Carbon Finance: How the launch of a new voluntary carbon markets claims code can help reclaim lost credibility

The Voluntary Carbon Markets Integrity Initiative (VCMI) has launched a set of global guidelines to enable companies to make more credible climate statements on the carbon credits they purchase to offset their greenhouse gas emissions.

The non-profit international body on Wednesday published its “claims code of practice”, a rule book for companies to follow when making climate benefit claims. Compliance with the code is voluntary.

“The claims code fills a critical gap, bringing integrity to the demand-side of voluntary carbon markets,” it said in a statement. The code is the result of over 12 months of road testing by around 70 mostly multinational companies, a series of public consultations and multi-stakeholder collaboration, it added.

While voluntary carbon markets have the potential to help fill the financing gap for climate mitigation, especially in developing nations, it can only be realised if they operate with high integrity, the organisation said in the claims code document.

“This means that carbon credits must be generated by activities that truly go beyond business-as-usual and benefit host communities – the supply side – and that their use increases overall greenhouse gas mitigation rather than substituting for existing actions – the demand side,” it said.

“Without clear high integrity rules for both aspects, voluntary carbon markets will rightly continue to be viewed with suspicion, companies will be afraid to invest, and their potential will be lost.”