When it comes to achieving net zero, not all approaches are equal. The key is to understand how you’ll decarbonise, so you can maximise the impact and reach your goals.
Understanding the difference between removals and insets is a crucial step in developing a solid carbon management strategy. These two approaches to climate mitigation differ in their definitions, applications, and impacts within carbon accounting. Let’s dive into what sets them apart and how they can be effectively applied.
Removals
Carbon removals capture and store CO₂ (carbon dioxide) from the atmosphere. Key characteristics include:
Sequestration
This refers to the process of capturing CO₂ from the atmosphere and storing it long-term in vegetation, soils, oceans, or underground.
Projects
Removals are typically standalone efforts that capture and store CO₂ from the atmosphere, like the activities in our customer stories or larger initiatives like subsidised planting schemes.
Types
Removals can be biological (e.g. tree planting) or technological (e.g. direct air carbon capture).
Quantifiable
The amount of CO₂ removed can be measured and verified.
Note: When these removals are integrated directly within a company's operations or supply chain, they are typically considered insets.
Here’s how removals might work in a real-world scenario:
Imagine a Waikato dairy farm working with a milk processor. By planting native trees on less productive land, the farm can increase the CO₂ captured and stored in the vegetation on their land. This not only helps fight climate change but can also boost biodiversity, improve water quality while reducing erosion, and provide shade for livestock. The milk processor can support these efforts by funding the planting, integrating the carbon removals into their sustainability strategy and offering farmers further incentives to manage and maintain their forests.
Insets
Insets are nature-based carbon reduction or removal activities embedded within a company’s own operations or supply chain. These are direct actions within the business that target nature-based solutions to reduce the company’s carbon footprint. The defining features include:
Internal Focus
Insets are actions taken within a company’s own operations or supply chain, directly influencing their carbon footprint.
Broader Scope They typically include nature-based solutions aimed at removing carbon (e.g. planting trees on company land) but can also involve reductions* within the supply chain that enhance carbon storage or decrease land-based emissions.
Control and Responsibility Companies have direct control over these activities and are responsible for their success.
Dual Impact Insets benefit the environment while also enhancing other aspects of the business.
Here’s how this could look in practice:
Picture a sheep farm partnering with a wool processor to produce premium merino wool that’s carbon neutral. The farm adopts regenerative farming techniques and plants forests to increase carbon removed and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. These practices not only capture carbon but also provide resilience to the farm by improving soil health and biodiversity. The wool processor supports these efforts by offering financial backing and providing access to technology to help monitor and verify the carbon removals on the farm, integrating these insets into their sustainability and supply chain strategy.
A side-by-side comparison
Aspect | Removals | Insets |
Scope | Can be standalone or part of larger initiatives | Integrated within an company's value chain |
Focus | Capturing and storing CO₂ from the atmosphere | Reducing emissions* and removing carbon within company operations |
Implementation | Can occur anywhere | Must happen within the company’s operations or supply chain |
Control | Often managed by third parties or external partners | Managed directly by the company |
Examples | Planting new forests, restoring existing forests, direct air capture | Tree planting on company land or within the supply chain |
Measurement & Verification | Typically follow protocols established by carbon markets | Typically rely on company-specific or industry-standard metrics tied to nature-based mitigation. |
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Understanding the difference between carbon removals and insets is key to building a strong carbon management strategy. While carbon removals focus specifically on capturing and storing CO₂ from the atmosphere, insets refer to climate mitigation activities integrated within a company’s value chain, which can include both removals and emission reductions*. Knowing these distinctions helps you plan, execute, and communicate your decarbonisation journey more effectively.
Interested in learning more about how you can incorporate forest carbon removals and insets into your sustainability strategy? Visit our website to learn more or contact our team for more information.
*Note: Currently no reduction credits exist under the NZ ETS.
Glossary
Carbon Accounting: Methods used to calculate the amount of carbon dioxide emissions produced or removed by a project, organisation, or activity.
Carbon Footprint: The total amount of greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide and methane, that are emitted directly or indirectly by human activities, measured in carbon dioxide equivalents.
Carbon Neutral: A state in which the net carbon emissions of an organisation, product, or individual are equal to zero, achieved by balancing emitted carbon with an equivalent amount of carbon removal or offset.
Carbon Removals: Methods and processes that actively remove carbon dioxide (CO₂) from the atmosphere, often involving natural or technological solutions.
Carbon Sequestration: The process of capturing and storing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, typically through natural processes like tree growth, direct air capture, or soil management.
Carbon Inset: Climate mitigation activities within a company’s own supply chain or value chain, aimed at reducing or removing carbon emissions directly under the company's control.
Emission Reductions: Actions taken to decrease the amount of greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere from various sources.
Regenerative Farming: Agricultural practices that restore and enhance soil health, increase biodiversity, and improve water cycles, often resulting in increased carbon sequestration.
Sequestration: The process of capturing and storing carbon dioxide over the long term in plants, soils, oceans, or underground.
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