Gold Standard has published four updated clean cooking and thermal energy methodologies alongside a new digital monitoring tool, in what the carbon standards organization describes as the most comprehensive modernization of carbon accounting across the cookstove sector to date.
The updates, published May 5, and applicable to all credit vintages from 2026 onward, establish consistent Paris Agreement-aligned accounting principles spanning the full spectrum of cooking technologies—from micro-scale projects using simplified approaches to advanced, fully metered systems.
With the updates, more than a third of Gold Standard’s current project portfolio now has access to Paris Agreement-aligned methodologies.
The four revised methodologies are:
- RECH V5.0, covering non-metered clean cooking and heating technologies using field-based measurement;
- MECD V2.0, which applies to fully metered devices using continuously tracked real-time energy consumption data;
- SMEC V4.0, a simplified methodology for micro-scale projects combining deemed additionality and default baselines with direct performance measurement;
- AWMS V2.0, covering biogas systems that recover methane from animal manure for thermal energy use.
A central theme across the updates is the integration of downward adjustment factors to strengthen Paris Agreement alignment, alongside more robust baseline-setting rules, cradle-to-gate embodied emissions accounting, and enhanced safeguards for real-world conditions such as stove stacking and behavioral responses.
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Complementing the methodology revisions, Gold Standard has also launched the so-called Tool 7: Digital Stove Monitoring, Analysis and Reporting Tool, or D-SMART.
The tool is an optional add-on to RECH V5.0 that enables sensor-based, automated fuel tracking and continuous usage data collection, feeding directly into emissions reduction calculations to improve accuracy while reducing the monitoring burden on project developers.
The updates incorporate feedback received during a public consultation process launched in April 2026 and are designed to remain practical across diverse real-world contexts, preserving access to carbon finance for projects operating in low-income and remote settings without compromising environmental integrity.
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