A new methodology to
award carbon credits to project proponents who cancel valid federal or state leases in
the oil-bearing tar sands regions. Private landowners with relevant
mineral rights are also eligible to use this methodology. This methodology quantifies
emission reductions associated with the baseline case of producing oil from tar sands
versus the reference case of oil processed at the nearest commercial oil refinery. The
baseline case quantifies emissions that would occur if petroleum were extracted from
tar sands. Total emissions are quantified on the basis of the volume crude oil that
would be extracted and the carbon intensity (CI) of that crude oil as calculated by the
Oil Production Greenhouse Gas Emissions Estimator (OPGEE), a tool developed at
Stanford University and approved for use by the California Air Resources Board with
the Low Carbon Fuel Standard.
