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Project California
44,960
tCO₂e Verified
567,267
Metric Tons RAP
21,807
Truck Trips Avoided
541
Lane Miles Reclaimed
64
Road Projects
California, United States
This is an avoided emissions project verified under the VM0039 Methodology, according to Verra's VCS standard for verified emission reductions. The project reduces GHG emissions from U.S. highway rehabilitation by replacing conventional asphalt paving with cold-in-place recycling instead of hot-mix asphalt.
Project ID
Registry
Issuances
PDD
Standard
Methodology
Reduction Type
Category
VCS 4546
Verra Verified Carbon Standard v4
VM0039 v1.1
Avoidance
Road Construction · Circularity · Energy Efficiency
Registry & Methodology
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What sets this project apart
How cold recycling avoids emissions
For a century, rehabilitating a damaged road meant the same thing: mine new rock, heat it with petroleum at 310°F, truck it in, and pave. Cold recycling changes that entirely. The existing road, the cracked, worn asphalt already on the ground, becomes the material for the new one. Every stage happens on site, using the existing pavement as the primary material. By eliminating quarrying, plant heating, and long-distance hauling, cold recycling delivers a faster, lower-carbon approach to road rehabilitation.
Failed Roads Qualify
Cold recycling is a reconstruction method, not a maintenance treatment. The road must have reached the end of its structural life, where resurfacing and repair are no longer effective solutions.
Mill and Remove Aged Asphalt
A cold recycler pulverizes the existing asphalt and base layers into loose material in a single pass. The failed road becomes the raw material for the new one, processed entirely on site.
Material Processed
The pulverized material is processed into a uniform, size and engineered mix.
Recycled and Remixed
A binding and rejuvenating agent is introduced into the reclaimed material, reactivating the old binder and transforming it into a structurally stable base layer without heat.
Compacted and Installed
The finished cold mix is laid directly behind the recycling train and compacted by a roller close behind. Traffic reopens within hours. About one lane-mile per 10-hour workday, two to three times the rate of conventional repaving.
01
Roads Qualify When They're Failing
When cracking has reached down into the base layer, the road qualifies for cold recycling. The damage that made it a problem is exactly what makes it work. There's enough material to reuse, and a surface coat won't last.
02
A Machine Grinds and Lifts the Old Asphalt
The recycling train drives down the lane. The lead machine grinds the old asphalt off the road and feeds an on-board crusher that breaks material to a uniform, workable size, all in one continuous forward motion.
03
Crushed Material Is Coated With Binder - No Heat
The crushed particles get coated with a small amount of rejuvenator and a water-based binder. This reactivates the old binder still inside the material. No asphalt plant, no high-temperature combustion, no stone hauled in.
04
Cold Mix Paved and Compacted in the Same Pass
The finished cold mix is laid directly behind the recycling train and compacted by a roller close behind. Traffic reopens within hours. About one lane-mile per 10-hour workday, two to three times the rate of conventional repaving.
60%
Lower Emissions Per Project
90%
Old Asphalt
Reused
~400
Fewer Haul Trips Per Lane-Mile
28-50%
Cost
Savings
2-3×
Faster
Construction
Where cold recycling avoids emissions, stage by stage
Per metric ton of finished pavement output, across the full cradle-to-installation boundary defined by VM0039.
A5
Installation
Paving and compaction
A4
Site Delivery
Plant to job site trucking
A2
Material Transport
Quarry to plant hauling
Total
A1-A5
Cradle-to-installation
A3
Plant Production
Heating mix to 310°F
A1
Raw Materials
Quarrying aggregate, bitumen extraction
Stage
~2
kgCO₂e
~1
kgCO₂e
0
No plant required
0
Work happens in place
~3
kgCO₂e
~9
kgCO₂e / tonne
Cold Recycling
~32
kgCO₂e
~12
kgCO₂e
~38
kgCO₂e
~9
kgCO₂e
~3
kgCO₂e
~94
kgCO₂e / tonne
Conventional HMA
94%
Avoided
92%
Avoided
100%
Avoided
100%
Avoided
~
Same
90%
Avoided
Outcome
Illustrative values per metric ton of finished pavement. Each project instance is quantified individually under VM0039 using measured field data from equipment logs, weight sensors, utility bills, and trucking manifests, never modelled estimates. The crediting baseline is set at the 80th percentile of surveyed HMA producer performance and tightens by 0.1 kgCO₂e per tonne annually.
Verra VCS v4 — Verified Carbon Standard
VM0039 v1.1 — First Verra methodology for road construction
SustainCERT S.A. — Current verification body (VVB)
US Patent 10,870,953 B2 — Protected methodology
Carbon Accounting Methodology
VM0039 uses an A1-A5 (cradle-to-installation) boundary covering raw material extraction, transport to plant, manufacturing, transport to site, and installation. The boundary is defined by ISO 14044 and the EN 15804 module framework that governs Environmental Product Declarations for construction products.
Using these standards means the carbon math behind every VCU is directly comparable to the EPDs that AEC firms, government procurement officers, and embodied-carbon tools already rely on. Each project instance is calculated from measured field data. The methodology was developed in partnership with the University of Maryland and the Build America Center, and is protected under US Patent 10,870,953 B2.
Circularity
100% material reuse
Existing pavement becomes structural feedstock. No quarry expansion, no virgin aggregate. The road regenerates itself.
Air Quality
Zero plant VOC emissions
Ambient-temperature process, no plant heating, no stack emissions, no community exposure to volatile organics.
GHG Emissions
Avg 60% reduction
88-146 tCO₂/lane-mile baseline collapses to 38-125 depending on technique. Verified under VM0039.
