The episode details several high-profile examples of carbon offset failures:
The story of refers to the main segment of Last Week Tonight with John Oliver , which aired on August 21, 2022 . The episode dives into the "Wild West" of the voluntary carbon market, exploring why these popular tools for achieving "net-zero" goals are often deeply flawed. The Premise: The "Net-Zero" Illusion [S9E21] Carbon Offsets
The episode begins by highlighting how major corporations—from airlines to oil giants—heavily promote their "carbon-neutral" status. They do this by purchasing , certificates representing the removal or prevention of one metric ton of CO2cap C cap O sub 2 elsewhere in the world to "cancel out" their own emissions. The Core Problem: Additionality The episode details several high-profile examples of carbon
: An investigation highlighted in the show revealed that up to 90% of rainforest carbon offsets approved by major certifiers like Verra were likely "worthless" or "junk" credits. They do this by purchasing , certificates representing
Mapped: The impacts of carbon-offset projects around the world
: Credits are often sold for protecting forests that weren't actually in danger of being cut down. Oliver mocks this as "paying someone not to do something they weren't going to do anyway."