Recent months have seen a growing push to allow companies and countries to use carbon credits to offset their greenhouse gas emissions, reflecting a bigger trend of bending carbon accounting rules, undermining actual emissions reductions.
In this joint statement, over 80 organizations, including Amnesty International, express concern that allowing companies and countries to meet climate commitments with carbon credits is likely to slow down a rapid and equitable phase out of fossil fuel production and use, while failing to deliver on climate finance needs, and will reduce pressure to develop mechanisms such as “polluter pays” fees on emission-intensive sectors.