Carbon Sequestration Certification Program

Forestry Offsets 

Oklahoma's forests are some of the most diverse in the country.  They include loblolly and shortleaf pine in the southeast, Ozark hardwoods in the northeast, the ancient Cross Timbers of the central portion of the state, riparian forests along our streams and rivers, and the urban forests of our cities and towns.

According to the U.S. Forestry Service, there are 9.2 million acres of forest land in Oklahoma. Around 3 million of those acres are under management, which means they are thinned under a management plan intended to optimize growth. Oklahoma also has 1.1 million acres of loblolly/shortleaf forest stands that currently store 53 million metric tons of carbon. The U.S. Forest Service estimates that there are approximately 400,000 acres of marginal cropland in Oklahoma that have the potential to be planted to hardwood stands or buffers and used as agroforestry acres. Those acres could potentially store an additional 30 million metric tons of carbon over a 40-year growth to maturity period.  

Oklahoma Forestry Services (OFS) is a state approved verifier of forestry carbon offsets for the Oklahoma Carbon Sequestration Certification Program. Forest land owners interested in having their offsets verified through the carbon program must have a forest management plan and be contracted with a state approved aggregator. Contact your nearest Oklahoma Forestry Services office to discuss a forest management plan for your land.
 

• Tree cover analysis of urban areas
• Carbon offset determination for orchards and silvipastures
• Tree calculator (estimated carbon sequestration value for species)
• Cost-benefit analysis of managing forests for carbon sequestration
• Southern Group of State Foresters "Forest Carbon Sequestration Project Policy Position"