Carbon Removal, Communities and Co-benefits: Lessons from Ontario Farming Partnerships

Carbon removal can only advance at scale if it works for the people and places that host the projects. 

Recent polling shows that nearly two-thirds of Canadians support carbon removal initiatives, and four in five say removals are important for the country’s future. In eastern Ontario, one such initiative is enhanced rock weathering, where crushed silicate rock is spread on agricultural land to benefit soils, crops and climate. Here, a growing number of farmers are helping to shape how carbon removal looks on their land.

In Ontario, our work brings together farmer expertise, soil health data, and public sentiment. Together, they point to a model where climate benefits and community outcomes reinforce each other, rather than competing.

Why Communities Matter for Carbon Removal

Carbon removal is increasingly part of how governments and businesses plan for net zero. Whether that support lasts depends on projects being aligned with local priorities and delivering visible, well-evidenced benefits.

A national survey commissioned by the Carbon Business Council and Carbon Removal Canada found that 64% of Canadians support carbon removal, and 81% see it as essential for a strong and stable future. Support at that level is not a mandate to build anything, anywhere. However, it signals that people are open to carbon removal when it is:

– Credible, with clear evidence and independent verification

– Grounded in local needs, especially in rural and agricultural communities

– Designed for co-benefits, not just credit generation

Our Ontario farming partnerships offer a concrete example of what that looks like on the ground with real businesses.

Ontario and Community-based Carbon Removal

Eastern Ontario boasts a diverse range of features that make it well-suited for enhanced rock weathering. There is a strong agricultural base, a provincial focus on soil health, and a high-quality local source of silicate rock.

Ontario’s Agricultural Soil Health and Conservation Strategy highlights that healthy soils improve yields, retain water and nutrients, and help farms cope with weather extremes, while also delivering broader environmental benefits. Seeing soil as shared infrastructure, rather than just a farm-level asset, creates a natural connection between agronomic and climate goals.

In the Kingston region, Canadian Wollastonite has access to over 17 million tonnes of fast weathering wollastonite. Through the partnership with UNDO, this resource underpins one of the world’s largest atmospheric carbon removal initiatives, with the potential to remove millions of tonnes of CO₂ while supporting farm productivity and rural economic growth.

For farmers, the model is straightforward. As part of the joint program, crushed wollastonite is supplied and spread at no cost on eligible farms in Ontario. Producers only cover the trucking. The soil and crop benefits stay on the land, while carbon credits are sold to buyers.

That structure keeps upfront costs low for farming businesses and anchors much of the economic value in the region.

What the XPRIZE Project Showed on the Ground

Ontario’s role in carbon removal is not theoretical. During the XPRIZE Carbon Removal competition, our project in eastern Ontario removed 1,209 tonnes of CO₂ across 102 farms and enriched 5,670 hectares of land using enhanced rock weathering on active fields.

Those results were verified by independent bodies and reviewed by the XPRIZE judging panel. The project also modelled costs at the megatonne scale, showing a realistic pathway from regional deployment to a gigatonne-class solution over time.

For local communities, several elements were especially important:

– Commercial fields, not just trials: Work took place on hay, corn, and other real rotations, so ERW felt like an extension of existing practice, not a one-off experiment.

– Low risk entry: With rock and spreading subsidised, farmers mainly contributed local knowledge and haulage costs.

– Evidence that travels: Field observations and early data pointed to improvements in crop performance and plant resilience alongside measured CO₂ removal and third-party validation.

Taken together, these factors helped farmers and local partners see enhanced rock weathering as something that strengthens existing rural economies while contributing to climate targets.

Co-benefits on the Farm

Enhanced rock weathering in Ontario is not only about tonnes of CO₂. The first questions farmers ask are practical: what does this mean for crops, inputs, and profit margins over several seasons?

1. Soil health and nutrient support

Wollastonite is a calcium and silicon-rich mineral that supplies plant-available nutrients as it weathers. Many Ontario growers are interested in how a longer-term source of these elements can support soil structure and crop performance alongside existing fertility plans.

By providing a slow-release source of calcium and silicon, wollastonite can help to:

• Support stronger root systems and canopy development

• Improve soil physical condition and water infiltration

• Complement existing nutrient programs with a multi-year nutrient source

Every field is different, and wollastonite is one tool among many. However, this combination of structural benefits and sustained calcium and silicon supply is a key part of the agronomic value that enhanced rock weathering can deliver alongside carbon removal.

2. Crop quality and resilience

Silicon is increasingly recognised as a beneficial element for many crops. It can strengthen cell walls, support better water relations, and help plants cope with stress.

In Ontario, work with corn growers has highlighted examples where wollastonite-treated fields show stronger stalks, better kernel development, and more uniform stands, backed by emerging trial data and farmer feedback. These observations are consistent with broader research that links silicon-rich amendments with improved disease tolerance and reduced lodging in cereals and other crops.

