Big businesses are doing carbon dioxide removal all wrong

illuminem summarises for you the essential news of the day. Read the full piece on Wired or enjoy below:

🗞️ Driving the news: A new report from the NewClimate Institute warns that many of the world’s largest corporations are misusing carbon dioxide removal (CDR) technologies, investing primarily in short-term, non-durable solutions like tree-planting while failing to meaningfully cut emissions
• The report criticises these companies for overstating their progress toward net-zero, with only a few—such as Microsoft and All Nippon Airways—investing significantly in “durable” CDR methods that offer permanent carbon storage

🔭 The context: The IPCC has stated that carbon removal is necessary to achieve net-zero by 2050, especially to offset residual emissions from hard-to-decarbonize sectors
• However, durable CDR—such as mineralization or underground storage—currently accounts for just 0.1% of total removals
• Most corporate climate strategies rely heavily on temporary solutions like afforestation, which only retain carbon for decades, and do not substitute for deep emissions reductions
• The NewClimate Institute assessed 35 global companies across seven sectors, including tech, energy, and fashion

🌍 Why it matters for the planet: Relying on non-durable carbon removals while avoiding real emissions cuts risks delaying climate progress and inflating corporate sustainability claims
• Durable CDR technologies, while currently limited in scale and costly, are essential for long-term atmospheric carbon reduction
• Without transparency and regulation, the growing use of CDR could mask inaction and undermine climate integrity, particularly if companies use offsets instead of decarbonizing supply chains, operations, and energy use.

⏭️ What's next: The report recommends separating emissions reduction targets from CDR contributions and setting clearer definitions for “durable” removals
• It also calls for governments to regulate corporate use of CDR and ensure accountability
• New standards from the Science-Based Targets initiative and ISO are expected soon and may tighten guidelines on how CDR is incorporated into net-zero claims
• Increased regulatory oversight will be crucial to prevent greenwashing and ensure carbon removal supports, rather than replaces, mitigation

💬 One quote: “Companies should not hide inaction on decarbonization behind investments in removals.” — NewClimate Institute report

📈 One stat: Durable carbon removal accounts for only 0.0023 gigatons of CO₂ annually—15,000 times less than yearly emissions from fossil fuels and cement

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