On Friday, 24 November 2023, WBA responded to the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) Call for Evidence on the Effectiveness of the Use of Environmental Attribute Certificates in Corporate Climate Targets. The call opened on 21 September, giving relevant stakeholders nine weeks to submit their evidence for review by the SBTi. The aim of the call was to help the corporate climate action ecosystem better understand which instruments can effectively and credibly drive decarbonisation and support corporate emissions reduction claims.
The SBTi’s research was for investigative purposes so as to ensure that any future updates to SBTi standards are subject to thorough consideration. More information on the Call for Evidence can be found here. The outcomes of the research will be made publicly accessible, with the intention of helping relevant stakeholders better understand existing evidence and facilitating informed decision-making around the use of environmental attribute certificates (EACs).
EACs are defined by the SBTi as, “instruments used to quantify, verify and track the environmental benefits associated with commodities, activities, or projects.” The SBTi aimed to understand through its research firstly how companies account for and disclose progress against climate targets in a consistent manner, and secondly the types of interventions that allow corporates to make credible decarbonisation claims across various activities. To do that, the Call for Evidence laid out eight research questions focusing on these main topics:
- Reducing corporate greenhouse gas emissions
- Stimulating climate finance
- Promoting the scale-up of low-carbon technologies
- Displacing high-emitting activities with lower-emitting ones
- The effectiveness of attribute certificates under various regulatory safeguards/market infrastructures.
In our response, WBA submitted evidence to answer all eight research questions, providing essential insights on biomethane certificates. Included in our key points was support for market-based reporting and its ability to increase demand for renewable energy while leading to the credible tracking and reduction of corporate greenhouse gas emissions. We worked in conjunction with members of our Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHGP) Working Group to engage with relevant industry stakeholders and strengthen our response.
Our submission featured a report authored by the WBA in conjunction with the European Biogas Association (EBA), European Renewable Gas Registry (ERGaR), and the Renewable Natural Gas Coalition (RNGC) to offer an overview of different biomethane environmental attribute certification systems in the world. This coalition of associations plans to gather further evidence and develop this report into a white paper to be used to advance our joint message in support of the benefits of biomethane certificates.
All evidence submitted to the Call for Evidence can be found below for your convenience, including the coalition’s paper on Renewable Gas Tracking Systems.
(Associations Coalition) (BEIS) (BEIS) (European Commission) (Oliver Wyman) (M Brander) (EU)