Net is net, so emissions less absorption. So for every bit of emission created, it's offset by the same amount removed from the atmosphere.
A simple example would be if a mature tree absorbs the same amount of carbon as emitted by a car, you would need to have an extra mature tree for every car being used.
Obviously it gets a hell of lot more complicated than that, for example with the export of coal who's responsible for the emissions of burning it? The place of origin that benefited from the profit from the sale, or the place of consumption that benefited from the energy produced?
Two terms, in particular –
‘carbon neutral’ and
‘net-zero carbon’ – are often used interchangeably but represent very different approaches to combatting climate change.
CARBON NEUTRAL
Carbon neutrality means balancing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by ‘offsetting’ – or removing from the atmosphere – an equivalent amount of carbon for the amount produced.
This can be achieved by buying ‘carbon credits’ – in essence, permission to emit carbon dioxide or other GHG in exchange for offsetting the effects of those emissions – and/or by supporting GHG-reduction initiatives such as renewable-energy projects.
However, a commitment to carbon neutrality does not require (or even necessarily imply) a commitment to
reduce overall GHG emissions. A carbon-neutral business needs only to offset the GHG emissions it produces – even if those emissions are increasing.
NET-ZERO CARBON
In contrast, a commitment to net-zero carbon means
reducing greenhouse gas emissions with the goal of balancing the emissions produced and emissions removed from the earth’s atmosphere.
Take, as a simplified example, the case of air travel: if, in total, people within a given business take 10 flights per year, the organisation could achieve carbon neutrality for those 10 flights simply by buying enough carbon credits or by supporting renewable-energy projects to offset the emissions (or a combination of the two).
To achieve net-zero carbon, the company would need to
reduce the number of flights per year as much as possible (to five, for instance) and
also invest in projects that remove from the atmosphere the carbon dioxide produced by emissions from the other five flights.
Extrapolate a similar pattern across all the ways a business might produce emissions – such as heating its buildings or buying from suppliers who produce emissions – and the company achieves net-zero by:
- reducing its GHG emissions across all these activities as much as possible
- supporting/funding the removal of carbon dioxide produced by any emissions the business does produce.
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