Activities reference

Every activity type available in Certify per protocol, with its time granularity, metadata, measurements and links

This page lists every activity type Certify supports, grouped by protocol. Your project only has the activity types belonging to its protocol and protocol version. For how to add activities, see Add activities.

Overview

Each activity type below is described by the following attributes.

Attribute	Meaning
Key	The identifier used in the API and in exports.
Time	The time granularity the type records, which determines the time columns in its CSV. Date takes date, Timestamp takes time, Date range takes start_date and end_date, Timestamp range takes start_time and end_time, and None takes no time columns.
CSV columns	Every column of the upload, in order. Always download the template from Certify rather than copying these by hand, since they follow your protocol version.
Metadata	The extra fields defined for the type, with a description where the protocol gives one. Fields with allowed values must use one of those values exactly.
Measurements	The physical quantities recorded against the activity. Each has a quantity kind, a unit that its CSV column header states, and is either required in every row or optional.
Links	The other assets the activity connects to. Each link is a CSV column holding the related asset’s reference ID, and the related asset must already exist before the upload.

Every activity type also takes a name and a reference_id, both required and not repeated in the tables below. See Supplier Reference ID.

Reforestation

Activity types for projects using the Reforestation protocol.

Protocol versions: v1.1–1.2

Field plot measurement

Tree measurements are used to quantify above-ground biomass (AGB) within each field plot, which in turn is used to quantify the carbon sequestered in the project area. Each tree measurement must have a unique reference ID, be linked to a specific field plot, and use one of the predefined tree type keys.

Key	reforestation_field_plot_measurement
Time	Date (date)
Upload	CSV

CSV columns, in order:

name,reference_id,date,tree_type,field_plot_id,Diameter at breast height (cm),Elevation (m),Height (m),Latitude (degree),Longitude (degree)

Metadata

tree_type · string · required

Allowed values: 692 keys, 160 genus keys such as GENUS_ABAREMA and 532 species keys such as SPECIES_ABAREMA_COCHLEATA. The full list is in Supported tree types.

Measurement	Quantity kind	Unit	Required	Description
Diameter at breast height	diameter_at_breast_height	cm	Yes	The diameter of the tree at breast height (approx 1.3 meters above the ground).
Elevation	elevation	m	No	The elevation of the tree location.
Height	height	m	No	The height of the tree from the base to the top.
Latitude	latitude	degree	No	The latitude of the tree location.
Longitude	longitude	degree	No	The longitude of the tree location.

Relationship	Related type	Cardinality	CSV column
happens at	Field plot	One to one	field_plot_id

Improved Forest Management

Activity types for projects using the Improved Forest Management protocol.

Protocol versions: v1.0–1.1

Sampling round

A sampling round is a set of field plot measurements taken within a specific time frame in a specific project area.

Key	ifm_sampling_round
Time	Date range (start_date, end_date)
Upload	CSV

CSV columns, in order:

name,reference_id,start_date,end_date,sampling_round_type,project_area_id

Metadata

sampling_round_type · string · required

Allowed values: Baseline, Reporting period

Relationship	Related type	Cardinality	CSV column
happens at	Project area	Many to one	project_area_id

Harvest

A harvest is the removal of timber or biomass from a parcel. Harvests predating enrollment establish the parcel’s harvest history, and harvests during the Crediting Period are reported so that planned removals can be distinguished from Reversals.

Key	ifm_harvest
Time	Date (date)
Upload	CSV

CSV columns, in order:

name,reference_id,date,harvest_type,parcel_id,Area (ha),Mass (kg),Volume (L)

Metadata

harvest_type · string

The type of harvest that occurred on the parcel, such as clear-cutting, selective logging, thinning, stand improvement, or subsistence.

Measurement	Quantity kind	Unit	Required	Description
Area	area	ha	No	The area of the parcel that was harvested.
Mass	mass	kg	No	The biomass removed from the parcel. If the volume of timber removed cannot be provided, this should be reported instead.
Volume	volume	L	No	The volume of timber removed from the parcel.

Relationship	Related type	Cardinality	CSV column
happens at	Parcel	Many to one	parcel_id

Field plot measurement

Tree measurements are used to quantify above-ground biomass (AGB) within each field plot, which in turn is used to quantify the carbon sequestered in the project area. Each tree measurement must have a unique reference ID, be linked to a specific field plot, and use one of the predefined tree type keys.

