Earth Day 2023: green or greenwashed?

Carbon offsets have a terrible track record.

A mountain of research An to research have shown that, in most cases, offsets do not actually reduce greenhouse gas emissions. And yet companies continue to use offsets so they can call themselves “carbon neutral” without necessarily reducing their pollution.

Most offsets are tied to tree-planting plans, and the idea is that the trees capture carbon dioxide to offset some of a company’s emissions. But these initiatives could do more harm than good if tree plantations mow natural landscapes or displace local communities. Even if the right types of seedlings are planted in the right places, they may not survive long enough to halt climate change.

Perhaps to avoid the bad reputation of these types of offsets, Apple in a recent publication calls them “high-performance, nature-based carbon removal projects.” announcement prior to Earth Day. Apple is expanding a fund to try to restore forests and other ecosystems, but these are essentially just carbon offsetting projects with a fancier label.