The Hidden Gigaton: Why Super Pollutants Are Carbon Markets’ Blind Spot

The Hidden Gigaton: Why Super Pollutants Are Carbon Markets’ Blind Spot5 May1 h 01 min

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In this episode of This Week in Carbon, Rene Velasquez sits down with Fritz Troller, founder of Therm, to unpack one of the most overlooked challenges in climate: super pollutants.Often described as the “hidden gigaton,” these gases — including refrigerants, methane, and fluorinated gases — are responsible for a disproportionate share of near-term warming. As Fritz explains, nearly half of global heating to date has been driven by super pollutants — yet they remain largely invisible in mainstream carbon market conversations. The critical difference? Unlike CO₂, super pollutants cannot be removed once released into the atmosphere. That makes prevention — not removal — the only viable strategy.The conversation dives into:<ul><li>Why refrigeration systems are a massive, under appreciated emissions source</li><li>The “leaky infrastructure” problem across global food supply chains</li><li>How carbon finance is being used to incentivise avoidance at source</li><li>The rise of super pollutant credits — and why buyers like Google and JPMorgan are paying attention</li><li>The growing role of insetting across supply chains (upstream and downstream)</li><li>Why this category is consistently receiving top-tier ratings from agencies like BeZero and Calyx</li><li>The opportunity — and urgency — of scaling solutions across Article 5 (Global South) markets</li></ul>Fritz also outlines Therm’s multi-channel strategy across voluntary markets, compliance systems, and insetting — offering a rare look at how to build resilience in a still-evolving carbon market.This is a timely discussion on a category that may lack the storytelling appeal of nature-based solutions — but from a pure climate impact perspective, may be among the most important levers we have.