Carbon Capture Won't Catch It All!

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Throughout various attempts to keep up with a greener future, many companies claim that they promise to become “carbon neutral” or have “net zero carbon emissions” to offset their environmental footprint.

This seems like a great promise, right? This shows that these mega-corporations actually care about the environment and that we are moving closer to a more sustainable future. However, the ways they are promising to take their emissions back out of the air have been proven faulty, which comes at a cost not only for their public image, but for the planet.

The Bad News

In a world grappling with the urgent need to combat climate change, the allure of carbon capture technology has often been offered as a silver bullet for reducing emissions. However, recent revelations from the International Energy Agency (IEA) paint a starkly different picture. According to their November 23 report, reliance on carbon capture within the oil and gas industry is not just insufficient; it's chasing an illusion.

Despite significant investments, carbon capture has largely failed to deliver on its promises. One of the gravest concerns is the unpredictability associated with injecting large volumes of carbon dioxide underground. There is a high probability that the carbon pumped into the ground will leak back out into the atmosphere anyway, causing potentially the same impacts as fracking oil. The very solution intended to curb emissions may inadvertently exacerbate environmental degradation.

There’s another way companies can legally claim they’re doing good for the environment: carbon offsets. This is when a company can buy a section of forested land, protect it, and say that the land absorbs around as much as the company emits, therefore offsetting the greenhouse gas emissions they’re putting into the environment.

However, Verra, the largest certifier of forest offsets, has been found to be handing out "phantom credits". Nearly 90% of the promised rainforest offset credits don't actually represent any carbon reductions, further undermining the credibility of carbon offsets as a viable solution for mitigating greenhouse gas emissions.

The Good News

Carbon offsets are still a decent way to incentivize companies into taking action against climate change. The money from these companies to fund nature climate solutions like forests is still needed to protect the natural greenery around the world that is necessary for a healthy climate. Yet, we still cannot solely rely on these offsets to create real change and progress in the name of sustainability.

There isn’t enough regulation or accountability for these companies to have any reason to pay attention to what they’re doing to the environment in the first place.

Here is a quote from Barbara Haya, the director of the Berkeley Carbon Trading Project and someone who is infinitely more qualified to discuss a solution for this systemic issue than me:

One strategy to improve the market is to show what the problems are and really force the registries to tighten up their rules so that the market could be trusted. But I’m starting to give up on that. I started studying carbon offsets 20 years ago studying problems with protocols and programs. Here I am, 20 years later having the same conversation. We need an alternative process. The offset market is broken.

How You Can Help

We can play a crucial role in catalyzing real action taken by these companies by advocating for policy reforms that incentivize clean energy adoption and penalize environmental exploitation. Supporting initiatives aimed at phasing out fossil fuel subsidies and promoting renewable infrastructure can accelerate the transition towards a truly carbon-neutral or even carbon-negative future.

Furthermore, us consumers wield significant influence through our decisions. By supporting companies committed to genuine environmental stewardship and holding accountable those engaging in greenwashing practices, we can drive positive change within corporate landscapes.

By taking the time to look deeper into what these companies are doing and demanding reform, we can show them that the time for complacency and half-measures is over.