This Week in V-Carbon: Operation Roll-Out

UK-based Natural Balance launched Wonderbag in Rwanda this week, after distributing over 700,000 in South Africa since its debut four years ago. The biodegradable non-electric slow cooker, if used three times a week, reportedly reduces families’ spend on fuel by 30% and saves 0.5-3 tCO2e a year. Already UNFCCC accredited, the business is undergoing the validation process for both the CDM and the Gold Standard in order to tap into carbon finance, which founder Sarah Collins said will allow Natural Balance to sell the bags at cost price. Unilever has already bought five million units for distribution. Wonderbag plans to expand into Nigeria, Kenya, Ethiopia, Somaliland, Djibouti, Sri Lanka, India and Indonesia, and is seeking additional partners to help reach its goal of distributing 100 million bags by 2015.

– Read more

This week, UK-based premium automaker Jaguar Land Rover announced its support for Vestergaard Frandsen’s LifeStraw Carbon for Water project in Kenya. In conjunction with ClimateCare, Jaguar Land Rover has invested in 50 carbon reduction schemes in 17 countries over the last 5 years, offsetting 5.2 MtCO2 so far and having committed to offset another 10 MtCO2 of carbon dioxide by 2014. On top of innovative, low carbon technologies and energy efficiency projects, Jaguar Land Rover’s offsetting portfolio also focuses on renewable energy, with wind power projects responsible for generating 1.3 MtCO2 or 30% of its portfolio.

– Read press release

Emirates CMS Power Company (ECPC), owned by the Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority, became the first UAE-based company to have an emissions reduction project registered under the VCS. To date, ECPC, a combined cycle power and desalination plant, has received roughly 36,436 VCUs, trading currently at more than $13/VCU. The project has led to reductions of atmospheric thermal discharge and the efficient use of waste heat for steam generation and desalination, leading to a smaller carbon footprint for power and water production. It is also expected to contribute to sustainable development and reductions in local air pollution levels in Abu Dhabi.

– Read more from Gulf News
– Read more from Trade Arabia

A new article on the Global Association of Risk Professionals (GARP) site discusses best practices in risk management techniques for forest carbon projects that, if scaled up, could further mobilize private finance. The use of registries, for instance, can mitigate transaction non-fulfillment risk. Institutions are also entering multiple-party escrow agreements, adding conditions to potential purchases, and providing clarity for clearing and settlement. Firms can buy directors-and-officers (D&O) insurance to cover both business and legal risks. In the US, conservation easements help ensure that the land-use regime associated with a project stays constant regardless of property ownership. For foreign forest-based investments, the Overseas Private Investment Corporation and the World Bank’s Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency offer political risk insurance.

– Read more

NYSE Euronext (NYX) announced yesterday that it has achieved carbon-neutral status for the second consecutive year, still the only global exchange operator to go carbon neutral. NYSE Euronext saved 79,250 MtCO2e last year through a combination of energy efficiency measures and the purchase of renewable energy credits (RECs) and carbon offsets. Sustainability consultant CodeGreen Solutions brokered the exchange operator’s Green-e certified RECs and Climate Action Reserve (CAR) verified carbon offsets. The RECs, purchased from Green Mountain Energy Company (a subsidiary of NRG Energy), match the company’s electricity usage during 2011 with 100% US wind power. The carbon offsets, purchased from 3Degrees, match the carbon emissions resulting from NYSE Euronext fuel consumption, fugitive emissions, and corporate travel.

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UK-based Antalis McNaughton – subsidiary of The Antalis Group, Europe’s premier provider in communication materials – has just launched a new service that enables customers to use a CarbonNeutral certified paper logo (í  la CarbonNeutral Company) on their printed communications upon buying carbon offsets relative to the weight of paper they order. Ecometrica calculates the carbon footprint for each of Antalis’s offered paper brands, from production to delivery. The offset purchases support two projects under the CarbonNeutral Protocol, including the VCS/CCBA-validated Uchindile-Mapanda reforestation project in Tanzania (the first VCS-validated AFOLU project) and the VCS-validated and Green-e certified Tieling methane capture project in China.

– Read more from PrintWeek
– Read about Uchindile-Mapanda project
– Read about Tieling project

Seufert Transparente Verpackungen (STV), a German specialist in plastic packaging, recently announced that it has teamed up with sustainability consultant natureOffice to provide a carbon neutral printing service that allows cosmetics firms to brand their clear or translucent packaging as carbon neutral. Upon calculating the carbon footprint of their project’s production and delivery process, clients can choose to offset emissions via natureOffice’s portfolio, which includes offset projects validated under the CDM Gold Standard and CarbonFix. Project types range from reforestation to wastewater treatment with biogas production. A unique reference number is created for each project, which can be printed onto the client’s products and tracked via natureOffice’s website.

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As the owners of Low Isles Sailaway, a tourist cataraman operating in the Great Barrier Reef (GBR), Steve and Katrina Edmondson are offsetting their business’s carbon emissions by managing a 28-ha tree farm on tropics land, formerly a cane paddock. Since the Eco Shamba Tree Farm started in 2010, roughly 15,000 trees have been planted, including “wetland trees to control erosion, native cabinet timbers for sustainable harvesting and Pongamia pinnata ‘diesel’ trees for [their] own biofuel use and as a trial for larger projects,” says Chris Briggs, a GBR Marine Park official working with tourism operations to form a GBR Tourism Climate Change Action Strategy to lessen their impact on the Reef.

