Buying carbon credits doesn’t discourage corporate decarbonisation, study finds
New research has revealed that the companies engaged in the voluntary carbon market are surpassing their counterparts in key areas of climate action, accountability and ambition, rather than simply using credits as a method to ‘buy their way out’.
This is based on a report published by Ecosystem Marketplace, an undertaking led by the non-profit organisation Forest Trends, using CDP Climate Change data from 2022.
In 2022, 7,415 companies publicly disclosed their activities to the CDP Climate Change program, mainly covering their actions in 2021.
Among these, 822 companies (11%) participated in voluntary project-based carbon credits as buyers (736) or originators (86), while 55 companies used project-based carbon credits solely for compliance purposes.
According to the findings, 59% of buyers in the VCM reported a decrease in gross emissions on an annual basis due to reduced emissions and/or increased utilisation of renewable energy, while this reduction was reported by only 33% of businesses that were not engaged in carbon markets.
The research further notes that VCM buyers exhibit a considerable tendency towards supplier engagement strategies, with a 1.3-fold higher likelihood of adoption compared to non-buyers, while also allocating a greater proportion of resources to emissions reduction activities.
Additionally, carbon credit buyers demonstrate an inclination towards science-based targets ( article continues at edie )