Committee Summary for Carbon Sequestration Programs Study Commission (11/18/2025)

Bill/Time	Type	Title	Sponsor
Unclear 00:05:21.840 - 9:00:42 AM	General Working Session	Unclear

Unclear: Chairman (John) Information Only00:05:21.840 - 9:00:42 AM; The chairman calls the meeting to order at 10:00, invites participants to sit closer for the presentation, leads the Pledge of Allegiance via Matt Mayberry, has the clerk read the roll confirming quorum, approves amended minutes from October 22nd with corrections to date and speaker name, and introduces the carbon presentation by Charlie Lebec.
Unclear: Charlie Lebec Information Only00:08:41.279 - 9:04:02 AM; Charlie Lebec delivers a comprehensive presentation on forest carbon offset markets. He covers forest carbon science, including carbon pools, sequestration, storage, emissions, flux, sinks, and sources; the greenhouse effect and historical CO2-temperature correlations from ice cores; photosynthesis and carbon in wood; regional forest density and sequestration rates in New England, noting New Hampshire offsets over 30% of state emissions; factors affecting sequestration; forest carbon pools emphasizing soil carbon; storage and sequestration trends over forest age, highlighting younger forests (25-70 years) sequester more per acre; benefits of harvested wood in solid products for long-term storage; and forest management techniques to enhance carbon like avoiding loss, reserves, extended rotations, partial harvesting, thinning, creating younger forests, leaving legacy trees, stocking, diversity, careful harvesting, soil protection, and efficient machinery. He stresses avoiding forest loss as the most effective strategy. He then dives into carbon offset markets: categories (afforestation, avoided conversion, improved forest management); key players (projects, developers, registries, markets); compliance vs. voluntary markets (e.g., California's cap-and-invest allowing out-of-state projects, voluntary buyers like Microsoft); standards ensuring real, additional, verifiable, permanent, enforceable credits; status and trends showing billions traded globally, forestry as the largest category; leakage concerns (activity shifting and market-driven harvesting displacement due to rising global wood demand); U.S. acreage (1.3% of forests, <5% in Northeast, <4% in NH with 186,000 acres across 12 owners, mostly large); developers for large vs. small landowners; declining voluntary market volume since 2022 due to quality concerns addressed by Integrity Council principles; and alternatives like NRCS practices, conservation easements, forest management, and estate planning. Throughout, he references resources like northeastforestcarbon.org and answers questions on sinks in timber products, international trading, penalties, additionality, state control, current use compatibility, and pricing.
Unclear: Chris Fe Information Only00:40:05.119 - 9:35:26 AM; Chris Fe clarifies that silvicultural practices for carbon focus on the extent of acreage treated rather than the type (e.g., clearcuts on limited areas), emphasizing partial harvesting and rotation to maintain cover and enhance sequestration. He also notes that current use programs support keeping land as forest, aligning with carbon goals by reducing tax burdens that might lead to development.
Unclear: Matt Mayberry Information Only00:58:14.160 - 9:53:35 AM; Matt Mayberry asks if US companies or registries can buy international carbon offsets, confirming they can anywhere worldwide without continental US restrictions in the voluntary market.
Unclear: Eric Murphy (New Hampshire Retail Labor Association) Information Only01:02:02.799 - 9:57:23 AM; Eric Murphy questions additionality, asking if carbon offsets require changing forest management from business as usual, and later inquires about contract pricing locking in values over long terms, noting potential impacts if prices drop, and the value to landowners.
Unclear: Unidentified Speaker Information Only01:00:11.839 - 9:55:32 AM; The speaker asks about enforceable penalties for exiting a carbon project, seeking details on costs if withdrawing from a contract.
Unclear: Another Unidentified Speaker Information Only01:03:55.200 - 9:59:16 AM; The speaker follows up on additionality and management changes, questioning if states cede control by allowing external registries and developers, viewing it as interrelated globally.
Unclear: Charles Information Only01:28:54.000 - 10:24:15 AM; Charles asks how selling carbon sequestration would change management on a mature high-grade hardwood forest compared to prior practices.
Unclear: Chair (Mark Brady) Information Only00:05:21.840 - 9:00:42 AM; The chair calls the meeting to order at 10:00, invites participants to sit closer for the presentation, leads the Pledge of Allegiance, has the clerk read the roll confirming quorum, approves amended minutes from October 22nd, and introduces the carbon presentation by Charlie Lebec.
Unclear: Charlie Lebec Information Only00:08:41.279 - 9:04:02 AM; Charlie Lebec delivers a comprehensive presentation on forest carbon offset markets. He covers forest carbon science, including carbon pools, sequestration, storage, emissions, flux, sinks, and sources; the greenhouse effect and historical CO2-temperature correlations from ice cores; photosynthesis basics; regional forest carbon status in New England; factors affecting sequestration; forest management techniques to enhance carbon sequestration like avoiding forest loss, extending rotations, partial harvesting, thinning, creating younger forests, leaving legacy trees, planting, increasing diversity, minimizing damage, protecting soils, and using durable wood products. He discusses carbon markets, including compliance (e.g., California) and voluntary markets, project types (afforestation, avoided conversion, improved forest management), key players (developers, registries), standards (real, additional, verifiable, permanent, enforceable), status/trends, leakage concerns, New Hampshire registry data showing ~186,000 acres enrolled, market challenges, quality improvements via Integrity Council, and alternatives like NRCS practices, conservation easements, and voluntary management. He addresses questions on carbon sinks in harvested wood, international offsets, penalties, additionality, current use compatibility, and pricing.