We believe in transparency and proper accounting.
A carbon offset is an environmental commodity--it is the right to an amount of avoided or removed carbon emissions. Our Carbon Offsets are supported by data. It's important to emphasize that we're determining the actual greenhouse gas reductions available for the energy efficiency measures, and we continue to work through these calculations.
We note that these carbon offsets are not third-party verified or available on the open carbon market. This kind of verification adds both time and cost to the project. Instead, we rely on the high level of trust between the parties involved and a fully transparent calculation of the avoided greenhouse gas emissions. For the time being Climate Smart Missoula will be offering non-verified offsets (with full transparency) but is also exploring the steps needed for verification.
The best way to understand how this works is to review the work we completed with the Cornerstone Project (be sure to check out the Technical Memo and How to Submit documents). We also note that the Human Resource Council's weatherization work is always backed by numbers - both costs and energy saved - and this is what we're using to determine the price of any offset we will offer.
Finally, we have a talented Footprint Fund Advisory Committee -- see About Us -- and together we are committed to transparency and accuracy!
We note that these carbon offsets are not third-party verified or available on the open carbon market. This kind of verification adds both time and cost to the project. Instead, we rely on the high level of trust between the parties involved and a fully transparent calculation of the avoided greenhouse gas emissions. For the time being Climate Smart Missoula will be offering non-verified offsets (with full transparency) but is also exploring the steps needed for verification.
The best way to understand how this works is to review the work we completed with the Cornerstone Project (be sure to check out the Technical Memo and How to Submit documents). We also note that the Human Resource Council's weatherization work is always backed by numbers - both costs and energy saved - and this is what we're using to determine the price of any offset we will offer.
Finally, we have a talented Footprint Fund Advisory Committee -- see About Us -- and together we are committed to transparency and accuracy!
Carbon offsets have strict requirements.
They must be:
MEASURABLE
There must be data to support the GHG saved. VERIFIABLE Although our offsets will not, at least at the outset, use a third-party to verify the projects, we will be fully transparent and have a technical advisory team with expertise in this arena who will review for accuracy and assurance. PERMANENT The carbon saved should not leak back into the atmosphere in the future. There are time bounds on most offset projects. Permanence is a concern with many forest and restoration offsets. ADDITIONAL For a carbon offset to be valid, it must fund greenhouse gas reductions that would not have happened otherwise. That is, the reduction is additional to the business-as-usual scenario. This is key. |
How our carbon offsets meet these requirements
Measureable: Our partnership with the Human Resource Council is one of transparency, and we are able to work closely with them to ensure that each energy efficiency measure that is enabled by your offset purchase has a quantifiable energy efficiency savings amount. This data has long been tracked and logged by the HRC for their own measurement processes. This energy efficiency can then be easily translated into carbon dioxide equivalent amounts using the carbon intensity of our energy portfolio from Northwestern Energy. Verifiable: Our carbon offsets are not third-party verified, the Footprint Fund's technical advisory committee is experienced in the field of carbon offsets and well aware of the rigor and thoroughness that third party verifiers ask of carbon offset vendors. This committee helps us to verify all the portions and processes of our offsets are accurate being conveyed appropriately. Additionally, we strive to be as transparent as possible with our process, or order for each potential customer to feel confident in their purchase. Permanent: These offsets rely on energy efficiency upgrades to homes, and include things like attic and wall insulation, water heater wraps, window and door weather stripping, etc. Like any construction project, these upgrades are pieces of infrastructure that have an estimated average lifespan. It is this estimate that we use to determine the average amount of carbon emission savings per dollar to produce our offset numbers. Like any estimate and average, each of these upgrades will differ in actuality from our assumptions. We will account for these variances and report on our updated understanding and modeling as we gain data and insight over time. Additional: The Human Resource Council has had strict requirements placed upon it that limit the number and type of energy efficiency upgrades for their low-income user base that they would receive rebates for completing. These projects are categorized by their estimated savings to investment ratio (SIR). The HRC has been limited by their standard means of funding to projects that have a ratio greater than one. Your carbon offset purchase supplies the funds to pursue and complete projects with a SIR of less than one. This necessarily makes them additional via your offset purchase, as they would not occur otherwise without the Footprint Fund and your support. Our guarantees for your offset purchase
Climate Smart Missoula guarantees that your carbon offset purchase funds the creation of energy efficiency measures, as produced by the Human Resource council through the expansion of the their low-income weatherization program. These offsets may have already been created (i.e Climate Smart has given money to HRC to enable these projects, the energy efficiency upgrades have been made, and you are now just buying the offset of these avoided emissions) or will be created in the future (your purchase happens now, the energy efficiency upgrades will happen later). This potential time difference does not affect your offset purchase or any of the requirements of carbon offsets. Climate Smart guarantees that each offset purchase results in the retiring of a carbon offset commodity, meaning that a quantifiable amount of emissions was avoided, accounted for, and traded, and that your purchase means that the commodity cannot be re-sold or traded again. Climate Smart also guarantees that, in the event that the Human Resource Council is unable to generate an energy efficiency measure to avoid emissions and produce your carbon offset of avoided emissions, that we will purchase a carbon offset on the open marketplace, corresponding and equivalent to the specific carbon emissions amount from each offset purchase in the Footprint Fund, and is retired on each purchasers behalf. How we arrive at $25 / Metric ton of Co2
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