Verra: Difference between revisions
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In 2005, Climate Wedge and Cheyne Capital drafted v1 of the Voluntary Carbon Standard. In March 2006, they transferred the Voluntary Carbon Standard version 1.0 to The Climate Group, International Emissions Trading Association (IETA) and [[World Economic Forum]]. | |||
Verra has since become the largest vendor in the voluntary carbon market. | |||
= Greenwashing = | = Greenwashing = | ||
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=== Systemic Analysis === | === Systemic Analysis === | ||
A nine-month investigation published January 2023 by ''The Guardian'', ''Die Zeit'', and SourceMaterial found that an estimated 94% of the rainforest [[carbon offsets]] provided by Verra are worthless. These account for about 40% of all credits it has approved. They also found that the credit scheme may worsen [[global burning]], and the deforestation baseline for Verra projects was overstated by 400% on average relative to 'non-protected' forest. At one of Verra's project sites in Peru, residents complained about being forcefully evicted from their homes, which were then demolished. The investigation was based on two peer-reviewed studies, one by a group of [[University of Cambridge]] scientists and the other from a team of international researchers <ref>https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2004334117</ref> <ref>https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/cobi.13970</ref>, as well as a third study still in peer-review.<ref>https://arxiv.org/abs/2301.03354</ref> | |||
<ref>https://www. | |||
Verra denied the claims and criticized the methodology of the studies; the IETA argued "all voices need to be included." | |||
=== Mai Ndombe === | === Mai Ndombe === | ||
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One source for the [[Nature Carbon Ton ($NCT)|$NCT]] of [[Toucan Protocol]] and [[Regen Network]]. | One source for the [[Nature Carbon Ton ($NCT)|$NCT]] of [[Toucan Protocol]] and [[Regen Network]]. | ||
Revision as of 00:53, 17 February 2023
In 2005, Climate Wedge and Cheyne Capital drafted v1 of the Voluntary Carbon Standard. In March 2006, they transferred the Voluntary Carbon Standard version 1.0 to The Climate Group, International Emissions Trading Association (IETA) and World Economic Forum.
Verra has since become the largest vendor in the voluntary carbon market.
Greenwashing
Many factors would suggest that Verra credits have little credibility as legitimate carbon offset, and are more likely a vehicle for greenwashing.
Industrial Collusion
Verra is a member of the International Emissions Trading Association, whose membership includes top petroleum corporations such as British Petroeum, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, Enbridge, Equinor, ExxonMobil, Saudi Aramco, and Shell Oil. These companies are currently engaged in extensive greenwashing campaigns which include the use of Verra's offsets.[1]
Most if not all of them have known about global warming and other signs of climate collapse for decades, all the while casting doubt on or outright denying the reality. See also: Fossil Fuel Industry Disinformation.
IETA members further include:[2]
- top fossil fuel financiers (e.g. Bank of America & Goldman Sachs)
- industrial agriculture firms (e.g. Bayer-Monsanto & Cargill) that manufacture the munitions required to "secure" an ecological monoculture in the War on Insects + War on Weeds.
Monoculture Plantations
Eucalyptus Forestry
The project title on the Verra protect database is “‘Guanaré’ forest plantations on degraded grasslands under extensive grazing”. The project consists of more than 21,000 hectares of eucalyptus monocultures. The project was set up by Guanaré AS, a Uruguayan forestry investment firm founded by Peter Lyford Pyke. The industrial forestry operations on the ground are carried out by Agroempresa Forestal, a Uruguayan company. The timber is harvested and shipped to India and China.[3]
EcoPlanet Bamboo
<https://redd-monitor.org/2018/04/27/has-ecoplanet-bamboo-really-found-a-buyer-for-its-bamboo-in-nicaragua/> <https://theecologist.org/2011/aug/30/bamboo-can-it-live-green-gold-hype>
Rainforest Protection
Systemic Analysis
A nine-month investigation published January 2023 by The Guardian, Die Zeit, and SourceMaterial found that an estimated 94% of the rainforest carbon offsets provided by Verra are worthless. These account for about 40% of all credits it has approved. They also found that the credit scheme may worsen global burning, and the deforestation baseline for Verra projects was overstated by 400% on average relative to 'non-protected' forest. At one of Verra's project sites in Peru, residents complained about being forcefully evicted from their homes, which were then demolished. The investigation was based on two peer-reviewed studies, one by a group of University of Cambridge scientists and the other from a team of international researchers [4] [5], as well as a third study still in peer-review.[6]
Verra denied the claims and criticized the methodology of the studies; the IETA argued "all voices need to be included."
Mai Ndombe
One source for the $NCT of Toucan Protocol and Regen Network.
- ↑ https://redd-monitor.org/2022/07/13/how-to-burn-the-planet-shell-invests-us38-million-in-carbonext-brazils-biggest-redd-offset-firm/
- ↑ https://www.ieta.org/Our-Members
- ↑ https://redd-monitor.org/2022/07/18/german-supermarket-aldi-buys-carbon-offsets-from-monoculture-eucalyptus-plantations-in-uruguay-in-order-to-claim-that-its-milk-is-carbon-neutral/
- ↑ https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2004334117
- ↑ https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/cobi.13970
- ↑ https://arxiv.org/abs/2301.03354