The Yahara WINS Watershed Carbon Project has become the first U.S. initiative to generate verified carbon credits using a new methodology focused on watershed conservation instead of traditional water infrastructure. The Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD) issued 24,143 carbon credits in January, recognizing avoided greenhouse gas emissions through the Yahara WINS project, which began in 2017. This project chose adaptive management for phosphorus compliance over costly infrastructure upgrades, projected to prevent about 73,000 tons of carbon emissions over 20 years. Martye Griffin, MMSD’s Ecosystem Services Manager, emphasized the benefits of this approach for compliance and climate objectives. The District has sold credits to partners including the Water Environment Federation and Mortenson, expected to generate approximately $270,000 in revenue by 2036.
