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Over the last year, we have seen the emergence of a new carbon market based on the tokenisation of voluntary carbon credits. It represents a new, decentralised approach towards scaling up the carbon market, and it has seen very rapid growth since its inception.

The reasons for that growth are clear: it allows anyone with access to cryptocurrency software to instantly buy and sell tokenised carbon credits, without needing to hold an account in the underlying carbon credit program registry or undergo the usual KYC checks that come along with that. In that sense, it has the potential to unlock a huge segment of the carbon credit consumer market.

Like any new technology, it can be both a force for good and bad; the other side of the (digital) coin is that the proliferation of carbon credit-backed cryptocurrencies represents a threat to the integrity of the whole carbon market; it reality, a tokenised carbon credit is completely disconnected from the underlying carbon credit: it gives no right to the underlying credit, only a contractual right (as against the token issuer) to the environmental claims attached to it; and it is not controlled or backed by the carbon credit program provider. There is obvious scope for greenwashing and fraudulent schemes, which we have already seen happening.

It is clear that if the crypto carbon market is to have a future as a credible part of the wider carbon market, rather than as a marginal, high-risk product, it must be subject to controls to ensure that tokenised carbon credits possess the same fundamental attributes/qualities as the underlying carbon credits themselves, i.e. that the claimed carbon offsets must be real, additional, permanent, robustly quantified, independently verified, and uniquely claimed.Continue Reading The crypto carbon market: where next?

The voluntary carbon market has really taken off in the last few years, with the adoption of the Paris Agreement in 2016 and the Glasgow Climate Pact of 2021. It has been fueled also by numerous new net-zero emission commitments by governments and corporates.

Key takeaways

There’s a lot of uncertainty around the legal nature

Can carbon-neutral fossil fuels can gain credibility and scale up through voluntary efforts, or will market adoption have to be compelled through mandatory regulation?

Key takeaways
1. Fossil fuel producers are looking for interim solutions during the green energy transition
2. Use of the carbon-neutral label is susceptible to being seen as ‘greenwashing’
3. A

On the back of unfortunate geopolitical developments this year, which have drastically changed the path to a carbon-neutral economy, we are pleased to present “Energy transition – An evolving journey” – a thought leadership campaign containing practical insights on the trends, opportunities and challenges in the energy industry going forward.

Please see link to the

As of 7 February 2022, pursuant to Commission Regulation (EU) 2022/63 (the “Titanium Dioxide Regulation”)[1], titanium dioxide (E171) has been removed from Annexes II and III of Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 (the “Additives Regulation”), which sets out the regulatory framework for the use of additives in foods in the European Union.

Accordingly, since 7 February 2022, the use of titanium dioxide (E171) as a food additive in the European Union is prohibited. However, food operators will note that the Titanium Dioxide Regulation provides for a 6 month transition period, where foods produced in accordance with the rules applicable before 7 February 2022 may continue to be placed on the market until 7 August 2022. After that date, food products may remain on the market until their date of minimum durability or ‘use by’ date.[2]

The Titanium Dioxide Regulation has been introduced following a series of  European Food Safety Authority (“EFSA”) safety assessments of the use of titanium dioxide (E171) as a food additive, including the most recent food safety assessment issued on 6 May 2021 (the “EFSA Opinion”), pursuant to which EFSA indicated that, based on is assessment of all the available evidence, a concern for genotoxicity could not be ruled out, and therefore concluded that titanium dioxide (E 171) can no longer be considered safe when used as a food additive.[3]Continue Reading Titanium dioxide (E171) banned as an additive in foods in the EU

The European Commission is currently seeking public comment as part of its review of the Restriction of Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive (Directive 2011/65/EU) (the RoHS Directive).

The aim of the RoHS Directive is to reduce the risk to human and environmental health by restricting the use of certain hazardous substances in

Last year, the European Commission published its proposal to expand the EU emissions trading scheme (“EU ETS”). The expansion of the EU ETS forms a central part of the Commission’s “Fit for 55” package, which seeks to revise EU climate, energy and transport-related legislation to align it with the wider 2030 and 2050 climate ambitions

The European Commission recently opened a public consultation on the “sustainable consumption of goods – promoting repair and reuse”. The Commission is looking to amend the Sale of Goods Directive and possibly introduce a separate new legislative proposal on the right to repair. The initiative follows the New Consumer Agenda and the Circular Economy Action