‘Additionality’ is an essential component of any carbon offset project. This means that the project must not have gone ahead but for the investment of the funds from carbon offset clients; it must represent new activity over and above the baseline or ‘business as usual’ scenario. In order  to make this easy to demonstrate and transparent, co2balance only invests its clients’ funds  in projects that are at least 50% funded by carbon offset payments. It is sometimes argued (not by co2balance) that a project is additional where just a few percent of a project’s capital originates from offset funding. We at co2balance do not find this a credible approach, hence our minimum 50% rule. We are not aware of any other offset provider with such a high standard.

As well as the visible additionality, we provide further assurance through third party auditors who validate our claims.

In order to be counted as real reductions, offset projects, such as co2balance's popular energy efficient stoves, must be 'additional'. This means that the project only becomes viable as a result of the funding raised through the sale of the carbon credits that they generate. For example, UK wind farms cannot generate carbon offsets as they are viable in their own right through the sale of electricity and government subsidies, so they are built in any case and form part of the 'business as usual' scenario.

Sadly, many carbon offsets sold are generated from projects that are not additional; they are not real and should be avoided. From the outset, co2balance's projects have been organised differently. In fact 100% of the funds for our in-house projects is generated through the sale of carbon offsets. It is therefore very clear to the layman that without the sale of offsets the project could not possibly proceed.