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  • Glossary item | Last updated: 19 Mar 2024

Carbon neutrality

Bioeconomy

Net zero carbon emissions to the atmosphere during the energy production process (infrastructures excluded).

JRC, 2014, European Commission, Joint Research Centre – IET, Carbon accounting of forest bioenergy : Conclusions and recommendations from a critical literature review, Agostini, A., Giuntoli, J., Boulamanti, A., Marelli, L., 2014, EUR 25354 EN, Luxembourg. Publications Office of the European Union, 2014.

Source category: EC Technical Documents

Condition in which anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions associated with a subject are balanced by anthropogenic CO2 removals. The subject can be an entity such as a country, an organisation, a district or a commodity, or an activity such as a service and an event. Carbon neutrality is often assessed over the lifecycle including indirect (‘scope 3’) emissions, but can also be limited to the emissions and removals, over a specified period, for which the subject has direct control, as determined by the relevant scheme.

IPCC, 2022, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Sixth Assessment Report (AR6) 'Climate Change 2022: Mitigation of Climate Change'.
 
Source category: International Organisation