As the prior sections make clear, carbon credits are not a typical commodity. Although crediting programs provide some assurance, purchasing higher-quality carbon credits is not as simple as buying any “certified” credit issued by a crediting program. Some credit buyers can invest the time and resources to research and discover good projects and procure higher-quality credits. For many (if not most) buyers, that approach is not realistic. In this section, we describe – and assess the pros and cons of – some strategies for steering clear of lower-quality carbon credits. These include:
- Buying credits issued by independently recognized crediting programs
- Avoiding cheaper credits
- Avoiding older credit “vintages”
- Making up for low-quality by “discounting” or “over-buying”