Corporate and industry media is replete with greenwashing rhetoric about the achievement of 'net zero' or 'net positive' carbon emissions by such a date. Even governmental policy statements make frequent references to these goals. Often some very questionable accounting approaches are used to calculate actual or alleged carbon savings, and seldom is third-party verification part of the equation. I would welcome more scholarly expertise that might ease my skepticism.
Thank you for this observation. Recent articles in the Guardian report on efforts to eliminate 'greenwashing' in pronunciations by companies using terms such as 'net-zero' or 'carbon-neutral' - terms often used by governments in policy statements or program announcements. All such policies and programs must be fact-based and independently verified in order to accurately measure the real story about carbon removal from the atmosphere.
This is a great idea, in principle. Unfortunately, in practice it helps perpetuate a belief in technological salvation and diminishes the sense of urgency surrounding the need to curb emissions now.
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