Agreement on EU certification scheme for carbon removals
What is the Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF)?
On February 20th, the EU Parliament and the EU Council reached a provisional agreement to establish a certification framework for carbon removals within the EU. In an effort to reach climate neutrality by 2050, this framework aims to help the EU reach its target through carbon removal and carbon farming certification, fostering investment in carbon removal as well as minimizing the risk of greenwashing.
The CRCF categorizes certification rules for the following key areas:
Carbon farming, such as reforestation and rewetting of peatlands
Carbon removal, such as direct air carbon capture or bioenergy with carbon capture and storage
Carbon sequestration in products and materials, such as wood-based construction materials or biochar
The certification rules will be used by the EU for monitoring and verification of the carbon removal practices, establishing a method for certification, and authenticating certification schemes that comply with the EU framework. The EU has identified some issues that impact the future development of carbon removals, and has set four quality criteria to address these problems; QUantification, Additionality and baselines, Long-term storage, and sustainabilITY (named QU.A.L.ITY).
The European Commission has stated that an EU registry will be established within 4 years, where current certification schemes can be used until the new registry is in place.
What are the impacts of the CRCF?
The EU states the expected impact of the CRCF is to foster an increased deployment of quality-assured carbon removal activities, thereby contributing to the EUs climate neutrality target by 2050. The CRCF will also impact a wide range of industries, such as agriculture, construction, as well as industrial companies developing carbon removal activities, both financially and operationally, in order to comply with the certification rules.
The framework is also expected to drive national climate policy within the member states to control the certification process for carbon removal activities. The voluntary carbon market (VCM) will most likely experience significant short-term impact as VCMs will need to adapt to the CRCF and prevent double counting for climate benefit claims.
What is happening next?
The next steps in the CRCF process is the detailed development of is for the European Parliament and Council to formally approve the agreement and eventually publish the new legislation in the Official Journal of the Union.