December 13, 2006—Tapping into the growing market for trading carbon emissions, a California nonprofit is developing a retail greenhouse gas reduction product standard. The San Francisco-based Center for Resource Solutions plans to open its “Green-e” emissions product certification standard for public comment in December and promulgate it early next year.
Under the proposed standard, CRS is aiming to provide consumers third-party verification of greenhouse gas offsets. The goal is to ensure that a vendor’s supplies equal sales and retired offsets are the same as those advertised. “For consumers wanting to use their market power to bring about change, certification and verification of greenhouse gas reduction products will bring them reassurance that their purchase is making a difference,” said Jan Hamrin, CRS’s president.
In addition to ensuring that an offset provider’s supplies equal its sales, CRS would attempt to ensure that the provider’s marketing claims regarding greenhouse gas reduction types are valid. For example, CRS would verify that a given percentage of a provider’s offsets originate from solar, wind or geothermal, as advertised. Offset providers that have been certified under the program would be awarded a Green-e logo. The center already uses the logo to certify renewable energy projects.
