SBTi releases an official clarification to its Scope 3 statement

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Considering the recent controversies surrounding the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) changing its stance on offsetting Scope 3 emissions, the Board of Trustees has issued an additional clarification to its initial statement.

SBTi made headlines last week, first by announcing plans to provide guidance to companies on offsetting their Scope 3 emissions through the purchase of carbon credits. Subsequently, turmoil ensued within the organization.

Initially, the announcement garnered positive reception from stakeholders across the board, who viewed the initiative as a significant advancement toward decarbonization and facilitating funding for carbon projects globally.

Shortly thereafter, SBTi staff members penned a protest letter, rejecting the Board's statement and criticizing the lake of a science-based approach to the "guardrails and thresholds" for offsetting Scope 3 emissions.

The staff called for the CEO and the Board of Trustees to resign, while expressing its regrets for the way, in which the announcement had undermined the SBTi’s credibility and had caused concern and confusion among ‘crucial stakeholders’.

The staff demanded the resignation of the CEO and the Board of Trustees, expressing regret over how the announcement had eroded the SBTi's credibility and caused concern and confusion among "crucial stakeholders."

To address the situation and alleviate the resulting chaos, the SBTi Board of Trustees issued a clarification to its initial statement, affirming that "any use of EACs for Scope 3 will be informed by evidence."

The statement further states, “Any change to SBTi standards, including use of EACs for Scope 3, will be conducted according to previously approved SBTi Standard Operating Procedure for developing standards, including Research, Drafting, Public consultation, Technical council review and approval, and Consideration and adoption by the SBTi board.”

In July, a discussion paper containing a draft proposal from SBTi regarding potential changes to Scope 3 will be published.