Demonstration
MCC-2024-0019 • India • West Bengal
REGISTERED
Methodology
MCC-001
Country
India
West Bengal
Estimated Area
24,800 ha
Est. Credits/Year
45,000
Start Date
9/15/2024
Crediting Period
30 years
Project Description
Mangrove forest protection and restoration across the Indian Sundarbans, the world's largest contiguous mangrove ecosystem and Royal Bengal Tiger habitat. Combines biomass-based blue carbon quantification with quantified biodiversity outcomes for tiger and threatened species.
Project lifecycle
Project workflowREGISTERED
Milestones (3/5 completed)
- Baseline ecological surveyCOMPLETED
Establish pre-project ecological baseline using transect surveys, water quality sampling, and remote-sensing imagery analysis.
Due: 30 May 2026Completed: 1 Jun 2026 - Stakeholder consultation completedCOMPLETED
Open consultation with coastal communities, fisher cooperatives, and local authorities — minutes archived in project record.
Due: 29 Jul 2026Completed: 4 Aug 2026 - Field implementation kickoffCOMPLETED
On-site teams mobilised; planting, deployment, or protection-measures begin per methodology specification.
Due: 27 Sept 2026Completed: 12 Oct 2026 - First annual monitoring reportPENDING
Year-one monitoring report compiled and submitted; covers biomass, GPS tracks, photo points, and community indicators.
Due: 25 Apr 2027 - Independent validation site visitPENDING
VVB lead auditor visits project site, samples evidence, reviews documentation, drafts validation opinion.
Due: 24 Jul 2027
Validation & verification
Validation
ISO 14064-2:2019COMPLETED
Site visit: 27 Sept 2026 · Opinion issued: 27 Oct 2026 · Opinion: not typed (MCC-400 art. 63(f)) — issuance is refused until the VVB records one
Verification
No verification on record yet.
AI-assistance disclosure
30 May 2026An AI-assisted analysis was performed on this submission as part of MCC’s review process. AI output is advisory: it never approves, registers or issues, and every decision affecting this project is made by a human reviewer under MCC-850 (AI Governance Standard). The analysis record itself is an internal document and is not published. Programme-level statistics on AI analysis volume, confidence distribution and human override rates are published in MCC’s quarterly AI Transparency Report.
Model version: claude-sonnet-4-5
Technical review
COMPLETEDFindings raised (3)
- OBSERVATION20 open
- NON CONFORMITY MINOR10 open
Findings are raised by the review team and resolved with the project developer before registration. The text of individual findings forms part of the review record and is not published; the registration decision is published in full when it is made.
Sustainable development contributions
7.5
Overall score
Assessed: 29 Jul 2026Climate (SDG 13) contribution from carbon sequestration and avoided emissions in the project boundary.
Indicators (2)
- 9Annual CO2-eq sequestration13.20 tCO2e → 8420 tCO2e
- 7Climate resilience index (community survey)13.12.4 / 5 → 3.6 / 5
8.2
Overall score
SD-Vista EligibleAssessed: 29 Jul 2026Life Below Water (SDG 14) contribution from habitat protection, biodiversity recovery, and sustainable use of marine resources.
Indicators (3)
- 8Coral / seagrass / mangrove cover (%)14.238% → 52%
- 9Area effectively protected (ha)14.50 → 1250
- 8Fish biomass index (kg / 100 m²)14.412.1 → 18.7
6.8
Overall score
Assessed: 29 Jul 2026Decent Work and Economic Growth (SDG 8) contribution from local employment, training, and supply-chain participation.
Indicators (3)
- 7Local jobs created (FTE)8.50 → 34
- 8Women in project workforce (%)5.50% → 41%
- 7Households with improved livelihood income1.40 → 210
Safeguards & ESIA
Screened: 29 Jun 2026Risk category
CATEGORY_BClearance
CLEAREDESIA required
YESEvidence library (8)
PHOTOGRAPHIC · 2FIELD_OBSERVATION · 2LAB_ANALYSIS · 1COMMUNITY_TESTIMONY · 1SATELLITE_IMAGERY · 1GPS_TRACK · 1
| Type | Collected | Verified |
|---|---|---|
| PHOTOGRAPHIC | 28 Aug 2026 | ✓ 16 Nov 2026 |
| FIELD_OBSERVATION | 13 Aug 2026 | — |
| LAB_ANALYSIS | 29 Jul 2026 | ✓ 27 Sept 2026 |
| COMMUNITY_TESTIMONY | 14 Jul 2026 | — |
| SATELLITE_IMAGERY | 29 Jun 2026 | ✓ 8 Aug 2026 |
| GPS_TRACK | 14 Jun 2026 | — |
| PHOTOGRAPHIC | 30 May 2026 | ✓ 19 Jun 2026 |
| FIELD_OBSERVATION | 15 May 2026 | — |
Host-country position
NOT DETERMINEDNot yet determined
The programme has not recorded a host-country position for this project. No issuance can occur until it has.
Rule: FD-2026-08-24 item D8 · Host Country Authorisation Procedure v1.0 · Corresponding Adjustment and Double Counting Prevention Policy v1.0.
Stakeholder consultation
CLOSEDReversal events (1 detected)
PARTIAL
1 Jan 2026 · CONTINUOUS_MONITORINGAffected area
220 ha
Reversed (tCO₂e)
980
Suspected illegal mangrove harvesting detected via Sentinel-1 SAR backscatter anomaly (>15 dB drop). 220 ha affected. Local rangers dispatched; UNESCO and forest department notified. Reversal classification pending site investigation.
