Aluminium smelters and CCTS: what plantation can and cannot do

7 October 2026 4 min read Grow Billion Trees team

Aluminium plants got emission intensity targets under India's Carbon Credit Trading Scheme on 8 October 2025, with secondary aluminium following in January 2026. Targets are measured inside the plant gate, so trees do not lower a smelter's emission intensity or count toward its target. Plantation still matters for green belt conditions, bauxite mine reclamation, CSR, BRSR and voluntary net-zero claims.

Sustainability teams at aluminium companies now face two separate tasks. One is cutting emissions per tonne to meet CCTS targets. The other is meeting land, green belt and community commitments.

Trees belong to the second task. This guide explains why, and what plantation can do well.

What are the CCTS targets for aluminium?

Point	Detail	Source
Notified	8 October 2025, with cement, chlor-alkali and pulp and paper; 282 entities across the four sectors	ICAP
Secondary aluminium	Final targets notified 16 January 2026, among 208 entities in four more sectors	The Statesman
Baseline and compliance years	Baseline 2023-24; compliance years 2025-26 and 2026-27	ICAP
Size of cut (aluminium)	About 2.8% to 7.06%, back-loaded: about 40% in 2025-26 and 60% in 2026-27	ICAP
Boundary	Gate-to-gate: direct fuel and process emissions (Scope 1) and purchased electricity and heat (Scope 2)	ICAP
If a plant beats its target	It earns Carbon Credit Certificates that can be traded on power exchanges	ICAP
If a plant misses	It buys and surrenders certificates, or faces environmental compensation	ICAP

Can trees count toward a smelter's target?

No. The target is greenhouse gas emissions per unit of output, measured gate-to-gate. Trees planted on the lease, around the plant or elsewhere sit outside that calculation.

Real reductions come from inside the plant: power sourcing, energy efficiency and process changes. A plantation programme should never be presented as a way to meet a CCTS target.

For the wider question of plantations and carbon credits, read India's carbon market and tree projects.

So what can plantation do for an aluminium company?

Meet green belt conditions at the smelter and refinery

Environmental clearances for industrial plants usually carry a green belt condition. The share of plant area depends on your own clearance; check the condition before you plan.

A dense, layered belt also screens dust and noise for neighbours. Our green belt guide covers species and maintenance.

Reclaim bauxite mines

Captive bauxite mines carry progressive and final closure duties under the MCDR, backed by a financial assurance. See mine reclamation under MCDR, which also links to our bauxite restoration methods.

Green residue and ash areas where approvals ask for it

Some approvals call for vegetation cover on disposal areas. These sites need specialist soil work before planting, so treat them as a separate project with its own survey.

CSR and community programmes

Farmer agroforestry in villages near the smelter or mine builds lasting goodwill. Farmers keep the fruit and timber income. See community agroforestry around mines.

BRSR and voluntary net-zero claims

Plantation and restoration belong in BRSR Principle 6 disclosures; see where tree plantation goes in BRSR.

For voluntary net-zero goals, trees can supplement deep emission cuts, never replace them. Any carbon figure from plantation is an estimate.

How should the two workstreams be run?

Keep CCTS compliance and plantation under separate owners and budgets. The energy and process team owns emission intensity; the EHS or CSR team owns green belts, reclamation and community planting.

Report them in separate places. CCTS results go into compliance filings and the climate section of BRSR. Plantation goes into land, biodiversity and CSR disclosures.

This separation protects the company. If an auditor or journalist reads a sustainability report, there should be no sentence that links trees to meeting a carbon market target.

What should an aluminium company not claim?

That trees reduce emission intensity or help meet a CCTS target.
That a plantation will earn Carbon Credit Certificates under CCTS.
That planting offsets residual smelter emissions without a clear, conservative method and third-party review.
Exact carbon figures from young plantations; label them as estimates.

How Grow Billion Trees helps

We plant and maintain green belts, bauxite mine reclamation and farmer agroforestry for CSR. We care for trees for three years and report on GreenTrack with 85% survival across our programmes. We do not sell CCTS carbon credits from these plantations. Green belt and reclamation are priced per project after a site survey. See the metal mining hub.

Further reading: CCTS for Chlor-Alkali, Paper and Textiles: What Plantation Can Do · CCTS targets for refineries and petrochemicals: where trees fit