Embodied emissions accounting

Interest in engineered CDR (eCDR), such as direct air capture (DAC) and biomass carbon removal and storage (BiCRS), is growing rapidly. Purchase agreements for future delivery of eCDR grew sevenfold from 2022 to 2023, and nearly doubled in 2024.

A critical issue across eCDR projects is the proper accounting of “embodied emissions” – the emissions associated with the construction, maintenance and eventual decommissioning of infrastructure. Amortizing upfront embodied emissions can lead to ex-ante crediting, or issuing credits before a project has delivered real atmospheric benefit.

Readers will learn:

1. Where embodied emissions are and are not accounted for in today's methodologies
2. The impact of amortization on impact claims
3. Key recommended changes to mitigate risk from embodied emissions