Carbon Market & Neutrality Strategy
What’s on your mind
How to reach climate neutrality and support the journey towards Net Zero emissions?
Work Case
Compensation of product GHG emissions
Approach
MCS conducts the project in 3 basic steps:
- Estimation of unavoidable greenhouse gas emissions of the product
- Selection of high-quality offsetting projects
- Ensuring the availability of credits and issuance of compensation certificate
Overview
A company was interested in offsetting unavoidable emissions from the production of their smartphone to ultimately achieve carbon-neutral product. By using local components and manufacturing the product locally, the company was already committed to the reduction of GHG emissions that arise during production and transport. Moreover, the product is recycled after use by certified companies, reducing further the GHG value. However, the smartphone production cannot happen without certain components manufactured abroad, generating unavoidable emission that the customer wanted to get compensated.
The customer asked Meo Carbon Solutions (MCS) to estimate GHG emissions to be compensated to achieve product carbon neutrality
Step 1: Estimation of unavoidable greenhouse gas emissions of the product
MCS estimates unavoidable GHG emissions for the smartphone. The result of this step is the quantification of emissions that can be compensated by financing an offsetting project aiming at reducing GHG emissions outside smartphone supply chain of the company.
Step 2: Selection of high-quality offsetting projects
MCS developed the individual project selection matrix, considering customer’s goals, values, and specific preferences (e.g., project type, co-benefits, etc.). The application of this approach ensures that the selected offsetting project meets offsetting requirements and as such is additional, permanent, avoids double counting, applies approved methodology, and brings valuable co-benefits such as ecosystem services, biodiversity, and livelihood improvement. In other words, it ensures high-quality carbon credits.
Based on that, the most suitable certified project was chosen. The selected Lower Zambezi REDD+ project is located in Zambia and applies a holistic approach to tackle poverty, environmental degradation, and climate change together. In collaboration with local community, the project develops sustainable land-use practices that preserve endangered forests and wildlife while investing in the development of rural communities.
Step 3: Ensuring the availability of credits and issuance of compensation certificate
The next step of the project was establishing direct contact to project developers to ensure the availability of carbon credits for their further purchase and transfer to the MCS account in the respective registry. MCS proceeded to the credits’s retirement them on the behalf of the customer and produced the compensation certificate. The certificate included the company name, the amount of purchased credits, the compensation project name and the carbon credits serial registration number (example of the certificate can be found here). With this procedure, MCS ensures transparency, avoids greenwashing and guarantees the avoidance of double-counting.
