Sunday, April 29, 2007

Carbon Offsets


This article in the International Herald Tribune, opinion page talks about carbon offsets. It covers the pluses and minuses of purchasing carbon offsets:

“But is the carbon-neutral movement just a gimmick?

On this, environmentalists aren't neutral, and they don't agree. Some believe it helps build support, but others argue that these purchases don't accomplish anything meaningful — other than giving someone a slightly better feeling (or greener reputation) after buying a 6,000-square-foot house or passing the million-mile mark in a frequent-flier program. In fact, to many environmentalists, the carbon-neutral campaign is a sign of the times — easy on the sacrifice and big on the consumerism.”

A summary of the article is this is an unregulated industry and it is unlikely that every carbon offset purchased is removing the CO2 that it claims.

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