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

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:

• Why refrigeration systems are a massive, under appreciated emissions source
• The “leaky infrastructure” problem across global food supply chains
• How carbon finance is being used to incentivise avoidance at source
• The rise of super pollutant credits — and why buyers like Google and JPMorgan are paying attention
• The growing role of insetting across supply chains (upstream and downstream)
• Why this category is consistently receiving top-tier ratings from agencies like BeZero and Calyx
• The opportunity — and urgency — of scaling solutions across Article 5 (Global South) markets

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.