Carbon Eligibility Overview

An overview of the eligibility requirements for Carbon by Indigo participation

Becky Scott avatar
Written by Becky Scott
Updated over a week ago

The below are mandatories to be able to participate in Carbon by Indigo.

You can still sign-up if your state or crop do not qualify--if there are eligibility changes, we will notify you.

Mandatory: your fields must fit within the below eligibility to file your fields in the next Carbon Harvest. The below are checked when setting up your profile and mapping your fields.

General:

  • You must have the exclusive rights to operate the fields you plan to enroll

  • The fields you plan to enroll cannot already be in a program in which you are paid for generating carbon credits

States:

Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, and Wisconsin

Land Type:

Cropland.

At this time, we do not service rangeland, pastureland, orchards, vineyards, or other afforested areas. Fruits and vegetables are also ineligible.

Crops:

Alfalfa, Barley, Canola (Fall & Spring planted), Corn, Cotton, Dry Edible Beans, Dry Field Peas, Flax, Hemp, Millet, Oats, Peanuts, Rye, Sorghum, Soybeans, Sugar Beets, Sunflowers, Triticale, Wheat (Winter & Spring)

If you farm a crop not included here such as Rice, Potatoes, or Pumpkins, those fields are not currently eligible.

Entity acreage

150-acre minimum, in order to ensure the highest possible grower payments,

Indigo will review and adjust acreage minimums as we achieve improved efficiencies through data and technology. Stay on our mailing list to keep informed on any future additions to the program that may be interesting to you and your operation.

Recently Implement or Plan to implement a Qualifying Practice Change:

You can enroll your fields in our carbon program by either implementing a qualifying practice in the upcoming crop season or if you’ve implemented a qualifying practice since the conclusion of last season. When determining if your practice change will count, it’s important to remember that the practice change window starts the day after the date of the last harvest for the field.​

Qualifying practices:

Keep in mind that at least 25% of the field boundary area must exhibit this new carbon farming practice to qualify.

Unique Scenarios

During your enrollment, we will ask you additional questions to ensure your fields are eligible, based on your answers the field will move forward to enrollment if there is no issue.

To note, we check some questions with 3rd party sources and may ask for further details post-enrollment of the field.

Conservation Programs:

You must disclose the program your desired enrolled field participates in or receives government-funded enhancement payments. Don’t worry, the field is likely still eligible to earn payments when enrolled in programs like CSP, EQIP, or another NRCS program, with the exceptions of CRP and WRP, which are ineligible. CRP participation is only ineligible on the field level, not the entity level.

Participation in the Carbon by Indigo program does not affect your right to any Farm Service Agency or USDA subsidies or other payments so long as they are not payments for the generation of carbon credits or carbon attribute

Conservation Compliance

If your fields are classified as Highly Erodable Lands or Wetlands, the field is eligible but certification from AD-1026 and/or proof of federal crop insurance must be confirmed. If this documentation can not be confirmed the field is not eligible for the program.

Uncommon Situations

  • Histosols:

    • A field can have up to 10% histosols and still be eligible. Any fields over that percentage are disqualified. You can work with our Customer Success team to edit out where histosols are in your field to make them eligible.

  • Land Conversion:

    • The ecosystem cannot have been cleared in the last 10 years. This field may be considered eligible once the 10 years is over. If you implement a new practice change in ”Year 11”, you can start earning carbon credits.

  • Expanded tile drainage

    • The repair or replacement of preexisting tile drainage on participating fields is permissible; however, the expansion of drainage or introduction of tile drainage to a field that previously was untiled renders the affected fields ineligible for carbon credits in Carbon by Indigo.

  • Notice of Violation

    • If you receive a notice of violation in the year of your indicated practice this may make the field ineligible.

If your fields fit within the above criteria, congratulations you can enroll your fields and file in the next Carbon Harvest to get paid for credits generated on your fields!

After enrollment, your next step will be indicating your practice change on each enrolled field.


FAQs

Why isn't my crop(s) eligible right now?

For the time being, we are only able to effectively measure carbon sequestration for the specific crops on the eligibility list. We are excited to expand Carbon by Indigo into new crops in the future. We are working hard to do this and will let you know as soon as additional crops become eligible. Stay on our mailing list to keep informed on any future additions to the program that may be interesting to you and your operation.

When will my region/area be eligible?

  • Ineligible region of the US: For the time being, we are only able to service a limited geographic area. We are working hard to expand the program into your area in the future. Stay on our mailing list to keep informed on any future additions to the program that may be interesting to you and your operation.

  • International: Thank you for your interest in the Carbon by Indigo program! For the time being, we are only able to service a limited geographic area in the United States. We are working hard to expand our program internationally in the future. Stay on our mailing list to keep informed on any future additions to the program that may be interesting to you and your operation.

Why is pastureland/rangeland/forested land/orchards/etc. not eligible?

For the time being, we are only able to effectively measure crop practices on cropland. We are working hard to include additional land types in the Carbon by Indigo program in the future. Stay on our mailing list to keep informed on any future additions to the program that may be interesting to you and your operation.

Do I need to delete my ineligible fields?

You do not need to delete ineligible fields. You can keep them mapped in the site at no cost and if they become eligible in the future, you will only need to add them to your contract and begin entering the required records.

 

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