Validation and Verification Support

Updated 2026-11-02 · 2 min read · By the akar.earth specialist team

Validation and verification support for land-sector carbon projects: audit readiness, VVB coordination, finding responses and data packages.

Validation and verification support prepares your carbon project for audit by an accredited validation and verification body (VVB), and helps you close findings quickly when they come. We do not audit projects ourselves; we make sure the evidence, calculations and responses are ready so the independent audit goes smoothly.

Who it is for

• Developers going through first validation of a land-sector project.
• Projects preparing for a verification and issuance.
• Projects with open audit findings, or a long list of them, that need technical help.

The problem it solves

Audits are expensive and slow when the project is not ready. Every finding needs a written response and often new evidence, and each round adds time and VVB fees. Most findings are avoidable: calculation workbooks that do not match the report, maps in the wrong projection, plot data without metadata, or monitoring changes not recorded as methodology deviations.

What we deliver

• Audit readiness review: a mock audit of your PDD or monitoring report against the methodology and standard rules.
• Evidence package: organised documents, GIS files and raw data, indexed to the claims they support.
• VVB selection support: what to ask candidate VVBs about scope, sector experience and timeline.
• Site visit preparation: plot locations, field teams, community meetings and logistics.
• Finding responses: diagnosis, re-calculation or new evidence, and drafted responses for each finding.
• Re-measurement support where the auditor requires plot checks.

How it works

1. Readiness review. We read your documents as an auditor would and list the gaps.
2. Fix list. Gaps are ranked by audit risk and effort; we fix what we can and specify what you need to supply.
3. Audit preparation. Data package, site visit plan and briefing for your team.
4. During the audit. We support your team in meetings and the site visit, and log every request.
5. Findings. We draft responses and supporting analysis until closure.

What you provide

• The PDD or monitoring report, workbooks and all supporting evidence.
• Access to field data and the people who collected it.
• Your contract or correspondence with the VVB, so we understand scope and deadlines.

Typical timeline

A readiness review typically takes two to four weeks. Support through the audit follows the VVB’s schedule, which commonly runs for several months from kick-off to final report.

Tools we use

AKAR dMRV keeps field data, photos and GPS records traceable to each plot, and AKAR Mapper produces boundary and orthomosaic layers auditors can check. AKAR Eligibility supports eligibility evidence.

Typical issues we fix before the auditor arrives

• Plot coordinates that do not match the plots on the ground or on the map.
• Allometric equations or wood densities used without a cited source.
• Missing records for planting dates, survival counts or management events.
• Leakage and uncertainty calculations that use a different dataset from the main estimate.
• Stakeholder consultation evidence that lacks dates, attendance or follow-up on concerns raised.

Next step

If your documents are not yet written, start with PDD development. For background, see the standards hub. Then message us with your standard, methodology, audit stage and any open findings.