Key	agb_field_plot_measurement
Time	Date (date)
Upload	CSV

CSV columns, in order:

name,reference_id,date,tree_type,sampling_round_id,field_plot_id,Diameter at breast height (cm),Elevation (m),Height (m),Latitude (degree),Longitude (degree)

Metadata

tree_type · string · required

Allowed values: 734 keys, 163 genus keys such as GENUS_ABAREMA and 571 species keys such as SPECIES_ABAREMA_COCHLEATA. The full list is in Supported tree types.

Measurement	Quantity kind	Unit	Required	Description
Diameter at breast height	diameter_at_breast_height	cm	Yes	The diameter of the tree at breast height (approx 1.3 meters above the ground).
Elevation	elevation	m	No	The elevation of the tree location.
Height	height	m	No	The height of the tree from the base to the top.
Latitude	latitude	degree	No	The latitude of the tree location.
Longitude	longitude	degree	No	The longitude of the tree location.

Relationship	Related type	Cardinality	CSV column
included in	Sampling round	Many to one	sampling_round_id
happens at	Field plot	Many to one	field_plot_id

Improved Soil Management

Activity types for projects using the Improved Soil Management protocol.

Protocol versions: v1.0

Soil sampling campaign

A soil sampling campaign is one round of collecting soil samples across a project area. All campaigns must take place in the same crop phase and within 30 days of each other across reporting periods, so that measured stock changes are comparable.

Key	soil_carbon_project_area_soil_sampling_campaign
Time	Date range (start_date, end_date)
Upload	CSV

CSV columns, in order:

name,reference_id,start_date,end_date,campaign_type,crop_phase,project_area_id

Metadata

campaign_type · string · required

Allowed values: Baseline, Reporting period

crop_phase · string

Relationship	Related type	Cardinality	CSV column
happens at	Project area	Many to one	project_area_id

Soil sample collection

A soil sample collection is the taking of one soil sample at a measurement location.

Key	soil_carbon_soil_sample_collection
Time	Date (date)
Upload	CSV

CSV columns, in order:

name,reference_id,date,core_count,soil_sampling_campaign_id,measurement_location_id,Maximum depth (cm),Minimum depth (cm),Diameter (µm),Latitude (degree),Longitude (degree)

Metadata

core_count · integer · required

The number of soil cores composited to form the soil sample. Together with the core diameter, this gives the total cross-sectional area sampled, from which fine soil mass per unit area is derived. Both must be held constant across sampling campaigns.

Measurement	Quantity kind	Unit	Required	Description
Maximum depth	depth / max_limit	cm	Yes	The minimum / maximum depth of the stratified soil sample.
Minimum depth	depth / min_limit	cm	Yes	The minimum / maximum depth of the stratified soil sample.
Diameter	diameter	µm	Yes	The diameter of the soil core collected.
Latitude	latitude	degree	Yes	The latitude where the soil sample was actually collected.
Longitude	longitude	degree	Yes	The longitude where the soil sample was actually collected.

Relationship	Related type	Cardinality	CSV column
part of	Soil sampling campaign	Many to one	soil_sampling_campaign_id
happens at	Measurement location	Many to one	measurement_location_id

Laboratory batch analysis

A laboratory batch analysis is the analysis of a batch of soil samples in a laboratory.

Key	soil_carbon_laboratory_batch_analysis
Time	Date (date)
Upload	CSV

CSV columns, in order:

name,reference_id,date,analysis_method,certified_reference_material,duplicate_count,laboratory_accreditation,laboratory_id

Metadata

analysis_method · string

The method used to analyze the soil samples, which should be Dumas by default.

certified_reference_material · string

The certified reference material used to calibrate the laboratory equipment.

duplicate_count · integer

The total number of duplicate analyses performed across all soil samples in the batch.

laboratory_accreditation · string

The accreditation status of the laboratory performing the analysis.

Relationship	Related type	Cardinality	CSV column
happens at	Laboratory	Many to one	laboratory_id

Soil sample analysis

A soil sample analysis is the set of laboratory analyses carried out on one soil sample.

