Posted December 16, 2011
Even with the recent fall in CER prices, our Strategic Development Manager Oliver Crouch doesn’t expect voluntary buyers to switch from VERs. He explains how their high standards, innovative use of technologies, and societal benefits make them the instrument of choice for many buyers.
Over the years, a number of our clients that first used compliance-grade offsets, namely Certified Emission Reductions (CERs), as part of their carbon management strategies have switched to voluntary offsets, or Verified Emission Reductions (VERs). VERs have become the instrument of choice for achieving voluntary emission reduction goals. This preference is reflected in the wider market as evidenced by the reducing share of CERs within the over the counter voluntary market.
Despite the recent fall in CER prices and what that might suggest for the competitiveness of VERs, we don’t expect the trend of voluntary buyers sourcing VERs to reverse. As corporate carbon management programmes evolve they increasingly look to their offset portfolio to deliver social, environmental and economic benefits beyond the core GHG reduction requirement of carbon finance. VER standards offer a level of variety and responsiveness that is best placed to meet these evolving needs. More specifically, VERs continue to be our clients’ offset instrument of choice for the following reasons:
VER standards generate high quality instruments that are real, measurable and additional
VER standards like the Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) and Gold Standard often use well established Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) methodologies as the basis for quantifying project baselines and emission reductions. They follow similar quality assurance processes for verification and validation as the CDM and use the same independent third party verifying organisations, or DOEs. Indeed a significant proportion of projects generating VERs are aspiring CDM projects, and once registered with the CDM Executive Board will generate CERs.
To inspire consumer confidence in the quality of VERs as financial instruments, infrastructure providers have developed robust credit-accounting registries that bring clarity of ownership and transparency to the VER market. Registries utilise serial numbers as an accounting tool to track credit issuance through to proof of retirement.
VER standards are a driver of methodology and technology innovation
The governance structure of VER standards allows them to be more responsive to market needs, meaning they typically lead innovation in terms of project types and project tools. For example, the Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) introduced the buffer mechanism for forestry and land use projects to account for non-permanence risk. In 2010 the VCS approved the first reduced emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD) methodology.
VER standards also have pioneered methodologies for innovative project types, including community bicycle sharing programs, water purification programs, and the destruction of Ozone Depleting Substances (ODS). VER standards have been the first to adopt more innovative and streamlined procedures, particularly in relation to additionality. The Climate Action Registry (CAR), for example, only credits projects that meet a particular technology requirement or benchmark instead of evaluating projects on a case-by-case basis. Such an approach is seen as key to rapidly scaling carbon finance.
VER standards are a driver of social and ecosystem benefit quantification
The demand for projects that go over and above emission reductions comes from voluntary buyers of offsets. Different VER standards have evolved specialist focuses, and have found ways of collaborating to meet the evolving needs of the marketplace.
For example, the Climate, Community and Biodiversity (CCB) Standard does not quantify carbon reductions, but is often combined with VCS projects to certify a forest project’s additional social and environmental contributions. The Gold Standard was designed by NGOs to raise the bar with regard to local stakeholder engagement.
Similarly the Social Carbon Standard has been developed specifically to certify emission reduction projects for their contributions to sustainable development. This is achieved by continuous assessment of the changes in key social indicators such as employment and health and safety conditions, with a focus on improvements over time.
VER standards promote the inclusion of small-scale projects.
Demand for offsets varies, not only by type and location, but also by project size. Corporate buyers often favour smaller scale projects as they have the potential to source all of the projects credits and feel a greater level of ownership.
Project development costs for VER standards tend to be lower than the CDM, due to more streamlined processes, making carbon finance accessible to smaller scale projects. The Gold Standard’s Community-focused Micro-scale Scheme (CFMS) has streamlined its procedures, resulting in lower costs which help project developers to overcome cost barriers.
Project grouping tools like the VCS ‘Grouped Project’ guidelines allow aggregation of similar projects under a single registered programme. The aim is to reduce costs for household-level activities like efficient cook stoves, solar water heaters and biogas to overcome the small-scale threshold and become economically viable
VERs offer greater price stability and range
CER prices are determined by the market price within the EU-ETS, meaning they are subject to its supply and demand dynamics, and directly linked to political forces in play. In contrast, VER prices have remained more stable over recent years. VER prices are influenced by the attributes of the underlying project technology, location and contribution to social benefits. Accordingly, VER prices span a wide range, allowing buyers to identify projects appropriate for their budgets. More stable prices and a wider range of prices means greater price certainty and flexibility for offset inclusive carbon management programmes built around VERs.
As members of ICROA (International Carbon Reduction and Offset Alliance), The CarbonNeutral Company works with standards that meet the highest quality requirements. These quality standards, combined with the track record of innovation and breadth of project types with access to VER finance, provides the voluntary buyer with choice.
