EDF Statement on High Level Expert Group on Net Zero's report at COP27: Carbon credit integrity is key to achieving net zero and 1.5 degree goals

Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt — The United Nations Secretary-General's High-Level Expert Group on the Net-Zero Emissions Commitments of Non-State Entities issued a report at COP27 addressing net-zero commitments by non-State actors, particularly businesses, financial institutions, and municipalities. The report includes recommendations and guidance to help non-state actors deliver on their net zero claims and avoid ambiguity or greenwashing.  

In addition to underscoring the importance of internal decarbonization strategies for those striving for net zero, the report highlights the importance of high standards of integrity for all carbon credits and for the voluntary carbon market. 

In response to the report, Environmental Defense Fund’s (EDF) Executive Vice President of Impact, Angela Churie Kallhauge, issued the following statement:  

To keep the 1.5 degree goal within reach, we need integrity. We can’t reach our climate targets without including carbon credits, and we can’t have effective credits without integrity.  

We can’t allow poor-quality shadow credits to dilute the power of verified, science-based jurisdictional approaches that drive emissions reductions, protect forests, support communities, and cut pollution. High-integrity carbon credits can help us achieve all of these transformational benefits.  

At COP27, we are urging all companies, countries and stakeholders to raise their climate ambition and put in the work to achieve those ambitions. This report’s roadmap for net zero commitments sends a clear message for all those participating in the voluntary carbon market: high integrity matters.

Environmental Defense Fund participates in several initiatives aiming to unite voluntary carbon market stakeholders under clear standards for quality and integrity. The Carbon Credit Quality Initiative, led by EDF, WWF, and Oeko-Institut, provides transparent information on the quality of carbon credit types, enabling users to better understand how to seek out quality carbon credits that deliver higher climate mitigation impacts and offer greater social and environmental benefits.  

EDF is also deeply involved in the Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market, which recently issued its Core Carbon Principles, which aim to set new threshold standards for high-quality carbon credits.