Key	soil_carbon_soil_sample_analysis
Time	Date (date)
Upload	CSV

CSV columns, in order:

name,reference_id,date,laboratory_batch_analysis_id,soil_sample_collection_id,pH,Electrical conductivity (dS / m),Dry mass (kg),Fine Soil Oven Dry mass (kg),Clay mass fraction (mg / kg),Sand mass fraction (mg / kg),Silt mass fraction (mg / kg),N mass fraction (dry basis) (mg / kg),Total Carbon mass fraction (dry basis) (mg / kg),Total Inorganic Carbon mass fraction (dry basis) (mg / kg),Total Organic Carbon mass fraction (dry basis) (mg / kg)

Measurement	Quantity kind	Unit	Required	Description
pH	acidity	—	No	The pH of the soil sample.
Electrical conductivity	electrical_conductivity	dS / m	No	The electrical conductivity of the soil sample, which indicates salinity. The soil-to-water ratio of the extract or suspension used should be reported alongside it, as the result depends on it.
Dry mass	mass / material_condition_dry	kg	Yes	The total oven-dry mass of the soil sample, before coarse material is sieved out.
Fine Soil Oven Dry mass	mass / fine_soil_oven_dry	kg	Yes	The oven-dry mass of the fine soil fraction, after coarse material retained on a 2 mm sieve is excluded. This is the basis for fine soil mass per unit area.
Clay mass fraction	mass_fraction / clay	mg / kg	No	The mass fraction of clay, sand, or silt in the soil sample.
Sand mass fraction	mass_fraction / sand	mg / kg	No	The mass fraction of clay, sand, or silt in the soil sample.
Silt mass fraction	mass_fraction / silt	mg / kg	No	The mass fraction of clay, sand, or silt in the soil sample.
N mass fraction (dry basis)	mass_fraction_dry_basis / element_n	mg / kg	No	The total nitrogen content of the soil sample on a dry basis.
Total Carbon mass fraction (dry basis)	mass_fraction_dry_basis / total_carbon	mg / kg	No	The total carbon content of the soil sample on a dry basis.
Total Inorganic Carbon mass fraction (dry basis)	mass_fraction_dry_basis / total_inorganic_carbon	mg / kg	No	The total inorganic carbon content of the soil sample on a dry basis.
Total Organic Carbon mass fraction (dry basis)	mass_fraction_dry_basis / total_organic_carbon	mg / kg	No	The total organic carbon content of the soil sample on a dry basis, either measured directly or calculated via subtracting the inorganic carbon content from the total carbon content.

Relationship	Related type	Cardinality	CSV column
included in	Laboratory batch analysis	Many to one	laboratory_batch_analysis_id
follows	Soil sample collection	One to one	soil_sample_collection_id

Intervention

An intervention is a practice applied to a crop field to increase soil organic carbon, such as a cover crop, reduced tillage or an organic amendment.

Key	croplands_intervention_applied
Time	Date (date)
Upload	CSV

CSV columns, in order:

name,reference_id,date,intervention_type,material_type,crop_field_id,Mass (kg),None mass per area (kg / m^2)

Metadata

intervention_type · string · required

The type of intervention applied to the field.

material_type · string

The type of material applied to the field, if applicable.

Measurement	Quantity kind	Unit	Required	Description
Mass	mass	kg	No	The total mass of material applied to the field, if applicable.
None mass per area	mass_per_area	kg / m^2	No	The rate at which the intervention was applied to the field, if applicable.

Relationship	Related type	Cardinality	CSV column
happens at	Crop field	Many to one	crop_field_id

Harvest

A harvest is the harvesting of a crop from a field. Harvests predating the project start are recorded to establish the pre-project productivity baseline used in the market-mediated leakage assessment.

Key	croplands_harvest
Time	Date (date)
Upload	CSV

CSV columns, in order:

name,reference_id,date,crop_type,crop_field_id,Mass (kg),Yield (kg / m^2)

Metadata

crop_type · string · required

Measurement	Quantity kind	Unit	Required	Description
Mass	mass	kg	No	The total mass of the crop harvested from the field.
Yield	mass_per_area / crop_yield	kg / m^2	No	The yield of the crop harvested from the field. If this cannot be provided, the total mass of the crop harvested should be reported instead.

Relationship	Related type	Cardinality	CSV column
happens at	Crop field	Many to one	crop_field_id