Feed aggregator

A global group of securities regulators on Thursday published new recommendations aimed at improving transparency and reliability in the voluntary carbon market (VCM), while also unveiling a partnership with the World Bank.

Defra data shows lower income for most farm types but small boost from payments for nature-friendly schemes

Income fell on almost all farm types in England last year, as extreme weather hit yields and the government cut subsidies.

Farmers fear future hits to their industry after a hugely unpopular change to agricultural property relief which means some farms will be saddled with a large, unexpected tax bill, and a surprise, severe cut to the EU-derived basic payments scheme meaning a shortfall in cash that they had not predicted.

Continue reading...

The Norwegian government is advocating clean cookstoves be included in the outcome statement of COP29, a side event at the Baku climate conference heard Thursday.

Gigantic multicoloured organism is visible from space and has grown for between 300 and 500 years

The world’s largest known coral, visible from space, has been discovered in the waters of the Solomon Islands.

With a circumference of 183 metres, the gigantic multicoloured organism is an intricate network of individual coral polyps that have grown for between 300 and 500 years.

Continue reading...

A Singapore-based tech firm is developing a framework for mass-producing corals and automating the farming process, considering generating carbon or biodiversity credits within two years, the company told Carbon Pulse.  

Ghana has mobilised $800 million by hosting carbon projects through Article 6.2 of the Paris Agreement, President Nana Akufo-Addo revealed at COP29, precipitating emissions cuts through bilateral agreements with primarily European buyer countries.

European carbon prices posted healthy gains on Thursday morning, tracking a substantial rise in natural gas as traders reacted to news headlines that added uncertainty to the supply outlook.

Latvia is failing to use its emission allowance funds cost-effectively, and available funding is not being used, according to a state audit released on Wednesday.

Social impact investor Nesst plans to distribute $6 million throughout next year towards smaller enterprises that support nature in the Amazon region, Carbon Pulse has learned.

South Korea is seeking to expand international partnerships on blue carbon and forestry projects, as part of its efforts to secure credits aligned with Article 6 of the Paris Agreement.

Trump could stop in its tracks US’s emergence as clean energy superpower and forfeit billions in investment

The United States’s blossoming emergence as a clean energy superpower could be stopped in its tracks by Donald Trump, further empowering Chinese leadership and forfeiting tens of billions of dollars of investment to other countries, according to a new report.

Trump’s promise to repeal major climate policies passed during Joe Biden’s presidency threatens to push $80bn of investment to other countries and cost the US up to $50bn in lost exports, the analysis found, surrendering ground to China and other emerging powers in the race to build electric cars, batteries, solar and wind energy for the world.

Continue reading...

Non-profit CDP and disclosure standard the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) have partnered to improve corporate assessments of nature-related impacts, they announced Thursday at the ongoing COP29 UN climate summit in Azerbaijan.

A UK carbon removal (CDR) developer has partnered with the country’s largest automotive platform to support enhanced rock weathering (ERW) projects, the two companies announced this week.

Australia this week launched a consultation on extending by five years the crediting period for non-biomethane wastewater projects, which had been set to expire in March next year.

Chile has this week launched a public consultation for a national decarbonisation plan with action items tied explicitly to its ETS and carbon tax plans, and attracting investment in battery storage.

The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), a member of the World Bank, on Thursday launched a letter of authorisation (LoA) template designed to help drive efficiencies in Article 6 carbon markets.

A rainforest-rich Brazilian state will aim to sell REDD+ carbon credits worth hundreds of millions as part of sales facilitated by an international commodities trader, its government said at COP29.

Join us for all the latest developments from day 4 of the climate summit in Azerbaijan

If delegates want evidence of the reality of the climate crisis they only need to look at Spain, which has been hit by deadly flooding for the second time in two weeks. More than 200 people have been killed and the anger towards politicians for their perceived failure to protect the public should serve as a warning to the leaders negotiating at Cop29.

My colleague Jonathan Watts has written a piece today looking at the likely impact of Donald Trump’s victory in the US on the climate crisis.

Continue reading...

It is Day 4 at COP29 in Baku - Finance Day. Negotiation chairs are expected to drop new draft texts on Article 6, after trimming the text on a New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) from 35 to 33 pages early this morning. Expect a flurry of events on what these difficult climate finance talks need to achieve for developing countries, as well as the role of carbon markets in all of it. In our daily running blog, Carbon Pulse will report relevant or useful updates throughout the day. Timestamps are in local time (GMT+4).

Bedfordshire farm was saved through public donations after a successful £1.5m crowdfunding campaign

A unique farm that was “accidentally” rewilded 35 years ago and is now a haven for endangered nightingales and other rare wildlife has been saved, thanks in part to the generosity of Guardian readers.

Strawberry Hill in Bedfordshire has been successfully bought by the Wildlife Trust for Beds, Cambs and Northants (BCN) after a crowdfunding appeal raised £1.5m.

Continue reading...