VERs offer the flexibility to design a carbon portfolio that meets specific requirements for price, charisma and communication value. VERs have consequently become the instrument of choice for action ahead of and beyond compliance. While some early buyers favoured CERs for the quality of a compliance grade instrument, they now place confidence in the quality VER standards. In 2012, CERs will continue as an instrument of compliance under Kyoto and the EU-ETS. It is unlikely, however, that CERs will regain a meaningful share of the voluntary carbon market.
Monday, December 19, 2011
Thursday, December 1, 2011
Monday, November 21, 2011
What We Are Thankful For.....
RemTec International is thankful for our employees going above and beyond this year when it comes to those in need. We are proud to share this letter with you to show our gratitude to our family here at RemTec for being so generous even in this down economy.
Monday, October 10, 2011
International golfers for Pan Gulf event
OVER 100 golfers from around the world will be taking part in the Pan Gulf Golf Day at Awali Golf Club on October 14.
The event, which is being held in cooperation with Pan Gulf Industrial Systems, will consist of two competitions.
The first, teeing off in the early morning, will be a strokeplay tournament comprising more than 100 entrants. It will also act as a KPAO (Kingsbury, Pinhey, Ayto, O'Sullivan) qualifier, the final of which will be held at Awali Golf Club in April next year.
The other is an invitational Stableford competition. Scheduled to tee off at around midway, around 20 invited golfers from the US, Australia, Bahrain and the rest of the GCC will be in the fray.
Both tournaments will be played over 18 holes along Awali Golf Club's sand course.
Amateurs
The players taking part are all amateurs. They will be vying for attractive cash prizes in each competition, with additional awards for the day's various side competitions also to be given out, such as a Harley Davidson motorbike for the first player to sink a hole-in-one.
"The main aim of our Pan Gulf Golf Day is for everyone to have a good time out on the golf course and to make some money for charity," event organiser Martin Allison told the GDN yesterday.
Part of the event's proceeds will be donated to the Think Pink charity.
Following the day's play, there will be live music featuring the Gruesome Twosome band and a dinner.
The Pan Gulf Golf Day's main sponsors are Remtec and Chemetron; while other sponsors are Notifier, Autronica, Stahl, Nalco, DNH Speakers and ATP.
Monday, October 3, 2011
Arctic ozone loss at record level
Ozone loss over the Arctic this year was so severe that for the first time it could be called an "ozone hole" like the Antarctic one, scientists report.
About 20km (13 miles) above the ground, 80% of the ozone was lost, they say.
The cause was an unusually long spell of cold weather at altitude. In cold conditions, the chlorine chemicals that destroy ozone are at their most active.
It is currently impossible to predict if such losses will occur again, the team writes in the journal
Early data on the scale of Arctic ozone destruction were released in April, but the Nature paper is the first that has fully analysed the data.
"Winter in the Arctic stratosphere is highly variable - some are warm, some are cold," said Michelle Santee from Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL).
"But over the last few decades, the winters that are cold have been getting colder.
"So given that trend and the high variability, we'd anticipate that we'll have other cold ones, and if that happens while chlorine levels are high, we'd anticipate that we'd have severe ozone loss."
Ozone-destroying chemicals originate in substances such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) that came into use late last century in appliances including refrigerators and fire extinguishers.
Their destructive effects were first documented in the Antarctic, which now sees severe ozone depletion in each of its winters.
Their use was progressively restricted and then eliminated by the 1987 Montreal Protocol and its successors.
The ozone layer blocks ultraviolet-B rays from the Sun, which can cause skin cancer and other medical conditions.
Longer, not colderWinter temperatures in the Arctic stratosphere do not generally fall as low as at the southern end of the world.
Ozone destruction takes place within polar stratospheric clouds, with chlorine the main culpritNo records for low temperature were set this year, but the air remained at its coldest for an unusually long period of time, and covered an unusually large area.
In addition, the polar vortex was stronger than usual. Here, winds circulate around the edge of the Arctic region, somewhat isolating it from the main world weather systems.
"Why [all this] occurred will take years of detailed study," said Dr Santee.
"It was continuously cold from December through April, and that has never happened before in the Arctic in the instrumental record."
The size and position of the ozone hole changed over time, as the vortex moved northwards or southwards over different regions.
Some monitoring stations in northern Europe and Russia recorded enhanced levels of ultraviolet-B penetration, though it is not clear that this posed any risk to human health.
While the Arctic was setting records, the Antarctic ozone hole is relatively stable from year to year.
This year has seen ozone-depleting conditions extending a little later into the southern hemisphere spring than usual - again, as a result of unusual weather conditions.
Chlorine compounds persist for decades in the upper atmosphere, meaning that it will probably be mid-century before the ozone layer is restored to its pre-industrial health.
Sunday, September 11, 2011
September 11, 2001
We will always remember those that were lost on this day and those that have since lost their life protecting our freedom and rights.
Proud To Be American!
Friday, July 1, 2011
Have a Safe and Happy Independence Weekend!!
RemTec is available over the Holiday weekend for Emergency Recharges. 1-800-372-1301
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