Activities to offset accumulated carbon for smooth business operations

       Today's eco-friendly trend is considered more intense than previous times and expanding every day, as the world community, including Thailand, has a common intention to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to solve global warming problems. The 27th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 27), in the Arab Republic of Egypt, decided that they would continue to limit the increase in the global average temperature by not more than 1.5-2 degrees Celsius by 2100 (B.E. 2643) according to the Paris Agreement made at the COP 21 meeting in 2015 (B.E. 2558).

       Therefore, several countries, including Thailand, are focusing on offsetting carbon activities to bring greenhouse gas emissions caused by organizations or manufacturers down to zero to show social responsibility. For its part, Thailand has promoted and developed the carbon market as one way to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions within the country by using marketing measures as motivation. Currently, the public and private sectors are interested in moving toward becoming low-carbon organizations or producing products with a low carbon footprint.

       One way to achieve this goal is to buy carbon credits to offset the amount of greenhouse gasses emitted by an organization's activities or products, known as carbon offsetting, to make greenhouse gas emissions from the organization or its products equal to zero, which is called carbon neutral.

       Carbon offsetting can be carried out on behalf of individuals and organizations, such as public and private business organizations, product and service manufacturers, event organizers, and the  general public through the Thailand Greenhouse Gas Management Organization (Public Organization) (TGO) as a provider of knowledge and understanding of carbon offsetting. It provides four types of certification:

1. Certification of offsetting greenhouse gas emitted during production use and sale of goods during the provision and use of the service;

2. Certification of offsetting carbon of conferences or events emitted during such activities, such as concerts and sporting events; 

3. Certification of offsetting carbon emitted from the activities of the organizations;

4. Certification of offsetting carbon from individual activities in personal daily routine.

       However, carbon offset activities that are done in order to collect credits will create co-benefits, both nationally and locally, such as the following:

       Environmental aspect: It will result in the preservation of environmental quality at the community level, where the activities are performed, in terms of reducing the amount of waste generated by the use of energy fuel, reducing the use of non-renewable fuel resources, and resulting in a better overall environmental quality of the country;

       Social aspect: For example, people will have a better quality of life, especially health from better environmental quality, with more options for doing the form of business that is beneficial to the environment, playing a role on the world stage in solving international issues, and increasing bargaining power in international negotiations. 

       Economic aspect: For example, farmers can sell waste materials as raw materials to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, which stimulates the community economy to create more employment, reduces dependence on imports of fuel and energy, creates economic stability, reduces the country's burden (the money that the government must invest in expensive programs such as environmental protection and energy conservation).

       Interested individuals or organizations may open a credit buyer account with the Office of Carbon Market Promotion and Innovation (TGO) or see more information and download an application on the website http://carbonmarket.tgo.or.th. This is the way to jointly create a good environment and take a step toward the goal of solving global warming problems completely.

Source : Thailand Greenhouse Gas Management Organization (Public Organization)
Tel :+66 2141 9833