European CDR Policy Update January 2024
Sebastian from CarbonFuture joined Europe’s CDR Programme, Remove, to discuss quarterly policy updates throughout Europe.
Here, we’ll go into the key topics discussed, shedding light on carbon removal initiatives, the development of the Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF), and perspectives on the carbon markets.
Europe’s Net Zero Commitment
At the forefront of Europe’s climate action is the commitment to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. This strategy involves leveraging existing frameworks like the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS), and the Emissions Sharing Regulation (ESR).
These initiatives align with broader emission reduction programmes.
Europe is currently trying to create a single building block for carbon removal to fit all these markets and provide guidelines and standards that are necessary for carbon removal technologies, and the Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF) is that building block.
Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF)
The CRCF is a certification system that aims to bring consistency and clarity to carbon removal across various technologies. The CRCF was introduced in November 2023 and has a limited scope on what is accepted as a verified certification within the EU, leading to ambiguity as to what is accepted and defined as “carbon removal”.
One such issue is that it incorrectly defines “emissions reduction” as a type of carbon removal, despite that they are completely different.
However, the CRCF does specify that claims of greenwashing will be banned. This is a proactive approach to prevent companies and corporations from claiming emissions neutrality when it is not the case. The issue with this is that claims of carbon removal will need to meet the standards and verification criteria set out by the limited scope of the CRCF.
These issues have led over 300 companies, including us at Nellie Technologies, to send a second letter to the European Parliament to broaden the scope and be more inclusive of all CDR technologies and verification methods.
The CRCF and the Commoditisation of Carbon Removal
The average sale of carbon credits currently takes about 9-12 months to complete. It is necessary to commodify the purchase of carbon removal certificates to lower the length of time it takes.
The CRCF aims to help commodify the sale of carbon removal certificates. By having uniform criteria for assessing permanence and other key requirements, the aim is to drive down costs to accelerate the adoption of uniform carbon removal practices. The standardisation is set to facilitate market growth and also enhance transparency and accountability in the carbon removal sector.
Voluntary Carbon Markets and Government Backing
The Voluntary Carbon Markets are beneficial as they contribute significantly to the growth of the carbon removal market, however, it is said that that alone is not enough to reach the gigatonne scale that is needed to limit global warming.
One key way to scale up carbon removal lies in the public procurement and compliance market. This has already started in countries like the US, where $35 million has been allocated to help buy carbon removal certificates and help to scale the technologies.
Sweden is also leading the way by pledging substantial subsidies (3.3 billion euros) to support carbon removal initiatives. Having governmental support will show credibility in the market, leading to further market growth, which will allow for more companies to be able to scale all to achieve gigatonne removal by 2050.
In summary, the EU’s proactive approach to carbon removal is marked by significant developments, most notably the CRCF.
While the CRCF is an important step forward, it is not without its issues that are being addressed by corporations.
There are still further implementation strategies that are vital to achieving the ultimate goal of scaling up carbon removal and realising a sustainable, low-carbon future. Europe’s dedication to these initiatives sets a precedent for global climate action.
