A Renewable Carbon Manifesto

Defossilisation is essential for the chemicals and materials industry to meet both climate change targets and the continuing demand for embedded carbon – the carbon bound within molecules. This can only be achieved by using renewable carbon sources from biomass, direct use of CO₂ or recycling.

The manifesto outlines seven key messages to policymakers to make this transformation a reality:

1. Ensure that carbon embedded in chemicals and materials is given greater policy attention as an important driver of material-related emissions. Renewable carbon from biomass, direct CO₂ use and recycling must become a guiding principle for policies and targets regulating chemicals and materials.
2. Make a phase-out of fossil carbon from the subsurface for chemicals and materials by 2050 an explicit target.
3. Translate the 20% non-fossil carbon target for chemicals and plastics by 2030 from the Sustainable Carbon Cycles Communication into binding legislation and ensure implementation through concrete policy measures.
4. Establish a ‘Carbon Management Regulation’ to incentivise companies to replace fossil carbon from the ground with renewable alternatives.
5. Promote bio- and CO₂-based or attributed content in parallel with recycled content in product-related regulation.
6. Deploy Carbon Capture and Utilisation (CCU) as a key strategic net zero technology to provide sustainable and circular carbon.
7. Support the conversion of existing chemical infrastructure from fossil to renewable carbon and the conversion of biofuel plants into chemical suppliers, without discriminating against existing production from renewable feedstocks (including primary biomass).
You can support the RCI Manifesto for the next European Commission (2024–2029) with a simple online signature. AT

https://renewable-carbon-initiative.com/call-for-signature-rci-manifesto/