Live biodiversity (GBIF)
cached 24h · live polygon queryTotal records
130,726
Species observed
139
Sample size
300
Top 12 species in polygon
| Species | Vernacular | Records | Image |
|---|---|---|---|
| Halcyon pileata | Black-capped Kingfisher | 13 | sample |
| Axis axis | — | 9 | sample |
| Leptoptilos javanicus | — | 9 | sample |
| Macaca mulatta | — | 7 | sample |
| Varanus salvator | Asian Water Monitor | 6 | sample |
| Todiramphus chloris | Collared Kingfisher | 6 | sample |
| Actitis hypoleucos | Common Sandpiper | 6 | sample |
| Crocodylus porosus | — | 6 | sample |
| Numenius phaeopus | Whimbrel | 6 | sample |
| Tringa totanus | Common Redshank | 6 | sample |
| Merops orientalis | Asian Green Bee-eater | 6 | sample |
| Pelargopsis amauroptera | — | 5 | sample |
Source: Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) occurrence search — live polygon query, max 300 records sampled.
Continuous habitat monitoring
Sentinel-2 · CDSE · 2 snapshotsLatest period
1 Jul – 1 Aug 2026
NDVI mean
0.316
Habitat coverage
63.5%
Cloud cover
84%
Latest least-cloudy Sentinel-2 mosaic of the project area, retrieved live from the Copernicus Data Space Ecosystem. Continuous monitoring runs monthly.
SAR radar monitoring (cloud-piercing)
Sentinel-1 · CDSE · VV polarisationObservation period
1 Jul – 1 Aug 2026
VV backscatter mean
-12.4 dB
Valid pixels
—
Indicator
Possible disturbance
Sentinel-1 SAR backscatter (VV polarisation, GAMMA0-terrain corrected, decibels). Open water sits around −22 dB, flooded mangroves −8 to −14 dB, intact dense canopy around −7 dB. Cloud-independent — tracks tidal cycles and detects canopy collapse.
Biodiversity context
GBIF · OBIS (UNESCO-IOC) · public datasetsGBIF (all biodiversity)
Records
130,731
Species
142
Last 5y
300
Top species in sample
- Halcyon pileata (Boddaert, 1783)13
- Axis axis (Erxleben, 1777)9
- Leptoptilos javanicus (Horsfield, 1821)9
- Macaca mulatta (Zimmermann, 1780)7
- Varanus salvator (Laurenti, 1768)6
OBIS (marine-only)
Records
11,726
Species
249
Last 5y
6
Top marine species in sample
- Nitrospirae3
- Cytophagaceae3
- Chaetoceros3
- Chromatiales3
- Rickettsiales3
Sample of up to 300 occurrences each. GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility) covers all taxa; OBIS (Ocean Biodiversity Information System, UNESCO-IOC) is the marine subset indexed against WoRMS. Both refresh daily via 24h cache.
Mangrove habitat baseline
Global Mangrove Watch · GMW v3.14Mangrove extent 2010
488,700 ha
Mangrove extent 2024
478,100 ha
Net change
-10,600 ha
(-2.2%)
Trend
decreasing
Baseline computed from the GMW v3 polygon release cross-referenced against the project boundary at upload time. Roadmap: monthly PostGIS-driven re-intersection against the live GMW STAC catalog.
Ocean color (chlorophyll, turbidity)
Sentinel-3 OLCI · CDSE · 2026-04Chlorophyll-a
4.04 mg/m³
NDCI
0.093
TSM proxy
0.162
Water quality
poor · falling
Sentinel-3 OLCI 300 m daily revisit. Chlorophyll-a via OC4Me proxy; NDCI (Mishra & Mishra red-edge) is robust in turbid coastal water. Roadmap: live cron alongside Sentinel-2/Sentinel-1.
Vessel activity in project area
Spire Maritime · global AISUnique vessels (24h)
17
Boundary intrusions (7d)
7
Flag diversity
8
Top vessel types
- Tug7
- Fishing6
- Pleasure craft3
Sample MMSI traffic
222581271 · Passenger · ES
278033134 · Pleasure craft · PT
366646703 · Pleasure craft · CN
478885061 · Cargo · PA
Sample data shown. Live Spire Maritime AIS subscription required for production traffic monitoring; the backend endpoint is integrated and waiting on subscription activation.
High-resolution commercial snapshot
Planet Labs · PSSceneCapture date
2026-05-16
Resolution
3 m
Cloud cover
4.8%
Area covered
72 km²
Scene ID
20260516_2984_62_9870
Planet PlanetScope 3 m daily / SkySat 0.5 m on-demand. Used to validate Sentinel-derived signals at sub-Sentinel resolution. Backend integrated; live activation pending Orders API entitlement.
Environmental DNA (eDNA) sample
NatureMetrics · MCC-EDNA-007-9406Collection date
2026-04-18
Species detected
41
IUCN red list (CR/EN/VU)
7
Top detections by read count
- Chelonia mydas · Green sea turtleEN2,328 reads
- Rhincodon typus · Whale sharkEN326 reads
- Eretmochelys imbricata · Hawksbill sea turtleCR2,184 reads
- Posidonia oceanica · Mediterranean seagrass490 reads
- Acropora palmata · Elkhorn coralCR726 reads
Sample composition shown. Live NatureMetrics workflow ships sampling kits to field teams; lab returns metabarcoded species assignments against WoRMS / GBIF references. Replaces with real lab output on first sampling cohort.
Created: 4/30/2026
Last Updated: 4/30/2026