In fact, carbon credits used for offsetting purposes have become central components of the climate strategies of many major corporations around the world and enables them to claim to be working towards becoming “net zero” even as they continue to pollute with impunity.
Since it is impossible to truly offset emissions and because of the way in which offsetting is used to greenwash images, Carbon Market Watch opposes the use of carbon credits to compensate for emissions. Instead, companies should make every effort to reduce their emissions in line with what the science says is required to keep global temperature rises within the relatively safe 1.5℃ limit. When they purchase carbon credits, they should only claim that they contributed to climate action and must not use them to claim they are counterbalancing their emissions.
When it comes to climate claims and corporate climate responsibility, Carbon Market Watch focuses on:
“We urgently need companies to stop greenwashing or making vague claims that they are carbon or climate neutral and to step up and take real and sustained climate action.”
Lindsay Otis
Policy expert on global carbon markets
“We urgently need companies to stop greenwashing or making vague claims that they are carbon or climate neutral and to step up and take real and sustained climate action.”
Lindsay Otis
Policy expert on global carbon markets
Corporations prioritise deep, rapid and sustained emissions reductions
Companies stop offsetting emissions and making unsubstantiated claims, such as “carbon neutral”
Buyers find more sustainable uses for carbon credits, such as the ‘contribution model’ in which they simply state that they contributed to climate action via funding a certain type of project(s)
Governments must combat greenwashing through effective regulation and legislation, such as banning spurious and exaggerated climate claims
Fresh evidence published by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) confirms the unsuitability of carbon offsetting to meet emissions targets, echoing the findings of a new Carbon Market Watch study
As Euro 2024 kicks off, the tournament has been caught offside with some of its climate claims. UEFA must do better to tackle its carbon footprint.
In this joint statement, 80 civil society organisations, including Carbon Market Watch, express their opposition to the use of carbon credits for offsetting purposes and the recent move towards relaxing
Corporations assessed in the 2023 Corporate Climate Responsibility Monitor that have a 2030 target commit to cutting only 15% of their real emissions by 2030.
gilles.dufrasne[at]carbonmarketwatch.org
lindsay.otis[at]carbonmarketwatch.org
benja.faecks[at]carbonmarketwatch.org
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