Chennai Corporation to generate revenue by selling carbon offsets

The Chennai Corporation, along with Chennai Smart City Limited, is set to join Indore in becoming the only other civic organisation to earn revenue from carbon credits by selling carbon credits to buyers in the international market.

Carbon offsets are keys that permit firms to earn a particular amount of greenhouse gases. These credits are made from projects that directly remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere (like afforestation) or projects that utilise greener alternatives to traditional technology such as solar energy. One carbon credit is gained when a project has decreased or avoided one metric tonne of greenhouse gases.

Firms utilise these credits to decrease their net carbon emission metric which is usually reviewed by investors. As the first measure, a Request for Proposal has been made to call for consultants to assist the corporation via the entire process of installing a carbon credit framework, comprising identifying buyers.

The city corporation has been taking up different green initiatives and has several eligible projects like Miyawaki urban forests that help reduce carbon emissions. They will be able to utilise the revenue earned from this for other city infrastructure projects, as per a corporation authority.

This decision is likely to assist the Chennai city corporation in not just getting credits for its sustainable projects but additionally monetising them. Projects like bio-fertiliser projects, bio-methanation facilities, electric vehicles, tree-planting projects, energy-efficient lighting are qualified to be listed for the programme.

To guarantee the emission decrease data is not forged, a third-party body that can check and validate the emission reduction is to be hired.

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