# Commission Decision of 10 June 2010 on guidelines for the calculation of land carbon stocks for the purpose of Annex V to Directive 2009/28/EC (notified under document C(2010) 3751) (2010/335/EU), Division 1: INTRODUCTION

Extent: E+W+S+N.I.

These guidelines establish the rules for the calculation of land carbon stocks, both for the reference land use (CSR , as defined in point 7 of Annex V to Directive 2009/28/EC) and the actual land use (CSA , as defined in point 7 of Annex V to Directive 2009/28/EC).
In point 2 rules are provided in order that land carbon stocks are consistently determined. Point 3 provides the general rule for the calculation of carbon stocks, which consist of two components: soil organic carbon and carbon stock in the above and below ground vegetation.
Point 4 provides detailed rules for determining the soil organic carbon stock. For mineral soils it provides the option of following a method that allows the use of values provided for in the guidelines, while the option of using alternative methods is also provided for. For organic soils methods are described, but the guidelines do not contain values for determining soil organic carbon stock in organic soils.
Point 5 provides detailed rules for carbon stock in vegetation, but is only relevant in the case the choice is made not to use values for above and below ground vegetation carbon stock provided in point 8 of the guidelines (the use of the values provided in point 8 is not obligatory and for certain cases it may not contain the appropriate values).
Point 6 provides the rules to select the appropriate values in case the choice is made to use the guidelines’ values related to soil organic carbon in mineral soils (these values are provided in points 6 and 7). In these rules reference is made to data layers on climate regions and soil type available through the online Transparency platform established by Directive 2009/28/EC. Those data layers are detailed layers underlying figures 1 and 2 below.
Point 8 provides values for carbon stock in the above and below ground vegetation and related parameters. Points 7 and 8 provide values for four different land use categories: cropland, perennial crops, grassland and forest land.
Figure 1
Climate regions
Figure 2
Geographic distribution of soil types

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/eudn/2010/335/annex/division/1 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/eu-decision-2010-335/annex/division-1
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.