Carbon Project and Offsets Advisory Services
Climate Science and Carbon Offsets
The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), in their 6th Assessment Report (AR6), communicated the necessity of including carbon dioxide removals (CDR) and offsets as part of a broader portfolio of climate mitigation measures in order to have the best chance at limiting global temperature increase to 1.5°C. In fact, the AR6 mitigation pathways that limit warming to under 2°C, as well as limit to 1.5°C, all include CDR measures to compensate for remaining emissions in all sectors and regions.
What is a Carbon Offset?
Carbon offsets are a mechanism that generates quantified emission reductions or removals in one location to compensate for emissions that occur in a different location. They are generated from financed carbon projects that are developed and implemented to contribute to the mitigation of climate change, and that is additional to any that would occur in the absence of the project.
Incorporate Offsets into A Comprehensive Climate Action Plan
SCS Consulting helps you ensure that your organization is using carbon offsets in a responsible and effective manner, and that your climate strategy is aligned with the latest scientific and regulatory developments.
SCS follows the Oxford Principles for Net Zero Aligned Carbon Offsetting and works as your partner in reducing your own emissions to the extent possible. We then help you identify high quality offsets that are most aligned with the impacts in your value chain.
The core steps are:
- Cut emissions, use high quality offsets, and regularly revise offsetting strategy as best practice evolves.
- Shift to carbon removal offsetting.
- Shift to long-lived storage.
- Support the development of net zero aligned offsetting.
Carbon Project Investment, Development & Due Diligence
SCS can support organizations seeking to invest in or directly develop a carbon project, as well as carry out core due diligence activities prior to getting involved in projects. Our support includes:
- Project Design Document Support: We provide expertise and partnership support to meet the needs and budget of the project developers who may be well-equipped to design the practicalities of a project, but who need the expertise and partnership support to ensure that project design will meet the requirements assessed in the Validation, Verification and Reporting process.
- Assessing Additionality, Credibility, and Risk: We help you evaluate the additionality and credibility of carbon projects to ensure that they deliver real and additional emissions reductions that would not have occurred without the project.
- Climate Finance Due Diligence: We support in carrying out key due diligence activities that evaluate the feasibility, risks, and potential returns of investing in carbon offset projects. These activities aim to ensure that the project is financially viable, technically feasible, and environmentally sound, and that it meets the requirements of the relevant standards and regulations.
SCS Consulting Advisory + SCS Global Services Verification + SCS Registry
SCS Consulting's sister company SCS Global Services has been voted year over year as “Best Verification Company” of the year for the quality of their verification work and has verified over 290 million tons of carbon emissions reductions to date.
SCS Consulting Services is cut from the same cloth and knows where offsets often fall short in delivering on their promises. We can provide the due diligence necessary to understand that an offset is correctly verified, is following best practice in regard to additionality and reversal and is low risk for unintended consequences that negatively impact people and the planet.
Our newest affiliate, SCS Global Registry, is a groundbreaking new platform for offset projects that can yield significant results in this decade and the near-term. These include offsets that focus on the full set of factors identified by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) as contributing to climate change which include other shorter-term emissions that have a large role to play in heating the planet (soot deposits in the arctic from air travel) and reevaluating global warming potentials based on timeframes less than the standard 100 years.
From project design and development and / or carbon offset due diligence support with SCS Consulting Services, to project validation and verification with SCS Global Services, and with carbon project registry services from SCS Global Registry, we are now able to meet the comprehensive carbon project needs in the marketplace.