What is ISO 14030‑1 about?
With countries around the world stepping up their efforts to reduce carbon emissions, the market for green bonds is booming. However, clear criteria and guidelines are required for a project to qualify as a green bond project. ISO 14030‑1 addresses this need.
ISO 14030‑1 is the first part of the multi-series on green debt instruments and focuses on green bonds. ISO 14030‑1 establishes principles, specifies requirements, and gives guidelines for designating bonds that finance eligible projects, assets, and supporting expenditures as “green”, for managing and reporting on the use of proceeds, for defining, monitoring, and reporting on their environmental impacts, for reporting to interested parties, for validation and verification.
Note: ISO 14030‑1 applies to any issuer of bonds.
Who is ISO 14030‑1 for?
ISO 14030‑1 on green bonds is useful for:
- Governments and companies involved in green projects
- Environmental consultants and specialists
- Environmental Management Systems managers
- Regulatory bodies that verify project eligibility
Why should you use ISO 14030‑1?
Industrialization, population growth, and other global trends have resulted in environmental impacts with negative societal and economic consequences. Significant financial resources are required to confront these growing challenges. These financial resources come from the public in the form of green bonds. Since the average investor wouldn’t mind contributing positively to the environment while also making money, green bonds become an attractive investment option.
ISO 14030‑1 expands on the Green Bond Principles (GBP) to provide specific requirements and guidance for the designation and verification of green bonds. ISO 14030‑1 becomes vital to prevent misleading marketing for projects. The objective is to provide market participants and other interested parties with a common framework for designating a bond as “green” and provide clarity in the marketplace and improve the credibility of bonds designated as “green” that helps to achieve by setting requirements for the allocation of funds to projects, assets and supporting expenditures and reporting requirements on the results of expected impacts.