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The Carbon Trade Exchange (CTX) recently became the official partner of the Gold Coast Sevens – Fever Pitch tournament and will help offset the Bledisloe Cup Trophy Tour as part of the Bledisloe Cup Festival. The partnership between the CTE and the Australian Rugby Union (ARU), which oversees the GCS-FP tournament and the Bledisloe Cup, follows a previous collaboration to offset the national rugby team’s campaign in New Zealand via carbon offsets purchased from HELP, a NZ Household Energy Efficient Lighting Projects initiative. ARU will use CTX’s online trading platform to offset the events’ carbon footprint, to be measured by independent auditor Pangolin Associates.

– Read more

The clock is ticking down until the practice auction scheduled for California’s biggest emitters next week. California’s Air Resources Board (ARB) recently announced plans to delay enforcement of the “resource shuffling” provision in the state’s cap-and-trade scheme by 18 months, after concerns were raised about the disruption it could cause in western US power supply. The provision requires out-of-state power producers to annually attest they have not changed their contracts with California utilities to provide low-carbon power to California and high-carbon power to states lacking carbon limits. ARB Chair Mary Nichols said California needs more time to define “resource shuffling” clearly and will review the transactions that occur during the first 18 months of allowance trading. This delay will not change other dates set for the scheme’s implementation.

– Read about resource shuffling from Reuters
– Read about the practice auction from NRDC

The Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) has released an article in response to a recent New York Times article, which argued that poor design under the UN carbon offsets program encouraged select emitters under the EU ETS to increase pollution – only to reduce it and sell the offsets. In addition to citing measures taken by the EU to resolve this issue, EDF discusses mechanisms adopted under California’s own scheme that aim to guard against the issue. Instead of taking Europe’s project-based approach, California has adopted strict protocols with performance-based standards to guide offsets approval. California will not award offsets to out-of-state projects that reduce gas emissions already restricted by California law, and only allows destruction of gases from domestic sources that have already been used and are slated for recycling.

– Read more from EDF
– Read NYT article

In anticipation of the first Green Climate Fund (GCF) board meeting scheduled for this week, Friends of the Earth, the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA), and the Institute for Policy Studies prepared a report, “The Green Climate Fund’s No-Objection Procedure and Private Finance: Lessons Learned from Existing Institutions.” The report highlights lessons learned from procedures and structures at the ICF, CDM and GEF, which it argues have been largely ineffective at allowing countries to object or consent to projects. With regard to the CDM, the report cites insufficient stakeholder engagement and holes in the approval process for reviewing sustainable development benefits on CDM projects. In light of these issues, the report calls for the GCF to establish clear, binding, and uniform standards and criteria for no-objection procedures at national designated authorities.

– Read report

Based in Washington, DC, the officer will oversee validation/verification bodies working under the VCS Program. Candidates should have a Bachelor’s at minimum, and 5+ years’ work experience in carbon markets, preferably for or with VVBs or similar entities under other GHG programs, and in particular the CDM.

– Read more about the position here

Based in Beijing, the officer will play a key role in both project and methodology reviews and the further development of Gold Standard rules. Candidates should have a Bachelor’s in engineering, science, or related discipline (Master’s or PhD in energy and/or EIAs desirable), 4-5 years’ work experience in carbon markets, and preferably fluency in Chinese.

– Read more about the position here

The manager will take ownership of Bunge’s existing portfolio of carbon transactions while expanding the presence of Bunge Emissions operations throughout India. Candidates should be Indian nationals with experience in leading contract negotiations. Professional qualifications (MBA, ACA, CFA, or similar) are an advantage but not required.

– Read more about the position here

Based in Washington, DC, the Associate in climate change and sustainability will assist with data collection and analysis for energy, climate change and sustainability-related projects, along with outreach initiatives and stakeholder engagement. ICF is also seeking Climate Policy Consultants, to be based in London, to support more senior colleagues to win, manage, and deliver climate policy contracts for EC and government clients. Candidates for either position should have a degree in economics, engineering, or science, with 3+ years’ work experience in a consulting background.

The International Policy Analyst will conduct research on mitigation projects and policy developments in support of CCAP’s flagship Mitigation Action Implementation Program in the Latin American region. Candidates will ideally have a Bachelor’s in engineering and a Master’s in public/environmental policy, with 2-4 years’ experience conducting economic analyses of relevant public policies and projects. The Manager of the Energy, Air Quality, & Climate Policy Dialogue will develop CCAP’s US policy agenda and corresponding outreach and fundraising strategy. Candidates will ideally have a Master’s in public policy or related field, with 5+ years’ policy and industry experience.

Based in Nepal, the Research Associate will assist ICIMOD in influencing policy and practices to meet the associated challenges emerging in the Hindu Kush Himalayas in four main fields: water, ecosystem services, sustainable livelihoods and geospatial solutions. Candidates should be from Afghanistan, Bhutan or Myanmar and hold a Master’s or PhD degree in a relevant field.

– Read more about the position here

The specialist will be responsible for all internal communications to the GCEI team and to the WWF network, working to increase knowledge sharing between the four work streams of the GCEI and supporting the engagement of the WWF network in the GCEI. Candidates should a relevant degree and 5+ years’ communications experience, with experience in various media tools.

– Read more about the position here

Based in Washington, DC, the intern will prepare background research and documentation for RRI’s Global Programs and strategic analysis work and provide assistance for assessment of statutory tenure rights in forest-based countries. Candidates should have a college-level education or current enrollment in a college-level program of study, preferably in economics, geography or related social science.

– Read more about the position here

Based in London, the two interns will help the Sales team research industry/market segments and businesses and conduct competitive landscape reviews. The internship lasts three months. Candidates should be fluent in English and be well-versed in Excel and PowerPoint.

– Read more about the position here