Ballard Spahr Advises on Capitalization of Greenhouse Gas Reduction Project

Ballard Spahr attorneys served as counsel on a transaction to provide strategic capital to a nonprofit organization that will restore a marshland ecosystem in Louisiana.

For the project, Heritage Sustainability Investments, LLC, a subsidiary of The Heritage Group and affiliate of Heritage Environmental Services, LLC, and ClimeCo joined together to provide strategic capital to the nonprofit, Restore the Earth Foundation, Inc., to provide for the native trees and planting for reforestation of 4,000 acres of the Pointe-aux-Chenes Wildlife Management Area. The capital will be used for the planting of native Bald Cypress seedlings in freshwater marsh areas at the Point-aux-Chenes preserve, located south of New Orleans. In addition to the sequestration of CO2, the project will reduce flood and storm risk to local communities by creating a first line of defense in the form of healthy forest ecosystems and restoring fragmented wildlife habitats. The project is anticipated to create 800,000 Climate Action Reserve Forward Mitigation Units (FMUs), which will be marketed to voluntary buyers by ClimeCo to help fund future reforestation efforts in the basin. The FMU program is designed to encourage companies and organizations to invest in projects that mitigate future greenhouse gas emissions.

As counsel to ClimeCo for the project, Ballard Spahr attorneys supported the formation and management of a special purpose LLC for the effort, prepared the transaction and financing documents, and advised on matters involving the carbon offset protocols and requirements for generating the FMUs. The team included Philadelphia-based attorneys Brendan Collins, Richard Hudock, and Erin Carter. ClimeCo is a respected adviser, transaction facilitator, and trader of environmental commodity market products.