Staff at a prominent corporate climate action group, whose board proposed a plan allowing companies to offset supply chain greenhouse gas emissions with carbon credits, have discovered that such offsets are mostly ineffective. A confidential preliminary draft reviewed by Reuters, reveals this finding.
The effectiveness of voluntary carbon offsets is crucial for the growth of this emerging market.
Despite being utilized by major corporations like Microsoft, Salesforce, and Amazon, the market remains relatively small at around $2 billion.
Also read: Study finds Australia’s carbon offsets method failing to address climate crisis
The Science-based Targets Initiative (SBTi), a UN-backed nonprofit that reviews companies’ emission reduction plans, sparked internal dissent last month by announcing its intention to permit the use of carbon credits before completing its research on their effectiveness.
Reuters revealed the findings from the SBTi staff document, which is based on a comprehensive review of scientific papers and stakeholder submissions during consultation.
These findings, which have not been reported before, are currently undergoing further analysis and review by the Scientific Advisory Group, a panel of climate scientists from around the world.
Also read: Major carbon credit programs receive initial approval amid growing market demand
If these findings are confirmed, they would pose a significant challenge to the SBTi’s board of trustees, which is considering the adoption of carbon offsets as part of companies’ emission reduction strategies.
“Once we have completed the analysis, we will make the results available publicly. Until that point, we will not be able to comment on the submitted evidence,” the spokesperson said.
The draft document reveals that staff also examined evidence indicating that specific carbon offset schemes oversell credits beyond what projects can actually deliver or exaggerate the emission reductions they claim to achieve.
