State of Voluntary Carbon Markets – Report for ‘09
Brian McFarland on June 18th, 2009Despite the global recession, the voluntary carbon markets grew by 87% from 2007 to 2008 according to the recently released, “Fortifying the Foundation: State of the Voluntary Carbon Markets 2009,” a joint report by Ecosystem Marketplace and New Carbon Finance. Carbonfund.org, in conjunction with 182 organizations from 28 countries, provided information to the annual survey. Some key findings include:
* 123.4 million metric tonnes of carbon offsets were transacted in 2008; 56% of which were transacted through the Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX)
* As of 2008, the voluntary carbon market – in terms of volume – is still less than 3% compared to the regulated/compliance market
* The three largest project types transacted over-the-counter in 2008 were: Hydroelectric (32%); Landfill (16%) and Wind Energy (15%)
* Asia (45%) and United States (28%) were the most popular locations of voluntary offset projects throughout 2008
* Third party verification and certification has always been a cornerstone of Carbonfund.org, and the voluntary market became more open and transparent as no less than 95% of all carbon offsets transacted in 2008 were verified by third parties
* With 17 identified certification standards, the over-the-counter voluntary carbon market saw a consolidation of standards among the top four: Voluntary Carbon Standard (48%), The Gold Standard (12%), Climate Action Reserve (10%), and the American Carbon Registry (9%)
* Corporate Social Responsibility and Public Relations remain the two driving forces for buyers within the over-the-counter voluntary market
For more information, please contact Carbonfund.org. The full report and executive summary are available for free from Ecosystem Marketplace (http://www.ecosystemmarketplace.com/) and New Carbon Finance (http://www.newcarbonfinance.com/).
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