Offset - aurimasmb/carbonoffsets GitHub Wiki
Quick Version:
The weakest link in the individual voluntary carbon offset market today is the lack of transparency and regulation of carbon offset retailers. We spent a long time vetting carbon offset retailers to find ones which are transparent in their operations and sell high-quality offsets.
Conclusion: we recommend Cool Effect.org and BP Target Neutral.
| Pros | Cons | |
|---|---|---|
| CoolEffect.org | - Ability to choose individual projects - Known, low fee on top of offset cost (9.87%). | - No proof of retirement (offset unit serial numbers.) - Relatively high cost of offsets. |
| BP Target Neutral | - Significantly lower cost of offsets. - Diverse project portfolio. | - No proof of retirement (offset unit serial numbers.) - Inability to choose offset project. |
Long Version:
How the Voluntary Carbon Offset Market Works
How Carbon Offsets are Created
Carbon offset projects register with one of the main carbon offset standards organisations (VCS, Gold Standard, or CDM). If they are validated according to the requirements of the standard by one of the independent auditors accredited with that standard organisation, they are then allowed to apply to register carbon offsets. Carbon offsets are calculated according to standard methodologies developed by the standards organisations, and must again be verified by the independent auditors associated with that standard. Carbon offsets are calculated by subtracting the emissions that took place when the project was in place, compared to a theoretical baseline of emissions which would have occurred if the project had not take place. These offsets are then registered in a the registry associated with that standard, and can be sold to an organisation or government. Offsets are typically measured in units of tonnes of carbon dioxide offset.
Types of Carbon Offsets
There are two main kinds of carbon offseting projects: projects which avoid carbon dioxide emissions, and projects which sequester carbon from the atmosphere, through forestry / land-use projects or carbon capture and storage. A key advantage of purchasing avoided emissions offsets is that these can be guaranteed to permanent - it is not possible for emissions reductions in the past to be undone. Carbon dioxide sequestered in forests, or in carbon capture and storage has a risk of being released back into the atmosphere through fire, future harvesting, or ecological change. Both types of projects can have co-benefits, however. A mix of both avoidance and sequestration projects is likely required for effectively slowing climate change.
How Carbon Offsets Are Sold
Currently there are few ways for individuals to purchase offsets directly from carbon offset projects (the only such system is the CDM-only Climate Neutral Now platform). Therefore, individuals seeking to offset their personal carbon emissions typically purchase from carbon retailers, who buy offsets in bulk from carbon offset projects and sell them on to individuals. Carbon retailers can voluntarily participate in retailer quality assurance schemes (like ICROA or QAS) to provide confidence to consumers that they are selling offsets which are verified, permanent, additional, and are properly retired when purchased.
What makes a good Carbon Offset?
Carbon offsets should be:
- Real: Carbon dioxide emissions were really avoided, or carbon dioxide was really sequestered.
- Additional: Avoided or sequestered emissions would not have occurred anyway if the project were not to be funded.
- Permanent: Any sequestered carbon dioxide has a very low likelihood of reentering the atmosphere.
- Verified: The offsets have been verified by a standards organisation (VCS, Gold Standard, or CDM).
How to Choose an Offset Retailer
- Does the retailer participate quality assurance scheme such as ICROA or QAS?
- If the offset retailer is selling offsets from a porfolio of projects, is that portfolio sufficiently diverse to limit the risk of offsets being reversed (loss of sequestered carbon, miscalculation of quantity / additionality)?
- Can you guarantee that you are purchasing carbon offsets which have already been created? See: Forward Selling.
- Are the offsets purchased retired on your behalf within a reasonable time? (1 month to 1 year)
How to Choose an Offset Project
- Is the project accredited by one of the three major offset standards (VCS, Gold Standard, or CDM)?
- Does the project have co-benefits, and do these align with your priorities?
- Is the price of the offsets reasonable compared to market data? You can check average market prices for carbon offsets here: State of the Voluntary Carbon Markets Report 2017..
