Microsoft has reportedly utilized blockchain as a means of payment for buying 43,338 metric tons equivalent of Australia-based soil carbon credits. 

Specifically, the new project – dubbed CarbonPlus Grassland – reportedly employed Cosmos blockchain to design, in combination with Regen Network, were initially issued to two ranches situated in New South Wales.

The carbon credits are reportedly utilized as a tool of measurement for soil sequestration – the process of gathering atmospheric carbon dioxide and storing it in soil – which has been made possible via Regen Network’s remote sensing tech, which reportedly has features to support supervising animal welfare, soil health and general ecosystem health.

An overall figure of 43,338 metric tons equivalent of carbon credits were generated to Wilmot Cattle Co, in a bid initiated by natural capital company Impact AG, prior to Microsoft acquisition. 

The Wilmot ranchers have reportedly amped up the level of soil organic carbon on their lands to reach 4.5% – made possible via managed grazing practices. The ideal concentration of soil organic carbon is reportedly believed to fall between 4% to 6%.

A 2020 announcement from Microsoft reportedly revealed the firm’s effort in bringing down its carbon footprint to zero by 2030. 

Moreover, Microsoft reportedly has a target of ruling out a volume of carbon, equivalent to the amount that it has been responsible for generating, when its operations began in 1975.

“Our work with Impact Ag and Wilmot Cattle Co makes us more hopeful than ever that agricultural and nature-based solutions to climate change are not only real, but have the potential to rapidly sequester carbon and build resiliency into our food systems. The scale at which Microsoft is purchasing carbon credits should give us all hope that business can and will be a catalyst for change.”