Does carbon trading/offset work?
Carbon trading, offsetting, carbon ‘neutral’ - most people will have heard of cheating or unworkable schemes but are there any projects of this kind which really produce a substantial net reduction of greenhouse gas emissions?The bottom line for any such scheme must be how much global greenhouse gases are reduced in total, taking everything into account. What is the best claim you know for a scheme of this kind? You can go to the Guardian website and look up Aubrey Meyer in the search facility to see his article criticising Al Gore’s role at the Kyoto summit and also look up Guy Shrubsole for a good review of carbon rationing applied at the personal and community levels.
The basic criticism is that the schemes allow people who are causing far more greenhouse gas emissions than they should to continue - with a clear conscience. Compare this with a just and comprehensive rationing system, in which everyone has to make a proportionate reduction in emissions. Which approach is more likely to gain sufficent support and achieve sufficent emissions reductions?
If you are interested in this discussion there are two ways you can take part. Either send your ideas by e-mail to Morris Bradley at [email protected] and I will try to reflect them in this posting and/or e-mail me that you would like to be invited to a discussion (on this topic) with not more than five people so that the issues can be tackled in depth. The discussion will be arranged on a weekday from 6.0 pm to 7.30pm or on a Saturday from 2.0 to 3.30pm in central Edinburgh. You need to give me a list of several possible dates so that I can coordinate a suitable group of people. Click More for references -
Book list Contraction and Convergence, Aubrey Meyer.
Web article - 4/5/07 Climate Change can be atckled
News list - 6/8/07 Green means slow for this government/ 8/8/07 Its personal - carbon targets for individuals/ 6/8/07 Focus on carbon is missing the point/ 3/8/07 Tougher carbon targets law urged/ 27/7/07 MPs support carbon offset schemes/ 23/7/07 Carbon offsets deliver where it matters/ 16/7/07 Inconvenient truth about carbon offset industry/ 11/7/07 New thinking needed on climate2/6/07 Abuse/mismanagement in fight against global warming/ 26/4/07 Science holds the key to climate change/