Shopify Head of Sustainability Stacey Kauk evaluates the long-term structural and regulatory future of the carbon removal industry.
Opinion
Stacey Kauk says carbon removal is waste management, not venture capital
“The reality is that carbon removal's in the VC world right now because there's no funding from elsewhere. And I don't see this being a long-term financing solution, because carbon removal is waste management. Like, it's just cleaning the air, like, we clean ou…”
Prediction Not checkable as stated
Stacey Kauk predicts carbon removal takes 30 years to become a commodity
“In order to function properly, we need to end up in a place where a ton is a ton is a ton, and there's two reasons for that. One, it, Provides that level playing field on the side of the suppliers, but it also provides a level requirement across companies or w…”
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Stacey Kauk says some carbon removal startups sell credits below cost
“One, they're gonna charge the cost. Their price is equal to the cost. And then there are other companies that their price Is less than the cost, and they're taking a loss because they want to come out, and they are having, they have a different business strate…”
Insight
Stacey Kauk says early-stage carbon removal startups take three years to deliver
“That's what we're seeing play out is, you know, it is about three years before you can get those deliveries, because when we're making those purchase decisions, often we don't have full visibility, and neither does the company.”
Disclosure
Shopify relies on internal standards rather than existing registry protocols
“So when we started, we began, it was, we didn't trust a credit that came out against an established protocol on a existing registry.
We reviewed everything and went through it and set ourselves a new internal standard for what we would buy.
so no, we do that …”
Opinion
Stacey Kauk says natural carbon removal is cheaper due to lower energy
“For me, in terms of what's hot, what's not, I really like carbon removal that enhances natural systems, because they use less energy, which makes them more cost effective.”