The EU has proposed carbon removal certification rules that will ensure higher levels of transparency and effectiveness when it comes to offsetting emissions.
Starting February 7 and up until May 2, 2022, the European Commission will be gathering feedback from citizens regarding the proposed ‘call for evidence’.
The initiative comes amid the EU’s desire to urgently implement carbon removal into its policies.
But for that to be done effectively, the European Commission has recognized the necessity to form working protocols for carbon removal methods, especially nature-based ones, such as forests and farming.
This is one of the main hurdles today’s carbon market is facing, as there are already examples of how weak standards can come to mean unmet climate goals.
For this reason, the need to verify the credibility of carbon removal has been identified as pressing if the EU is to move forward with its plans to scale carbon emissions and reach its target of capturing and storing 5 million metric tons of CO₂ per year by 2030 using technology.
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Another 40 million tons of CO2 emissions are to be captured by nature-based solutions, and that is in addition to the 270 million tons already captured by forests and land today.
In order to monitor and verify the authenticity of carbon removals, the EU will aim to develop robust standards and rules.
This is said to also help grow the carbon removal market, while encouraging the use of cutting-edge solutions that capture, store and recycle carbon dioxide across various sectors, including farming, forestry and industry.
The call for evidence is available for all European Citizens to review on the European Commission’s website, with feedback and analytics open for registered users.
