HOW OFFSETTING WORKS?
Offset is a well-known mechanism in voluntary carbon markets and used in addition to the measures for reducing carbon emissions. Offsetting can be explained as providing financial support to carbon saving projects operating elsewhere for the same amount of carbon emissions produced by the company or purchasing the carbon certificates from these projects. Corporates, who want to offset their carbon emissions, calculates their greenhouse gas emissions in other words their carbon footprints and purchases these carbon certificates to reduce and offset their emissions developed as emission reduction projects by voluntary standards.
It is important for the company/organization to carry out carbon emission mitigation measures as a priority at this point. Offsetting should be used only if the mitigation measures for the company/organizations are not feasible on economic and technical grounds. Offsetting projects should have the below mentioned characteristics.
- Additionality (Additional value/ making a difference) refers to the conditions that render the project economically unfeasible without the utilization of carbon credits.
- Double counting should not be allowed in calculations. Green Certificates and Kyoto Protocol quotas should not be sold or used.
- Should have continuity and reference values and emission reduction calculations should be realistic and no gaps for misuse or abuse should exist.
