Water Quality Trading & Environmental Markets

Kieser & Associates > Projects > Environmental Markets

K&A is nationally recognized for their years of dedicated efforts to develop and institutionalize water quality trading in the United States.  We work with federal and state agencies, municipalities, industry, agricultural organizations, mitigation bankers, and non-profits to develop frameworks and pilot trades for environmental markets around the world.  Full reports for many of our projects are available on the Technical Reports page.

Featured Projects:

Ecosystem Services Market Consortium 

K&A is serving as the lead consultant for protocol development for the Ecosystem Services Market Consortium, advancing markets that incentivize farmers and ranchers to improve soil health systems that benefit society focusing on soil carbon, water quality and water quantity.  This project is supported through funding from the Noble Research Institute, General Mills, and Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS).  The project has entered the pilot trading phase and is being expanded to new regions, on the path to develop a national ecosystem services market. Project Website.

Ohio River Water Quality Trading Project

K&A provided technical assistance to the Electric Power Research Institute and project partners on the Ohio River Water Quality Trading Project.  This multi-state trading project was supported in part through grant funding from the US EPA and USDA.  The project has entered the pilot trading phase where nutrient credits are being exchanged between agricultural nonpoint sources and power plants. Project Website.

Nutrient Offset Resolution Compliance in Santa Rosa, California

K&A assisted the City of Santa Rosa with total phosphorus and total nitrogen offsets necessary for compliance with an NPDES permit resolution.  K&A developed approvable credit estimation methods and protocols for a variety of agricultural nonpoint source projects in the Laguna de Santa Rosa Watershed.  These projects included working with dairies to generate nutrient offsets. Project Summary.

Integrated Water Fund in Lima, Peru

K&A co-led an effort with Forest Trends and EcoDecision, LLC to identify common project goals and a common metric for a newly established water fund (AQUAFONDO) for Lima, Peru.  The water fund is designed to fund projects which address both water quality and quantity issues for the water supply of Lima and vicinity with a population of 12 million. Project Summary.

Additional Projects: