In the race to tackle climate change, understanding the differences between carbon positive vs carbon negative has become increasingly important for businesses when devising a comprehensive sustainability strategy. As companies around the world look to reduce their carbon footprint, terms like “carbon neutral,” “carbon positive,” and “carbon negative” are becoming part of everyday conversations.
But what do these terms really mean, and how do they impact our efforts to combat the climate crisis? Keep reading as we dive into the nuances of carbon positive and carbon negative approaches and look at how businesses can balance emissions and contribute actively to reversing the impacts of climate change.
What does carbon positive mean?
Carbon positive refers to an approach where an organisation, process, or product removes more carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere than it emits, going beyond net-zero emissions. The goal of a carbon-positive strategy is not only to balance out emissions but to actively contribute to reducing the overall CO2 levels in the atmosphere, making a positive impact on climate change. For example, investing in projects that sequester carbon, like reforestation, afforestation, and soil carbon sequestration.
What does carbon negative mean?
Carbon negative is used to describe a process, organisation, or product that removes more carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere than it emits, resulting in a net reduction in atmospheric CO2 levels. Similar to carbon positive, it goes beyond carbon neutrality by not only offsetting emissions but actively reducing the overall amount of CO2 in the atmosphere. For instance, leveraging technologies that extract CO2 directly from the atmosphere and store it underground or repurpose it.
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Carbon positive vs carbon negative: Key differences
The terms carbon positive and carbon negative may sound similar but represent different approaches to managing CO2 emissions. Below is a breakdown of the key differences.
Scope of impact
Carbon positive focuses on reducing emissions and creating a net positive impact by either reducing emissions significantly or investing in offset projects that exceed emissions generated. By contrast, carbon negative aims to actually lower the global atmospheric CO2 concentration by removing more carbon than is emitted.
Methods used
Carbon-positive measures can include renewable energy use, energy efficiency measures, and purchasing high-quality carbon offsets that balance out emissions by investing in carbon reduction projects. On the other hand, achieving a carbon-negative status typically requires more intensive carbon removal techniques, such as the following:
- Direct Air Capture (DAC): Technologies that pull CO2 directly from the atmosphere and store it.
- Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS): Using biomass for energy, then capturing and storing the CO2 emissions.
- Large-Scale Reforestation or Soil Carbon Sequestration: These natural solutions capture and store CO2 over time.
Examples
A company that powers all operations with renewable energy minimises its emissions and purchases enough carbon offsets to exceed its own emissions could be considered carbon positive. Businesses that can be described as carbon-negative are those that invest in large-scale carbon capture technologies or remove more CO2 from the atmosphere than they emit through significant reforestation initiatives or advanced carbon capture.
Level of commitment
Carbon positive is often seen as a strong commitment to not just “do no harm” but to contribute positively to climate goals. It’s a proactive step beyond carbon neutrality. Carbon negative represents an even higher level of commitment, aiming to actively counterbalance the existing carbon load in the atmosphere. It is generally more challenging and costly to achieve, as it requires substantial removal efforts.
Impact on climate goals
Carbon positive helps to accelerate the journey toward net-zero emissions and supports climate action by reducing overall CO2 emissions. With this in mind, carbon negative directly contributes to reversing climate change by removing existing CO2 from the atmosphere, which is crucial for meeting ambitious climate goals like limiting global warming to 1.5°C.
Conclusion – Which is best?
A carbon positive approach provides a practical and impactful stepping stone, especially for companies that may not yet have the resources to achieve full-scale carbon removal. However, the IPCC has highlighted that to keep global warming below 1.5°C, we need to remove around 10 billion tonnes of CO2 emissions per year by 2050. With this in mind, it emphasises the necessity for carbon negative approaches.
In an ideal world, we would all aim for carbon negative, but taking any meaningful action toward reducing emissions is essential. Kickstart your journey toward impactful decarbonisation with our Certificate in Decarbonisation: Achieving Net Zero. This online CPD-certified course teaches participants how to develop decarbonisation plans and builds their carbon literacy so they can lead their organisations to net zero.
