Carbon offsets, at their foundation, are a mechanism to reduce the amount of carbon in the atmosphere. They are used by organisations to compensate for the emissions they produce in their day-to-day activities.
Carbon Offset Qualities
The unit of measurement for carbon offsets is 1 metric tonne of carbon dioxide, which is either removed or avoided from being emitted into the atmosphere.
Carbon Removals
Defined as 1t of carbon removed from the atmosphere, this is either through nature based solutions (NBS) via restoration or afforestation projects or Engineered Solutions such as Direct Air Capture.
Carbon Avoidance
1t of carbon emissions that has been avoided from being emitted into the atmosphere, the drivers behind these types of projects are renewable energy based projects, increased efficiency and forest protection projects.
Nature-Based Solutions vs. Engineered Solutions
Each of these solution types (removal, avoidance, nature-based, engineered) must quantify how, and how much carbon they will reduce over the lifetime of the project. These are reviewed by carbon registries, including the Clean Energy Regulator, Verra and Gold Standard. Once accepted, the project developer establishes the project and then is allowed to sell its credits to carbon emitters in over-the-counter transactions.
Nature Based Solutions
NBS are defined by the UN Environment Assembly as “actions to protect, conserve, restore, sustainably use and manage natural or modified ecosystems”. This is done by restoring or protecting a natural environment, including forest, mangroves or kelp forests. By restoring or protecting the natural environment carbon continues to be sequestered into the biosphere through the process of photosynthesis and is locked into the soil matter.
Engineered Solutions
Human-made technological solutions that reduce the amount of carbon in the atmosphere. This is commonly done through increasing efficiency e.g. electrical & cook-stoves or renewable energy e.g. solar, wind, captured methane. Recently there has been a push into Direct Air Capture, where carbon is drawn out of the air through industrial fan complexes which run on renewable energy, the carbon is sequestered in a crystalline form underground, having been sucked from the atmosphere.
Additional Benefits
One of the most intriguing areas of carbon projects are the additional benefits that are created and packed into a carbon offset that is sold. These include obvious benefits such as environmental, by reestablishing natural habitat and biodiversity through high-quality NBS projects.
Other benefits include the economic benefits of carbon projects for example those in remote communities within Australia or international projects in the global south. High quality carbon offset projects are able to redirect funds from large, high-emitting multinational companies to these communities, through positive incentive structures.
The money that flows back into these projects, and the structure they give to remote communities, lay a blueprint for positive social dynamics. Local communities can be employed to maintain nature as true custodians of their land.
From Everclime’s perspective, we aim to work with industry partners and directly with carbon projects themselves. We are keen to champion their story, the work they do and the carbon they remove. Through Everclime’s Registry Certificates we provide all the key points of information from these projects in one place, giving customers confidence in the projects’ activities they support. This includes serial numbers of retired credits, maps, satellite imagery with vegetation indexing run through Everclime’s Ai and an overview of the project - all available in the palm of our customers hand. This single destination allows one-click-access for our customers to stay connected to the projects they support.
Everclime firmly believes that reducing emissions within internal business activities is the most important step to achieving a net-zero future. However, there is no doubt that carbon credits have a role to play as a transition solution to reach net-zero emissions globally. Not only do carbon offsets incentivise carbon reductions through avoidance credits, they also incentivise habitat restoration through nature based solutions. Everclime hopes to accelerate the adoption of a sustainable ecosystem building trust and transparency between farmers, brands and customers.
Everclime hopes to accelerate the adoption of a sustainable ecosystem building trust and transparency between farmers, brands and customers.
- Sebastian Gray, Everclime Founder & CEO
