American Carbon Registry (ACR) Overview

Updated 2026-11-02 · 4 min read · By the akar.earth specialist team

American Carbon Registry explained: ACR's program, forest methodologies, compliance role, CCP status and relevance for Indonesian and Asian land projects.

The American Carbon Registry (ACR) is a non-profit carbon crediting program and registry, part of Winrock International, that issues Emission Reduction Tonnes (ERTs) for voluntary buyers and for compliance programs. It is strong in US forestry and industrial projects; for Indonesia it is a niche option, but its CCP-Eligible status and forest methods make it a useful comparison.

What ACR is

ACR describes itself as the first private voluntary greenhouse gas registry, founded in the 1990s. It operates:

• The ACR Standard, setting program-wide rules on eligibility, additionality, permanence, validation and verification.
• Methodologies covering forestry, agriculture, industrial gases, landfill and other sectors.
• A registry recording ERT issuance, transfer and retirement.

ACR also serves as an offset project registry for compliance programs in the United States. Winrock International, ACR’s parent, also hosts the ART secretariat for jurisdictional REDD+; see ART TREES. The two programs are separate.

Forest and land methodologies

ACR’s land-use methodologies focus on US conditions, including:

Check ACR’s site for current methodology versions and geographic scope. Some methodologies allow international use; many reference US data sources that do not exist for Indonesia.

Who uses it

• US forest owners and land trusts, often under improved forest management.
• Industrial project developers reducing non-CO2 gases.
• Compliance-market participants using ACR as an offset project registry.
• Corporate buyers seeking CCP-Eligible programs with long US track records.

Key requirements

ACR shares the main features of mature programs:

• Additionality through regulatory surplus and performance or practice tests.
• Permanence. Forest projects make long-term commitments and contribute to a buffer pool based on risk. Check the current minimum term in the ACR Standard.
• Third-party validation and verification by ACR-approved bodies.
• Conservative quantification, with uncertainty deductions.
• Environmental and social safeguards.

How it applies in Indonesia and Southeast Asia

ACR is rarely used for Indonesian land projects. The reasons are practical:

• Methodology fit. ARR and REDD+ in Indonesia need tropical allometry, peat and mangrove handling, and jurisdictional baselines. Verra’s VM0047 and VM0048 address these directly.
• Buyer pool. Asian and European buyers of Indonesian NbS credits mostly know Verra. In Southeast Asia, VCS and Gold Standard issued 129 million NbS credits to April 2025.
• Domestic law. Under Perpres 110/2025 and Permenhut 6/2026, forestry carbon trading is regulated. Exchange-traded units must be recorded in SRUK. An ACR project would need the same domestic approvals as any other.

ACR may still be relevant where a buyer has a policy preference for ACR units, or for non-forest industrial projects in Indonesia. Our carbon strategy work tests program choice against target buyers.

When ACR might be considered in Indonesia

ACR is unlikely to be the default for Indonesian land projects, but there are scenarios where it enters the comparison:

• A buyer with an ACR mandate. Some North American buyers prefer programs they already use for domestic credits.
• Non-land activities. Industrial gas or landfill methane projects may find suitable ACR methodologies.
• Program diversification. Investors holding several projects sometimes spread registry exposure.

In each case, check the specific methodology’s geographic applicability, tropical data requirements and VVB availability in Indonesia before committing. Also confirm how the units would be recorded domestically under Perpres 110/2025 and SRUK, and whether Indonesian authorisation would be needed for the buyer’s intended use.

A practical first step is a side-by-side model of credit volumes and costs under ACR and Verra using the same field data. Our due diligence team runs such comparisons for investors and buyers.

Common pitfalls

• Assuming US methods transfer. Default factors and baselines built on US data rarely suit tropical forests.
• Confusing ACR with ART. Both are linked to Winrock, but ART is jurisdictional REDD+ and ACR is project-based.
• Overlooking compliance eligibility rules. ACR units used in compliance programs must meet those programs’ rules, not just ACR’s.
• Assuming every ACR credit is CCP-labelled. Methodology approval is separate.

Relationship to ICVCM CCP status

ICVCM lists ACR as CCP-Eligible. For a CCP label, the specific methodology and version must also be CCP-Approved. Check the ICVCM status table and read our CCP label explainer. For aviation use, also check CORSIA eligible units.

Next steps

Compare with the Climate Action Reserve and the Verra VCS program, or return to the standards hub.