by Caroline Kelleher | February 25, 2026
The land sector plays a critical role in achieving global net zero. Until now it’s been one of the biggest blind spots in corporate GHG accounting.
The newly released GHG Protocol Land Sector & Removals (LSR) Standard is a major step forward, providing long-needed clarity and consistency for how organizations account for land-related emissions, impacts, and CO2 removals.
What purpose does the LSR Standard serve?
- Removes a major ambiguity in GHG accounting: For the first time, companies have clear & consistent guidance on how to account for land-sector emissions and removals that were previously unreported, inconsistently treated, or excluded altogether. It reduces interpretation risk while improving transparency, creating a more consistent foundation for disclosure and target-setting.
- Defines entity-level accounting requirements: The Standard applies to entity-level inventories covering agricultural emissions and CO2 removal technologies, bringing these categories into the same inventory structure companies already use for Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3 reporting, rather than treating land impacts as an optional add-on. This includes land-use change, land management emissions, land carbon leakage, biogenic product emissions, and technological carbon dioxide removal-based product emissions – forestry is not yet included.
- Introduces traceability requirements for CO2 removals: Reported removals must be traceable to specific lands, activities, or technologies. This helps manage reversal and double-counting risk and supports credible integration of removals into corporate inventories and targets, by making it clear where removals occur, who is claiming them, and how they are maintained over time.
- Provides clarity on the treatment of credited emission reductions and removals: While the Standard focuses on inventory accounting, it offers guidance on how credited actions interact with inventories, helping companies avoid double-counting and reduce claims risk. Overall, it supports more transparent reporting and more defensible public claims as scrutiny of land-based climate action continues to increase.
The LSR Standard marks a turning point for land-sector transparency. By clarifying accounting standards for land emissions, it lays the foundation for more credible targets and more resilient supply chains.
At ClimeCo, we see this as a catalyst – not just for better reporting, but for smarter investment and real-world impact across land-intensive value chains. To read more, click here.
About ClimeCo
ClimeCo is an award-winning leader in decarbonization, empowering global organizations with customized sustainability pathways. Our team of respected scientists and industry experts collaborates with companies, governments, and capital markets to develop tailored ESG and decarbonization solutions. Recognized for creating high-quality, impactful projects, ClimeCo is committed to helping clients achieve their goals, maximize environmental assets, and enhance their brand. Partner with ClimeCo to drive meaningful environmental change and take your climate initiatives to new heights.
Contact us at +1 484.415.0501, info@climeco.com, or through our website climeco.com.
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