Photo by Carl Campbell The global race to certify removals is gathering speed. The European Commission has published its proposal for the EU’s Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF), putting Europe in the lead in carbon removal policy design. Next to the EU, several countries, including the UK and US, are considering the best options to quantify removals. In addition to governments, there is a long list of initiatives and standards

This post has been co-authored by Paul Zakkour, Director at Carbon Counts. Photos by Matthew TenBruggencate Let’s explore how carbon removal featured at COP27, the relevant developments in climate change negotiations, and what to watch out for through 2023 and up to COP28. The Egyptian Presidency called COP27 the “African COP” and the “implementation COP”.  The meeting in Sharm El-Sheikh could, however, also have adopted the strapline of the “removals

This post has been co-authored by Paul Zakkour, Director at Carbon Counts. The spotlight on carbon removal is getting brighter. UN standard-setters have begun a crucial process to lay the groundwork for removals under the Paris Agreement. This has gone largely unnoticed by the carbon removal community, which has been mainly focusing on the voluntary carbon market. Why is this development so important? What has taken place so far? And

The carbon markets are experiencing rapid growth. The voluntary markets are expanding due to unprecedented demand from corporate buyers and a related boom in issuing new credits. The compliance markets are growing via increased allowance prices and soon also through the emerging Paris Agreement market. All the while, the two markets are increasingly converging, and the voluntary market is bound to go through substantial changes. Will there be a competition

The new IPCC report Climate Change 2022: Mitigation of Climate Change has brought carbon removal to the centre stage of climate mitigation as an essential and unavoidable tool to achieve net-zero GHG emissions. Every five to seven years, the IPCC publishes comprehensive scientific assessment reports. Their previous, Fifth Assessment Report (2014), provided the main scientific input to the Paris Agreement. Since then, the IPCC has published three Special Reports: on