South Pole’s carbon credits didn’t really offset pollution

The business tactics of one of the world’s largest carbon offsetting firms, South Pole, is under scrutiny after The New Yorker expose found it overestimated the forests, trees and farmlands saved.

The Swiss-owned company promised to save several ecosystems in Africa, like Lake Kariba in Zimbabwe, by diverting funds from wealthy industrial polluters who want to compensate the environment for the pollution caused—and, in turn, get a ‘carbon neutral’ stamp.

Naturally, several corporations like Volkswagen, Gucci, Nestle, Porsche and Delta Air Lines paid hundreds of millions of dollars to South Pole to buy Kariba credits.

But there was a problem. The agency that certified South Pole’s carbon offset credits, Verra, had a dubious formula that gave incorrect estimations of forests and trees saved. In 2022, the carbon credit pioneer found that it had overestimated its count.

Nearly 64% of the carbon credits generated over a decade were found to have no impact in offsetting pollution.

Carbon offsetting is hailed as one of the best ways to protect the Earth and reverse climate change, but South Pole’s practices raise doubts that the idea is nothing less than a corporate greenwashing act as it provides an easy way for companies to reach their climate goals.