CORSIA: What eligibility decisions mean for carbon markets
On March 13, the International CAO (ICAO) announced that credits from Gold Standard and five other standards will be eligible for CORSIA, the aviation sector’s carbon market scheme, for the pilot phase 2021-2023.
While Gold Standard believes the requirements for a carbon-intensive sector like aviation to take accountability only for emissions for growth compared to a baseline is insufficient, especially without more ambitious decarbonization expectations, it is a testimony to the integrity of the voluntary carbon market that some of its standards are among those recognized for this new compliance mechanism. Drilling down deeper, the selection criteria yield key takeaways that stand to set a new minimum bar in carbon markets.
1. Only carbon credits with sustainable development considerations are credible.
We should now officially put to rest any debate that sustainable development is too complex to be central to carbon markets. If we’re serious about climate justice, climate mitigation and sustainable development must go hand in hand.
Gold Standard has pioneered this twin approach to climate and development, and we continue to advocate for strong sustainable development provisions in Article 6 negotiations through our work with the Sustainable Development Initiative (SDI). The CORSIA decision shows this is becoming required practice, not an optional add-on. We view this as a positive development, hopefully an indication for COP26.
Yet concerns remain. As we have argued with SDSN and other partners in our guidance for measuring SDG impact, is not credible to claim positive contributions to SD without a) safeguards to ensure no negative impacts and b) independent verification. New tools that are expected to be used to retroactively demonstrate adherence to safeguards and contributions to sustainable development fall short of this credibility requirement.
Gold Standard is ready to serve the CORSIA market by extending our labeling approach to new CORSIA-eligible schemes. This was Gold Standard’s original remit more than 15 years ago -- ensuring quality for projects developed under the Clean Development Mechanism. Gold Standard can offer a similar quality label certification approach for those airlines looking to ensure higher assurance on sustainable development within their compliance commitments.
2. Carbon credits are only appropriate for some types of Land Use activities, and even these must be managed with special caution.
While climate-smart management of land use is critical to meeting the goal of the Paris Agreement to balance emissions with sinks by midcentury, we must be deliberate in our use market mechanisms toward this aim.
Despite the recent spike in popularity of nature-based solutions, spurred on largely by efforts from oil and gas companies seeking high volumes of cheap credits, it is telling that the number of CORSIA eligible land use credits is very low. CORSIA will accept no CDM credits from Afforestation/Reforestation (A/R) projects – highlighting the problems with permanence, as CDM projects have no compliance buffer, insurance, or other provisions to address permanence. Project-level REDD+ credits are also not eligible due to important concerns about leakage.
Gold Standard Verified Emission Reductions from A/R projects are eligible because of the management of both permanence and leakage. We have now applied these same principles to our new Soil Organic Carbon Framework Methodology with a goal of scaling this important new opportunity to sequester carbon in soils in the context of agricultural practices, grasslands and livestock management, and more.
3. Market mechanisms must be designed for resilience – striking the right balance to drive desired change.

4. More than ever, it is critical to support vulnerable communities and drive finance to assist those least responsible for climate change yet most affected by its impacts.
5. Corresponding adjustments may set an expectation beyond compliance.
