The Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market (ICVCM) has declared that carbon credits generated from current renewable energy methods, making up around 30% of the credits offered on the VCM, will not qualify for the esteemed CCP® (Core Carbon Principles) label, which differentiates high integrity credits from low quality ones.
This move is seen by the Integrity Council as a necessary step to ensure that only the most rigorous and transparent projects are able to receive recognition for their efforts in reducing carbon emissions and promoting sustainability.
Annette Nazareth, Chair of the Integrity Council, shared, “We are taking the tough decisions necessary to build a high-integrity voluntary carbon market that can be scaled to meaningfully fund climate solutions and channel material amounts of finance to the Global South.”
Relevant: ICVCM Unveils First Approved Methodologies Under Core Carbon Principles
The Governing Board of the Council has determined that eight methods currently utilized in the planning and execution of renewable energy initiatives do not meet the criteria outlined in the CCP Assessment Framework for additionality.
According to the Board, these methods lack the necessary level of thoroughness in determining whether the projects would have proceeded without the incentive of carbon credit revenues.
These methods apply to around 236 million unused credits on the market, disqualifying 32% of VCM projects from the opportunity to receive the high-quality label. On the other hand, the recent assessments by the ICVCM have set the total number of unused credits approved to carry the CCP label to approximately 27 million, representing 3.6% of the market.
Read more: ICVCM Announces New Forum To Engage Indigenous And Local Communities In Voluntary Carbon Market
Amy Merrill, CEO of the Integrity Council, stated that the thorough, science-driven evaluations are currently in progress and will offer assurance to buyers that CCP-certified carbon credits actually result in decreased emissions and provide valuable social and environmental advantages that assist Indigenous Peoples and local communities.
She added, “These decisions will shape the development of the market, and all participants will benefit over time, as CCP-labelled credits unlock greater investment flows and drive innovation.”
