Latin American governments are backing large-scale CO2 reduction activities as a sustainable development strategy, scoring several high-profile wins last week, while the voluntary market (VCM) for CO2 removals (CDR) reeled from the announcement of mega CDR buyer Microsoft halting purchases.

A biomass carbon removal and storage plus renewable natural gas (BiCRS+RNG) project in the US has secured a route to market via a procurement platform, it was announced on Monday.

Moving ahead - Dib v. Apple is proceeding on a revised briefing schedule after a short-lived mediation referral did not result in a settlement. The case was released from the court’s mediation programme on Apr. 7, indicating no resolution at that stage. Subsequent filings show procedural activity continuing, including a disclosure statement from Apple on Apr. 8 and a request by appellants for more time to file their opening brief. The court granted that request on Apr. 9, setting a revised briefing schedule with the opening brief due July 15, the answering brief due Aug. 14, and an optional reply brief due 21 days after service of the answering brief.

Foreign plaintiffs could use a long-standing US human rights statute to bring claims against companies involved in harmful carbon offset projects, despite recent court rulings narrowing its scope, a recently-published legal analysis argued.

Advanced market commitment in carbon removal (CDR) has doubled nearly every year since 2022 from buyers other than Microsoft or the carbon buyers group Frontier, a market platform reported on Monday.

News of Microsoft possibly pausing carbon dioxide removal (CDR) buying sent shockwaves through the nascent market late last week.

Ricey methane - The Global Carbon Council (GCC) has put its proposed methodology for methane emissions from rice paddies up for a public consultation, closing on May 7. The methodology – GCCNMT007: Methodology for Reduction of Methane Emission through Adjusted Water Management Practice in Rice Cultivation – sets out a structured framework for improved water management practices, in order to protect reduce emissions from anaerobic soil environments, which are created from the continuous flooding of rice paddies. The methodology applies to project activities that transition rice cultivation from continuous flooding to more sustainable approaches like intermittent and shorter flooding, alternate wetting and drying, aerobic rice cultivation methods, and a shift to direct-seeded rice rather than transplanted rice.

ICR opens new consultation - Reykjavik-based International Carbon Registry (ICR) has launched a public consultation on a new methodology for on-site GHG measurements in sustainable land management projects, developed by project developer Carbon Real. Feedback is open from Apr. 8 to May 8 as part of efforts to standardise emissions quantification and monitoring, the registry said in a LinkedIn post last week.

REDD+ tender opens in Madagascar - US-based non-profit Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) has launched a call for tenders for technical advisory services on REDD+ revalidation and verification in Madagascar. The work will focus on monitoring and evaluation, including assessing project performance and supporting climate and conservation outcomes, according to a procurement notice published Apr. 9.

Protocol overhaul - The Climate Action Reserve (CAR) has proposed a new modular protocol structure splitting overarching requirements into a Common Protocol and jurisdiction-specific modules, it said on its website last week. The proposed change aims to streamline updates and support expansion across regions. The changes also introduce technical guidance modules where needed, with public comments on draft Program Manual updates open until Apr. 27.

A Dutch carbon project developer saw forward sales more than double in Q1 2026, reaching around €4.5 million after signing nearly €2.5 mln in new contracts, according to its latest quarterly update.

A6 partnership - The Article 6 Implementation Partnership (A6IP) and the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) announced at a meeting last week in Geneva a Joint Declaration laying out their intention strengthen cooperation on capacity-building, policy support, and technical assistance to help countries develop the institutional arrangements required to implement Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. The collaboration aims to accelerate the development of trusted carbon markets and mobilise additional finance for low‑carbon industrial transformation, the partners said. Additionally, Naoki Torii, industrial development officer at UNIDO, introduced the organisation's new initiative, the Carbon Market for Development Partnership (CM4D), which seeks to leverage private sector support by mobilising upfront climate finance and accelerating participation in high-integrity international carbon markets.

New net zero association in Vietnam - The Ho Chi Minh City Association of Small and Medium Enterprises (HCM-SME) has launched the Vietnam-Asia Net Zero Association (VANZA HCM-SME) to support businesses in accessing emissions reduction technologies and expanding green cooperation. The body is expected to act as a focal point linking enterprises with low-carbon solutions and facilitating collaboration, as Vietnam works towards its 2050 net zero target, HCM-SME chairman Pham Van Triem said. The launch took place alongside the first congress of the Green Agriculture - Food - Health Business Association (Green HCM-SME) for the 2026–2028 term, where Chau Minh Chinh was elected chairman.

Input needed - Bangladesh and Japan have opened a public consultation on a proposed methodology to cut methane emissions from rice paddies in Bogura and Joypurhat districts under the Joint Crediting Mechanism. Stakeholders are invited to submit feedback until Apr. 22 after the submission passed an initial completeness check.

Seed round - Japan-based forest asset manager ForestFolks has raised a seed funding round to develop a digital platform aimed at supporting forest valuation and carbon credit generation, though the funding amount was not disclosed. The round included backing from Mitsubishi UFJ Capital, Sparkle, taliki, S-Innovation, and angel investors, with proceeds to support development of its Forester Earth digital forest management platform and pilot projects with municipalities and regional firms.

The UK government has launched a procurement process to purchase carbon credits to offset around 5,165 tonnes of emissions from the construction of a new headquarters for a European weather agency, with a budget of up to £2.5 million.

The volume of carbon credits for the aviation offsetting scheme CORSIA may have doubled in the past year – but the market's true supply will remain constrained without the spread of insurance, according to analysis published on Monday.

A reported pause to Microsoft's carbon removal (CDR) purchasing programme exposes a major demand challenge for the nascent technology-based market, but also represents a "bittersweet" opportunity for the sector to mature, project developers and experts told Carbon Pulse.

A Danish public-private partnership on carbon capture utilisation and storage (CCUS) last week announced the first batch of projects under its latest funding rounds, with a combined budget of roughly DKK 45.9 million (€6.1 mln) across four initiatives, as part of a broader rollout of 12 projects to be confirmed this month.

Bear fruit - Japanese developer Fager on Monday said it had obtained certification for around 225,000 credits from rice paddy projects under the J-Credit scheme, according to the results from the latest certification committee meeting. It obtained certification for 27 credits from its biochar project. Faeger said this marks the first time that over 200,000 credits have been certified in Japan's agricultural sector, and it aims to generate 400,000 credits by 2026.