This study investigated South Carolina forestland owners’ willingness to generate and sell carbon credits to California’s cap-and-trade program. We used a sample of 784 private forestland owners’ responses to a contingent valuation survey in SC. As part of the main objectives of this study, our estimated average willingness to accept (WTA) in order to supply carbon credits to California’s carbon market was $67 per acre per year. Birdsey (1992) estimate average carbon storage of forestland in SC to be in the range of 110,000 to 140,000 pounds per acre. Given $11 per ton of carbon dioxide (CO2) as the lowest price of carbon credit at the time this survey was conducted, and a worst-case scenario of 55 ton per acre (110,000 pounds/acre) of minimum carbon storage of forestland in South Carolina, forestland owners can earn a minimum of $605 per acre in revenue to participate in California’s carbon market….
An excerpt from Springer Link