‘Climate neutrality’ is a term that is often used, but always correctly applied. We deliberately use the more specific term ‘greenhouse gas neutrality’: environmental claims should only be used if they are based on a robust and internationally recognised set of rules that takes into account the Green Claims Directive.
In the context of ISO 14068-1, we use ‘carbon neutrality’, a clear and established term recommended by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) for companies and activities until there is an official translation of the standard.
What does that mean?
‘Net zero emissions’ (EU Green Deal) or ‘greenhouse gas neutrality’ (Climate Action Plan 2050) is the state in which there is a balance between greenhouse gas emissions (CO2, methane, etc.) and their absorption from the atmosphere: in other words, when only as much is emitted as can be absorbed by so-called sinks (e.g. moors or forests).
The scientific definition of climate neutrality according to the IPCC also takes into account non-greenhouse gas-related climate effects, which must also be offset or amount to net zero. These include, for example, the radiative forcing of contrails, changes in albedo (the Earth's reflectivity) or the discharge of warm wastewater into rivers.
ISO 14068-1:2023-11 specifies the requirements for carbon neutrality and regulates the use of the term. In order to rule out risks in communication, we therefore only confirm the claim ‘carbon neutral’ with successful verification of ISO 14068-1 – for services, products, companies, projects, events and other clearly defined entities.
Benefits of certification
Communication
The standard requires verification in order to use the claim ‘carbon neutral’. After successful verification, you can communicate confidently and reliably.
Competitive Advantage
Your customers are also becoming more environmentally conscious: be a pioneer in your industry and strengthen your reputation.
Credibility
Anyone can communicate – but not everyone will be trusted. Your ISO 14068 verification makes it clear that you take climate protection seriously.
Why become 'carbon neutral'?
The latest report published by the IPCC clearly stated that there is only one way to stop climate change – through massive reductions in GHG emissions.
As a result, more and more laws are being passed at national and international level with the aim of slowing down climate change in order to still meet the 1.5 °C target set out in the Paris Climate Agreement. These include, for example, the amended Climate Protection Act and the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) proposed by the European Commission.
The pressure on the economy is growing. In addition to initiatives such as the IPCC, the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) and multi-stakeholder associations, customers and consumers are also increasingly making their voices heard. Sustainable corporate goals are also increasingly becoming a prerequisite for investments by financial institutions or inclusion in certain stock indices.
Stay ahead of legislation with your company and send a clear signal to your stakeholders that you are ready to take action to comply with the Paris Agreement.
What are the prerequisites and requirements for achieving carbon neutrality?
External, independent verification is mandatory if you wish to publicly communicate your carbon neutrality. The top priority here is that the audit is complete, independent and free of conflicts of interest, i.e. that the verification body has not been involved in any way in the preparation of your GHG balance sheet and carbon neutrality management plan.
Accredited certification bodies for carbon footprints are regularly monitored by the accreditation bodies of European countries; in Germany, this is the German Accreditation Body (Deutsche Akkreditierungsstelle GmbH [DAkkS]). To date, DAkkS has not yet developed an accreditation programme for the ISO 14068-1:2023-11 standard, which is why the existing accredited verification bodies according to DIN EN ISO 14064-3:2020-05 should be used.
Non-accredited verification certificates should be viewed with great scepticism!
Facts and information
1. Commitment to carbon neutrality Carbon neutrality becomes a top priority: the senior management of your organisation makes a clear commitment to carbon neutrality. A declaration of commitment to carbon neutrality is established, documented, verifiably implemented and maintained.
2. Accounting framework and standard for the carbon footprint
You decide whether you want to account for your entire company, a product/service or something else. The relevant accounting standard should be established as the basis for determining your carbon footprint (ISO 14064-1 / ISO 14067 / GHG Protocol Corporate or Product Standard).
Then consider which accounting boundaries and materiality criteria you will use to record your greenhouse gas emissions.
Once the accounting boundaries have been defined, the carbon footprint can be calculated. If you already have an energy or environmental management system in place in accordance with ISO 50001 or ISO 14001, you can also use your established structures and data for your greenhouse gas inventory. Please refer to our guide for more information.
3. Carbon neutrality management plan/climate strategy with reduction measures The information obtained from the carbon footprint can now be used to develop a goal-oriented and sustainable climate strategy:
A greenhouse gas reduction strategy for achieving carbon neutrality is anchored in company policy.
You set measurable medium- and long-term reduction targets based on a period of time compared to a base year.
Concrete and realistically feasible measures should be identifiable.
4. Implementing the measures – achieving targets Your organisation successfully implements measures to reduce GHG emissions. Not only does reducing your own emissions play a role here, but the removal of GHG emissions in the form of sinks such as forests and moors or through technical measures should also be included in the climate strategy as part of the hierarchy model. By the target year, only emissions that cannot be further reduced should remain.
5. Offset and report unavoidable emissions Unavoidable greenhouse gas emissions are offset by investing in environmentally relevant projects, e.g. via international standards such as Gold Standard or Verified Carbon Standard (VCS). It should be noted that offset certificates may not be accounted for as sinks in your GHG balance sheet. ISO 14068-1 sets high requirements for the compensation certificates used. One key criterion is the exclusion of double counting.
Based on Article 6.4 of the Paris Agreement, which was further developed in subsequent climate conferences, double counting of emission savings and reductions through compensation projects can only be ruled out if so-called corresponding adjustments (CA) are applied. These guarantee that the reductions or savings have not already been taken into account in the greenhouse gas inventories of the respective countries of origin.
The cycle described, including offsets, is summarised and published in a report.
6. Verify and communicate An independent body checks your data and calculations as well as your measures – on the basis of documents and on site. Once any identified deficiencies have been demonstrably remedied, you will receive an audit report and a certificate of carbon neutrality.
Now you can communicate what you have achieved: publish your efforts and measures and thereby strengthen the trust of your customers and society in your company.
