Comment les grands pollueurs mettent en avant un agenda “zéro émission nette” pour retarder, tromper et nier l’action climatique.

The report claims that "net zero" agendas are a form of greenwashing used by "Big Polluters" to avoid reducing emissions. It identifies these entities as industries responsible for the majority of historical emissions, including fossil fuels, agribusiness, and aviation. The document details how these actors use risky technologies like BECCS and carbon offsets as "dangerous distractions" and employ lobbying, financial contributions, and academic partnerships to shape climate policy in their favor. Case studies on JBS, Shell, and Total SA are used to illustrate how these plans often mask continued pollution and lead to land grabbing in the Global South.

• The concept of "net zero" is characterized as a deceptive tool that allows entities to continue or increase pollution by offsetting emissions through mathematically flawed equations and risky technologies.
• Major polluters rely on "dangerous distractions"—technologies and strategies that are either unproven, risky, or counterproductive—to avoid reducing emissions at the source.
• Carbon offset programs and REDD+ are described as forms of "carbon colonialism" (CO2lonialism) that shift the burden of climate action to vulnerable communities in the Global South and facilitate land grabbing.
• The report identifies eight fundamental failures in corporate net-zero policies, including being too vague, masking intentions to increase production, and ignoring scientific reality regarding land availability for offsets.
• Case studies reveal that companies like Total SA use net-zero goals to justify land acquisition in the Congo, potentially displacing indigenous Aka Pygmies and Bantu farmers to plant non-native trees.
• Shell's net-zero strategy is criticized for relying on nature-based solutions that would require a reforestation area nearly the size of Brazil to be viable.
• JBS, the world's largest meat producer, is accused of using a 2035 deforestation-free target to allow continued deforestation for another 14 years.
• Big Polluters influence international climate policy through organizations like the International Emissions Trading Association (IETA), which pushes for market-based mechanisms in the Paris Agreement.
• The report alleges that major polluters use "deck stacking" to influence academic research at prestigious institutions like Stanford, MIT, and Princeton to validate the net-zero concept.
• In the United States, the 45Q tax credit is cited as an example of a policy that subsidizes carbon capture and storage even when used for enhanced oil recovery to increase fossil fuel extraction.

APA

Bragg, J., Jackson, R. R., & Lahiri, S. (2021). Comment les grands pollueurs mettent en avant un agenda “zéro émission nette” pour retarder, tromper et nier l’action climatique. Friends of the Earth International. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/La-Grosse-Arnaque_FR.pdf

Chicago

Bragg, Jesse, Rachel Rose Jackson, and Souparna Lahiri. Comment les grands pollueurs mettent en avant un agenda “zéro émission nette” pour retarder, tromper et nier l’action climatique. Friends of the Earth International, 2021. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/La-Grosse-Arnaque_FR.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Bragg |first1=Jesse |last2=Jackson |first2=Rachel Rose |last3=Lahiri |first3=Souparna |title=Comment les grands pollueurs mettent en avant un agenda “zéro émission nette” pour retarder, tromper et nier l’action climatique. |publisher=Friends of the Earth International |date=June 2021 |url=https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/La-Grosse-Arnaque_FR.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{bragg2021comment, author = {Bragg, Jesse and Jackson, Rachel Rose and Lahiri, Souparna}, title = {{Comment les grands pollueurs mettent en avant un agenda “zéro émission nette” pour retarder, tromper et nier l’action climatique.}}, institution = {Friends of the Earth International}, year = {2021}, month = jun, url = {https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/La-Grosse-Arnaque_FR.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }