Twitter is banning advertisements that promote climate change denial in an effort to curb the reach of groups seeking to downplay the extent of the environmental crisis.

Under the new policy, advertisements that contradict the “scientific consensus” on climate change will be prohibited along with other types of banned-ads such as campaigns that contain violence, profanity or personal attacks. Twitter will be relying on reports from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, a unit within the United Nations, to inform its decisions about which advertisements break its rules, according to the company.

“We believe that climate denialism shouldn’t be monetized on Twitter, and that misrepresentative ads shouldn’t detract from important conversations about the climate crisis,” the company said in a blog post. “We recognize that misleading information about climate change can undermine efforts to protect the planet.”

Twitter’s Friday announcement — coinciding with Earth Day — is part of a larger trend by social media companies to address criticism from activists that they are doing too little to combat climate change disinformation campaigns from spreading rapidly on their massive networks on their sprawling networks.

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