The concern around green credits is that they rely on tree survival instead of preservation of ecosystems, which may incentivise plantations, as highlighted by Gautam Aredath, a policy analyst from Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE).

“The idea that destruction of a single contiguous 937-hectare patch of dense forest can be offset by 23 fragmented patches in a completely different ecological zone is untenable,” said Sharachchandra Lele, distinguished fellow at the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment. “The FAC itself notes that a majority of the land already has forest cover. How this qualifies as ‘afforestation’ is unclear.”