Carbon Credits Help Fund Restoration at Crowley Oaks

Back in 2022 TLC started a program to preserve more than 80 acres of oak woodlands in McHenry County as urban forest carbon credits through a partnership with City Forest Credits.

Through this program, TLC recently partnered with McHenry County College (MCC) and The Green Living Expo, which takes place Nov. 1. For the first time, MCC calculated building emissions typically consumed during the event, including electric and natural gas consumption, and made the big decision to become carbon neutral.

TLC met with Kim Hankins at MCC to discuss urban forest carbon credits available at Crowley Oaks Conservation Area in Harvard, and she was impressed with the quality of the carbon program and how easy it was to purchase offsets for the event. We hope to continue this partnership for future events to ensure that local forests are preserved, and energy consumption is offset, in a mutually beneficial relationship for our community.

In addition to this partnership, we recently completed a sale with Climate Resilience Consulting (CRC), a f irm that helps communities, governments and institutions prepare for, and resist climate impacts. CRC purchased credits to offset their air travel, building emissions and overall carbon footprint.

Joyce Coffee, President, said, “We view this investment as an inset, not just an offset—it strengthens the local ecosystem that supports our employees, neighbors, and future generations.”

These sales directly contribute to forest preservation at Crowley Oaks, where 45 acres of mature old growth oaks have been preserved.

If you or your business are interested in learning more about how you can purchase urban forest carbon credits to offset your carbon footprint, including regular air travel, vehicle miles traveled, or building emissions, please reach out to Jess Beverly (jbeverly@conservemc.org).