Climate Action and Sustainability Plan June 2021 | Page 30

Carbon Offsets

Future research is needed on different carbon offset programs , or when and if the purchase of carbon offsets is prudent for Mount Auburn . There is also the possibility of investing in physical forest or land as a carbon sink . According to https :// www . offsetguide . org / understanding-carbonoffsets / carbon-offset-programs / registries-enforcement /, “ there are several registries in the voluntary offset market , which have been developed by governments , non-profits , and the private sector . The following voluntary registries are currently operating :

• American Carbon Registry ( ACR ): https :// americancarbonregistry . org

• APX Inc . https :// apx . com , administers the following offset registries : o

Gold Standard Registry : https :// www . goldstandard . org / resources / impact-registry o Climate Action Reserve ( CAR ): https :// www . climateactionreserve . org /

• Markit : https :// ihsmarkit . com / products / environmental-registry . html , administers the following offset registries :

o Social Carbon Registry : http :// www . socialcarbon . org / developers / registry / o

Plan Vivo Registry : http :// www . planvivo . org / plan-vivo-certificates / markitregistry /

• Verra : https :// verra . org /, https :// verra . org / project / vcs-program /

o Climate , Community , & Biodiversity Standards ( CCBS ) Registry : https :// verra . org / project / ccb-program /

This Climate Action Plan is not endorsing any particular registry or plan . The American Public Gardens Association APGA is using Terrapass ( https :// www . terrapass . com / product / businesscarbon-offset ) as a vehicle for purchasing carbon offsets .

The registries need to be reviewed for their ability to track and retire RECs and / or offsets to ensure they are not being sold more than once . Ensuring there is verification of the offsets or the projects providing the offsets will provide confidence in the selected registry or program . An NPR story , Do Carbon Offsets Actually Work ?, aired on April 30 , 2021 can be found in the Appendix . The purchase of carbon offsets needs to be studied carefully . An investment in additional land as a carbon sink may be a more prudent and local approach for Mount Auburn .

Mount Auburn Cemetery | Climate Action & Sustainability Plan 25