SZTE and MOON42 RDI develop carbon dioxide absorption capacity calculation system

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According to the statement, the fight against climate change is only possible with global cooperation and this is also the moral duty of every person. Numerous agreements and targets have been created to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and as a result, the mandatory and voluntary carbon markets have emerged. Emission units are traded on these, and these units are called carbon quotas on the mandatory carbon market, and carbon credits on the voluntary carbon market, which is independent of state regulation.

Market players intend to neutralise their own carbon footprint or part of it by purchasing carbon credits

Elements of regenerative agriculture offer farmers an excellent opportunity to monetise the carbon sequestration of their farms through carbon credits. Farmers and ranchers can sell carbon credits to investors for every tonne of carbon dioxide that their land sequesters, so the carbon market creates new sources of income for farmers that did not exist before. The project, with a budget of 713 million forints, is developing a new method for determining the carbon absorption capacity of agricultural and other green areas based on high-resolution aerial photographs. Currently, these measurements are made using expensive and time-consuming soil sampling or inaccurate model calculations. The new technology will be the first solution internationally that can be used to perform highly accurate measurements remotely – without soil sampling – in a short time, with a high degree of automation. During the two-year project, the new procedure will be developed through industrial research, measurements based on imaging procedures, determination and evaluation of key indices, and setting up algorithms. Satellite remote sensing, images from cameras carried by drones or other aircraft will be used as input data sources for the technology. The experts will also develop a partially automated platform on which large emitters can keep track of verified credits, plan their further greening activities, and contact credit holders, farmers, and forestry companies within a controlled framework. In addition to Hungary, the market launch of the technology is planned with foreign partners in Sri Lanka and Colombia, where they see a significant opportunity in the new method of surveying and transparent carbon credit trading.

NKFIH support covers 534 million forints of the project costs

MOON42 RDI Kft. is an IT company that, among other things, develops a wide range of online solutions for music and game stores, entertainment and live streaming platforms, ticket sellers, and also creates precision farming support systems for agricultural businesses. According to publicly available company data, the Hungarian privately owned company, which employs 37 people, had net sales revenue of 1.775 billion forints in 2022 and 1.2 billion in 2023. The company achieved after-tax profits of 239 million in 2022 and 57 million in 2023.

MTI