Brazil is appealing for organisations to donate carbon credits to offset emissions generated by this year's World Cup
The Brazilian government is asking holders of carbon credits under the UN clean development mechanism (CDM) to donate them to the organisers of this summer’s FIFA World Cup to offset emissions from the tournament, which kicks off in São Paulo on 12 June.
To qualify, the credits, known as certified emission reductions (CERs) and are equal to 1 tonne of avoided CO2, must originate from Brazilian CDM projects. Nearly 150 Brazilian CDM projects have issued more than 90 million CERs and there are an estimated 14 million available for donation.
“Brazil’s call for carbon credits to offset emissions from the world’s largest mass spectator event is a welcome move and part of a global trend by organisers to green big sporting events like football tournaments and the Olympics,” commented Christiana Figueres, executive secretary at the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
Since being established as part of the Kyoto protocol, more than 7,600 CDM projects and programmes in 105 developing countries have been approved. The mechanism has generated more than 1.4 billion CERs and has driven climate-focused investment worth $396 billion, according to the UNFCCC.
