3 new California carbon offset projects listed
On Wednesday, three new California carbon offset projects were listed on the state’s Air Resources Board (ARB) website.
Two additional Ozone Depleting Substance (ODS) projects were included, which involve the destruction of harmful refrigerant gases. The Climate Action Reserve and the American Carbon Registry (ACR) acted as ARB-approved Offset Project Registries for these two California carbon offset projects.
Another Livestock project was also listed, which requires operators to capture methane produced on-site, since methane is one of the more potent greenhouse gases, 56 times as harmful as carbon dioxide.
The three new California carbon offset projects are all planning to supply carbon credits through the ARB’s Early Action program.
California businesses that must begin accounting for their annual emissions are allowed to purchase carbon credits to meet up to 8% of their compliance obligation, creating the demand for up to 200 million credits through 2020.
However, only a few project types including Forestry, ODS, and Livestock have been approved by the ARB to supply California carbon offsets.
A study conducted by the ACR showed that there will be a significant shortfall in available carbon credits, by as much as 67% by 2020.
To address this concern, the ARB has looked into additional project protocols including Mine Methane Capture and Improved Rice Management.
So far 62 projects have listed with the ARB Early Action program.
(9/4/13)