To meet legally binding carbon caps European firms have to submit permits for every tonne of pollution they emit. They are allowed to buy some from other parts of the the world where reductions in emissions have been achieved.
Projects in developing countries are awarded permits for every tonne of pollution they reduce. Permits generated in this way are certified by the UN and known as CERs or ERUs. A limited number of these can be used by EU companies to comply with their legally binding emissions caps.
Our map allows anyone interested in the issue of international offsetting to explore exactly who is buying what from whom. We have matched the projects that are generating permits to the European installations which are using them to comply with their caps.