Net Zero. Made Easy.

By Jordan Levine, Founder Dynamic Sky

Once a CEO and Board of Directors have approved a “Net Zero” plan, a common next step is to appoint a program director. This individual can sit within multiple different functions including: finance, sustainability, environmental, social, and governance (ESG), operations, new ventures, or innovation.

The program director should first understand the entities CO₂e footprint, identify initiatives to reduce mechanical emissions, and then plan to offset the remaining emissions.

And the first step of the offset plan is normally a precursory investigation into whether the enterprise will engineer its own offsets (“make”) or purchase them from the market (“buy”).

The first response to “make” is normally trepidation for the simple reason that offset programs are normally well outside the expertise of any going concern.

The first response to “buy” is normally positive as the financial numbers provide a clear baseline.

As an example, to offset 500,000 tons of CO₂ at $20 per ton puts the “buy” option at roughly $10M per year. Across a decade, that is $100M in spend. This number is not cheap, but not impossible.

The issue is upon investigation of “buy” options, red alerts are immediately identified. Examples include:

• This July 2024 Washington Post article.
• This infamous John Oliver video from 2022.
• This joint statement titled, “Why Carbon Offsetting Undermines Climate Targets” signed by a number of organizations including Amnesty International.

And these red alerts lead to the realization that “buy” is not only expensive, but also fraught.

Thus, the appointed program director is facing the horns of a dilemma. Neither “Make” nor “Buy” is a good option.

The good news is that there is a third option.

The third option is a third-party management team that can run the “make” process on behalf of the entity.

This type of team will do the following:

• Confirm requirement by validating your Scope 1 and Scope 2 reporting.
• Identify offset projects (e.g., agriculture acreage) that fit the enterprise.
• Negotiate deals with landowners (e.g., farmers or forest owners).
• Create and execute carbon dioxide sequestration plans.
• Arrange the proper validation and verification of the projects.
• Develop offsets with a high integrity rating.

An effective and efficient third-party management team should be able to deliver these projects at a significant cost advantage (in some cases as low as 10-20% of the current market “buy” costs). In the previous notional example, we’re talking $10-20M versus $100M over a decade. Furthermore, ownership of the projects and their underlying data will shield you from any claims of fraud by a frenzied opposition.

Net Zero matters. And boards, CEOs, and program directors should remember there are three options: “make”, “buy”, and pay someone else to “make” it for you.

To learn more, please contact Jordan Levine at Jordan_levine@dynamicsky.com.

Dynamic Sky’s Carbon Guide is actively facilitating a public-private partnership between EQT, the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources (WVDNR), and the West Virginia Department of Forestation (WVDOF).