Research Evidence

Badgley, G., Freeman, J., Hamman, J.J., Haya, B., Trugman, A.T., Anderegg, W.R.L. & Cullenward, D. (2022). Systematic over-crediting in California's forest carbon offsets program. Global Change Biology, 28, 1433–1445. https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.15943

Probst, B.S. et al. (2024). Systematic assessment of the achieved emission reductions of carbon crediting projects. Nature Communications, 15, 9562. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-53645-z

Romm, J., Lezak, S. & Alshamsi, A. (2025). Are carbon offsets fixable?. Annual Review of Environment and Resources, 50, 649–680. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-environ-112823-064813

Swinfield, T. et al. (2026). Learning lessons from over-crediting to ensure additionality in forest carbon credits. Nature Communications, 17, 3944. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-71552-3

West, T.A.P., Börner, J., Sills, E.O. & Kontoleon, A. (2020). Overstated carbon emission reductions from voluntary REDD+ projects in the Brazilian Amazon. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 117, 24188–24194. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2004334117

Carlson, K.M., Curran, L.M., Asner, G.P., Pittman, A.M., Trigg, S.N. & Adeney, J.M. (2013). Carbon emissions from forest conversion by Kalimantan oil palm plantations. Nature Climate Change, 3, 283–287. https://doi.org/10.1038/nclimate1702

Cooper, H.V., Evers, S., Aplin, P., Crout, N., Dahalan, M.P.B. & Sjogersten, S. (2020). Greenhouse gas emissions resulting from conversion of peat swamp forest to oil palm plantation. Nature Communications, 11, 407. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-14298-w

Manning, F.C., Kho, L.K., Hill, T.C., Cornulier, T. & Teh, Y.A. (2019). Carbon emissions from oil palm plantations on peat soil. Frontiers in Forests and Global Change, 2, 37. https://doi.org/10.3389/ffgc.2019.00037

Meijide, A. et al. (2020). Measured greenhouse gas budgets challenge emission savings from palm-oil biodiesel. Nature Communications, 11, 1089. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-14852-6

Miettinen, J. & Liew, S.C. (2010). Degradation and development of peatlands in Peninsular Malaysia and in the islands of Sumatra and Borneo since 1990. Land Degradation & Development, 21, 285–296. https://doi.org/10.1002/ldr.976

Miettinen, J. et al. (2012). Extent of industrial plantations on Southeast Asian peatlands in 2010 with analysis of historical expansion and future projections. GCB Bioenergy, 4, 908–918. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1757-1707.2012.01172.x

Mori, T. (2023). Effects of tropical forest conversion into oil palm plantations on nitrous oxide emissions: A meta-analysis. Journal of Forestry Research, 34, 865–869. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11676-022-01493-2

Sakata, R. et al. (2015). Impact of nitrogen fertilizer application on nitrous oxide emission in oil palm plantation. Procedia Environmental Sciences, 30, 315–319. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proenv.2015.10.056

Frazão, L.A., Paustian, K., Pellegrino Cerri, C.E. & Cerri, C.C. (2013). Soil carbon stocks and changes after oil palm introduction in the Brazilian Amazon. GCB Bioenergy, 5, 384–390. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1757-1707.2012.01196.x

Guillaume, T., Damris, M. & Kuzyakov, Y. (2015). Losses of soil carbon by converting tropical forest to plantations: erosion and decomposition estimated by δ13C. Global Change Biology, 21, 3548–3560. https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.12907

Murphy, D.J. (2024). Carbon sequestration by tropical trees and crops: A case study of oil palm. Agriculture, 14, 1133. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14071133

Noirot, L.M. et al. (2022). Impacts of empty fruit bunch applications on soil organic carbon in an industrial oil palm plantation. Journal of Environmental Management, 317, 115373. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2022.115373

Yacob, S., Hassan, M.A., Shirai, Y., Wakisaka, M. & Subash, S. (2006). Baseline study of methane emission from anaerobic ponds of palm oil mill effluent treatment. Science of the Total Environment, 366, 187–196. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2005.07.003

Huang, C., Gong, W. & Pang, Y. (2022). Remote sensing and forest carbon monitoring: a review of recent progress, challenges and opportunities. Journal of Geodesy and Geoinformation Science, 5, 124–147. https://doi.org/10.11947/j.JGGS.2022.0212

Mitchell, A.L., Rosenqvist, A. & Mora, B. (2017). Current remote sensing approaches to monitoring forest degradation in support of countries' measurement, reporting and verification systems for REDD+. Carbon Balance and Management, 12, 9. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13021-017-0078-9

