Setpoint Blog

Incorporating Carbon Credits Into Your Business Plan

23 Feb. 2022
Incorporating Carbon Credits Into Your Business Plan

In our previous blog, we dove into how Carbon Credits came to be, and now we know they’re here to stay as the world embarks on a mission to become more sustainable. We’re on a quest to discover how Carbon Credits can dramatically impact your business. 

 

Just before we continue, if you haven’t read it – check out our previous blog here and familiarize yourself with all the basics:

 

https://www.setpoint.ai/blog_post/carbon-credits-what-are-they/

The next step is understanding how Carbon Credits can affect businesses – creating both an environmental and economic benefit for one’s company.

 

So, how do Carbon Credits come into play in commercial buildings?

 

Commercial buildings can invest in Carbon Credits in order to offset their greenhouse gas emissions.

 

Governments have been pushing commercial buildings more and more to limit their greenhouse gas emissions, even requiring that certain standards be met depending on the amount of emissions that is allowed.

 

For example, in New York, the establishment of Local Law 97 (LL97) regulates Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions, dictating that all covered buildings in New York, NY must comply with certain emissions regulations by 2024. The goal of LL97 is to reduce the emissions produced by the city’s largest buildings by 40% in 2030 and by 80% by 2050. Building owners who don’t meet emission regulations will then face certain penalties.

 

We wrote a LL97 blog for you, to catch you up on this new regulation: https://www.setpoint.ai/blog_post/local-law-97/

 

Other carbon regulations are taking place all over the world, which is why carbon offsetting may be a potential solution for businesses that may still need to find additional ways to reduce their carbon emissions.

 

Individuals or companies looking to offset their own greenhouse gas emissions can buy those credits through specific environmental projects.

 

The bigger the company, particularly companies dealing with commercial buildings that may experience higher carbon emissions, the more potential they have to scale the impact of carbon offset solutions. 

 

“A lot of times you hear companies say we’re carbon neutral, but they’re buying offsets. And that might work for some companies. But to me, the bigger we are, the more responsibility we have that that carbon neutral is actually clean energy,” said Lisa Jackson, Apple’s VP of Environment, Policy and Social Initiatives, in an interview on the Jane Goodall Hopecast. (Planet Home)

 

How can Carbon Credits support your company’s overall strategy?

Not only can investing in Carbon Credits achieve goals of carbon neutrality or net-zero, but it can also point and direct funds to areas that most need it, reducing emissions “now” rather than “later.”

Businesses can create a sustainability strategy to guide their climate journey, embedding it into their business plan. With more and more climate regulations from the government, Carbon Credit investing is a way to stay safe and make up for less sustainable approaches that a business may have taken in the past.

Not to mention, carbon offsets could save your business tons of money.

A study by the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), a global disclosure system that measures the environmental impact of the world’s largest companies, revealed that CDP disclosure estimate emission reduction activities saved an average of $50 billion per year. (Planet Home)

 

Carbon Credits for businesses: The bottom line

Carbon Credits are a great way to reduce a business’s carbon footprint, save money, and ensure that you are staying under strict government regulations and guidelines.

To learn more about other ways to reduce your carbon footprint such as Climate Intelligence, stay tuned for our next blog on our Carbon Credits series, where you can learn more about how Carbon Credits can help your business.

Contact us here: https://www.setpoint.ai/contact-us/