U.K. Drops CO2 Offset Quality Program, Carbon Retirement Says
The U.K. has canceled its program to assure the quality of carbon-dioxide offsetting, according to Carbon Retirement, a company that helps polluters cut emissions.
The Department of Energy and Climate Change said it was discontinuing the system on May 20 in letters to companies accredited to the program, including EON AG and British Airways Plc, London-based Carbon Retirement said today in an e-mail.
The system assured that emissions offsets bought voluntarily were canceled or retired to prevent them from being sold again. Other standards for voluntary credits only guarantee that emission reductions have taken place. DECC said there was “disappointingly low take-up” by businesses since its start in 2009, according to the e-mail.
“The scheme was designed to be self-sustaining but has had very little public exposure since launch,” said Jane Burston, founder of Carbon Retirement. “It’s disappointing that DECC have decided to cancel the scheme, instead of increasing its visibility and making the high-quality offsets it represents more accessible.”
Businesses and individuals choose to buy such offsets as a cheaper alternative to cutting direct emissions. Carbon Retirement also purchases and cancels European Union permits as a way of reducing emissions.
To contact the reporter on this story: Catherine Airlie in London at cairlie@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Stephen Voss at sev@bloomberg.net
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