The Voluntary Carbon Market (VCM) relies on transparency and trust to maintain the value and profitability of carbon projects for stakeholders. In recent years, the quality of ‘carbon credits’ has been called into question, resulting in the emergence of carbon rating agencies who conduct impartial evaluations of projects and credits. Scale for Carbon Organic Resilient Ethereal (SCORE) is a satellite-based rating service which supports the entire lifecycle of carbon projects, from identifying areas with potential to generate lasting carbon impact to ongoing evaluation and monitoring. The SCORE study was developed by Uptoearth GmbH under ESA’s Business Applications and Space Solutions (BASS) programme and focuses on nature-based projects, revolutionising carbon-ratings with science-driven, reliable solutions for agricultural, coastal and urban areas.
SCORE addresses the needs of both the supply and sales sectors of the VCM, including public and private carbon project developers, carbon credit marketplaces and brokers. Areas are classified based on their storage capacity: those already at maximum capacity, where conservation is recommended, and those at risk, where restoration is needed. SCORE not only generates a rating of the environmental impact quality of projects but utilises past, present and future trends to forecast, advise and plan how to increase the value and quality of carbon projects over time, reducing the risk of downgrading. This level of detail enables users to identify the most reliable, impactful and profitable projects.
Embedding satellite technology throughout reduces the need for costly consultancy and localised assessments, providing a scalable and cost-efficient solution to managing and evaluating carbon projects. Ongoing monitoring and assessment enhance the credibility of the carbon market, reassuring investors that projects are not only delivering profits but also providing environmental and societal benefits.
During the study, UTE developed proof of concept (POC)s for each ecosystem: a forested area in Brazil, a wheatbelt in an agricultural area of Western Australia, the urban and peri-urban area of Padova City, Italy and a coastal area in Ischia Island, Italy. UTE consulted champion users to ensure the key VCM stakeholders were empowered to start and manage carbon projects, including work with insurers to de-risk carbon projects and improve their profitability.
SCORE integrates satellite-based Earth observation (EO) assets with environmental analysis, and simulation tools to create comprehensive, easily accessible maps and reports for diverse users. These are tailored to each ecosystem and understandable to experts and non-experts alike. Leveraging advanced EO data ensures continuous, reliable monitoring of land use, vegetation health, biomass and carbon sequestration. SCORE exceeds non-satellite methodologies as it incorporates temporal data from historical satellite archives with frequent revisits of modern satellites to provide up-to-date insights, offering forecasts and simulating future scenarios to manage risk. The robust rating service enables users to enhance project performance, reduce risks, and drive investment in impactful climate solutions.
“We are pleased to support Uptoearth in this study” said Ana Raposo, Business Applications and Partnerships Officer at ESA. “The SCORE service has achieved commercial, societal and environmental success at an early stage, encouraging investment in carbon projects, supporting climate resilience and impactful projects”
“Carbon removals are not just an option — they are a vital ally, alongside decarbonisation, in reaching net zero. Yet before questioning the quality of nature-based carbon credits, we must first ask a deeper question: is this massive global investment truly worthwhile? In this moment of uncertainty, SCORE was created to bring clarity — harnessing the power of satellite data to strengthen Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV) and to ensure that every effort counts towards a more sustainable future” said Filippo Iodice, CEO of Uptoearth GmbH.
The POCs successfully showed high levels of accuracy against ground truth data, and results were validated by customers and at leading conferences. This success has resulted in partnership agreements with WE2Sure and the Stoic Foundation and four new service contracts, generating over €56,100 from SCORE’s intermediate products, have been signed. UTE are now working on two more demos, one in the Balearic Islands, Spain, and another one in Sardinia, Italy, and are launching a marketing campaign to scale the service.