This guidance is an update on Microsoft and Carbon Direct’s 2021 criteria for high-quality carbon dioxide removal. Published in July 2024, it recommends that project developers share a percentage of project revenue with local people and community partners and that the form these payments take should be agreed upon during project set-up. It discusses both nature and tech-based removals.
This peer-reviewed critique of science-based targets highlights specific discussions around removal and carbon credits. Published in Communications Earth & Environment in July 2024, it says that companies condense complex climate science to underpin their net zero targets and argues that ‘a narrow conceptualisation of science to guide and justify targets for individual companies or countries is misleading’. NOTE: Corporates should refer to guidance on target setting.
Plan Vivo Foundation, goodcarbon and Blue Marine Foundation have collaborated to help us identify the core principles of high integrity in the biodiversity credit market. It surveyed companies of varying sizes, sectors and geographies to understand their perspectives and interest in the biodiversity credit market. Published in July 2024, the results revealed that half of all respondents are closely following developments in the biodiversity markets due to their nature and climate commitments.
This is a statement of a literature review commissioned by the SBTi to assess the effectiveness of corporate carbon credit use. Published in July 2024, it has been criticised for its research question that positions carbon credit use as an alternative, rather than an addition, to direct emission reduction from the value chain. NOTE: The paper itself states that there is not enough literature available to credibly answer its research question, and there have been questions about whether that was the right question to ask.
This report, published in July 2024, synthesises the SBTi’s research into the effectiveness of environmental attribute certificates. As the first of three parts, this edition focuses on carbon credits. It analysed 406 pieces of evidence to conclude that carbon credits can be ineffective for delivering mitigation outcomes and that there could be clear risks to the corporate use of carbon credits for offsetting. NOTE: This is in contrast to the findings of other studies.
In this paper, the SBTi considers options for changing its rules about carbon credit use for Scope 3 emission reduction target setting. Published in July 2024, it outlines the limitations and potential routes forward that could help corporates mitigate polluting emissions in their supply chains. NOTE: In 2024, the SBTi’s indecision over Scope 3 emissions prompted debate in the VCM.
This eight-page paper from IETA outlines the urgency with which natural climate solutions need financial backing. Released in June 2024, it presents the climate case: That an estimated 210 GTCO2e of nature-based removals will be needed to limit global warming to 1.5°C, with additional scaling up required until 2050. And the business case: Investments in NCS represent a cost-effective, near-term opportunity to help scale the impact of corporate transitions to net zero.
This report from CCAG makes recommendations to improve the VCM’s capacity to reduce emissions and accelerate their removal from the atmosphere. Published in June 2024, it would like to see improvements to the standards; carbon credits used alongside deep, sustained emission reduction and a greater level of co-benefit integration into carbon project design.
Uncertain where to start with carbon credit quality assessment? This is a guide to the data-driven tools that can help. Produced by Climate Collective and RMI in June 2024, it shares a six-step process for purchasing carbon credits and shares tests that can be used to test the effectiveness of data packages. One especially useful section links existing carbon credit guidance with the most relevant stage of a buyer’s journey.
This paper from BeZero explains the benefits of a $100bn carbon market for people and the planet. Published in June 2024, it says that the carbon markets could be facing their own ‘ChatGPT moment’ with huge potential for expansion. It explains there are more than 50 different activities from which carbon credits can be generated and that between 2014 and 2024, the market issued 1.8 billion credits.