The historic exchange of carbon credits between Switzerland and Thailand, the first-ever under the Paris Agreement's Article 6.2, is shrouded in controversy.
Switzerland's acquisition of carbon offsets from Thailand, aimed at transitioning from petrol-fueled to electric buses in Bangkok, and celebrated as a great climate action, is now being questioned by civil society groups who argues that the claimed emission reductions would have naturally transpired without the offsets.
Switzerland, a proponent of bilateral credit trading, plans to use the purchased credits to meet its emissions reduction goals. If the concerns about the offset integrity are valid, this raises the disconcerting possibility of Switzerland obtaining a license to pollute without contributing to real climate action.
The controversy also highlights the absence of centralized oversight for the credits traded under this system. Efforts to introduce stricter controls during Cop28 failed, leaving questions about the regulatory framework for offset transactions.
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The conversation around carbon offsets is complex and evolving.
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The controversy surrounding carbon credits will come to blow up in our faces so bad.It is a fancy hoax that should be relooked again and countries like Switzerland forced to participate in real climate action.
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@Kevin Do you mean Switzerland?
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Dear Simon Bergbom Your climate warning has received over 50 agrees! We have reached out to Switzerland by email and requested a response. I will keep you updated on any progress! To reach more people and increase the chance of a response, click the Share button above to share the review on your social accounts. For every new member that joins We Don't Have Time from your network, we will plant a tree and attribute it to you! /Adam, We Don't Have Time
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This situation casts a shadow on the effectiveness and transparency of such bilateral trading agreements.
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The carbon offset markets are losing credibility...Do you have any source for this information?
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@sarah_chabane_874 https://www.climatechangenews.com/2024/01/09/first-ever-paris-agreement-offsets-face-integrity-questions/
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This Carbon credits have always caused controversies.
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This carbon credits are really questionable.
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This is very concerning, and if it is true, it'd make me lose even more faith in the carbon offset markets...
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@tom_simpson The carbon offset markets are just cunning ways to avoid accountability