Community Health
Less HMA plant reliance
Fewer truck trips through burdened neighborhoods. Reduces dependence on the 3,600 HMA plants disproportionately sited near vulnerable communities.
Speed
1 mile per day production
Same-day reopening. Communities aren't displaced by construction for weeks. Freight isn't rerouted across the network.
Lower Cost
~45% project savings
Over time adoption of cold recycling compounds potential savings for road agencies and allows more rehabilitation to occur.
Vintage availability & retirement status
Spot delivery available for vintages 2021-2024.
Forward contracting on 2025-2028 vintages.
Full crediting period forecast: 404,250 tCO₂e.
Vintage | Status | TXT Issued tCO2e | TXT Available | Retirement | Delivery |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2018 | RETIRED | 9,181 | 0 | 100% Retired | |
2019 | SPOT | 2,390 | 1,580 | Immediate | |
2020 | SPOT | 3,581 | 1,734 | Immediate | |
2021 | RETIRED | 2,638 | 0 | 100% Retired | Sold Out |
2021 | RETIRED | 28,915 | 0 | 100% Retired | Sold Out |
2022 | RETIRED | 23,950 | 0 | 100% Retired | Sold Out |
2023 | RETIRED | 36,769 | 0 | 100% Retired | Sold Out |
2024 | SPOT | 28,887 | 565 | Immediate | |
2025 | IN VERIFICATION | 0 | 45,066 | Pending issuance | |
2021 | SPOT | 10,532 | 8,416 | Immediate | |
2022 | SPOT | 10,584 | 3,844 | Immediate | |
2021 | RETIRED | 3,648 | 3,648 | Immediate | |
2022 | RETIRED | 4,356 | 0 | 100% Retired | Sold |
2023 | SPOT | 31,676 | 19,172 | Immediate | |
2024 | SPOT | 5,280 | 5,280 | Immediate | |
2025 | IN VERIFICATION | 0 | 14,460 | Pending issuance | Q42026 |
2021 | SPOT | 37,480 | 37,476 | 0.01% retired · 4 VCUs | Immediate |
2022 | SPOT | 47,221 | 45,471 | 3.71% retired · 1,750 VCUs | Immediate |
2023 | SPOT | 51,475 | 51,403 | 0.14% retired · 72 VCUs | Immediate |
2024 | SPOT | 46,410 | 46,410 | 0% retired · newly issued | Immediate |
2025 | IN VERIFICATION | 0 | 48,490 | Pending issuance | Q4 2026 |
Full Project Details, Additionality & Permanence
Complete metadata, verification chain, ratings, methodology evolution, and due diligence.
Download a printable summary for offline review:
Crediting Period
Project Type
States
Contractors
Operations
Traceability
Patent
Verification Chain
Grouped — continuous enrollment
California and Wyoming USA
ClimatePave manages data collection, LCA quantification, VVB coordination, and registry issuance
By project instance, vintage year, and road location
US Patent 10,870,953 B2
Project Structure & Operations
Ratings & Certifications
Financial Additionality
Cold recycling competes against established HMA contractors who benefit from the status quo. A cold-recycling train costs roughly $6M, with additional operator training costs. Conventional HMA repaving yields an IRR above 34%, while investing in cold recycling reduces it to approximately 12.6%. Carbon finance closes that gap. Formal investment analysis under the UNFCCC CDM framework is available as a supporting attachment.
Common Practice
According to the NAPA 2023 survey, HMA and WMA account for ~98.5% of all US asphalt production. Cold in-place recycling (CIR) represents less than 0.4% of the market; FDR just over 1%. These technologies have been commercially available for decades yet adoption has not grown meaningfully, reflecting persistent structural barriers.
Regulatory Additionality
Cold recycling is not legally mandated by any federal, state, or local requirement applicable to the project sites. FSB and emulsion use remain discretionary engineering choices, not code-required practices.
Reversal Risk
Physical reversal risk is effectively zero. The reduction occurs at the point of production by avoiding fuel combustion and virgin-material processing. There is no carbon stock that can be re-released. No buffer pool or post-crediting monitoring for permanence is required.
BeZero Carbon Ex-Ante Rating (2023)
Project VCS 3616 received an overall "Be" rating with strong factor scores in Non-permanence (aaa), Project execution risk (aaa), and Information risk (aa). All projects operate under the same VM0039 methodology and MRV framework. VM0039 v1.1 (May 2024) introduced a mandatory 30% discount factor for upstream emission reductions, further strengthening credit integrity.
Avoidance is locked in at construction
When a road is cold-recycled, the hot mix that was never produced cannot be retroactively produced. The aggregate that was not quarried stays in the ground. There is no biological process, weather event, or operational decision that can undo what didn't happen.
Monitored at the project level
Every one of the 561 verified projects was quantified using actual field data: equipment hours, mix tonnage, RAP weight, trucking manifests, utility bills. The methodology requires cross-checking against source documents before VVB submission.
Traceable to specific road segments
Each project instance carries city, county, state, and coordinates. A retirement can be traced to specific road segments, enabling buyers with regional operations to connect the credit directly to infrastructure they rely on.
No buffer pool. 100% issuance.
Construction sector avoidance projects under VM0039 are exempt from VCS buffer pool contributions and do not require a Non-Permanence Risk Report. 100% of verified emission reductions are issued as tradeable VCUs, a structural distinction from forestry or soil carbon projects where 10-20% of reductions are typically held in reserve.
Grievance Redress Procedure
ClimatePave is committed to addressing disputes that may arise during project planning and implementation. We prioritize resolving grievances through culturally appropriate methods. If resolution cannot be achieved through initial discussions, grievances will be referred to neutral mediation, and, if necessary, to arbitration or competent courts.
