Moving forward after COP30: Driving transparency in clean transport

The state of play: big promises, uneven progress

Transport accounts for almost a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions, with road vehicles still responsible for the largest share. Ambition across the sector has grown quickly. Airlines are pursuing sustainable aviation fuel, shipping is testing new fuel pathways and parts of the road sector are accelerating electrification. Yet real world progress has not kept pace with the headlines.

Some areas are shifting, others are not. Road transport is inching forward, whereas aviation and maritime continue to face tighter constraints, from limited fuel availability to infrastructure that is nowhere near ready for large scale change. Even where promising options exist, buyers often hesitate because the underlying evidence is inconsistent, hard to compare or difficult to verify.

The scrutiny is increasing. Regulators, investors and customers want clearer assurance about what makes a fuel genuinely sustainable and how its emissions have been measured. Without that shared understanding, projects that look viable on paper run into delays when claims cannot be substantiated.

After COP30, the sector is not short of ambition. What it lacks is confidence that sustainability claims are grounded in reality. Stronger definitions, better data at the start of the value chain and credible assurance will determine whether clean transport now accelerates or continues to stall.

A better route to decarbonisation: three steps, not one

Too often, policy has focused on targets first and rules second. After COP30, it is time to invert the sequence.

Step 1: agree what is genuinely sustainable

The starting point is the sustainability of feedstocks and energy sources. We need a common, science based understanding of which resources can reasonably be considered sustainable and under what conditions. This means looking beyond carbon to their impact on biodiversity, land use, air quality and human and ecosystem health.

Step 2: define clear rules and limits

Once feedstocks are agreed, we need to define the limits and characteristics they must meet. These include acceptable carbon intensity ranges, safeguards on land and water and transparent, auditable methods for verifying compliance. This work must be carried out through a wide, open, global process involving scientists, industry and civil society. COP30 has shown the value of such collaboration and the need to continue it.

Step 3: set ambitious and realistic goals

Only when the foundations are in place should we set targets and timelines. If ambition is informed by strong scientific, industrial and environmental evidence, it can be stretching without being unrealistic. It also allows industry to prepare, anticipate trade implications and invest with greater confidence that standards will remain stable.

This sequence sounds straightforward, although it is very different from how many regimes have evolved. The consequences of reversing it are also clear, including the emergence of unintended incentives such as unsustainable imports that exploit loopholes in current systems.

Certification and chain of custody: learning from experience

Europe has often been considered a forerunner in sustainable fuel rules. Regulations on renewables, fuel quality and vehicle emissions have shaped global markets. Voluntary schemes were expected to provide robust certification that ensured biofuels and other renewable fuels met strict sustainability and traceability standards.

In practice, progress has been mixed. Issues such as the rise in reported imports of used cooking oil from parts of Asia highlight the challenges. The volumes claimed were not plausible and evidence suggests that other feedstocks were being misclassified to access incentives. Certification schemes did not prevent this, undermining trust and prompting accusations of greenwashing.

This experience illustrates that certification must go beyond minimum compliance. It must test whether volumes, sourcing and claimed impacts are plausible and whether the value chain can be reconstructed from raw material to delivered fuel. LRQA is entering this space with a commitment to thorough, evidence-based verification that strengthens confidence in how fuels are produced and traded.

Data quality and GHG numbers: focus on the first point in the chain

The most critical point in the value chain is the origin of the feedstock used to produce low carbon fuels. If unsustainable biomass is created solely to meet targets, or if waste streams expand artificially because any volume can be absorbed, the climate benefit evaporates.

This is why the strictest surveillance and verification must be applied at the start of the chain. This is where we can prevent incentives that encourage the wrong outcomes, prioritise locally sourced materials and ensure that waste and residue streams are genuine. Once this first link is secure, later stages can be supported by systems level assurance and well documented mass balance or book and claim approaches.

For producers and buyers, credible data in 2025 should include transparent lifecycle boundaries, GHG verified emissions and traceable, auditable material flows. Better data at the start does not slow progress. It accelerates it, because everyone in the chain is working from the same facts.

Green claims, credibility and the case for simple common rules

Regulators and courts are increasingly challenging sustainability claims that lack clear evidence. Recent cases in aviation and energy show that claims about green or carbon neutral services must be backed by robust data, transparent methodologies and a clear distinction between emission reductions and offsets.

The European Union’s work on a Green Claims framework, although currently paused, points towards a sensible direction of travel. Claims should be substantiated, independently verified and presented transparently. Generic terms such as eco friendly should not be used unless supported by evidence. Transport can benefit from the same approach.

Public claims and access to finance should only be possible when they meet defined criteria for substantiation, verification and transparency. This does not mean more labels. It means fewer, clearer and more reliable rules.

What clean transport needs after COP30

Now that COP30 has concluded, attention must shift to the practical steps that will make transport decarbonisation credible and scalable. Three priorities stand out.

1. Common sustainability requirements for feedstocks

A shared global minimum for what counts as a sustainable feedstock, covering carbon intensity, biodiversity, land use and social safeguards.

2. A common basis for substantiated decarbonisation claims

Clear rules for how low carbon claims are substantiated, verified and communicated, including lifecycle boundaries and expectations for disclosure.

3. Practical pathways to mutual recognition

Mechanisms that allow verified claims to be recognised across borders without complete rework, provided they meet agreed minimum criteria. This would reduce friction and give financiers the confidence to link terms to assured outcomes.

These steps are essential for turning pilots into scale across aviation, shipping and heavy road transport.

The role of assurance: from loopholes to momentum

Assurance is sometimes viewed as a constraint. In reality it is how we close the loopholes that have undermined trust and slowed progress. When assurance is embedded early it strengthens traceability, clarifies which feedstocks and pathways are in scope and provides a reliable basis for compliance with evolving green claims rules.

It is also how financiers and buyers gain confidence that projects will deliver. Verified milestones and GHG assured outcomes create a clearer risk picture and can improve commercial terms.

Eco Engineers and LRQA’s role is shifting in response. By bringing together GHG verification, sustainability assessment and robust certification, we can help fuel producers, operators and buyers convert good intentions into delivery that stands up to scrutiny long after the press release has faded.

What this means for business

For airlines, shipping lines, road fleet operators and fuel producers, the message is clear. Build credibility into the plan.

• Begin with feedstock sustainability.
• Align with emerging common rules.
• Strengthen certification and traceability.
• Link finance and contracts to verified outcomes.
• Use independent assurance as a strategic tool for reducing risk and accelerating progress.

Now that COP30 has closed, the priority is shifting decisively from ambition to delivery. The transport sector has the will to move. With clearer rules, stronger data and credible assurance, it now has the opportunity to move at speed.