Greenhouse gases are bad for the climate – trees are good – but can trees and transportation distances be reconciled? The new EU regulation says NO. That is why the use of the term “carbon neutral” is being restricted. Bild: ©Dee karen | Stock.Adobe.com

Tighter guidelines against greenwashing

In March 2024, the EU Green Claims Directive will come into force to help protect against greenwashing. By March 2026, the directive must be written into law and implemented by each EU member state. This means that environmental claims must be clearly verifiable. Something we at Green PearlsⓇ welcome!

EU restricts use of “carbon neutral” in advertising

You fly from A to B and pollute the atmosphere with climate-damaging emissions. Then you pay for compensation – does the flight count? This view is as simple as it is widespread – and wrong! Especially since the emissions from your flight have already been in the air for a long time and are not simply “swallowed” by a piece of protected rainforest! What’s more, these emissions are not just CO2, but also include things like nitrogen oxides (NOx), water vapor, and aerosol particles. This is comparing apples and oranges, and it is simply wrong.

The EU agrees, and in its new Green Claims Directive it will no longer allow companies to claim “climate neutral” or “CO2 neutral” if they rely solely on offsets.

Will the term “carbon neutral” still be allowed?

Since the laws have not yet come into effect, it is still unclear which companies will be allowed to call themselves “climate neutral” in the future. What is clear, however, is that simply offsetting emissions will no longer be enough. Instead, companies will have to ensure a significant reduction in their own greenhouse gas emissions. They must make every effort to ensure that avoidable emissions are actually avoided. This can be done through increased use of renewable energy, technological advances, new materials, shorter delivery distances, reduced packaging, and more.

However, it seems that companies actively involved in energy system transformation and environmental protection, such as our Green PearlsⓇ accommodations Hotel Milano Scala or OLM Nature Escape, which generate their electricity completely independently, can continue to advertise with the term “carbon neutral”.

However, some critics want to ban the term altogether.

Third-party climate projects are the final step

Atmosfair, for example, says that supporting climate projects through an external organization is not enough. Atmosfair offers individuals and companies the opportunity to offset their emissions through their own climate projects. For example, instead of planting forests, Atmosfair promotes the development of solar energy and supports socially oriented environmental projects in which poorer population groups receive more efficient stoves or learn how to use biomass.

Conclusion

Carbon neutrality is not for sale. The new EU directives make this clear and support sustainable tourism without greenwashing, which is what we advocate here on the Green Travel Blog. Companies should start with themselves and try to avoid or reduce harmful emissions. After that, supporting climate projects is of course a commendable thing to do! And the same goes for us as individuals 🙂