Veen, P., Winkler, M., Oh, S. & Michaelowa, A. (2025). Can digital monitoring, reporting, and verification (dMRV) unlock industrial CO2 capture and removal in carbon markets?. Environmental Research Letters, 20, 121002. https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ae20ad

Wong, Y.B., Gibbins, C., Azhar, B. et al. (2023). Smallholder oil palm plantation sustainability assessment using multi-criteria analysis and unmanned aerial vehicles. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 195, 577. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-023-11113-z

Farizal, F., Amanda, T., Dachyar, M. & Noor, Z.Z. (2024). 2030 oil palm plantation carbon footprint estimation using O-LCA and forecasting. Journal of Cleaner Production, 463, 142646. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2024.142646

Schulte, M. et al. (2026). A comparative life cycle assessment of palm oil: Differentiated by RSPO certified and non-certified, regionally, temporally, and by grower type. Sustainable Production and Consumption, 64, 124–136. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spc.2026.01.016

Chew, Z.L., Tan, E.H., Palaniandy, S., Woon, K.S. & Phuang, Z.X. (2023). An integrated life-cycle greenhouse gas protocol accounting on oil palm trunk and empty fruit bunch biofuel production. Science of the Total Environment, 856, 159007. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.159007

Dolah, R., Karnik, R. & Hamdan, H. (2021). A comprehensive review on biofuels from oil palm empty fruit bunch (EFB): Current status, potential, barriers and way forward. Sustainability, 13, 10210. https://doi.org/10.3390/su131810210

Goh, K.C. et al. (2025). Innovative circular bioeconomy and decarbonization approaches in palm oil waste management: A review. Process Safety and Environmental Protection, 195, 106746. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psep.2024.12.127

Kahar, P. et al. (2022). An integrated biorefinery strategy for the utilization of palm-oil wastes. Bioresource Technology, 344, 126266. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biortech.2021.126266

Kong, S.H., Loh, S.K., Bachmann, R.T., Rahim, S.A. & Salimon, J. (2014). Biochar from oil palm biomass: A review of its potential and challenges. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 39, 729–739. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2014.07.107

Moncada, J., Tamayo, J.A. & Cardona, C.A. (2016). Evolution of palm oil mills into biorefineries: Literature review on current and potential uses of residual biomass and effluents. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 110, 99–114. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2016.03.022

Cramb, R. & Curry, G.N. (2012). Oil palm and rural livelihoods in the Asia-Pacific region: an overview. Asia Pacific Viewpoint, 53, 223–239. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8373.2012.01495.x

Danielsen, F. et al. (2009). Biofuel plantations on forested lands: double jeopardy for biodiversity and climate. Conservation Biology, 23, 348–358. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1523-1739.2008.01096.x

Dislich, C. et al. (2017). A review of the ecosystem functions in oil palm plantations, using forests as a reference system. Biological Reviews, 92, 1539–1569. https://doi.org/10.1111/brv.12295

Drescher, J., Rembold, K., Allen, K. et al. (2016). Ecological and socio-economic functions across tropical land use systems after rainforest conversion. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, 371, 20150275. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2015.0275

Fitzherbert, E.B. et al. (2008). How will oil palm expansion affect biodiversity?. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 23, 538–545. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2008.06.012

Foster, W.A., Snaddon, J.L., Turner, E.C. et al. (2011). Establishing the evidence base for maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem function in the oil palm landscapes of South East Asia. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, 366, 3277–3291. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2011.0041

Ogahara, Z., Jespersen, K., Theilade, I. & Nielsen, M.R. (2022). Review of smallholder palm oil sustainability reveals limited positive impacts and identifies key implementation and knowledge gaps. Land Use Policy, 120, 106258. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2022.106258

Qaim, M., Sibhatu, K.T., Siregar, H. & Grass, I. (2020). Environmental, economic, and social consequences of the oil palm boom. Annual Review of Resource Economics, 12, 321–344. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-resource-110119-024922

Savilaakso, S. et al. (2014). Systematic review of effects on biodiversity from oil palm production. Environmental Evidence, 3, 4. https://doi.org/10.1186/2047-2382-3-4

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) (2006). 2006 IPCC Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories. Institute for Global Environmental Strategies, Japan. Official source

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) (2019). 2019 Refinement to the 2006 IPCC Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories. IPCC, Geneva. Official source

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International Organization for Standardization (ISO) (2018). ISO 14067:2018 Greenhouse gases: Carbon footprint of products: Requirements and guidelines for quantification. Geneva: ISO. Official source

International Organization for Standardization (ISO) (2019). ISO 14064-2:2019 Greenhouse gases: Part 2: Specification with guidance at the project level for quantification, monitoring and reporting of greenhouse gas emission reductions or removal enhancements. Geneva: ISO. Official source

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