Colorado State Land Board Joins MillPont’s METI™ to Launch the First Public-Land Biological Carbon Program in the U.S.

Colorado State Land Board Joins MillPont’s METI™ to Launch the First Public-Land Biological Carbon Program in the U.S.

DENVER, CO — In a landmark move that advances both climate resilience and economic returns for Colorado schools, the Colorado State Board of Land Commissioners (“State Land Board”) has joined MillPont’s Environmental Trust Infrastructure (METI™) to launch the nation’s first biological carbon program on public lands. This public-private partnership brings carbon market access to 2.8 million acres of state trust lands - positioning Colorado as a national leader in ecosystem services on working lands.

Why it matters:

• Landscape Reach. The State Land Board manages 2.8 million acres of grazing and cropland across 42 counties. A new Master Services Agreement, combined with Payment-for-Ecosystem-Services Riders, enables the State’s +2,000 agricultural leases to become carbon-ready. This framework allows Board-approved Qualified Project Developers (QPDs) to quickly and efficiently aggregate projects at scale instead of one parcel and landowner at a time.
• Tying Local Economic Resilience to Global Markets. Anchored to Colorado’s Carbon Management Roadmap and Climate-Smart Lands Strategy, the Biological Carbon Program turns soil-carbon gains into new revenue for both K-12 trust beneficiaries and the state’s 2,000-plus ag lessees. A simple PES Rider lets producers monetize ecosystem services without giving up land tenure - keeping rangelands intact, strengthening rural economies, and converting Colorado’s stewardship legacy into high-integrity credits sought by global markets.
• Building on a Decade of Stewardship Innovation and Engagement in Environmental Markets. The Land Board already runs 15-year ecosystem-service leases and conservation banks under a transparent fee structure, demonstrating that large-acreage public lands can host profitable environmental markets. Four active mitigation banks - 1 species, 2 wetlands, 1 stream - have generated $2.9M in revenue to date. The Colorado State Land Board’s innovative approach to land management includes ecosystem services market opportunities along with multiple land-use revenue streams to maximize stewardship and economic resiliency on state trust lands.
• Digital Certainty. Every participating acre is secured, time-stamped, and geospatially bounded in METI’s Source Ledger.  METI Source Ledger prevents double counting of carbon sequestration projects, ensuring high-integrity projects and programs while mitigating double-counting - creating win-win-win outcomes for landowners, stewards, and credit buyers.
  
   

“The State Land Board has a 150-year legacy of managing lands for the benefit of Colorado’s schools - but we’re not standing still,” said Nicole Rosmarino, Director of the Colorado State Land Board.“ This partnership reflects our belief that environmental integrity and fiduciary duty go hand in hand. We’re proud to be charting a path where stewardship, innovation, and profitability work together to support both local communities and future generations.” “

“We’re honored that METI is the digital backbone for this blueprint in landscape-level markets,” added Dominic Sutton-Vermeulen, CEO, MillPont.

Get involved. MillPont and the State Land Board will host a three-part virtual briefing series for project developers, impact investors, and ag-food companies:

1. Program Deep Dive + Open Q&A - (Staff-led, August 5th)
2. Offsetting Opportunities (Staff + QPD panel, September)
3. Insetting Pathways (Staff + QPD panel, October)
   
    

Register here for the first upcoming session, August 5th! 
 

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About the Colorado State Board of Land Commissioners: 

The Colorado State Land Board is a constitutionally created agency that manages a $4.4 billion endowment of assets for the intergenerational benefit of Colorado’s K-12 schoolchildren and public institutions. The agency is the second-largest landowner in Colorado and generates revenue for beneficiaries by leasing three million surface acres and four million subsurface acres for agriculture, grazing, recreation, commercial real estate, rights-of-way, renewable energy, oil, gas, and solid minerals. The agency is entirely self-funded and receives no tax dollars. 

For more information please contact:

Emily Barbo, Colorado State Land Board, 720-854-3330, emily.barbo@state.co.us