In a disappointing and dangerous outcome at the UN’s climate change conference COP29, governments have agreed to an alarming decision to pass through final documents that adopt crucial final aspects of Article 6 of the Paris Agreement.

This decision has sparked outrage among civil society, Indigenous Peoples, and climate justice groups who recognize carbon markets for what they are—a false solution that detracts from the systemic changes needed to address the root causes of the climate crisis.

Tamra Gilbertson of the Indigenous Environmental Network said that the carbon markets in Article 6 of the Paris Agreement were pushed through COP 29 in a take it or leave it outcome.

“The lack of transparency and diplomacy signals a new dangerous era in climate change negotiations with the UNFCCC acting on behalf of the petrol states with impunity. Our next steps must ensure that geoengineering like carbon capture and storage and other false solutions that violate the rights of Indigenous Peoples are stopped”, Gilbertson said.

The decision to proceed with Article 6 carbon markets ignores mounting evidence that they do not deliver real emissions reductions and often lead to human rights abuses, land grabs, and violations of the rights of Indigenous Peoples.

They offer a distraction from genuine solutions like just transitions, restoration of natural ecosystems, and support for community-led initiatives that address the climate crisis at its roots.

They offer permits to pollute for the biggest polluting industries. 

Article 6 is not a solution to the climate crisis. It opens the door to a new global carbon market linked to Nationally Determined Contributions and will guarantee fossil fuel extraction and false solutions for decades to come. 

Geoengineering, like other false solutions, does not address the root causes of the climate crisis and relies on techno-fixes that are risky, speculative and likely to introduce grave new environmental and social threats, which will only worsen the climate chaos.

Kirtana Chandrasekaran from the Friends of the Earth International said the supposed ‘COP of climate finance’ has turned into the ‘COP of false solutions’. 

“The UN has given its stamp of approval to fraudulent and failed carbon markets. We have seen the impacts of these schemes: land grabs, Indigenous Peoples’ and human rights violations”, she said.

“The now operationalised UN global carbon market may well be worse than existing voluntary ones and will continue to provide a get out of jail free card to Big Polluters whilst devastating communities and ecosystems,” she added.

Just two weeks ago, the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) COP16 made a decision to reinforce the precautionary approach to geoengineering and reaffirmed the call for a global moratorium on geoengineering.

The decisions made at UNFCCC COP29 could undermine precaution on geoengineering called for by the biodiversity convention, which is a sister convention and this, and there should be coherence between both of them.