Carbon Credits From Waste

March 11, 2023

Carbon Credits From Waste

One of Korea's largest banks seeks to convert wastes into biochar that can capture and store carbon, while a major baseball team buys carbon credits from a carbon capture company.

Russia is developing its own carbon credit methodologies while the EU prosecutor is investigating allegations of fraudulent emissions in Bulgaria.

Let’s dig in!

 

Carbon Meets Coffee

Seoul-based NH Investment & Securities, one of South Korea’s largest securities firms, is tapping into agricultural carbon credits. The company seeks to convert spent coffee grounds into biochar, a solid material that has high levels of carbon.

When buried underground, biochar can capture and store carbon with up to 100x more stability than the material from which it’s made of.

NH can collect and use plant residues and animal waste from its parent company's massive supply chain in the agricultural sector, and turn them into biochar.

By doing so, the firm isn't only pushing for more sustainable farming, but also creating carbon credits

 

Carbon Credit Grandslam

Houston Astros announced they are working with 1PointFive where the baseball team agrees to buy carbon removal credits from the firm's Direct Air Capture (DAC) plant in Texas.

The baseball team will use the carbon removal credits across a number of activities throughout the ballpark as they plan to achieve a carbon-neutral footprint for stadiums.

Houston's professional NFL and MBL teams both have turned to carbon credits for offsetting purposes from 1PointFive.

 

Russian Carbon Credit

Russia is the 4th-largest emitter in the world, ranking behind China, the U.S., and India. 

The 3rd-largest Russian bank, Gazprombank, made a deal with Yu. A. Israel Institute of Global Climate and Ecology or ICGE to develop carbon credit methodologies.

The aim is to improve the quality of Russian carbon credits, increase the competitiveness of the market, and promote access for international buyers.

 

Nothing Escapes EU's Eyes

The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO), responsible for verifying emissions from power plants, is investigating the alleged fraudulent reporting of carbon emissions in Bulgaria.

The underreporting of the Bulgarian emissions means that they now owe the EPPO the extra emissions that were not disclosed. The investigation team involved 150+ police officers who are searching across 11 cities in the country.

If their findings confirm the allegations, those power plants under question will be in big trouble.

Apart from monetary losses, environmental dangers also await such as poorer air quality in Bulgaria. 

Carbon Fact of the Week

The International Energy Agency forecasts that biofuel will represent 6% of total fuel use by 2030. 

Biofuels include liquid fuels from algae, also called clean fuels - fuels that have 50% lower CO2 cradle-to-grave footprint than fossil fuel. 

A study in 2011 found that algae biomass can replace about 48% of the petroleum products that the U.S. imports using 2011 numbers. 

Compared to other types of biofuels, algae can produce much more oil per acre—10x to 300x more!

But the estimated cost of a barrel of algae-based fuel using current technologies is very high - US$300-2600. Petroleum costs only $40-80. 

However, a barrel of algae oil in certain regions costs as low as $84. 

Source: https://carboncredits.com/