Enhanced Rock Weathering
Enhanced rock weathering accelerates the Earth's own carbon removal process - spreading crushed silicate rocks on farmland so they react with atmospheric CO₂ and water to form stable bicarbonate minerals, locking carbon away permanently. It also improves soil pH and crop productivity, creating compelling co-benefits for smallholder farmers.
Submit EW Project View methodology docs →How this pathway works
Enhanced weathering (EW) accelerates the natural geological process in which silicate rocks react with atmospheric CO₂ and water to form stable bicarbonate ions - which are then carried to the ocean where they remain as dissolved inorganic carbon for thousands to millions of years.
Spreading crushed basalt on agricultural land is the most common EW approach. The rock reacts with soil water and CO₂, consuming atmospheric carbon while also improving soil pH, reducing the need for agricultural lime, and releasing plant-available nutrients such as silicon, calcium, and magnesium.
Unlike biological pathways, enhanced weathering offers true permanence - once carbon is mineralised into bicarbonate or carbonate minerals, it is geologically stable. This makes EW credits among the highest-durability in the voluntary carbon market.
Teravent is a pioneer in developing rigorous EW methodology, engaging directly with leading academic EW research groups to ensure that measurement approaches keep pace with the science. Current measurement approaches combine rock application records, geochemical soil and water sampling, and modelling - with ongoing improvements as the field matures.
Project types accepted
The following variants of the Enhanced Weathering pathway are currently eligible for registration in the Teravent Registry.
Measurement, reporting
& verification
Teravent's Science Advisory Board assesses each pathway against four MRV dimensions. These scores reflect the current state of measurement science and are updated as methodology evolves.
EW carbon quantification uses a combination of rock application mass balance (conservative floor), geochemical monitoring of soil pore water and river catchment chemistry (cation depletion method), and crop uptake modelling. Teravent applies a conservative uncertainty discount per MRP-06 to account for modelling uncertainty. Measurement science is evolving rapidly - Teravent updates methodology annually.
Key registration criteria
Projects must meet all of the following minimum requirements to be considered for registration under the Enhanced Weathering pathway. Additional requirements may apply depending on project size, geography, and specific methodology version.
Sustainable Development
Goal alignment
All Teravent-registered Enhanced Weathering projects must complete an SDG impact assessment at registration and at each verification period. 4 SDGs are tracked for this pathway.
Focus region: Africa, India, SE Asia - where co-benefits for communities and ecosystems are most significant and credit demand most transformational.
Ready to register your
removal project?
Join the community of project developers bringing high-integrity carbon removal to the Teravent Registry - from the Global South and beyond.