For farmers making decisions on tight margins, practices that support resilient, healthy crops carry real weight. When the rock and spreading are subsidised, and the farm only covers the cost of haulage, trying wollastonite becomes a practical option rather than an added burden.

3. Input efficiency and long-term planning

Fertiliser and soil amendments represent a significant share of annual costs on many farms. Enhanced rock weathering does not replace good nutrient management, but it can support a more balanced long-term approach.

Because wollastonite is supplied and spread at no cost to the farmer, and because the weathering process unfolds over several years, growers can start to think about longer rotations with a more stable supply of calcium and silicon in the background. That can support:

– Greater confidence in how fields will respond under stress

– Reduced risk of sudden yield losses in challenging seasons

The precise economic value will vary from farm to farm depending on baseline soil health. At the scale of a whole program, the pattern is clear: ERW can be treated as a soil and crop improvement initiative that also delivers verifiable carbon removal, rather than the other way around.

Economic and Social Benefits in Rural Communities

Co-benefits extend beyond individual farms. Moving large volumes of rock and applying it across tens of thousands of acres draws in a wider network of businesses and job opportunities.

In Eastern Ontario, the Canadian Wollastonite quarry itself is a local employer. The agreement to supply UNDO wollastonite helps anchor that employment and creates predictable demand for associated services.

From trucking companies to equipment suppliers, all stand to benefit from a sustained ERW program that moves and spreads mineral-rich rock at scale. With a local quarry, more of the value created by the project remains in the region compared with importing materials from farther away.

There are signals of growing support from mainstream agricultural finance as well. Farm Credit Canada, one of the world’s largest agricultural lenders, has invested in UNDO’s work in Canada, explicitly linking soil and crop benefits with durable carbon removal. 

Together, these elements suggest that carbon removal can complement, rather than disrupt, the economic fabric of rural regions.

Trust Built on Measurement and Transparency

Community-based carbon removal only works if people trust the claims. In Ontario, measurement, reporting, and verification (MRV) sit at the core of the program.

Our Canadian flagship Sentinel Site is at the Simcoe Research Station in southern Ontario. With sandy loam soils, steady slopes, and a soybean wheat rotation, it provides realistic conditions for enhanced rock weathering research in an active farming setting.

Plots are laid out with control and application areas and fitted with monitoring tools to track changes in soils, water, and air as the rock weathers, supported by local expertise from the University of Guelph and academic partners. Data from Simcoe feed into the models used to estimate carbon removal and co-benefits across the wider land base and, together with independent reviews and third party standards, help build a clear chain of evidence for communities, buyers, and policymakers.

Lessons for Scaling Carbon Removal with Communities

Ontario’s experience is already revealing clear lessons for project developers looking to align carbon removal with community priorities.

Start with local goals
In agricultural regions, that means soil health, crop yields, and keeping land in production. Enhanced rock weathering gains traction when it is presented first as a soil and crop management tool that also removes carbon.

Lower the barrier to entry
Supplying and spreading rock at no cost and keeping the process simple make participation easier. Covering materials through carbon finance while asking farmers to pay only for trucking has been central to uptake in Ontario.

Invest in local partnerships
Working with a regional quarry, local hauliers, spreading contractors, and research institutions embeds the project in the local economy and ensures that farmer feedback shapes how the program evolves.

Make measurement visible
Sentinel Sites, independent reviews, and clear documentation give farmers and residents something tangible to point to when asked how the carbon and co-benefits are verified.

Connect local stories to national sentiment
High levels of Canadian support for carbon removal need concrete examples. When polling data is paired with on-farm results, it becomes easier for policymakers, financiers, and buyers to back community-based projects at scale.

A Path Where Climate and Communities Move Together

Ontario’s farming partnerships are a live example of how enhanced rock weathering can deliver co-benefits for soils, crops, rural economies, and the climate at the same time.

The combination of public support, local resources, robust science, and farmer-led adoption shows that carbon removal and communities do not need to be in tension. When projects are designed around local priorities, with clear benefits and transparent measurement, enhanced rock weathering can become a practical tool for both climate action and community resilience.

For Ontario’s growers, that already means healthier soils, more resilient crops, and a role at the centre of Canada’s emerging carbon removal story. For the wider carbon removal ecosystem, it offers a template for what responsible, community-grounded deployment can look like in the years ahead.

Farming in Ontario and interested in wollastonite?

If you farm in eastern Ontario and want to explore how wollastonite could support your soils and crops, our team would like to hear from you. The program supplies and spreads rock at no cost to eligible farms, with only haulage to cover, so you can see the benefits in your fields.

Check your farm’s eligibility