Carbon Retailers
We've reviewed some of the major carbon offset retailers serving individuals seeking to offset their carbon. Out of this list, we can only only recommend Cool Effect.org and BP Target Neutral. We had significant concerns with the transparency and offset quality of other retailers, and cannot recommend them.
| Retailer | Price / Tonne [1] | Reference Price [2] | Offset Standards | Retailer Standard | Proof of Retirement |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cool Effect | By project: £4.71 - £8.56 | £2.30 | VCS / Gold Standard / CAR | None? | Bulk proof of retirement. (No serial numbers.) |
| BP Target Neutral | £2.83 | £2.30 | VCS / CDM / Gold Standard | ICROA | Bulk proof of retirement. (No serial numbers.) |
| Climate Neutral Now | By project: £0.31 - £6.36 | £2.30 | CDM | N/A | "Who took action?" |
| Carbon Footprint | By portfolio: £6.32 - £13.59 | £2.30 | VCS / CDM / Gold Standard | QAS, IEMA, BSI 9001, SBN | Can provide serial numbers and proof of retirement on request. |
| No reply to email. | |||||
| No reply to email. |
[1] Carbon Prices calculated using this Spreadsheet.
[2] Reference prices are taken from State of the Voluntary Carbon Markets Report 2017. For retailers / platforms offering multiple projects / portfolios, the reference price is the average price of all voluntary offsets ($3.00 = £2.30). For United Eco-Skies, which lists a wind energy project and a deforestation prevention project, references prices are the average prices for offsets of these project types as reported in the SOVCM 2017 report.
Cool Effect
Summary: Cool Effect is refreshing in its strong emphasis on transparency throughout its project selection and offset selling process. It is particularly encouraging that Cool Effect indicates explicitly what fraction of carbon offset purchase revenue it is taking for its own operations (9.87%). Cool Effect is the only retailer to provide this information. (It may be that the Climate Neutral Now does not charge anything above the cost of the offsets, but we haven't found info on this yet.) Cool Effect does not provide serial numbers for individual purchases, however. We recommend purchasing offsets from Cool Effect as they appear to have the highest standards of transparency and quality assurance.
See detailed notes.
See correspondence.
BP Target Neutral
Summary: BP Target Neutral sells offsets through a regularly updated portfolio of projects, for a single rate. They do not provide serial numbers for offsets. Offsets are retired in bulk on an annual basis. BP Target Neutral replied to our questions over email. See correspondence for details.
See detailed notes.
See correspondence.
Climate Neutral Now
Summary: Climate Neutral Now is the Clean Development Mechanism voluntary carbon offsets marketplace for individual purchasers. A key advantage of this system is that it appears that you are able to purchase offsets directly from offset projects, and these are automatically "cancelled" (retired) on your behalf. You are provided serial numbers for the offset units you purchase (called Certified Emissions Reductions in the CDM standard). It appears that retirements made by individuals do not appear on the CDM registry, but can be viewed on the Climate Neutral Now website under "Who Took Action". It's worth noting that the prices of units on Climate Neutral are much lower than the prices of units purchased through other retailers. This may be a reflection of the specific nature of supply and demand of the CDM market (which appears to be mostly compliance-based), could indicate lower-quality offsets, or might be a genuine savings due to the removal of the offset retailer "middle-man."
See detailed notes.
See correspondence.
Carbon Footprint
Summary: Carbon Footprint provides various portfolio options for purchasing. They have offered to provide us with serial numbers and proof of retirement. Their offsets are slightly more expensive than what might be expected for the voluntary carbon market. We do not recommend purchasing their "tree planting" offsets, which supposedly fund both tree planting projects as well as conventional carbon offset units. These tree planting projects do not appear to be accredited by any standards agency - there is no guarantee that they will provide real benefits, not to mention no information about exactly how Carbon Footprint the money you direct towards these projects. Overall we do not endorse Carbon Footprint, but it seems that they do meet the minimum standards required of a carbon offset retailer. Carbon Footprint did reply promptly to our questions by email.
See detailed notes.
See correspondence.
Climate Care
Summary: We cannot recommmend Climate Care for purchasing offsets. Climate Care has a very small portfolio of projects (only four.) One of these projects, LifeStraw Carbon for Water, has had an official grievance filed against it - allegedly the carbon offsets issued by this project were not additional. We weren't able to find a further two of the projects in the relevant carbon registry. Climate Care did not respond to our questions by email.
See detailed notes.
See correspondence.
United Airlines Eco Skies
Summary: We cannot recommend purchasing offsets through the United Eco Skies carbon offset program. The program is not accredited by any carbon offset retailer standards body, provides no emissions methodology, and did not respond to our questions about the unexpectedly high costs of its offsets. Furthermore, it was unclear whether offsets purchased through United were actually from the projects specified on their website.
See detailed notes.
See correspondence.