civil-society-letter-on-the-clean-development-mechanism-1ad8bd0fdac36165.pdf

A coalition of 61 organizations argues that the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) should be terminated by 2020 to protect the integrity of the Paris Agreement. The authors claim the CDM undermines domestic climate action, has increased global greenhouse gas emissions due to 'junk' credits, and has led to human rights violations and inequitable benefit distribution.

• The CDM is described as a "zero-sum game" that discourages domestic climate action by allowing entities to emit if another reduces emissions by the same amount, which the authors argue sends a "wrong signal to countries" regarding their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
• The use of CDM credits has reportedly increased global greenhouse gas emissions; specifically, emissions in the EU rose by more than 650 million tonnes of CO2 because of CDM credits used within the EU Emissions Trading System.
• The vast majority of CDM projects are considered to lack environmental integrity, with only 2% likely to possess it, leading to the issuance of "junk" credits that do not result in actual emission reductions.
• CDM projects have been linked to human rights violations, particularly against indigenous peoples, including land exploitation and community displacement, citing the Barro Blanco hydrodam project as an example.
• The CDM has failed to distribute benefits equitably, with the majority of credits issued in fewer than five countries, leaving the most vulnerable and least developed countries with minimal profit.
• The CDM continues to register projects with documented adverse effects, such as coal power plants and large hydro dams, and lacks a system to remedy such impacts.

APA

Carbon Market Watch (n.d.). civil-society-letter-on-the-clean-development-mechanism-1ad8bd0fdac36165.pdf. https://carbonmarketwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Civil-society-letter-on-the-Clean-Development-Mechanism.pdf

Chicago

Carbon Market Watch. civil-society-letter-on-the-clean-development-mechanism-1ad8bd0fdac36165.pdf. n.d. https://carbonmarketwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Civil-society-letter-on-the-Clean-Development-Mechanism.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Carbon Market Watch |title=civil-society-letter-on-the-clean-development-mechanism-1ad8bd0fdac36165.pdf |url=https://carbonmarketwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Civil-society-letter-on-the-Clean-Development-Mechanism.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{carbonmarketwatchndcivilsocietyletteronthecleandevelopmentmechanism1ad8bd0fdac36165pdf, author = {{Carbon Market Watch}}, title = {{civil-society-letter-on-the-clean-development-mechanism-1ad8bd0fdac36165.pdf}}, publisher = {Carbon Market Watch}, url = {https://carbonmarketwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Civil-society-letter-on-the-Clean-Development-Mechanism.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }