South Pole develops comprehensive strategies that turn climate action into long-term business opportunities for companies, governments and organizations around the world, and has been at the forefront of decarbonization since 2006. South Pole is also a leading project developer, and has provided nearly 1,000 projects in renewables, forestry, agriculture, industry, households and public institutions in over 50 countries. Through climate finance South Pole has saved over a gigaton of CO2 emissions, provided social benefits to less privileged communities who are particularly vulnerable to climate change and helped create nearly 100,000 jobs in developing countries.
Our greenhouse gas reduction strategy
Title:To date, and from the 2019 baseline, we have already reduced Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 12% and Scope 3 emissions by 26%. We continue to invest substantially in our manufacturing, distribution, processes and policies to accelerate our greenhouse reductions and operate in line with the 2015 Paris Agreement.
A complete climate strategy presents all methodologies, including reduction, removal and offsetting.
In fact, in addition to our ambitious reduction plans and the climate projects with South Pole, we also recently signed a 5-year agreement with Climeworks, to actively remove CO2 directly from the atmosphere.
The truth is that every climate solution out there (when certified and additional) is valid. It is important to take all the measures and solutions available, and not just one. This is why, with South Pole, we chose 3 key projects to diversify our impacts into the areas of biodiversity protection, biogas capture and hydropower.
Huóshuĭ Small Hydropower
Title:Saubere Energie für abgelegene Bergregionen in China
Subtitle:Die gewaltigen Flüsse in den Bergregionen Chinas können ebenso für die Stromerzeugung genutzt werden, sowohl für abgelegene Gemeinden als auch größere Regionen. Die Errichtung von Wasserkraftwerken erfordert jedoch erhebliche Investitionskosten. Vor dem Projekt herrschten in den Gemeinden schlechte Lebensbedingungen. Zu einer Zeit, als noch 80 Prozent des Energiebedarfs in China durch Kohlekraftwerke gedeckt wurde, hatten diese Gemeinden keinen verlässlichen Zugriff auf Strom. Es gab außerdem kaum regionale Investitionen.
Huóshuĭ Small Hydropower besteht aus 95 kleinen Wasserkraftwerken. Die Kleinanlagen haben eine Kapazität von 0,1 bis 14 MW und liefern zusammen ausreichend erneuerbare Energie, um mehr als eine halbe Million durchschnittlicher chinesischer Haushalte pro Jahr mit Strom zu versorgen. Ihr Laufwasserdesign ermöglicht es ihnen, dies mit einer minimalen Umweltbelastung zu tun.
- Projektstandards: SocialCarbon, VCS Verified Carbon Standard
Auswirkungen:
- 369.000 Tonnen CO2e (Kohlendioxid-Äquivalente) werden jedes Jahr reduziert (SDG13)
- 740.000 MWh erneuerbare Energie pro Jahr generiert (SDG7)
- Beiträge zu den SDG 4, 8 und 5 der Vereinten Nationen.
Rimba Raya Biodiversity Reserve
Title:Preserving Borneo's tropical peat swamp forests and improving local lives
Subtitle:The Rimba Raya peat swamp forests are located in Central Kalimantan province on the island of Borneo in Indonesia. Before the project was established, these immensely biodiverse tropical peatlands were scheduled for conversion into four palm oil estates by the provincial government.
The Rimba Raya Biodiversity Reserve protects 91,215 hectares of rich, tropical peat swamp forests which are monitored by local rangers as well as by satellite and aerial imagery. As well as preserving ecosystem diversity and the habitat of endangered species like the Bornean orangutan, the project reduces emissions by avoiding the planned deforestation of over 47,000 hectares of forests for palm oil production.
The Rimba Raya project not only sequesters carbon and protects habitat for local wildlife; it also promotes local sustainable development, particularly regarding environmental education and economic capacity building.
Project standards:
- Climate, Community & Biodiversity (CCB) Standards (Verra)
- VCS Verified Carbon Standard (Verra)
Impacts:
- 2,162 water filters distributed
- 47,237 hectares protected
- 3,500,000 tonnes of CO2e mitigated
Lan Dokmai Waste-to-energy
Title:Reducing climate impacts and helping with sustainable biogas
Subtitle:Thailand is one of the largest producers of Tapioca starch, which forms an important part of the economy. Unfortunately, starch production is a carbon-intensive process that not only damages the environment but also produces strong-smelling methane emissions from the wastewater that affect the quality of life in surrounding areas.
Rather than allowing the methane to escape freely into the atmosphere, the project captures the gas in order to produce clean electricity. This electricity powers production at the local starch factory; as a result, the air is cleaner and less fossil fuel needs to be purchased. This means that revenue can be generated to support social and educational activities in the community.
With less methane emissions, the quality of the air surrounding the plant has improved dramatically. In addition to this, new jobs and training opportunities for modern technologies are provided by the project. The treated wastewater is much cleaner and can be used for fish farming and irrigation of nearby fields, even the wastewater sludge is given to farmers and recycled for fertilizer.
Just like the renowned Carbon Dioxide (CO2), Methane (CH4) is also a greenhouse gas (GHG), so its presence in the atmosphere affects the earth’s temperature and climate system. Methane is emitted from a variety of anthropogenic (human-influenced) and natural sources. Methane is the second most abundant anthropogenic GHG after carbon dioxide, accounting for about 20% of global emissions, and is also more than 25 times as potent as carbon dioxide at trapping heat in the atmosphere. Therefore, reducing methane emissions has a significant effect on limiting global warming.
Project standards:
• Gold Standard (WWF)
• CDM Clean Development Mechanism (UN FCCC)
Impacts:
- 20,000 tonnes of CO2e
- 2,100 m2 of cleaned wastewater
- 2,200 litres of fossil fuels saved
Frequently Asked Questions
What are carbon credits and how do they work?
Projects must adhere to a rigorous set of criteria to pass verification by third-party agencies and a review by a panel of experts at a leading carbon offset standard like Verra or Gold Standard. After an organization or an individual buys a carbon credit, the credit is permanently retired so it can't be reused.
What makes a good climate action project?
How do I know that the emission reductions are actually happening? What does additionality mean?
For transparency, carbon credits are assigned serial numbers and are issued, transferred and permanently retired in publicly accessible emission registries.
Additionality means that the reductions in emissions achieved by the project must be “above business as usual". That means they would not have happened unless the project was implemented. By purchasing high-quality and verified carbon credits you are directly funding climate action and sustainable development.
What are the different types of climate action projects?
- The first avoids greenhouse gas emissions, for example replacing fossil fuel-derived energy with energy from renewable sources.
- The second removes emissions from the atmosphere, for example, planting more trees, which sequester - or capture - carbon from the atmosphere and store it in liquid or solid form.
- The third captures and destroys emissions, for example capturing methane–a GHG many times more potent than carbon dioxide–from wastewater.
Our global partner South Pole has hundreds of different climate action projects, which cover the following areas:
- Nature-based-solutions (reforestation, land restoration, forest protection, sustainable land management and agriculture)
- Renewable energy (hydropower projects, wind projects, solar power and geothermal)
- Community projects (improved cookstove technology, access to safe water)
- Waste-to-energy (biogas from landfill or industry, and biomass).
