As the urgency of addressing climate change grows, voluntary carbon markets (VCMs) have emerged as a crucial mechanism to drive climate mitigation efforts and direct capital towards sustainable projects. However, ensuring the effectiveness of these markets relies on the identification and investment in high-integrity carbon credits. In this article, we explore the significance of high-integrity carbon credits, the Voluntary Carbon Market Integrity Initiative (VCMI) Claims Code of Practice, and how companies can play a vital role in supporting this cause.
The Power of High-Integrity Carbon Credits
High-integrity carbon credits hold the key to driving real and verifiable climate impact. When utilized effectively, they can help bridge the gap between the commitments outlined in the Paris Agreement and the actual implementation of climate solutions. By promoting transparency and adherence to best practices, high-integrity carbon credits ensure that projects achieve genuine greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions and removals.
Introducing the VCMI Claims Code
The Voluntary Carbon Market Integrity Initiative (VCMI) has taken a significant stride towards establishing integrity in voluntary carbon markets. Its recently published Claims Code of Practice serves as a rulebook for companies, empowering them to make credible climate claims and build market confidence. Supported by a diverse range of international organizations, governments, companies, NGOs, and civil society, the Claims Code has garnered widespread acclaim from climate experts worldwide.
A Visionary Endorsement
Razan Al Mubarak, the UN Climate Change High-Level Champion for COP28, recognizes the urgency of the ongoing climate crisis and emphasizes the critical role of the voluntary carbon market. She emphasizes that with the VCMI Claims Code, there is an opportunity to accelerate the transition to a net-zero future by mobilizing much-needed finance to low and middle-income countries for climate solutions.
The Core Carbon Principles (CCPs) – Guiding the Way
The backbone of identifying high-integrity carbon credits lies in the Core Carbon Principles (CCPs). Developed through extensive collaboration with numerous organizations within the voluntary carbon market, the CCPs set stringent thresholds for disclosure and sustainable development. These principles establish credibility and reliability by ensuring that carbon credits make a meaningful impact based on the latest scientific insights and best practices.
The Ten Core Carbon Principles:
- Additionality: High-integrity carbon credits finance projects that lead to additional GHG emission reductions and removals beyond what would have occurred without such support.
- Permanence: Projects funded by these credits ensure the durability of carbon removals or reductions over time.
- Robust Quantification of Emissions Reductions and Removals: High-integrity credits employ scientifically robust methodologies to accurately quantify GHG emission reductions and removals achieved by projects.
- Credits are Counted Only Once (No Double Counting): To uphold credibility, carbon credits must not be counted towards multiple targets or claimed by multiple parties.
- High Governance Standards / Effective Governance: Programs issuing carbon credits must adhere to rigorous governance standards to ensure transparency and accountability.
- Tracking: High-integrity credits are tracked using a registry, providing a transparent chain of custody.
- Transparency: Comprehensive information on all projects is made available to buyers, promoting informed decision-making.
- Robust Independent Third-Party Validation and Verification: Emissions reductions and removals claimed by projects undergo independent verification by experts to ensure accuracy and credibility.
- Sustainable Development Benefit and Safeguard: Projects supported by high-integrity carbon credits adhere to industry best practices for social and environmental safeguards, delivering net positive impacts for communities.
- Supporting Transition Towards Net Zero and Avoiding Locking In Incompatible Activities: High-integrity carbon credits prioritize projects that align with the transition to a net-zero economy and avoid investing in activities that hinder this goal.
As we stand at a crucial juncture in the fight against climate change, the importance of high-integrity carbon credits cannot be overstated. Coorest passionately stands for carbon offsets that are transparent, credible, and accountable, reflecting the principles of the Core Carbon Principles (CCPs) and the Voluntary Carbon Market Integrity Initiative (VCMI) Claims Code. As a leading tech company in carbon compensation, Coorest fully embraces the CCPs and believes that high integrity carbon credits must be intricately linked to robust MRV processes, thereby ensuring tangible and authentic environmental impacts. By incorporating blockchain technology, especially the innovations from Chainlink and satellite data, Coorest strengthens its system of MRV by measuring, keeping track of, reporting, and data verification, fostering a strong sense of trust.
In today’s fast-paced drive for climate action, Coorest’s alignment with the VCMI Claims Code and its skillful use of blockchain technology underscore its dedication to being open, reliable, and responsible, offering a pathway where carbon compensation and climate responsibility naturally coincide.
