#19 Why Carbon removals are the missing piece of your Net Zero plan
The world needs them. You need them more than you think. And now is the time to start to secure a future cost advantage
The 3 paths to Net Zero
Companies are lining up behind Net Zero pledges, but hitting those targets is a daunting roadmap. A roadmap with 3 potential paths:
Reduce: Cut down on emissions already being produced (e.g., energy efficiency projects)
Avoid: Prevent emissions from happening in the first place (e.g., Switching to electric vehicles)
Remove: Capturing and permanently storing carbon from the atmosphere (e.g., in rocks, oceans or underground)
In essence, removals are about cleaning up the mess already made, while reductions and avoidance help prevent future spills.
There is no Net Zero without removals
The key strategies for achieving the 1.5°C set by the IPCC are focused on avoiding and reducing carbon emissions.
However, carbon removals are more critical than many realize. While reducing and avoiding emissions is vital, it won’t eliminate all carbon. Removals will account for ~10-20% of the total effort required to meet the Paris Agreement goals.
This requires scaling them up dramatically, from 0.1 gigatons of CO2 today to 5-10 gigatons by 2050 (500-1000x)
Scaling up removals
Removal projects generally fall into three broad categories: Nature-based (e.g., reforestation, soil carbon sequestration), Engineering-based (e.g., Direct Air Capture technology), and Hybrid approaches (e.g., Enhanced Weathering).
Currently, nature-based solutions dominate in terms of scale and cost , but they face significant challenges when it comes to scalability (due to natural limitations), permanence, and reliable monitoring. On the other hand, engineering-based solutions have much greater scalability potential, but they are still in the early stages of development, with a steep learning curve ahead.
Such projects are generally aggregated in Marketplaces that not only list them but ensure additionality (i.e., that one project is not sold twice), effectiveness, and overall transparency. As with removal projects, marketplaces are also on their early stages, with only a handful, mostly compliance ones (established by governments) enjoying significant scale.
Act now or pay more later
If you’re a company committed to Net Zero, our first advice is the following: stop your feel-good team-building planting trees programs. They are expensive and inefficient.
Our second advice is: ensure traction on your carbon reduction and avoidance programs.
And our third advice is: start your removals strategy. Now.
For three reasons: You will eventually need removals to meet your targets, competition for high-quality projects (& low prices) is still low but rapidly expanding and expectations from governments, investors and other stakeholders on removals are growing fast.
Your removal strategy can take different ways. Here’s how we think you should do it:
Start with your supply chain: Emissions outside your direct control (Scope 3) often make up most of your emissions. It’s a great way to reduce your carbon footprint, engage with your partners, and drive innovation in your field
Expand beyond your supply chain (mostly nature-based): There will always be a part of your value-chain emissions you won’t be able to offset. Asess high-quality nature-based projects (largest scale today) to increase your removals. Our advice is to tap into existing coalitions (e.g., Leaf) that will do part of the job for you
Integrate selected carbon credit purchases from Marketplaces that can help you bridge the gap while you develop your own projects (1 & 2 points above). Focus on reputable marketplaces (Verra, Gold Standard or Puro.Earth) and diversify investments to get exposure to different emerging technologies
Assess long-term investments in Engineered solutions: As explained, engineered solutions offer the most potential but they require investments to scale up. Being part of promising technologies can secure competitive prices if they become true winners in the removal space.
The beauty of nature
In the race to Net Zero, companies that start their carbon removal strategy today will not only increase their odds of meeting their commitments but also to gain a competitive edge.
Don’t wait until it’s too late.
But, beyond the numbers, investing in solutions that restore and protect our planet could not be sexier. Nothing is a beautiful as Nature. Its forests, wetlands, and oceans—offer more than carbon capture; an opportunity for a greener, bluer and more vibrant world.
A world where humanity and nature thrive together.
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