Open Letter: NGOs call for clear and robust regulations to govern the use of carbon removals
Clean Air Task Force joins seven leading NGOs in calling for the European Commission to develop a clear and robust Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF). The scale-up of safe and effective carbon dioxide removal is needed to accelerate net emissions reductions, address residual emissions in hard-to-abate sectors, and achieve net-negative emissions. The Carbon Removal Certification Framework introduces overarching rules for measuring, validating, and certifying carbon removals.
The legislative proposal is a first and significant step toward developing a strong carbon removal capability in Europe that contributes to the EU’s climate goals. However, to achieve its aims and ensure that carbon removal delivers real climate benefits, co-legislators must address several critical shortcomings, including:
- Adopting a definition of carbon removal compatible with existing international scientific guidance and consensus
- Providing guidelines to govern the use of removal certificates that acknowledge the fundamentally different forms of carbon storage and stages of maturity of carbon removal methods, while keeping removals and emission reductions separate
