Gold Standard has released two new documents for consultation that will support users to use Google Earth to assess forest health and to carry out a preliminary estimation of the extent of potential eligible areas for Gold Standard certification:

• The Forest Health Assessment Toolbox allows the user to estimate forest health using satellite data. We are particularly interested in feedback from corporates investing in forest health, governments seeking to assess forest health, consultants interested in advising on forest health, and academics studying forest health.
• The Forest/Non-forest and Wetland/Non-wetland Assessment Toolbox allows the user to conduct a preliminary estimation of the extent of potential eligible areas for Gold Standard Certification. The analysis criteria can be specified to follow different guidelines, such as the Land-Use and Forest Activity Requirements. We are particularly interested in feedback from those interested in generating credits from land use and forestry (LUF) activities.

This work is part of the Open Collaboration between Gold Standard, IOTA Foundation and ClimateCHECK. This collaboration aims to improve the supply side, demand side, and interoperability of the carbon market. The Open Collaboration is supported by Google Charitable Giving.

Forliance was commissioned by Gold Standard to develop these documents.