{"id":5220,"date":"2024-03-08T17:07:00","date_gmt":"2024-03-08T17:07:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/i-nnovagroup.com\/environment\/?p=5220"},"modified":"2024-03-08T18:05:31","modified_gmt":"2024-03-08T18:05:31","slug":"carbon-offset-gatekeepers-are-failing-to-stop-junk-credits","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/i-nnovagroup.com\/environment\/2024\/03\/08\/carbon-offset-gatekeepers-are-failing-to-stop-junk-credits\/","title":{"rendered":"Carbon Offset Gatekeepers Are Failing to Stop Junk Credits"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Carbon Offset Gatekeepers Are Failing to Stop Junk Credits<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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New research finds the leading standard-setters are systematically over-crediting projects, generating junk carbon offsets that some companies use to make green claims.<\/span><\/p>

By Natasha White<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>
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A study covering almost 300 carbon offset projects found that the industry\u2019s top registries have consistently allowed developers to claim far more climate-saving benefits than justified.<\/p>

Researchers led by Barbara Haya from the University of Berkeley\u2019s Goldman School of Public Policy assessed the methods underpinning forestry projects responsible for 11% of all carbon offsets ever issued. They found shortcomings in each that resulted in bogus credits.<\/p>

\u201cAcross the board, they fall far short from good practice in carbon accounting,\u201d Haya said. \u201cIt’s pervasive.\u201d The study, the first of its type, was published Tuesday\u00a0in the journal<\/a>\u00a0Frontiers in Forests and Global Change<\/em>.<\/p>

Haya and her team looked at the methods applied to projects that sought to improve forest management \u2014 one of the most popular sources of offsets on the market. In theory, this might involve waiting to harvest trees when they\u2019re older, limiting the number of trees that can be cut per hectare, or minimizing the environmental impact of logging infrastructure such as roads. In reality, the researchers found, project developers were often able to generate credits even when no changes were made.<\/p>

In the unregulated carbon offsets market, standards are upheld by a handful of groups that host their own registries. The organizations generate revenue by issuing credits, a business model that incentivizes leniency over conservativeness. And if one body tightens its standards, a developer\u00a0can just go to another<\/a>. The system is structured to maximize entry for projects that seek to mitigate climate change. But without higher standards and stricter oversight, it\u2019s in fact fueling a race to the bottom, Haya said.

The bulk of credits generated using the approaches Haya\u2019s team studied came from Verra\u2019s Verified Carbon Standard, Winrock International\u2019s American Carbon Registry and the Climate Action Reserve. The three registries, among the world\u2019s biggest, also host credits for the California Air Resources Board, which itself sets standards for credits that can be used under the state\u2019s regulated emissions scheme.<\/p>

All four groups stood by their approaches, which they said had undergone scientific reviews and incorporated feedback from experts and the public.\u00a0A spokesperson for the\u00a0California Air Resources Board said its methods have been upheld in court.<\/p>

\u00a0<\/div>

Haya\u2019s team found that the registries\u2019 methods failed to uphold basic criteria that would ensure projects make a real difference to carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere. That includes ensuring their carbon credits funded tree-protecting activities that wouldn\u2019t have otherwise happened, and making a reasonable baseline assessment of that alternate future. Developers also have to address if they are displacing harmful activities elsewhere and should account for risks such as wildfires.<\/p>

For example, the researchers found that most of the credits of the type they studied had been generated against a baseline of aggressive harvesting practices that didn\u2019t align with past practices in the area. That meant developers could be credited for operating as usual, rather than for improvement.<\/p>

The shortcomings show that companies can\u2019t rely on offsets generated using these methods to make claims of carbon neutrality or climate advances, Haya said. Any that are doing so are portraying a misleading sense of progress. \u201cIt makes the global community think that we’re doing more than we’re really doing at this brief moment we have to dramatically reduce our emissions to prevent runaway climate change.\u201d<\/p>

Haya said her team\u2019s findings amount to a systemic failing in the market. The challenge of placing a precise number on how much carbon is saved to generate each offset sold impacts all projects, not just forest management. Last year, a\u00a0Bloomberg investigation found<\/a>\u00a0that almost 40% of the offsets purchased in 2021 came from renewable energy projects that didn\u2019t actually avoid emissions.<\/p>

Haya and her team have suggestions for improvement that include using dynamic rather than static baselines which would adjust to market conditions over time. Verra said it recently introduced a new methodology adopting this approach. But ultimately Haya, whose been studying the offsets market for over two decades, has been left feeling jaded.

\u201cOffsetting is a misnomer \u2014 you can’t \u2018offset\u2019 your emissions,\u201d she said. \u201cWe need alternative ways of supporting climate mitigation because the current offset market is deeply not working.\u201d<\/p>

Follow all new stories by\u00a0<\/span>Natasha White<\/span><\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/article><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/article><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/article><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/article><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/article><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/article><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/article><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/article><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/article><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/article><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/article><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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