What grant amounts are available?

The budget for the auction is £20 million split between the two auction categories with £18m allocated to projects without grant support and £2m allocated to projects that will receive government grant funding for planting, establishment, and maintenance (such as the England Woodland Creation Offer). If budget targets are not reached, the remaining budget is allocated to the next eligible bid in the remaining selection (below the reserve price and in either bid category) until the maximum of £20 million is reached.

How to apply for the grant?

For more information or to apply please click here.