The natural gas company EQT Corporation helped bring the parties together to advance the transaction in support of the Penguins Pledge Sustainability Initiative.
The Penguins purchased and retired the credits generated from forested lands permanently protected and stewarded by ALT in southwestern Pennsylvania.
Certified through City Forest Credits, the credits represent verified carbon captured, stormwater absorbed and air quality improved through conserved forests across the region.
Once purchased and retired on behalf of the Penguins, the credits are no longer available for sale.
By partnering with ALT, the Penguins are addressing a global climate challenge while directly investing in forests local to the communities where their fans live and work.
The transaction connects international climate responsibility with measurable local impact.
“Protecting forests is one of the most effective climate strategies we have,” said Carrie Gilbert, ALT President & CEO. “By protecting forests and quantifying their climate benefits, we’re creating locally rooted solutions that address global challenges while improving quality of life across our region.”
What Is A Carbon Credit?
A carbon credit represents one metric ton of carbon dioxide (CO2) that has been removed from the atmosphere or prevented from being released. Forests naturally absorb and store carbon.
Through third-party certification, the stored carbon in forests can be measured, verified and issued as credits.
When an organization purchases and retires a credit, it uses that verified carbon storage to balance its own emissions as part of a broader sustainability strategy.
ALT generated carbon credits by acquiring forested land for permanent conservation and stewardship to benefit the public in perpetuity.
The credits in this transaction originate from ALT’s successful permanent protection of the following lands:
-- Buena Vista Heights Conservation Area (155 acres, conserved in 2020, Elizabeth Township, Allegheny County)
-- Buerkle Woodlands Conservation Area (64 acres, conserved in 2022, Sewickley Hills Borough and Ohio Township, Allegheny County)
-- Glade Run Lake Conservation Project (53 acres, conserved in 2022, Middlesex Township, Butler County – ownership transferred to the Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Commission)
These lands contribute to long-term carbon storage, air quality improvements, watershed protection, habitat conservation and public access to green space.
To qualify, ALT completes a rigorous application process that includes a forest inventory, carbon baseline analysis and a third-party verification.
The credits reflect the real carbon sequestered from permanent land protection and active stewardship.
Through the program, ALT holds ongoing responsibility to monitor these places for forty years, even after the credits are retired.
“At EQT, we believe meaningful environmental stewardship begins in the communities where we live and work,” said Mike Starck, Head of New Ventures at EQT Corporation. “Facilitating this investment connects EQT’s and the Penguins’ Net Zero partnership with permanently protected forests here in southwestern Pennsylvania.
“By supporting locally generated, third-party verified carbon credits, we’re helping translate sustainability goals into measurable benefits for our region, strengthening forests, improving air and water quality and delivering lasting value for local communities,” Starck said
While many carbon markets involve distant projects, this transaction hyper-focuses investment in the Pittsburgh region.
The Penguin's purchase reinforces that global climate solutions can be enacted locally.
Through its partnership with the Penguins, EQT is helping to align corporate sustainability leadership with tangible, regional impacts that strengthen forests visited and enjoyed by local community members.
“We’re grateful to the Pittsburgh Penguins and EQT for proactively supporting the environment right at home,” Gilbert said. “This partnership shows how we can come together to create measurable impact for both people and the planet.”
The specific financial details of the contract and the transaction are private information, according to the Trust.
Click Here for the Trust announcement.
For more information on programs, initiatives, upcoming educational programs and other events, visit the Allegheny Land Trust website. Click Here to read the Trust’s most recent newsletter. Click Here to add your email to their mailing list. Click Here to support their work.
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[Posted: March 4, 2026] PA Environment Digest
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