All Verification Bodies under the Climate Action Reserve are required to submit the following documents for each project they have verified within the program:

• NOTIFICATION OF VERIFICATION ACTIVITIES AND CONFLICT OF INTEREST (NOVA/COI) FORM (PRIVATE DOCUMENT) This document details the relationship between the developer and verification body and is kept internal and private. Before signing a contract with an individual project developer, a verification body must notify the Reserve about the scope of its planned verification activities and complete an evaluation regarding the potential for a conflict of interest. Verification bodies do this by completing the NOVA/COI forms listed below. To read and understand more about the requirements in relation to conflict of interest, please review the Reserve’s Verification Program Manual. Should it be determined through the NOVA/COI form that the risk for conflict of interest is medium or high, you must complete the COI Mitigation Plan form.
• VERIFICATION REPORT (PUBLIC DOCUMENT) This report is a summary and scope of undertaken verification activities, a list of sources identified within the project boundary, a description of the sampling techniques and a risk assessment of undertaken processes. The risk assessment is the standard used to form the basis of the verification statement and is submitted at the end of verification activities. No standard format for this document is currently required.
• LIST OF FINDINGS (PRIVATE DOCUMENT) This document should accompany the verification report and must have all material and immaterial findings identified. It should detail any recommended corrective actions and resolutions made. This private document is shared only with the project developer and the Reserve. No standard format for this document is currently required.
• VERIFICATION STATEMENT (PUBLIC DOCUMENT) This document is official confirmation and is the final statement of findings, detailing the number of CRTs to be issued and the standard used to verify those CRTs.

Additionally, each Verification Body must annually submit a Verification Policies Acknowledgement and Agreement form directly to the Reserve at reserve@climateactionreserve.org and update this form when there are any substantial personnel changes within the organization. The purpose of the Designated Staff Roles and Responsibilities Verification Policies Acknowledgement and Agreement form is to ensure that personnel performing verification activities are notified to the Climate Action Reserve and are aware of their roles and responsibilities under our program. All personnel undertaking verification activities must be listed on this form as designated staff and the form must be signed by a duly authorized representative of the Verification Body. To list additional staff, please use the Additional Listing for Verification Staff Reporting form.

The Reserve has released the final version of the Verification Program Manual. This document provides verification bodies with a standardized approach for the independent and rigorous verification of GHG emission reductions and removals. The Verification Program Manual gives insight into the verification process, the requirements for conducting verification (like accreditation and training), conflict of interest and confidentiality provisions, and the core verification activities expected. The Verification Program Manual was created as a supplemental document to the Program Manual that summarizes the overarching rules, policies and procedures for registering projects and creating offset credits with the Reserve. The Verification Program Manual has been adopted and is now in force. Please follow the link below to download the manual.

• Verification Program Manual

The Reserve would like to thank all of the interested stakeholders that provided the comments and valuable feedback that was incorporated into this document. The Reserve’s responses to those comments are available below.

• Summary of Comments and Responses on the Draft Verification Program Manual (May 1, 2009)

As of January 1, 2011 the Climate Action Reserve requires verification bodies to become accredited under ISO 14065: 2007, IAF MD 6:2009 and ISO 14064-3: 2006 for specific project sector groupings in accordance with ANSI Scoping Policy GHG-PR-706. Guidance on Reserve requirements for sector groupings can be found in the ANSI Scoping Policy GHG-PR-706 Sector-Specific Group Accreditations Guidance Document.

Generally accredited verification bodies (that have also met Reserve training requirements) may conduct one additional verification in each sector for which it is qualified. There is no deadline for this requirement and CRTs will not be held up for that one additional verification. This additional verification shall be used for the purpose of obtaining the required witness assessment and getting sector-specific group accreditations finalized. If a verification body fails to obtain their accreditation using this additional verification, any future CRTs will not be issued until such time as the verification body has obtained that sector-specific accreditation.

Notice of Verification Activities/Conflict of Interest
How the Reserve Addresses Conflict of Interest
COI Mitigation Plan
Verification Statement
Verification Policies Acknowledgement and Agreement
Addendum to the Verification Policies Acknowledgement and Agreement form – Additional Listing for Verification Staff Reporting
ANSI Scoping Policy GHG-PR-706 Sector-Specific Group Accreditations