Apple announces new $200 million carbon removal initiative

Apple has today announced a brand new environmental initiative for carbon removal called the Restore Fund.

In a press release the company stated:

Apple today announced a first-of-its-kind carbon removal initiative — called the Restore Fund — that will make investments in forestry projects to remove carbon from the atmosphere while generating a financial return for investors. Launched with Conservation International and Goldman Sachs, Apple's $200 million fund aims to remove at least 1 million metric tons of carbon dioxide annually from the atmosphere, equivalent to the amount of fuel used by over 200,000 passenger vehicles, while demonstrating a viable financial model that can help scale up investment in forest restoration.

Apple's VP of environment, policy, and social initiatives Lisa Jackson said "Nature provides some of the best tools to remove carbon from the atmosphere. Forests, wetlands, and grasslands draw carbon from the atmosphere and store it away permanently in their soils, roots, and branches" and that the fund would generate a financial return as well as "real, and measurable carbon impacts".

The Restore Fund will use international standards from organizations like Verra:

To ensure that the carbon stored in forests is being accurately quantified, and permanently locked out of the atmosphere, the Restore Fund will use robust international standards developed by recognized organizations such as Verra, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and the UN Climate Convention. And it will prioritize investments in working forests that improve biodiversity through the creation of buffer zones and natural set-asides.

Earlier this week Apple co-signed a letter backing President Biden's climate change plans, whilst calling for SEC-backed disclosure of emissions for public companies.