Dr Joe Romm Pt 2 - Double Accounting & Climate Colonialism

In Part 2,  with Dr Joe Romm, we discuss how offsetting impacts the NDC accounting systems that underpin the Paris Agreement and expose much less well off countries to yet another form of what Joe calls Climate Imperialism

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Link to Joe Romm's paper on offsets: https://bpb-us-w2.wpmucdn.com/web.sas.upenn.edu/dist/0/896/files/2023/06/OffsetPaper7.0-6-27-23-FINAL2.pdf

In part 3 with Joe, we discuss how dodgy offsets and double accounting feed into COP28 and ask the question - is the COP process set-up to fail? A link to Joe’s in-depth paper on all of this is in the notes.

Content guide:

1. Switching from the voluntary market to the “compliance market”.

2. Defining emissions double accounting.

3. Who gets to count the emissions reduction and why.

4. Paris Agreement did not solve this issue.

5. Two solutions (aside from banning offsets): ‘Mitigation contributions’ and ‘corresponding adjustment’ (an authorised offset).

6. How authorised offsets backfire on developing nations.

7. COP26 made is easier for developed countries to skim off cheap emissions from developing nations who will have to pay later.

8. Climate colonialism or imperialism if the phoney (unregulated)  offset price is used.

9. The price of offsets will rise. 

10. Don’t believe the lies of abundant cheap emissions reduction.

11. They are cheap because they are meaningless.

12. Switzerland buying up cheap carbon offsets to pretend they are making an effort.

13. Don’t be a bad faith actor in good faith market.

14. It doesn’t cut $2 a tonne to go to zero!