Policy Briefs
Verra recently acknowledged the existence of millions of excess credits issued to the Kariba REDD+ project. Rather than resolving the issue, Verra’s proposed solution exposes a fundamental structural flaw in its offsets program.
Offsets provide few climate benefits and cost California hundreds of millions of dollars each year. When lawmakers reauthorize the state’s cap and trade program this fall, they should eliminate the use of offsets.
We summarize the ongoing debate around what “counts” as CDR, highlighting the trade-offs of each proposed definition. We suggest an alternative set of questions that can provide a more meaningful guide to making effective CDR investments.